Throughout his broadcasting career, Kevin Harlan has been known for rolling with unexpected circumstances. From remarkable calls of fans on the field or court to entertaining promo reads to memorable in-game descriptions (such as “LeBron James, with no regard for human life!”), Harlan’s prolific broadcast career has rarely seen him at even somewhat of a loss for words. But he hit at least a partial one Sunday when the NFL on CBS broadcast he was working on (Houston Texans at Cincinnati Bengals, with analyst Trent Green and reporter Melanie Collins) honored him for his 500th NFL TV broadcast:
500 NFL telecasts for Kevin Harlan 🎙
One of the best to do it 👏 pic.twitter.com/XApxwF284F
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) November 12, 2023
“I didn’t know that. You’ve caught me by surprise. I’d better call my wife and tell her. She’ll be surprised. ‘That’s where you’ve been all these Sundays!’, she’ll say. Well, thank you. Ken Mack, our producer, and Jim Cornell [the director], and you’re only as strong as the people you work with, like my buddy Trent Green. I’ve known him for so long. And it’s an honor to be with CBS.”
The 63-year-old Harlan started calling the NFL locally with radio broadcasts for the Kansas City Chiefs (1985-93, alongside the legendary Len Dawson), then went to national NFL TV broadcasts with NBC in 1991 (including work with Joe Namath, as in the photo at top from this tribute). At the age of 34, he then took on a regular NFL role with Fox when they started their coverage of the league in 1994, part of a notable youth movement in their coverage that year alongside Joe Buck (25), Kenny Albert (26), and Thom Brennaman (31). He then went to CBS in 1998 and has been a key figure on their NFL calls since, and has also been the lead NFL radio voice for Westwood One (including Monday Night Football and the Super Bowl) since 2009, a local preseason broadcaster for his hometown Green Bay Packers since 2003, a college football broadcaster for ESPN (1991-92), and a national NBA voice for Turner (since 1996), amongst many other jobs.
Harlan said this week to Mike Gill on the Announcers’ Schedules podcast that he has no desire to quit any time soon, saying “I’d like to go another 15 years, perhaps.” And that got referenced here as well. So there’s no imminent end to his announcing career. And that’s a good thing for the many who enjoy his work, from those game calls to the ad reads to fan calls to other notable moments across his football and basketball broadcasts. It was cool to see CBS honor Harlan this way, and hopefully he’ll have many more notable calls to come.
[NFL on CBS on Twitter]
