BERKELEY – Joe Starkey has served as the voice of Cal football for more than 40 years and beginning with this Saturday's 119th Big Game, the home radio booth at California Memorial Stadium will forever be named in his honor. During a pregame ceremony, the booth will officially be designated the Joe Starkey Broadcast Booth.
 
Starkey is currently in his 42nd season calling Golden Bear football games after beginning his tenure at Cal in 1975. Saturday's Cal-Stanford contest will mark his 483rd game behind the mic for the Bears, meaning he is on track to surpass 500 contests during the 2018 campaign.
 
"For most of our fans, Joe is the only voice they have ever known for Cal football," Director of Athletics Mike Williams said. "He has been an essential part of our program for more than four decades, and we believe naming the Joe Starkey Broadcast Booth in our press box is a way to permanently honor him for all of his years of service to Cal and the Cal community."
 
Over the years, Starkey has had eight regular partners call games alongside him: Monte Stickles, Jim Celania, Jan Hutchins, Marv Levy, Lee Grosscup, Rich Walcoff, Troy Taylor and his current partner, former Cal quarterback Mike Pawlawski. Grosscup, now a co-host of the Cal football postgame show, had the longest association with Starkey from 1986-2003. In addition to Starkey and Pawlawski, Todd McKim rounds out the present on-air crew with his in-game reports from the sidelines.
 
In 2010, Starkey received the prestigious Chris Schenkel Award from the National Football Foundation for his distinguished career broadcasting college football. He was inducted into the Bay Area Radio Hall of Fame in 2009.
 
"Four decades as the radio voice of California Golden Bears football has been a wonderful experience, and describing the achievements of Cal athletes in hundreds of memorable contests against the most iconic college football teams in the nation is a true privilege," Starkey said. "I've worked with more than a half dozen great analysts, which has allowed me to broaden my knowledge of the game, and their insights have enhanced the listening experience of our audience. This role has had the additional benefit of allowing me to develop personal relationships with many of the unforgettable coaches and players who have left their mark on Cal football. On behalf of my family and myself, thank you for this special honor."
 
Starkey's most famously called "The Play" in the 1982, perhaps the most celebrated description of any play in college football history. Some of the other remarkable moments he has witnessed include a goal line stand that helped Cal defeat USC in 1975, Joe Rose's catch in the 1980 Big Game that was initially ruled out of bounds, Cal's comeback from a 30-point deficit to beat Oregon in 1993 and the 52-49 Insight Bowl win over Virginia Tech in 2003. Overall, he has called 14 bowl games, with the most recent being Cal's 55-36 victory over Air Force in last December's Armed Forces Bowl.
 
Starkey is a Chicago native who holds an MBA from Loyola University and began his career in banking. He earned his first broadcast position with the old California Golden Seals NHL team. He also called games for the San Francisco 49ers for 20 seasons, pulling double duty with Cal football from 1979-2008.