Just a day after Christmas, longtime broadcaster Rick Cameron was named as a finalist for the Bill Schwanke Award. The award is given annually to the best play-by-play broadcasters within FCS football.
Cameron has been dubbed the “Voice of the Bears,” and according to Mercer Athletics, will reach the 1,000-game milestone this month in Hawkins Arena. His distinctive Southern drawl can often be heard on the radio after football games, interviewing players and coaches, and his commitment to Mercer Athletics landed him a spot in the Mercer Athletic Hall of Fame in 2019.
Along with calling games for football, he calls games for men's and women’s basketball, softball and baseball. It was his voice that called Mercer's upset over Duke in 2014, which, more than a decade later, remains one of the school's most-lauded athletic accomplishments.
This is Cameron’s 21st year as a broadcaster since starting at Mercer in 2004, and it his first time being nominated for the award. According to The Den, Cameron worked at Mercer in an administrative role at the university from 1997 to 2023.
Before becoming a part of the Bear family, the LaFayette, Ga. native graduated from the University of Georgia in 1977. He worked with community newspapers in Alabama and Georgia, serving as the editor and publisher for more than 20 years.
