Kevin Burkhardt tends to get overshadowed on Sundays when he’s calling an NFL game next to Tom Brady, but in this instance, he’s getting the spotlight all to himself.
The Fox Sports lead NFL play-by-play announcer and MLB studio host has been named the recipient of the 2027 Pat Summerall Award, given annually to a national broadcaster or sports media personality who “exemplifies the characteristics that legendary broadcaster Pat Summerall wanted the award to represent – an individual who has had an outstanding career and made a significant impact in their community.”
Burkhardt joined Fox Sports in 2013 as an NFL play-by-play announcer and quickly worked his way up, alongside the network’s top analysts, and has called two Super Bowls so far. He also helms Fox’s baseball studio coverage, serving as lead host during the regular season. Sometimes those roles have overlapped, causing Burkhardt to juggle several sports and broadcasts one after another.
We can’t start the morning without talking about the incredible Game 7 of the World Series and our guy @kevinburkhardt flying from Toronto to Detroit at 3:15am to call today’s Vikings-Lions game 👏 pic.twitter.com/pNWUNS79lv
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) November 2, 2025
Created in 2006, the award is presented annually at the Legends for Charity Dinner, which benefits St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. This year’s event will be held Feb. 11, 2027, at the NFL Headquarters Hotel, the JW Marriott Los Angeles L.A., during Super Bowl LXI week.
Burkhardt joins an A-list of recent winners, including Kirk Herbstreit (2026), Hannah Storm (2025), Tony Romo (2024), and previous winners such as James Brown, Greg Gumbel, Jim Nantz, Chris Berman, Cris Collinsworth, Al Michaels, Michael Strahan, Joe Buck, and John Madden.
About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.