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A good, or bad, play-by-play announcer can make or break a game telecast for viewers. Luckily for TV networks and streamers, the sports media industry is brimming with young talents behind the mic.
Unlike past decades, more female play-by-players are getting their shot. À la Joe Buck and Noah Eagle, sports announcing is a family business. There’s a fourth-generation broadcaster with an impressive lineage who is rising up the ranks.
So who’s poised to become the next Buck, Eagle, Kevin Burkhardt, or Joe Davis? Who’s the future Adam Amin, Jason Benetti, or John Fanta? The next Ryan Ruocco or Michael Grady? In alphabetical order by last name, here are the top 26 talents to watch in the coming years:
Jay Alter: He made it to ESPN only two years after graduating from Syracuse in 2016. He’s now calling college football with analyst Rocky Boiman. The duo recently hosted Mizzou legend Sophie Cunningham in the booth while calling Mizzou-Louisiana. Alter also calls Premier Lacrosse League (PLL) games on ABC and ESPN platforms and contributes to NFL coverage on ESPN Radio.
Geoff Arnold: The 2023 Maryland sportscaster of the year does double duty, calling Orioles games for the team’s radio network and MASN TV network. He also does college hoops games for NBC.
Cooper Boardman: After a couple of years of calling the Triple-A Worcester Red Sox, Boardman got the call-up to the majors to fill in on about 35 broadcasts on WEEI this past season. He calls college basketball, college football, and the Little League World Series for ESPN, as well as college basketball for Fox.
Kevin Brown: He is the lead TV announcer for the Orioles on MASN. At ESPN, he works on several college sports, including football, basketball, and softball. While he was suspended by MASN in 2023 for criticizing the team’s performance against the Tampa Bay Rays, he landed a contract extension in 2024. This year, he called an MLB wild-card series for ESPN.
Chris Caray: The A’s announcer is actually a fourth-generation sportscaster. How’s this for a pedigree? He’s the son of Chip Caray, grandson of Skip Caray, and great-grandson of Harry Caray.
Drew Carter: As the play-by-play voice of the Celtics, Carter is a multi-threat who also calls everything from college football, basketball, and lacrosse to softball and the PLL. He also serves as studio host for ACC Network and ESPN International.
Alex Cohen: Cohen drew acclaim this past baseball season on dates where he filled in for Jon “Boog” Sciambi on Cubs telecasts on Marquee Sports Network. He has also called college volleyball, gymnastics, and men’s and women’s college basketball games for ESPN platforms.
Jack Gordon: A 2024 Syracuse grad, Gordon made CBS Sports’s college football announcer roster this season and has called a number of Conference USA games. He’s also called women’s college lacrosse for ACC Network.
Carlo Jiménez: The radio voice for the Clippers, Jiménez has a big social media presence, with more than 200,000 followers on TikTok and nearly 150,000 on Instagram.
Kelsie Kasper: Kasper calls college football for ESPN and softball for Big Ten Network. She is also the sideline reporter for the Indiana Fever and has filled in for the team on play-by-play.
Jordan Kent: Kent, who was born in Saudi Arabia as his father was coaching basketball there, played wide receiver at Oregon and for three years in the NFL. He calls college football, basketball, and the WNBA for CBS Sports. He also calls esports tournaments for Nintendo, including the Mario Kart World Invitational in Tokyo last month.
Chris Lewis: This college football/basketball announcer has some big names already on his résumé. He works for CBS, where he is getting some coveted NFL experience this season, and NBC Sports. He also serves as a weekend host for ESPN Radio, and he called table tennis for NBCUniversal’s coverage of the Paris and Tokyo Olympics.
Courtney Lyle: Lyle calls several college sports for ESPN and SEC Network, including football, volleyball, women’s basketball, and softball. She’s been the voice of the college volleyball national championship game since 2022.
Sloane Martin: Martin calls women’s basketball, softball, hockey, and volleyball for Big Ten Network and is the radio voice of the Minnesota Lynx. She was also part of NBC’s coverage for the Paris Olympics in 2024.
Kylen Mills: Mills, a former Division II soccer player, calls women’s basketball soccer for Big Ten Network. She was also added to NBC’s suite of women’s college hoops announcers this season and is a studio host for Ion’s coverage of the NWSL. She called Chicago Sky games on the radio for 670 The Score this past season.
Mike Monaco: Monaco has been rising fast in the past several years. He’s called a number of sports for ESPN, including MLB, NHL, and college football. He is also in the rotation of Red Sox play-by-play announcers on NESN.
Tyler Murray: Murray just scored a huge new job, succeeding Ed Cohen as the Knicks radio announcer for ESPN New York. He also backs up Mike Breen for Knicks telecasts on MSG Network.
Connor Onion: Onion is on the cusp of becoming a household name. He calls MLB, college football, and college basketball for Fox Sports, and was on the call for the fabled Nebraska women’s college volleyball game for Big Ten Network in 2023 that drew more than 90,000 fans, shattering the sport’s previous attendance record by orders of magnitude.
Noah Reed: Reed calls college football and basketball for Fox Sports, and he will also be calling college hoops on NBC’s Peacock streaming service this season. He’s a versatile broadcaster, with additional experience in college baseball, volleyball, softball, and gymnastics.
Jason Ross Jr.: Ross has been part of ESPN since 2021, and he has called college football, college basketball, gymnastics, and the Special Olympics. He also works with Big Ten Network, is the Lions’ preseason play-by-play broadcaster, and is one of the Chicago Sky’s game-callers.
Matt Schumacker: This rising college football announcer is a name to watch at ESPN. Before joining the four letters in 2024, he called Big Ten and Big East college basketball for Fox and the Big Ten Network.
Jorge Sedano: Sedano has been a highly successful talk radio host and decided midway through his career to start working games. He became a sideline reporter for ESPN’s NBA coverage and later started doing play-by-play for the NBA Summer League and the NBA on ESPN Radio. He is on a fun ACC Network college football team with former Virginia and NFL safety Rodney McLeod.
Anish Shroff: Shroff has high energy, calling ESPN’s Friday night college football games with Andre Ware. He also does college basketball, college baseball, and lacrosse for ESPN, and he is the radio play-by-play voice of the Carolina Panthers.
Emma Tiedemann: One of the first women to call baseball, Tiedemann is the play-by-play voice of the Portland Sea Dogs and was part of the first all-female broadcast team for a Red Sox telecast from Fenway Park this season.
Jacob Tobey: Tobey has had a big two years as he became the lead TV voice of the San Antonio Spurs in 2024 and the Golden State Valkyries for their maiden season in 2025.
Chris Vosters: A Swiss Army knife for Big Ten Network with a big-game voice and cadence, Vosters calls football, basketball, volleyball, and soccer. He’s also announced fencing, canoe slalom, sport climbing, and hockey for NBC’s Olympics coverage and calls college hoops games for Peacock.
