The list of career accolades for Mike Breen is growing even longer. Breen, known for his national work on NBA broadcasts on NBC and then ABC and ESPN (he joined them in 2003, and has been their lead NBA announcer since 2006) and his local work as the voice of the Knicks on WFAN (1992-97) and MSG (1998-present, as full lead broadcaster since 2004), has amassed a remarkable array of honors, including Broadcaster of the Year from the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association in 1998 and the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame’s Curt Gowdy Media Award in 2020. Now, Fordham University (Breen’s alma mater) radio station WFUV is set to present Breen with the Vin Scully Award for Excellence in Sports Broadcasting on Nov. 1. Here’s more on that from a WFUV release:
Mike Breen (FCRH ’83), the 2020 Curt Gowdy Award-winning Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer, New York Knickerbockers play-by-play announcer on MSG Networks and “Voice of the NBA on ABC/ESPN” will become the second Fordham University alumnus to receive the Vin Scully Award for Excellence in Sports Broadcasting from WFUV Radio (90.7 FM/wfuv.org). WFUV is the noncommercial, member-supported public media service of Fordham University. The station celebrates its 75th anniversary this fall.
WFUV will also present Emmy Award-winning CBS Evening News anchor and 60 Minutes correspondent Norah O’Donnell with the Charles Osgood Award for Excellence in Broadcast Journalism.
The Awards will be presented on Tuesday night, November 1, at On the Record: A Celebration of Achievement in News and Sports Broadcasting, a benefit for WFUV, in the Costantino Room at Fordham School of Law (150 W. 62nd Street, NYC).
…Said Breen: “When you are a Fordham graduate, a WFUV alumnus, and a play-by-play broadcaster, receiving an award named after Mr. Scully is the highest honor I could ever receive. Mr. Scully’s talent and skill on the air, and his character and integrity as a man, has made him the ultimate role model for me and countless broadcasters that span over generations. I am so humbled and grateful for this incredible honor.”
It’s neat to see Breen (seen above in 2019) receive this award in his 30th year of calling Knicks’ games. And it’s interesting to see it go to another Fordham graduate. The award recognizes overall excellence in sportscasting in honor of Fordham graduate Scully, but the winners aren’t always from that university.
Past recipients of the Vin Scully Award include Scully (2008), Dick Enberg (2009), Ernie Harwell (2010), Pat Summerall (2011), Al Michaels (2012), Bob Costas (2013), Verne Lundquist (2014), Mike “Doc” Emrick (2015), Brent Musburger (2016), Bob Wolff (2017), Michael Kay (2018), and Tim McCarver (2019). (The award was not presented in 2020 or 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.) Of those honorees, only Scully and Kay attended Fordham. And, interestingly enough, Kay was a classmate of Breen’s at Fordham. So it’s cool to see Breen join this group. And it’s interesting to hear how much it means to him.
[Photo from Kirby Lee/USA Today Sports]
