Legendary Sports Broadcaster Mike Patrick Dead at Age 80 Due to Natural Causes
By Space Coast Daily // April 23, 2025
voice of Sunday Night Football for 18 seasons
FAIRFAX, VIRGINIA – Mike Patrick, a pioneering voice in American sports broadcasting and longtime play-by-play commentator for ESPN, has died at the age of 80.
Patrick passed away of natural causes Sunday in Fairfax, Virginia, according to his physician and officials in Clarksburg, West Virginia—his hometown. His death was confirmed Tuesday.
A mainstay of ESPN’s on-air team for more than three decades, Patrick began calling games for the network in 1982. He went on to serve as the voice of Sunday Night Football for 18 seasons, becoming a fixture in millions of American households during the NFL’s primetime weekly showcase.
“Mike Patrick called countless significant events over decades at ESPN and is one of the most influential on-air voices in our history,” said Burke Magnus, president of content at ESPN. “In addition to calling ESPN’s first-ever regular season NFL game and voicing the Sunday Night Football franchise, Mike’s work on college sports was exceptional.”
Beyond the NFL, Patrick lent his signature voice to a wide array of collegiate sports, covering both men’s and women’s basketball—including numerous Women’s Final Fours—and high-profile Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) matchups, particularly between long-standing rivals Duke and North Carolina.
Patrick called his final game for ESPN on Dec. 30, 2017, during the AutoZone Liberty Bowl, capping a 36-year career with the network.
He is remembered as a trusted voice, a passionate storyteller, and a respected figure across the sports broadcasting industry.
“Our deepest condolences to Mike’s family and his many friends throughout the industry,” Magnus added.
