What made John Ward special? 'He understood what Tennessee fans wanted.'

Blake Toppmeyer | Knoxville

Show Caption Hide Caption Quick facts about John Ward Quick facts about legendary Vols broadcaster John Ward.

John Ward never practiced law, but his law degree from the University of Tennessee came in handy.

It helped shape his approach as the “Voice of the Vols.”

“That taught him how to use the language,” said Bob Kesling, who replaced Ward as lead announcer for the Vol Network in 1999. “It taught him to organize, taught him how to be prepared.”

More: UT Vols AD Phillip Fulmer on John Ward: 'Cherish the fact that John was ours'

Ward coupled his mastery of words with a composed flair for the dramatic to endear himself to Vols fans during his more than 30 years as the play-by-play radio broadcaster for Tennessee basketball and football games.

Ward died Wednesday. He was 88.

While acknowledging the sadness of Ward’s death, Steve Early, the Vol Network general manager, said he also feels “an element of appreciation and celebration.”

“John Ward belonged to us,” Early said. “He was a Tennessee Vol. Everyone else wished they had John Ward, but we had him.”

Preparedness was key

Ward arrived at games with a clipboard holding 30 to 40 pages of notes.

“He’d occasionally thumb through it during the game, but I think he had most of it memorized,” said Kesling, who was Ward’s spotter for broadcasts for 15 years.

Preparedness was one of Ward’s hallmarks, and he expected it from those who worked with him, too. As Kesling recalls, Ward told his colleagues before a big game: “I don’t need you excited. I don’t need you psyched up. I need you prepared.”

Kesling described Ward as “a perfectionist." On Mondays, Ward would have a multiple-page critique typed up of that Saturday’s broadcast ready to distribute to his colleagues.

No one was spared from those critiques, least of all Ward.

“The person he was hardest on was himself,” Kesling said.

Bob Kesling remembers John Ward Vol Network's lead announcer Bob Kesling speaks on his memories of John Ward

Ward’s best call

Ward was UT fans’ conduit to Vols athletics, in part because much of his career came during an era when most games weren’t televised.

He brought the game to that farmer working the fields on a fall Saturday, that couple having a weekend picnic or fans clinging to his every word in their living room.

“John just had that gift,” Kesling said. “He wasn’t a yeller and a screamer. He had the great control of his voice and his emotions. … He understood what Tennessee fans wanted, and he gave it to them in a pretty simple form.”

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If you look back at images of fans in the stands at Neyland Stadium in the 1970s and ‘80s, you’ll see many wearing headphones, said Link Hudson, the Vol Network’s senior director of broadcasting.

“Back then, you hear a voice, you know it’s special, and so you don’t want to miss it,” Hudson said. “When you’re in the stands, you do not want to miss what John had to offer and what he added to the game.”

Ward became known for catchphrases like “It’s football time in Tennessee!” at kickoff and “Give him six!” when the Vols scored a touchdown. For field goals, he’d let the drama build: “Did he make it? He made it.” A big shot in basketball was accompanied with “Bottom!”

“He was one of those special announcers that only come along every once in a while,” Kesling said. “He had a flair that a lot of guys don’t have. He didn’t fake it, and it wasn’t phony.”

Kesling’s favorite broadcast of Ward’s was the 1986 Sugar Bowl. The underdog Vols trounced Miami 35-7.

“He hit every single call that night,” Kesling said.

Many fans surely remember Ward’s call of Jeff Powell’s 60-yard touchdown run that put the Vols ahead 28-7. Ward ticked off the yardage as Powell approached the end zone.

“Fifteen, 10, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 … 60 yards, Jeff Powell. Touchdown, Big Orange!” Ward declared.

“He was perfect that night,” Kesling said of Ward.

Superstitious, too

Although Ward might be best remembered for his football broadcasts, former Tennessee sports information director Bud Ford believes Ward's best work came calling basketball games.

“I’ve always felt like basketball was his true calling. He was a tremendous basketball announcer,” said Ford, who worked in UT's sports information department from 1966 until 2011.

Basketball, plus superstition, is what led to Ward wearing a light blue towel around his neck during broadcasts.

In 1967, Tennessee beat Mississippi State 78-76 in triple overtime to secure the regular-season SEC title and an NCAA tournament bid.

One of the windowpanes at McCarthy Gymnasium in Starkville was busted, Kesling recalls.

“There was a draft coming through, and he was losing his voice at the end of the game, so he got that towel from one of the managers and wrapped it around his neck,” Kesling said. “And of course, Tennessee won.”

So the towel stuck.

What Ward traveled with

Ward, a Knoxville native, returned to his hometown after a stint in the Army and worked at an advertising agency. He called his work as a broadcaster his hobby.

Ward became the play-by-play voice for Vols basketball in 1965 and for football in 1968. He continued in those roles through the 1998-99 athletic season. Tennessee capped his final football season with a 13-0 record and a national championship.

Outside the broadcast booth, Ward is described as a prankster always up for a laugh. He also could be a quiet guy. In a crowded room, he might slip off toward a corner.

But he was never standoffish to Vols fans.

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Ward responded to fan mail and traveled with a satchel housing 8x10 photos of himself that he signed for fans if requested. It wasn’t a move to stroke his ego, Kesling said. Rather, Ward didn’t want an autograph seeker walking away with a signature on a scrap of paper or a napkin.

“John thought, ‘Well, we can do better than that,’” Kesling said.

“You still hear people all the time talk about what a great moment that was for (a fan) to be able to get this picture of John Ward, and a lot of them still have them hanging up in their rooms or offices.”

As Ford put it: “Our fans related to his voice, to what John’s calls were. He was Tennessee.”

Some of John Ward's most famous phrases

“GIVE HIM SIX!” (When Tennessee scored a touchdown)

“It’s Football Time … in Tennessee! (Right before kickoff)

“BOTTOM!” (Basketball phrase for a made shot)

“…down to the 30, 25, 20, slashing to the 15, the 10, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1… Give Him Six! Touchdown Tennessee!”

“The kick is up … Ladies and gentlemen that kick is G-O-O-O-O-O-D!”

“Back, in just one minute.”

“Did he make it? … HE MADE IT!”

“Winding, grinding, twisting, turning… diving ...” (description of a running play)