By Kensie Westerfield
Growing up, I remember how much my dad loved to watch Mountaineer sports. He would turn on the TV, turn down the volume and crank up the radio. I have met many sports fans since then who, like my dad, love nothing more than to be able to watch the game while listening to the play-by-play calls. In that era, the voice I heard was Jack Fleming’s. When Fleming retired in 1996, he passed the torch to an up-and-coming announcer whose enthusiasm would quickly capture the attention of Mountaineer fans.
Today the voice heard round the world on the radio waves during some of the most intense moments in West Virginia sports history is that of Tony Caridi’s.
Before Caridi began leaving his mark on WVU sports as the play-by-play announcer, he worked as the news anchor for WAJR in Morgantown. He joined West Virginia Radio Corporation in 1984, and in 1986 was able to tap into his passion for sports when he took on the role of sports director for MetroNews.
With a passion for his work with sports, Caridi embraced the opportunity to begin his career in television play-by-play with the Mountaineer Sports Network in 1987 and then moved to his current position broadcasting the play-by-play action on the radio in 1997.
In celebration of West Virginia Executive’s first-ever sports issue, we took the opportunity to get to know the man behind the microphone.
WVE: Growing up, did you know what you wanted to do?
TC: I think I had an early idea of what I wanted to do. I grew up with a love of listening to the radio. I would to go bed at night listening to the now defunct Buffalo Braves and the Buffalo Sabres and dreaming about how awesome it would be to announce games, travel with the team and live that life. I think I always had a leaning toward some form of the spoken word. I participated in grade school plays, public address announcements and eventually an Explorers Post program which brought me into a radio station for the first time. When I graduated from high school and went on to college I knew I wanted to be involved in communications; I just did not know in what capacity. As I continued through college, it did not take long to know that it was definitely going to be sports and then more specifically play-by-play.
WVE: How did you decide your career path?
TC: One thing that helped me along the way was that I was kind of born into a situation in which I was put out front into the public. My mom and dad owned a grocery store and I literally grew up in that grocery store taking care of people. I think I had an unusual amount of social interaction and, therefore, communication at a very early age. I was ahead of the game in that sense and I think that played a big part in what I do now.
WVE: Did you have a mentor?
TC: I’ve had several. First was a gentleman by the name of Clip Smith who I interned for at the ABC affiliate in Buffalo the summer of my freshman year in college. He gave me an inside look into the real world of television news and sports. I worked there on weekends from noon until midnight and loved every single minute. The experience was invaluable. In addition to Clip, Hoppy Kercheval mentored me and taught me the business from a professional standpoint. Jack Fleming, the “Voice of the Mountaineers,” was also very helpful. I would ask him questions specific to play-by-play and he would offer insight that really helped.
WVE: What do you enjoy most about your job?
TC: It’s probably the variety of things I get to do. I get bored very easily so I need to constantly be moving.
People associate me with game broadcasts, but I spend 85-90 percent of my time at Pikewood Creative, a digital design company that started six years ago. We produce high-quality video, animation, motion graphics and print.
I love the creative process, so whether it’s the story of a game or the story of a client, I’m able to do what I’m passionate about.
WVE: Who was your most memorable/special interview?
TC: That’s a tough one. For over 20 years I’ve hosted Sportsline and have interviewed thousands of people. We had a really nice conversation one night with Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski in which we talked about an NCAA tournament game that they had played against West Virginia in 1989. In that game, there was a controversial call that went against West Virginia. We always felt we got the short end on that one and we talked about that in detail. He remembered it perfectly, and although he thought the correct call was made, it was a great conversation. He was booked for 10 minutes and spent 45 minutes with us and you could tell he was really enjoying it.
WVE: What was your most memorable game or sports moment?
