BY ANDY BAGGOT
UWBadgers.com Insider
MADISON, Wis. — The best vantage point to experience Wisconsin football and men's basketball games probably belongs to Dave McCann.
As a long-time broadcast engineer for iHeart Radio in Madison, he's spent the last two decades sitting in press boxes coast-to-coast making sure Badgers fans can hear, loud and clear, the familiar stylings of Matt Lepay and Mike Lucas.
Lepay notably handles the play-by-play, Lucas choreographs chunks of insight and analysis, while McCann sets up, maintains and operates the technology needed to bring it all to life. Together they've brought to life nearly 250 football and almost 700 basketball games for Wisconsin fans. Together the three men have collected millions of stories and told millions more.
McCann usually has the same view of the action as his two partners — be it an upper-deck radio booth hovering high above the field or a table courtside — but there are stadiums where his view of the field is limited and he can't see what's happening near one end zone.
That's when McCann does one of his favorite things, something many Badgers fans do when they can't be there in person or watch on TV.
He tunes in.
He gives his eyes to Lepay and his curiosity to Lucas and gives in to the emotions of the moment.
"Sometimes I'll forget that I'm engineering," McCann said, "and I'll just listen."
Matt Lepay (left) and Mike Lucas
That obstructed-view sequence may ultimately disappoint. The final outcome may be painful. The postgame journey home may be somber, treacherous or both. The pace may be exhausting when the seasons overlap as they do right now. But none of that changes the way McCann feels about collaborating with Lepay and Lucas.
"Every game is a thrill to be working with them," he said.
Lepay and Lucas have been calling Wisconsin football and men's basketball games on radio together for 25 years. In the process, they've become an institution, two guys known for their instincts, insights and chemistry.
They've taken turns telling stories of young people and big dreams.
They've taken turns giving perspective to strategy, policy, rules and tactics.
They've taken turns giving voice to a renaissance that continues to define all things Badgers.
Bowl games and NCAA tournament berths were the exception, not the rule, when Lepay and Lucas first teamed up in 1994. In all, Wisconsin has qualified for 23 bowl games — including a current Big Ten Conference-best streak of 18 in a row — and men's basketball has made it to the national tournament 22 times on their watch.
Mike Lucas (left) and Matt Lepay
That consistency has endured through two athletic directors, including Barry Alvarez; four football coaches, including Paul Chryst; and six men's basketball coaches, including Greg Gard.
Few college fan bases have enjoyed such an enduring product and have such a well-schooled set of personalities like Lepay and Lucas serving as narrators.
"They both have seen the history of these programs," Gard said. "They've seen Wisconsin football grow to where it is. They've seen Wisconsin basketball grow to where it is now. They've gone through highs and lows and they understand that it's a journey through a season and a lot of things can happen through it."
Lepay and Lucas have conveyed their thoughts with a synchronized sense of style.
"You work with someone long enough, you get a rhythm, like a dance partner," Alvarez said. "They know what they're going to get from each other."
Mike Lucas (left) and Matt Lepay before Wisconsin football played Minnesota at Camp Randall Stadium on Nov. 6, 2004 in Madison, Wis. The Badgers beat the Golden Gophers 38-14.
Mark Tauscher is a former Wisconsin and Green Bay Packers offensive lineman who has been part of the broadcast team for home games for the last six seasons. In addition to providing a unique perspective, he brings a welcome sense of humor while bantering with Lepay and Lucas.
"I think they both know what each other's thinking and how they go about preparing," Tauscher said. "I think they know how each other's mind works, which might be a dangerous thing."
Chryst, in his fifth season as football coach, and Gard, in his fifth season as men's basketball coach, have never listened to the duo call one of their games. How do the coaches know if they're any good? Instincts and feedback.
"People tell me they do it right," Chryst said. "Just the dealings I have with them — a lot with Matt — I trust my gut and my gut says he's really good."
Said Gard: "They're phenomenal."
It's often said that the UW Athletic Department is the front porch to the campus at-large. If so, picture Lepay and Lucas sitting in rockers, serving up yarns about Crazylegs, the Roadrunner, the Great Dayne and Frank the Tank to passersby.
"They're telling our story to everyone around the world," Alvarez said.
