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"I broke my chair, I came right through a chair, a metal STEEL chair...Do you know what is gonna happen here tonight?" I have a confession to make. I am not a lifelong Bulldogs fan...

Georgia's Own Larry Legend: Munson Calls It Quits After 42 Years

by daniel cox (Senior Writer)

27

3,358 reads

Opinion

September 24, 2008


"I broke my chair, I came right through a chair, a metal STEEL chair...Do you know what is gonna happen here tonight?"
I have a confession to make.
I am not a lifelong Bulldogs fan. When I tell someone I am, they make assumptions and the truth about my fandom remains hidden within the assumptions.
I moved to Georgia in 2000. That's when I became a fan. Yes, I am a transplant fan.
You see, I grew up in rural, coastal North Carolina. Where I'm from, high school football and college basketball is king. But like a lot of sports fans, I grew up with an affinity towards hearing a game on the radio instead of seeing it on television.
It wasn't uncommon for my dad and I to listen to the high school game on the radio as we drove to the beach for a night of fishing. Or on Sunday afternoons, after church, when my mom wanted to go shopping after lunch, my dad and I would sit in the car and listen to Woody Durham describe our beloved Tar Heels in action.
Two things made me a UGA fan when I moved to Georgia: Mark Richt had just been hired, and I liked his style—and I quickly fell in love with Larry Munson.
Munson reminded me of home. His blend of game calls, colloquialism, and his biased use of "we" were right up my alley. I could listen to Munson call a game and feel as if he was speaking a language few would understand, yet I did.
His husky voice and true Southern language reminded me that English is my second language. I grew up in an area where slang, shortened words, and the speed at which words are spoken were the true first language. I got a degree in English to ensure, when necessary, I could communicate with the outside world.
Larry Munson reminded me of all of this.
On Monday afternoon, Munson announced his retirement, and while the Bulldogs will play on, many Bulldog fans are given the sobering realization that Munson's 42-year season is over.
Sure, it was something, when we thought realistically, we knew would come. He'd stopped doing away games in 2007—his health no longer allowing him to travel with the team. He returned for the 2008 season, but we knew this was his swan song.
The selfish 'Dawg fan would have liked Munson to hang on just for the rest of the season. We wanted to hear him call one last magical season—this season especially, as the Bulldogs set their sights on a national championship. But Munson, always a man to do things his own way, turned out the lights on his career four games into this season.
We will miss Munson's "Oh, my God" and the random things he would say during a broadcast. In this day and age of high-tech everything, Munson's voice on Saturdays always managed to remind us of more simple times. His random, often ancient, analogies gave you pause for a second, but made sense once you thought about them.
My favorite call? "We just stepped on their face with a hobnailed boot and broke their nose! We just crushed their face," spoken after Georgia's thrilling last-second victory over Tennessee in 2001.
For those that don't know, a hobnailed boot is a boot with small nails or spikes, sticking out of the bottom for increased traction. Only Munson could find a way to reference that within a football game. That is vintage Munson, and he is the epitome of regional announcers—the anti-Dick Enberg.
Larry Munson always seemed as if he was talking to us about the game—not just calling it. His delivery and style was intimate, more like Grandpa telling stories by the fire than big-time announcer guy analyzing a game for us.
It's this style that brought the 'Dawg nation together, welcoming the new members while putting an arm around the existing ones. Thank you, Larry, for bringing me into the family.
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27 comments Last one added 9 months ago — Leave a Comment

  1. GeorgiaDawg 9 months ago

    Daniel, Wow... that was well said. Larry Munson is a legend. The Dawg Nation has been fortunate to have him all these years. We will miss him. Great job. POTD !!

    On a side note.... Wouldn't you love to sit in his den, and watch the Alabama game with him? That would be fun!!!

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    • daniel cox 9 months ago

      thanks again man, really appreciate that.

      sitting in his den watching that game would be incredible. and like i said in the piece, i have a feeling it would be no different than listening to him on the radio.

      i'm sure he'd interject a few choice words not allowed on the radio, but that'd make it all the better.

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  2. Gray Ghost 9 months ago

    Daniel, this is one of the best articles I have ever read here on B/R, or any other site for that matter. Beautifully written by a skilled writer, I hope you will try to get one of the Georgia sites to publish this. It is something that every Dawg fan should read.

    As a life long fan who has listened to Munson all of my CFB life, I have dreaded this day as it has inched toward us. I used to turn the TV down and the radio up - just so I could hear the Legend call the game.

    There is no way to relay the sadness his retirement brings to me, nor to explain the love that Bulldawg Nation has him. We know, don't we. He was the best that ever sat behind a mic.

    You deserve a thousand stars and two hundred POTD's!!!!!

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    • daniel cox 9 months ago

      gg,

      dang man, thanks. coming from you, that means a TON.

      spread the word if you like--i iguess you have one day to do so.

      i'd love to see one of my pieces as pick of the day for the site, but just the vote means a lot.

      too bad you can't vote 200 times.

      thanks again for the encouragement.

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  3. Jason 9 months ago

    Good work, Daniel. You have a lot of talent and ability, and this article showcased it.

