Nov. 8, 2012

By Taylor Smyth, Maryland Media Relations Student Assistant

COLLEGE PARK, MD. - As the broadcaster looks down from his perch high above the field, he observes the tiny dots below. The players are new, the staff is different and the stadium has changed, but nothing can take away the rush he experiences when the broadcast begins.

There is a reason that sports history can be recounted in audio clips. The moments that we consume as viewers are enhanced by the people that call the action, their voices becoming synonymous with the moments.

While the players and coaches have changed over the past 34 years at Maryland, the one constant, the deliverer of Terrapin moments, has been veteran play by play man, Johnny Holliday.

The legendary broadcaster, with his excitable delivery and smooth style, will be honored by the Maryland State Athletics Hall of Fame with the John Steadman Lifetime Achievement Award on Thursday.

Ever gracious, Holiday was humbled by the honor.

"John Steadman was a terrific writer, and a wonderful guy that I knew quite well," Holliday said. "To be getting it in his name is very special."

Born and raised in Miami, Fla., Holliday initially made his name as one of the most respected disc jockeys in the country. Holliday hosted Top 40 shows from San Francisco to New York, with some of his work now featured in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

His versatility also allowed him to be the primary announcer for variety and news shows broadcast all over network television.

Holliday even dabbled in acting; both on stage and screen, but always felt that a transition to sports was inevitable.

"I always knew that I wanted to do sports. I started off playing records and I had some good success doing that. I really enjoyed it, but I knew one day I was going to give up the music and concentrate strictly on sports."

While Holliday has covered everything from the Olympics to the Masters in his time for ABC Radio, he is most well-known for his work at Maryland.

His career has seen him call the university's first ever national championship in basketball and multiple bowl game victories in football.

Holliday has always realized that there is no moment to be described without the athletes and coaches, and he cherishes relationships he has formed over the years.

"There have been so many great memories," Holliday said. "The national championship team, the Orange Bowl comeback, but the thing I'm really most impressed with is the kids you come in contact with. That means as much as anything."

Recently, Holiday was thrust into the spotlight during his time away from the Terrapins with the sudden emergence of the Washington Nationals. In his sixth season as the host of the pre and postgame coverage for MASN, Holiday enjoyed the team's sudden success.

"It was exciting, but disappointing at the end. It's a bunch of great young guys, and they're only going to get better as each year goes along."

Touted by his peers as a sports media legend, with honors ranging from the Baltimore Sports Media Hall of Fame to being honored as the Washingtonian of the Year, Holliday credits his tough upbringing for preventing him from taking any of the success for granted.

"I came from what I think was an average family. We didn't have much. My family didn't have the money to send me to college. I think that has given me the foundation to appreciate this. I've never thought of myself as being any different from the listener. I try to do the job to the best of my ability, and I'm fortunate to be able to do this."

Now 75 years old, the "Voice of the Terrapins" believes he is nowhere close to finished.

"They'll come a time when I say, `maybe I should back off a little bit', but I haven't reached that point yet. I look forward to going to work every day. With all the experience, it starts to become easier and I think you enjoy it more the longer you're in something like this."

Johnny Holliday has had a career any broadcaster would be proud of. From speaking to America's youth on Top 40 radio to calling some of the biggest sporting events in the world, he has done it all.

For Terrapin fans though, Holliday will always mean something more. Whenever they remember the game winning shot, exceptional performance or heartbreaking loss it will be Holliday's smooth tones that go along with them. A voice no Maryland fan will ever forget.