TC: There are so many that it is extremely difficult to pick, but I can narrow it down to a few. Thinking back to my first season of WVU football in 1984, I remember Matt Smith sacking Heisman winner Doug Flutie when WVU beat Boston College here in Morgantown. That was an amazing game and an amazing night. I would also have to say West Virginia’s victory in the Sugar Bowl over Georgia in Atlanta and West Virginia’s victory over Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl. In basketball, the 2005 WVU/Villanova game in the Big East Conference Tournament semi-final when Mike Gansey knocked down game-winning free throws with inside a second to play. Most recently, in March the Georgetown victory to win the Big East Conference Tournament for the first time, and then even more recently was the victory over top-seeded Kentucky.
WVE: You have received multiple awards—which one means the most to you?
TC: The ones that come from people who are judging the award from outside of our state. Those judges are totally neutral—they’re making evaluations based on what they hear and see and not on politics.
WVE: You are a native New Yorker—how did you end up in West Virginia?
TC: I went to State University of New York at Geneseo for my first two years. I was studying communications there, but when I did my internship with Clip Smith I realized that I needed more of a challenge. I transferred to Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Public Communications. Upon graduating I worked for a station in Syracuse doing overnight news. Hoppy Kercheval was looking for a new reporter for WAJR in Morgantown. He knew the news director of the student station at Syracuse. The news director recommended me, and seven weeks after I graduated I came down here planning just to get that first job and stay for about six months. Normally in this business you stay six months or a year and move, but there was always a reason to stay here. I was married in ’88, and in ‘91 the first of our three sons was born. In 1996 Jack Fleming became ill and I was offered the radio position. Before you know it, 26 years has gone by and it feels like 26 days.
WVE: What is your favorite thing about West Virginia?
TC: Without question my favorite thing is the people. The people are so genuine and real. You can go anywhere in this state, and I mean anywhere, and talk to people like you’ve known them and they’ve known you your entire life. I also love the hills and the natural beauty. The weather is also a plus—remember, I’m from outside of Buffalo so the weather is much better than what I grew up in.
WVE: What is it about sports that has kept your attention for so many years?
TC: I think it’s my love of competition and drama. In each of these events you have a seminal point where a game is won or lost. A lot of it, aside from the physical aspect, is the mental aspect. I love to watch players and see how they deal with pressure-filled situations. That’s what I love, that magic moment that decides victory or defeat.
WVE: Is there anything you have not yet accomplished that you want to?
TC: I have been incredibly blessed with everything that I have done, and if it were to end today I would be content. However, I would love to broadcast WVU winning a national championship in both basketball and football. I want that for the fans who have such an unconditional love for the Mountaineers. That, to me, would be the ultimate thrill.
WVE: How has the sports industry changed over the years?
TC: It’s changed tremendously. Technology is allowing us to disseminate information at a rate that years ago was unthinkable. The Internet has made every sports team an international entity. I know my parents who still live outside of Buffalo listen to every Mountaineer game. We get notes from fans that listen on the Internet all over the world, whether they’re in the Armed Forces or transplanted Mountaineers. Technology has changed the sports industry in an amazing way.
From a business standpoint, the dollars and cents have increased so much over the last 20 years. We have seen a culture change from this being a college athletic program to becoming a major corporation. The WVU Athletic Department budget has increased by more than $25 million within the last 20 years. Now we are talking about a budget that is $50 to $60 million. We’re also talking about television contracts with the NCAA and CBS that are valued at more than $6 billion. Money has taken over and it is both bad and good. Probably more bad than good, but that is just the nature of what it is.
WVE: What is it like to have a bird’s-eye-view or front- row seat to all of these sporting events?
TC: It’s tremendously spoiling. There is no better way to watch a game than to literally be in front of it. Fans who sit at floor-level at a basketball game for the first time come away absolutely shocked to see how fast the game is and how physical the game is played. It really is a whole different experience.
WVE: What is the biggest challenge you face in your job?
