BROOKINGS For the last 44 years Tom Manzers voice has echoed throughout the South Dakota State campus on Saturdays, but last week was his final game as the public address announcer for football.
Manzer is retiring from the gig he took in 1979 and said it felt like it was the right time to do it. The previous four seasons his grandson was his spotter, which is the person who tells him who had the ball and who made the tackle each play. With his grandson going to college and his wife wanting to spend more Saturdays with him, it all seemed to come together for this to be his final season.
Ive enjoyed doing the PA, but Im also looking forward to being a fan in the stands, Manzer said. For the last 44 years there hasnt been a home game where (my wife and I) have sat together. Weve added it up and over the last 44 years, in terms of Jacks football games, weve gone to 10 away games.
So, thats not many (games) to share with your wife over the last 44 years. Im looking forward to going to a football game with her. Shell probably give me an elbow in the ribs a few times for yelling at the refs, but now I can yell at the refs without being fearful that Ill have my mic on.
Manzer is from Colome and went to SDSU as a student in 1971. After school he was working in Green Bay, Wisconsin, and he and his wife had their daughter and decided they wanted to move back closer to home. Manzer got a job with the SDSU admissions office in 1979 and was approached with the opportunity to be the PA announcer for football as he had some background doing television news and play-by-play for football games for the student radio.
I remember it as clear as day, Manzer said. I was heading back to my office after having lunch and the athletic director at the time, Harry Forsysth, was talking to the director of admissions. I was walking by and I heard Harry Forsyth say, you dont know anybody who could do the PA (for football games)? And (the director of admissions) said, yeah, Manzer can do it. That was the interview. So, that next Saturday I did the PA and the rest is history. 30 seconds either way, I probably wouldnt have ever gotten the job.
Manzer has been through a lot of changes as the PA announcer. The biggest change came in 2016 when the Jackrabbits moved on from Coughlin-Alumni Stadium and now play in Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium. His set up was the biggest change during that time. At Coughlin-Alumni he was at midfield in a press box that wasnt heated at all and would sway in the winds sometimes.
Now, the PA announcer sits at around the 20 yard line of the north side of the stadium. He said loved being in a heated press box and having a 30-second walk to the bathroom, but he missed having such a great spot to watch the game.
I still havent gotten used to how nice Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium is. It is a fabulous facility. But I do have to say, despite what Coughlin-Alumni was in terms of amenities, I had a seat on the 50 yard line and the press box was a lot closer to the field. So I literally, I really did, have the best seat in the entire facility at Coughlin-Alumni. Old Coughlin-Alumni, from that press box, was a great place to watch a football game, Manzer said.
When Manzer got his start doing PA announcing SDSU was in Division II and was a member of the North Central Conference. The Jacks moved to Division I in 2004 and joined the Football Championship Subdivision and have turned into a powerhouse. SDSU won its first national championship in football last season and the coverage of the team and gameday environment has changed a lot since 1979. Manzer said thats what sticks out the most when he thinks about what is different from when he first started.
Today, you have a hard working team of athletes and coaches on the field doing their thing, but surrounding that, theres a whole crew of people who are trying to create a good overall game experience. So, theres much more production to a football game now than there ever was, Manzer said.
There were a few sayings that Manzer had that stuck out for Jackrabbit fans. The first being The Pride is back. Which is something he says before the Pride of the Dakotas Marching Band plays at halftime. The saying originated when band director Jim McKinney came back to South Dakota State as the band director in 1983 and wanted Manzer to say The Pride is back before the band played. Ever since then its been a staple at Jackrabbit home games.
Another call that will stay in SDSU fans memories forever is his touchdown call. Its a simple touchdown, Jackrabbits! Its short and sweet, but the enthusiasm in which he says it with is something that sticks out.
That wasnt anything that I ever planned, Manzer said. Its just excitement and it came naturally. That was not anything I ever thought about. A PA announcer isnt supposed to be (talking) all the time with regards to the game. Its the basic information. I did obviously try to have excitement in my voice or try to show the excitement in my voice at the appropriate time, and thats what led into the touchdown, Jackrabbits, Manzer said.
Throughout the 44 years that he sat up in the press box, there was one memorable thing that was at the top of his list. That was being able to call out his sons name when he was in The Pride.
In terms of memories, our son, Drew, was the head of the drumline for The Pride for a few years. I used to be able to announce his name when the drumline would do their segment. So, that was something that was (special) and I was proud to be able to announce our sons name, Manzer said.
As far as the action on the field, Manzer said there isnt anything in particular that is a favorite memory. He was just happy to be able to be the guy announcing for the past 44 seasons.
Over 44 years Ive seen a lot of football and a lot of football players, and certainly some names rise to the top, just because of the type of player that they were, but I cant really identify a game or really even a player [that was my favorite]. There might be a few plays that stick out. The one-handed catch by Dallas Goedert or something like that. But the way I think about all of those years is that its been just a really steady stream, for the most part, of very enjoyable afternoons and evenings at first Coughlin-Alumni and now Dana J. Dykhouse, Manzer said.
When Manzer stepped foot on the South Dakota State campus in 1971 and went to his first football game he said he knew that SDSU athletics was going to be a big part of his life. Little did he know hed spend some of his Saturdays in the fall watching football games for 44 years.
Most anybody that knows me knows that I bleed yellow and blue. SDSU athletics became something that was imprinted in my brain [when I was a student] I guess. So, from the standpoint of all of the games, its just been a joy to watch all of the athletes and coaches and The Pride. Its been a wonderful experience, Manzer said.
Andrew Holtan is the Registers sports editor and welcomes comments at [email protected].
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