THE FLATS – The Georgia Tech IMG Sports Network announced changes to its football radio crew on Thursday.
Georgia Tech alumnus Wiley Ballard, who filled in as the network’s sideline reporter and pregame show host on an interim basis in 2017, will take over the role full-time in 2018. Randy Waters, who served in the role from 2013-16 but stepped away in ’17 to attend to a family issue, has elected to permanently relinquish the duties. Waters will continue to serve as the Georgia Tech IMG Sports Network’s analyst for men’s basketball radio broadcasts, returning for his 25th season in 2018-19.
Additionally, Tommy Barber has decided to retire from his role as a spotter for Georgia Tech football radio broadcasts after 46 seasons. A 1972 Georgia Tech graduate (industrial management), Barber served as legendary Tech announcer Al Ciraldo’s spotter for the first time that fall and took over the role on a full-time basis in 1974. Replacing Barber will be Georgia Tech alum Adam Prather. Prather, who graduated in May, served as a men’s basketball manager and a student assistant in the athletics communications and public relations office as a Tech student.
“We are incredibly grateful to both Tommy Barber and Randy Waters for their contributions to our radio broadcasts of Georgia Tech football,” said Dave Bouteiller, general manager of the Georgia Tech IMG Sports Network. ”For 46 years, Tommy Barber has epitomized what it means to be a ‘Tech Man.’ His loyal service to both the Institute and our broadcast has spanned multiple generations of Georgia Tech fans, hundreds of victories and countless hours and days away from his family. We are exceedingly appreciative of Tommy and hope to see him at Bobby Dodd this season. While there is no way to replace Tommy, we are thrilled to have Adam Prather become the latest Georgia Tech alum in our football broadcast booth.
“While Randy Waters, a voice who is very familiar to Tech fans, is permanently stepping away from his role with our football broadcasts, we are very pleased that Georgia Tech fans will continue to hear his insights during Georgia Tech men’s basketball broadcasts,” Bouteiller continued.
The first Georgia Tech IMG Sports Network broadcast of 2018-19 is set for Monday, Aug. 27 when the Paul Johnson Show returns to the airwaves. The weekly call-in show for Georgia Tech’s head football coach, hosted by the “Voice of the Yellow Jackets” Andy Demetra, will air from 7-8 p.m. It can be heard locally on the flagship station of the Georgia Tech IMG Sports Network, 680/93.7 The Fan, and worldwide on the GT Gameday app and TuneIn app.
The Paul Johnson Show will have a new format in 2018, with the four shows that precede home ACC games airing live from a new location – Six Feet Under in West Midtown (685 11th Street). Those shows will take place on Monday, Sept. 17 (pre-Clemson), Monday, Oct. 8 (pre-Duke), Monday, Nov. 5 (pre-Miami) and Monday, Nov. 12 (pre-Virginia).
The remaining shows will originate from Georgia Tech football headquarters at Bobby Dodd Stadium. While those shows cannot feature a live audience due to space constraints, fans will still be able to submit questions for Johnson via social media, using the hashtag #AskCPJ.
“We’re excited to bring the Paul Johnson Show to Six Feet Under in West Midtown this season,” Bouteiller said. “We think that hosting the show at a great new venue prior to every ACC home game will allow us to create a more unique excitement for each show, making for a terrific atmosphere for fans in attendance and those listening on the radio or online.”
The Georgia Tech IMG Sports Network will have all the action when toe meets leather for the 2018 season on Saturday, Sept. 1 with the Yellow Jackets hosting Alcorn State. Pregame begins at 10:30 a.m. and kickoff is set for 12:30 p.m. The call of the game from Demetra, analyst Sean Bedford and Ballard can also be heard locally on 680/93.7 The Fan and worldwide on the GT Gameday app and Tune-in app.
2018 Georgia Tech football season tickets, ACC Flex Packs, Stinger Mobile Passes and single-game tickets are all still on sale. Season tickets (starting at just $219 for all six games on Tech’s home schedule) and ACC Flex Packs (starting at just $130 for three ACC contests) are the best way to secure the best seats in Bobby Dodd Stadium while the Stinger Mobile Pass guarantees a seat for all six games for only $149. Single-game tickets start at $15 for non-conference games versus Alcorn State and Bowling Green (Sept. 29) and $35 the ACC slate, which includes showdowns versus Clemson (Sept. 22), Duke (Homecoming – Oct. 13), Miami (Whiteout – Nov. 10) and Virginia (Nov. 17).
For more information and to purchase all 2018 Georgia Tech football tickets (season tickets, ACC Flex Packs, Stinger Mobile Passes and all single-game tickets) online, click HERE.
