Longtime WSU broadcaster Robertson dies
Longtime Washington State football and basketball announcer Bob Robertson. File photo courtesy of WSU.
From news and wire services
PULLMAN, Wash. — Hall of Fame broadcaster Bob Robertson, who called Washington State football for more than 50 years, has died at the age of 91.
Washington State said Robertson died Sunday at his home.
Robertson was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2004 when he received the Chris Schenkel Award.
“Today is a sad day for Cougs all over the world,” Washington State athletic director Pat Chun said in a statement. “Bob Robertson is an iconic figure in the history of Cougar athletics and sports radio broadcasting. His ability to vividly paint a picture of our football and basketball games brought generations of Cougs together for over half a century. We are thankful for his impact on WSU.”
Robertson served as the lead broadcaster for Washington State football from 1964-2011 — except for three years between 1969 and 1971 — before moving into an analyst role. He retired midway through the 2018 season.
Known for his traditional sign off, “Always be a good sport, be a good sport all ways,” Robertson brought a simple style to the broadcasts of Cougar football. When he announced his retirement Robertson said, “I’ve enjoyed every minute of it. It’s been great to be with you Cougars at your meetings and get-togethers, and I hope we can do it again and I’m sure we will.”
Robertson was a 12-time Washington state sportscaster of the year and was the first broadcaster west of the Mississippi to be inducted into the Hall’s broadcaster division. He was behind the microphone for 589 Washington State football games.
Robertson also called Washington State basketball for 23 years. He also broadcast Pacific Coast League baseball — including the Spokane Indians — and professional soccer in Seattle, Tacoma, Washington, and Portland, Oregon. Early in his career, he broadcast Notre Dame football and basketball on television for two years in the 1950s.
Robertson was born in Fullerton, Calif., during spring training of the Seattle Indians of the Pacific Coast League. At the time his father was a player for the Seattle club. After graduating from Blaine (Wash.) High School, he attended Western Washington University in Bellingham, where he launched his broadcasting career. His first broadcasting exposure came as a young actor for the Canadian Broadcasting Company in Vancouver, B.C., then bloomed while attending college.
In 1948 Robertson signed to play professional baseball, but a year later gave up playing to become the voice of the Wenatchee Chiefs of the Western International League, his first full-time broadcasting opportunity.
Robertson and his wife, Joanne, were married for 59 years before her passing in 2011. They have four children, Hugh, Janna, John and Rebecca, and seven grandchildren.