Stewart Calls First Home Game Since Illness

Veteran play-by-play man says things went well

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – They did a moving pre-game tribute to veteran Alabama play-by-play man Chris Stewart just before he called his first home game since returning from a lengthy illness. How did that make the witty Stewart feel?

“I’ll be honest,” Stewart said. “What was going through my mind most was, ‘I can’t hear it,’ because we had come back out of the commercial and I was on the air, but the fact that they would do that and recognize me was incredibly kind.”

Stewart prepares for his first game back with colleagues. (Courtesy of Alabama Athletics)

Stewart called Saturday’s road loss in Gainesville in his first game back, but Wednesday in front of the home folks was different, and seemingly went well.

“I felt like it was OK,” Stewart grinned. “They didn’t bring a hook out for me at any point, so I took that as a good sign.

“It was fun. I felt confident. I felt like my breath support was good enough, which is the biggest issue for me.

“I’ve got great teammates, and that helps as well.”

Those teammates include Roger Hoover, who did play-by-play in Stewart’s absence and has now shifted to sideline duties including halftime interviews with Alabama coach Nate Oats. Former Tide player Brian Passink does color and visited Stewart numerous times during his illness. Veteran engineer Tom Stipe completes the crew, and all were grinning ear-to-ear at having Stewart back behind the mic.

It helped that Alabama won the game over Mississippi State, 90-69.