TC: I would say probably just the time constraints—that when the season is on, you are just so busy that you wish you could devote more time to preparation or to other aspects of your job. For example, it is seven days a week during football season, and then in basketball we are either coming or going. The travel has improved 100 percent from where it used to be because we charter planes now instead of flying commercially. A typical week means hosting Coach Huggins’ show on Monday and leaving on a Tuesday to play on a Wednesday. After getting home late Wednesday night we tape our television show Mountaineer Jammin on Thursday. Then I am either home Friday, getting ready for a home game, or traveling Friday to play on Saturday, so the biggest challenge is time management and making sure that everything gets done.
WVE: As a West Virginia sports fan, how do you remain unbiased?
TC: I don’t think I am unbiased. I think you could pretend and say that you’re unbiased, but you’re not. It is impossible to be unbiased if you have relationships with coaches and players. Yes, I’m looking at a game from a West Virginia perspective, but I don’t think our fans want to hear that West Virginia never commits a foul or makes a mistake. Being truthful builds your credibility. You can be professional and still be a Mountaineer fan.
WVE: What did it feel like to have a front-row seat to WVU’s journey to the Final Four?
TC: It was absolutely fantastic. It was such a beautiful and fun run, especially coming out of the Big East Tournament and having the momentum of winning that championship. That was so huge. The Mountaineers needed that shot of confidence going into the NCAA tournament. The fact that we were able to play pretty close to home initially in Buffalo and then in Syracuse was great. My dad, who is 85, was able to come to both of the games in Buffalo along with other family members. It was great to have family with me and to be able to share in that moment.
WVE: Do you remember what you said when WVU made it to the Final Four?
TC: Sometimes announcers script it out; I didn’t have anything ready. During a timeout with about three or four minutes to go, I was thinking, “We’re going to win this game, what in the heck am I going to say?” What I said was, “Good-bye Big Blue—hello, Gold and Blue. The West Virginia Mountaineers are going to the Final Four.”
WVE: What went through your mind when Da’Sean Butler went down in pain during the match-up with Duke in the Final Four?
TC: It was like a nightmare because we would not have been in the Final Four without him. I felt horrible and I felt even worse to see the pain he was in. Then to see Huggs go out there and calm him down in what has become the most memorable and probably unforgettable image that we all have from WVU’s NCAA Tournament run. It was so sad because Da’Sean finished his career playing more minutes than any Mountaineer ever, making more starts than any Mountaineer ever, and it was surreal that his final game as a collegiate player would end on a major injury.
WVE: Who has been your favorite athlete or sports figure that you have had personal interaction with?
TC: There have just been so many really great kids that you see come in so young and then you see them leave four or five years later and they are mature. To see them successful in their respective professions is really great. I have great admiration for so many of them. Pat White will always be special because he never was affected by the amazing amount of publicity that he received. He never changed from freshman year to the end of his career. He handled it so extremely well.
I have great admiration for guys like Da’Sean Butler who have that burning desire to win and the burning desire to reach their highest level of efficiency and work so hard. I have great respect for all of those guys.
WVE: Does your family share your passion for sports?
TC: More so today then they have in the past. My dad came here in 1957 from Italy and did not speak a word of English. He and my mom ran that grocery store seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. so they did not really have time to watch or play sports, but now with the Mountaineers they are huge fans and very passionate about it.
My wife worked in sports marketing at WVU so she’s passionate about sports, and my kids grew up in it. Michael, who is our oldest, was at his first bowl game in New Orleans at the Sugar Bowl when he was almost three years-old—dancing down the red carpet when we arrived on the plane. Our twins are 14 and they think on Christmas day you get up, open your gifts and then go to the football stadium to get on the bus and go to the bowl game. So yeah, they have a passion for sports.
WVE: What is something most people don’t know about you?
TC: Something that most people don’t know about me is that I made my profession to Christ at Promise Keepers on a football field at Three Rivers Stadium in 1997. I have always thought that it was really interesting that I made a life-changing decision of all places on a football field. God works in very interesting ways.
