In May, Ramon Foster left his job as college football color commentator for the Tennessee Volunteers to take the same position with the NFL’s Tennessee Titans. And on Thursday, the Volunteers had a surprise in store for the new choice for their radio analyst job.
Mike Keith, the play-by-play voice of Volunteers football, walked into the studio for Knoxville’s 99.1 The Sports Animal’s Josh and Swain show and informed Jayson Swain that the former Tennessee wide receiver has been named color analyst for the Vol Network.
A familiar face (and voice) has been named the new football analyst on the @VolNetwork.
Congrats, VFL @SwainEvent!#GBO 🍊 pic.twitter.com/NmF1dAqCH2
— Tennessee Football (@Vol_Football) July 30, 2026
Great news: @SwainEvent is the new Vol Network football color analyst.@tennvoice stopped by our studio today to make the announcement. pic.twitter.com/BAe67ylNoL
— Josh Ward (@Josh_Ward) July 30, 2026
“I just came by to wish you a happy birthday,” Keith said to Swain. “A couple days late. Little belated.”
“Actually, I came by to do something else,” Keith explained. “We have a vacancy on the front row of the Vol Network radio booth for somebody to become the color analyst for Tennessee football broadcasts.”
“Oh my gosh,” Swain responded.
“At 3:30, on September 5th, against Furman at Neyland Stadium… Would you be willing to take that chair and be the new color analyst on the Vol Radio Network?”
“The cameras are rolling? Mics are on?” Swain asked.
“This is on the record,” Keith responded.
“Heck, yeah, man!” Swain said. “Let’s do it! Let’s rock, man!”
“You got it,” Keith said.
“Thank you so much,” Swain added. “What a surprise.”
“The Vol Network is nearly 80 years old. Some really special people have sat in that chair, because it’s a big deal to people of this state, and the surrounding states, and now around the world to listen to Tennessee football and to be part of General Neyland’s network, Lindsey Nelson’s network,” Keith continued. “All of those greats. John Ward, Bob Kesling. All the way down. Steve Early gave you your shot.
“There is no one I know who loves Tennessee more than Jayson Swain. And to be able to give the people of Tennessee, the Vol Network listeners, everyone who loves the big orange, somebody who’s going to show up prepared, excited, and passionate every single Saturday is the best gift that the Vol Network can give them. That’s you, Jayson Swain. Love you, brother. And I’m so happy to be able to come in here and interrupt your fine broadcast and tell you this news.”
Swain starred at wide receiver over four seasons with Tennessee from 2002 to 2006. He joined the Vol Network as a sideline reporter in 2021, and in 2005, he became a pregame, halftime, and postgame analyst. Now he’ll move up to color analyst duties for Tennessee games.
About Matt Clapp
Matt is an editor/writer at The Comeback and Awful Announcing.
He can be reached by email at mclapp@thecomeback.com.