GUILD, Tenn. — Like countless others who spent their childhood consumed by University of Tennessee athletics, Mike Keith still remembers the specific spot — Section V, Row 15, Seat 21 — where he watched numerous games inside Neyland Stadium.
Those early memories made enough of an impression to mold Keith’s chosen career path. After being hired by the legendary “Voice of the Vols” John Ward when he was only 19 — spending the next 10 years in various roles for the Vols Network — Keith later became a legend in his own right as the radio play-by-play man for the Tennessee Titans across 27 seasons.
In nearly three decades with the Titans, Keith called 10 NFL playoff games, including a Super Bowl in 1999, and was even inducted into the team’s Ring of Honor last year.
But it wasn’t until he returned to his roots, after being named the new Voice of the Vols prior to last season, that Keith admits to experiencing the type of surreal moments that caused him to stop and appreciate his “dream-come-true” position.
“There were actually several of those,” Keith admitted Tuesday evening just before taking the stage at the spectacular Riverdance Restaurant, where he was part of the Big Orange Caravan contingent that included Vols football coach Josh Heupel, men’s basketball coach Rick Barnes, women’s coach Kim Caldwell and athletic director Danny White.