    Munson's stream of consciousness commentary will forever go down as some of the most unique and original broadcasting ever. I can still remember listening to Munson on the radio with the television muted to watch UGA games ... even when television started to have the five second broadcast delay.

    Thanks for the article.

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    • daniel cox 9 months ago

      jason, i appreciate that. yeah, his commentary is unique, even in college football where there are quite a few original characters.

      i've found myself at times saying, "what did he just say?"

      thanks for the pick!

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  4. AJ Johnson 9 months ago

    Larry Munson and Woody Durham are probably the two best radio broadcasters in college sports! I hated it when tv went to the broadcast delay. It makes it nearly impossible to watch a game on tv and listen to Woody on the radio, like in the good old days!

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  5. Justin Carter 9 months ago

    Great article.

    Larry Munson will forever by synonymous with UGA football.

    I am unable to single out one play call to nominate as my favorite, I love them all.

    I will miss him giving the down and distances to the exact inch. "It's 3rd down, and we gotta get 2 yards and 3 maybe 4 inches."

    Or the always fan favorite "Lorn whatta ya got?"

    Larry did not only symbolize Georgia Football, he symbolized college football, and what makes college football great.

    "Hunker down dawgs, hunker it down one more time."

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    • Gray Ghost 9 months ago

      Thoese are great memories Justin! How about when Kevin Butler licked the 60 yarder against Clemson and Munson said he had to kick it "a million miles!"

      My fav is "Run Lindsay!"

      How will we go on without him?

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    • Justin Carter 9 months ago

      Gray

      The Kevin Butler call was and still is hilarious.

      If I were forced to pick I would have to go with UGA @ UT 1980 "He's running over people...My God a Freshman."

      How does anyone feel his shoes?

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    • daniel cox 9 months ago

      justin, you and gg are on the money. as i'm sitting here reading your comments, i'm thinking of so many things i heard him say.

      "sugar falling from the sky," and on and on.

      one of a kind, and we may never have another like him.

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    • Gray Ghost 9 months ago

      I loved the way he woudl always beging by saying : "Get the picture..." and then he would paint a picture that was incredible. I would like to just shake his hand and thank him for all of the years that he took me to the game!

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  6. 12 9 months ago

    Fantastic read...5 stars! Larry Munson will be missed. He is one of the greatest to ever call a game.

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  7. Robert 9 months ago

    Great read.

    I know it's late in your Bulldog life, but welcome to the family.

    I love the end of the "Run Lindsay!" call...after he's talked about the stadium, and Jekyll Island, and breaking his metal-steel chair, the way he say's "26-21! Dawgs on top!"

    The rasp in his voice gives me goosebumps everytime I hear it. I can picture him sitting there in his windsuit, clinching his fist, just like he was on the field with all of the Dawgs. In that one call, you can tell how much love he has for the Bulldogs.

    He made you feel like you were part of the team, sitting in the stadium with him, no matter where you are. No matter where you were.

    He's the Voice of a Nation. He's been the voice of Uga. He's a living legend. He's one-of-a-kind.

    I don't know if there is any way for the Bulldog Nation to thank him, but I know he wouldn't want everyone to make a fuss. I only hope that one day he will get to stand in the middle of Sanford Stadium on the G, and listen to the roar of the crowd from the field, and not from the box.

    I think I would cry, and not be ashamed of it one bit, and I know I wouldn't be the only one.

    God, bless him. He is a Damn Good Dawg.

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    • GeorgiaDawg 9 months ago

      Robert, I KNOW I would cry.... I got choked up watching UGA VI highlights at the opener this year. The DawgNation is special. Our heroes are like family.

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    • Gray Ghost 9 months ago

      There would be a whole lot of tears!

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    • daniel cox 9 months ago

      robert,

      thanks for the pick.

      and when he is honored, because he must, i hope i'm between the hedges that day.

      that would be an unforgettable moment for every fan in the stadium and surely for munson as well. he deserves that.

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  8. Evan Wiley 9 months ago

    I liked this one a lot...good sentiments

    in the end...I know munson's earned his right to retire but i'd have loved for him to have announced "this will be my last game" vs "Im retiring effective now"

    if it were a perfect world though he'd have his mind downloaded into a robot so he could call games for all eternity

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    • daniel cox 9 months ago

      evan,

      i'm not so sure a robot could handle all his thoughts. too much random-ness to it. it might explode.

      by the way, thanks for the pick.

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  9. J Wiley 9 months ago

    Larry - a Lion among Dawgs - Live Strong. What a cool irony that Moorhead MN sent us such a great voice for the Dawgs. Enjoy watching the game this week - and hey, send some Munson Magic to rally the Georgia Bulldogs to triumph.

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    • daniel cox 9 months ago

      j, thanks for the read.

      i have a feeling the 'dawgs are gonna feel good and sentimental on saturday.

      the tide won't know what hit them!

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  10. Danny Penza 9 months ago

    HUNKER DOWN DAWGS!!!!!

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  11. BabyTate 9 months ago

    This is a great article and tells a great story of Georgia football's classic voice.

    Look at the comments, see how many people he touched, how many memories.

    Keep up the good work.

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    • daniel cox 9 months ago

      thanks b.t., appreciate the read.

      look forward to seeing what you have to say after this weekend.

      a crazy start after thursday night.

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