Pasch Fits in Newhouse Visit Prior to Syracuse Football Broadcast

SYRACUSE, N.Y- Dave Pasch came back to visit his alma mater Wednesday night before his first Syracuse Football broadcast inside the JMA Wireless Dome since 2001. The 1994 Newhouse grad found out earlier this week that his weekly play-by-play assignment with ESPN would be for the Orange against Clemson on Saturday. Pasch has done other Cuse games on the road over the years, but knows it’ll be a special feeling returning to the “Loud House.”

“I’ve done some Syracuse Basketball games since I started at ESPN, but not as many football. They’ve all been on the road, and funny enough I actually did a Cuse game against Clemson back in 2016… Saturday will be pretty cool for me,” Pasch said.

On top of his college football duties, Pasch also calls NBA and college basketball games for ESPN. While somehow balancing those other duties, he also is the longtime radio voice of the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals.

Dave Pasch ’94 speaking with students during his return to Newhouse on Wednesday night. Photo by Jalyss Lyann, 2023.

The Madison, Wisconsin native has come a long way from his humble beginnings at Newhouse. During his undergrad, Pasch wrote for The Daily Orange newspaper and made regular appearances on WAER to gain on-air radio reps. Following graduation, Pasch decided to take his first job in Morgantown, West Virginia because of a “pipeline” of WAER kids going to that market. Even though he was only there for 10 months, Pasch proclaimed it to be the most important job he’s ever had (maybe meeting his wife Hallie there also had a role in that feeling).

“During my time in Morgantown, it was important for me to get out of my Syracuse bubble where I was comfortable. My mindset was I needed to be willing to do anything and everything for that first job. I covered city council meetings and did high school play-by-play gigs for $25 a game. I even went up to Pittsburgh to run the Pirates scoreboard in the press box,” Pasch said.

Pasch moved to Detroit in 1995 for his first job in a large market when sports talk radio was all the rave in the industry. Two years later, Pasch landed in Chicago and spent the majority of his time covering Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls during their “Last Dance” season. When a coveted job opened up to return to Syracuse, it was just too good for Pasch to pass up.

Pasch and longtime friend Matt Park ’97. Park took over for Pasch as the “Voice of the Orange” after Pasch departed for the Arizona Cardinals. Photo by Jalyss Lyann, 2023.

“In 1999 when the radio job opened up here, I knew that if I got the chance I would come back. Getting the job as a 26-year-old and having to fill the shoes of a legendary figure like Doug Logan was a little daunting. Early on some of my broadcast partners were alums like Mike Tricio, Marv Albert, and Bob Costas because I had to earn the trust of my bosses being so young,” Pasch said.


On top of his duties with the Orange Football and Men’s Basketball teams, Pasch also did preseason TV broadcasts for the Buffalo Bills in 2001. Former General Manager John Bulter and Executive Russ Brandon formulated a plan that Pasch would slide into the full-time radio spot after a few seasons. That all changed during the Spring of 2002 when the NFL had three teams with radio jobs open. Pasch was offered the job with the Arizona Cardinals, and he’s been with the organization ever since.

“It was a difficult decision leaving my job at Syracuse because I really loved it and knowing that I could’ve stayed and also been with the Bills. I just couldn’t wait only longer when I had an opportunity like that on the table,” Pasch said.

Pasch has been full-time with ESPN since 2003 after doing regional Big East basketball games to get his foot in the door. Since then, he’s risen the ranks of the Worldwide Leader and worked alongside some of the most notable analysts in the business. Some of his partners have included Bill Walton, Hubie Brown, Jeff Van Gundy, Mark Jackson, Jay Bilas, and Doris Burke. Pasch believes the main reason he’s able to have a great rapport with everyone he works with is by building genuine relationships with them.

“It may not win you an award, but it matters so much to put your analyst in the best place to succeed. You have to get to know them on a personal level, not just during those few hours together in the booth. I know when I’m doing a game with Bill [Walton] he will want the game to be more focused on storytelling, instead of with Hubie [Brown] there’s more emphasis on numbers and stats,” Pasch said.

It took time for Pasch to get accustomed to his hectic lifestyle. Most weeks for a Saturday game he travels into the cities on Thursday and immediately leaves to go wherever the Cardinals are playing. His traditional plans went by the wayside this week because of Hubie Brown’s 90th birthday celebration on Tuesday, giving him time to come to Newhouse. Pasch related this dynamic to a golf swing that living this way is just second nature at this point.

Pasch smiling after answering a student’s question. Photo by Jalyss Lyann, 2023.

“It just took a little bit to get used to it, getting into that mode of I’m doing a TV game today, but radio tomorrow. Like this week I’ll call the Syracuse game and immediately go to the airport to fly to San Francisco because that’s where the Cardinals are playing Sunday. I think it’s much more common now for play-by-play guys to have more than one job in comparison to when I first started doing this. It’s just something that takes time,” Pasch said.

Make sure to listen to Pasch’s first broadcast back with Syracuse Football on ABC Saturday at Noon. Follow @DavePasch on X, to see where his next broadcast is for ESPN. Also, be on the lookout for other alumni guest speakers throughout the academic year by following the Newhouse Sports Media Center on social media.