Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sport
Mike McDaniel

Alabama Broadcast Legend Says He Isn’t Retired, School Chose Not to Bring Him Back

University of Alabama football play-by-play announcer Eli Gold will not return in 2024 to his role as the voice of Crimson Tide football, as he told AL.com on Wednesday afternoon.

The 70-year-old Gold has been the school’s play-by-play announcer for football on radio airwaves for the last 35 years. He missed the 2022 season while receiving cancer treatments but returned on a limited basis in 2023, calling all home games and the Iron Bowl at Auburn.

Chris Stewart, the school’s play-by-play announcer for basketball, called Alabama road games last season in Gold’s stead. He’ll be the play-by-play announcer for both sports in 2024.

“Well, the university has chosen not to bring me back,” Gold told AL.com. “This is not, with a capital N-O-T, not at all health-related. I am very healthy. Everything is wonderful. I am healthy as a horse. I am not retiring. The university has chosen, as they say, to go in a different direction, and that’s certainly their right.”

Gold’s contract with the school is up in June, and the school opted not to renew it.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.