I’m still in shock on this one. The University of Alabama announced on Wednesday that Eli Gold is out as the Crimson Tide football play-by-play announcer after 35 years of calling the games for Bama. And it was not a mutual decision.
The press release from the school was about as cold as it gets. “Crimson Tide Sports Network Announces Change to Football Broadcast Team” was how the Tide announced the end of Gold’s run as the voice of the Tide, with Chris Stewart taking over the top spot.
Wait, what? That’s it?
The second half of the release listed all of Gold’s accolades and was basically a laundry list of reasons to keep him on board.
We’re talking about a guy whose voice has come to mean Alabama Crimson Tide sports, a talented broadcaster who has a whole trophy case of awards not for just Bama games but for calling NASCAR races and running TV sports departments in major markets.
Chris Stewart is also talented, but it’s not about him. It’s about the callous discarding of a good man who earned the right to go out on his own terms. At least the school is going to pay him through June to fulfill their legal obligations.
Gold is handling things with dignity and class. The key quote from the al.com story is “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.” He’s job hunting, starting immediately.
The firing of someone who is a Capital-I Institution and doing it without legitimate cause and throwing away three-plus decades of dedication to a job does not reflect well on any employer. It’s happened before in Birmingham, and not all that long ago. Rick Karle, anyone?
As you know, I’ve seen this movie before, and playing the starring role in it hurts in ways that are beyond description.
Eli Gold deserved better than this. Way better.
Dave you are so right. 30 plus years of calling Alabama games and they kick him to the curb. He deserved better!! Much better!!!