Lucas has the added distinction of covering the Badgers in some media capacity for 50 years. His byline appeared in the Badger Herald and Daily Cardinal when he was a 19-year-old sophomore in 1969. He subsequently wrote for both local newspapers and worked as a TV analyst in addition to a host of radio gigs. He's currently a senior writer for UWBadgers.com and hosts a morning radio show in Madison, Monday through Friday on WTSO, in addition to his duties as an analyst.
Lucas, who grew up in Beloit, Wis., was twice named Sportswriter of the Year during his 39-year career at the Madison Capital Times and authored five Badgers-centric books focusing on football ("Barry's Badgers: The Road to the Roses", "The 25 Greatest Moments in Camp Randall History" and "Don't Flinch: The Barry Alvarez Story"); men's basketball ("Another Hill to Climb: The Bo Ryan Story") and men's hockey ("Five Golden Rings: The Saga of Wisconsin Hockey").
Lucas, 69, has been around long enough to have interviewed football fathers and now their sons. Start with the Benzschawels, Gregoires, Nelsons, Toons and Vanden Booms. Save room on the list for Chryst, whose father, George, was a Wisconsin assistant coach from 1972 to '77.
Scott Nelson was a senior safety on the 1993 Rose Bowl team. Now his son, Cooper, is a freshman wide receiver.
"It must be a pretty special feeling for him," Scott Nelson said of Lucas.
"Privileged," is how Lucas put it. "I watched their dads grow up during the time they were here. Now I get to see one of their kids grow up in front of my eyes. How special is that? I'm lucky."
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Mike Lucas at Wisconsin's football game against Tennessee Tech on Sept. 7, 2013, in Madison, Wis.
Lepay remembers his first encounter with Lucas. It was June of 1988 and Lepay, newly hired at WTSO, was being introduced to Wisconsin coaches by his new colleague, Chris Moore. When they stopped in to see men's hockey coach Jeff Sauer, Lucas was there.
"Get to know him," Moore advised.
"Why?" Lepay asked.
"Because he's been around and has great perspective," Moore replied.
Lepay, who grew up in Dayton, Ohio, had been hired to call men's basketball games for WTSO and serve as host for pregame and postgame segments for football. When the school entered into an exclusive rights agreement with Learfield Communications in 1994, WIBA was chosen as a local affiliate for football and men's basketball, as well as men's hockey — and the Lepay-Lucas tandem was born.
"It clicked," Lepay said.
"He's the easiest guy in the world to work with," Lucas said.
They've seen some extraordinary sights together. Back-to-back Big Ten football titles and Rose Bowl victories. Back-to-back NCAA Final Fours in men's basketball. Ron Dayne winning the Heisman Trophy. Frank Kaminsky winning all the top national player of the year awards in men's basketball.
They saw Melvin Gordon rush for 408, Bronson Koenig beat Xavier with a last-second shot, Montee Ball score more touchdowns than any back in NCAA history, men's basketball ranked No. 1 in the nation and Russell Wilson strong-arm the Badgers to victory in the inaugural Big Ten football championship game.
The list goes on.
Needless to say, Lepay and Lucas have spent a lot of time together over the last quarter century.
"We know each other — the good, the bad and everything in between," Lepay said in good humor. "The common joke is that we spend more time together than we do with our wives, which is disturbing."
Matt Lepay serving as the emcee of the Camp Randall 100 celebration kick-off event.
What is Lucas' strength?
"How much time do you have?" Lepay asked.
After rattling off a list — "great interviewer, great story-teller, great perspective of the school, great love for what he does" — Lepay came in for a landing.
"His greatest strength of all is he's not someone who just shows up. He cares. He doesn't do anything halfway," he said.
Lepay marvels at the 50-year run Lucas has had.
"It's incredible," Lepay said. "It's one thing to do it a long time. It's another thing to do it a long time and do it really well. He's in that category. It's a small fraternity."
Lucas called Lepay "the consummate professional" and explained their chemistry using a bit of coach-speak.
"The chemistry is that we're both pros, that we both know what it takes to put out a good product and that is hard work," Lucas said.
That means attending practices, asking vital questions, cultivating relationships and doing homework.
"I respect the hell out of him," Lucas said. "We have a lot of pride in what we do."
Saying he's had the best seat in the house for the last 25 years, Lucas couldn't resist some self-deprecating analysis of his working relationship with Lepay.
"I'm his caddy," Lucas said. "I stand there, give the club and hold his bag.
"He's the porterhouse, I'm the au gratin; sometimes creamed spinach."
