Remembering Jim Phillips: The Legendary Voice of Clemson and His Iconic Call Against UGA

As No. 14 Clemson prepares to clash with No. 1 Georgia this Saturday, the legacy of Jim Phillips, the beloved voice of the Clemson Tigers, looms large. For 36 years, Phillips brought Tiger football to life with his iconic calls, none more legendary than his broadcast of David Treadwell's game-winning field goal against Georgia.

Tim Bourret, who shared a close relationship with Phillips, reminisced last week about Phillips' extraordinary career, his deep connection with Clemson, and his lasting impact on ACC sports broadcasting before his sudden passing in 2003.

On the Clemson-Georgia Rivalry:

“Between 1977 and 1987, the two teams played 11 times, and the tally was 5-5-1, and it was only a five-point differential in the scores combined over those 11 years. So, yeah, that was the heyday of the rivalry. Just some classic games—crazy endings. Georgia wins the national championship in 1980. Clemson wins it in 1981, and we played each other in the opening game of college football in 1982. I'd love to go back and see what the ratings were for that game because ESPN was in its second or third year. There just wasn't that much college football (on tv).”

On his time with the legendary voice of the Clemson Tigers, Jim Phillips:

“Jim was from Ohio and kind of a Midwest guy. I grew up in Connecticut but went to school at Notre Dame. So, I had some strong Midwest ties. I worked a lot with him. When I started at Clemson, it was just Bob Bradley and myself. So I did a lot with football and basketball. I got to know him (Phillips) even more so because I started doing the basketball games for the 79-80 season with Jim as the color commentator. Then, in 1982, they let me play football. People probably forget that from ‘82 to ‘88, I did color on the football radio network. Then came back again in 2019 to do football.” 

“I did a lot of great games with him. He was just a real professional, (with a) totally different way of doing things than (Georgia’s) Larry Munson. I never remember Jim Phillips saying ‘we’ during a broadcast. I mean, you could tell he was wanting Clemson to win. He got much more excited when Clemson did something, but he came from the Midwest approach to things where you call it like you saw it. So that when something good happened, you had real credibility with your fans. That's the way that he looked at it.”

On traveling with Phillips:

“I did some drives with Jim and shared a lot of stories. Being a Midwest guy, he did have a fascination with Notre Dame, so we talked a lot about Notre Dame and the time I was there. He wanted to know about Joe Montana and what he was like, as well as Kelly Tripucka, Digger Phelps, and Ara Parseghian. We spent a lot of time talking about that on the road. Being the historian that I am about Clemson—and he had done all the games since 1968—I would do the press guides, see scores and stuff about games, and read the records. I would ask him what he recalls about some of those games before I came to Clemson.”

On calling the Middle Tennessee State game following Phillips’ death in 2003:

“I had for basketball and baseball, but not for a football game. So, you know, Jim had a real national...I mean, he was known nationally. So when he passed away suddenly, Bob Costas actually called me to express his condolences. I had met him earlier. So he said, ‘So who's going to do the play-by-play Saturday?’ And I said, ‘Well, I'm going to do it.’ And he said, ‘Have you done football play-by-play before?’ I said, ‘No, never done a game,’ and there was this long pause and he said, ‘Well, there are a lot of names and numbers.’ I'll never forget that.”