"Nobody handles the (big) moment better than Matt. Nobody handles that moment with more excitement and accuracy. I just try to take out my carpenter tools and frame it."
Lepay, 57, is a nine-time recipient of the state Sportscaster of the Year award who wrote "Why Not Wisconsin: From Barry to Bo" — a book about his observations and experiences covering the golden age of UW Athletics. He's spent the last six years expanding his horizons by calling Milwaukee Brewers games in a backup role for Fox Sports North.
Lepay said the duo's sense of postgame satisfaction is rooted in the fundamentals.
"The most basic is that we've covered the bases with what's going on with whatever storylines exist," he said. "Hopefully convey that we really enjoy what we're doing — working together and covering a program that we love."
Lucas said his biggest thrill is taking off his head phones to hear the roar of the crowd and his greatest strength is the curiosity it triggers.
"Delving beyond the number that someone was wearing to find out what the person was all about," he said. "Wanting to know how they respond to pressure and how they handle the arena."
Lucas said he's most proud of something he doesn't have.
"I never kept a scrapbook, but there are countless people who'll come up to me and, whether they played football here or basketball or hockey, will say, 'I still have that clipping of that story you wrote on me.' So I'm in a lot of scrapbooks, just not my own," he said.
Lucas prepares for each football game like a scrap-booker, though. His corner of the radio booth is festooned with clippings and sheets of paper with stats, charts and anecdotes about both teams. He admits it's an odd practice, but it's his way of knowing what's what.
"I don't want to guess at anything," Lucas said.
Fifty years is a sign that Lucas has done a lot of things right.
"Makes me feel like a survivor," he said.
Tauscher, who played for the Badgers from 1997 to '99, and Nelson, a starter from '91 to '93, have part-time roles in the UW football radio broadcasts. They've seen Lepay and Lucas in a variety of settings — analyst, interviewer, story-teller — and appreciate their work.
"Matt is the best in the business when it comes to painting a picture and then having some fun with it," Tauscher said. "What's under-appreciated is how self-deprecating he is. He wants to have as much fun as he can, but he's as professional as you're going to find.
"He's never been about him. It's always about the players and he just tries to bring it in the most entertaining way that he can. That's why he's as great at his job as he is."
Matt Lepay (right) interviews former Badger Mark Tauscher during the Wisconsin Badgers "Party at the Pier" in Santa Monica, California on Dec. 31, 2011.
Tauscher said Lucas' 50-year run is a "testament to him and how much he obviously loves sports and Wisconsin athletics to have done it this long. What he does, with all the work that he puts in and how much he preps, it's a lot of effort. You have to give him a ton of credit."
Nelson said it's clear that Lepay and Lucas have a special bond.
"Great guys individually," Nelson said. "Together you can tell there's mutual respect there."
One of the pillars of the Wisconsin rebirth was the arrival of Alvarez as football coach in 1990. Before he led the Badgers to a school-record 119 wins in 16 seasons, became a College Football Hall of Famer and took over as AD, Alvarez got to know Lepay while they did an hour-long call-in show during the lean years. Wisconsin labored through eight straight losing seasons — including the first three of the Alvarez Era — before its breakthrough.
Outside of his own assistants, who dialed up the show armed with aliases and compliments, "no one called in," Alvarez said, smiling. "No one cared."
Lepay left a welcome impression.
"Just how easy he was to work with," Alvarez said. "Matt was always just a good guy."
Alvarez said Lepay's signature tone is an asset that sets the Badgers apart.
"He's just got that golden voice," Alvarez said. "The thing you appreciate with him is everyone would like to have someone like him that you can identify his voice with us. He's really good."
Lucas' primary platform back then was the local afternoon newspaper.
"The thing I saw in Luke, he was going to follow through on everything and make sure you weren't messing with him," Alvarez said. "He was very serious, very thorough."
Gard said Lepay and Lucas have evolved into more than game-day personalities.
"They have great voices, but they also have a great care and concern for the student-athletes and the programs," Gard said. "They do their research and their homework.
"They're not just talking. They're painting a picture of the experiences of the student-athlete, the experiences of the coaches and what they go through."
Mike Lucas (left) and Matt Lepay prior to Wisconsin's football game against Arizona State on Sept. 18, 2010 at Camp Randall Stadium. The Badgers beat the Sun Devils 20-19.
McCann, from Madison, is in his 19th season engineering UW football broadcasts and 20th doing men's basketball, so he has a good measure of Lepay and Lucas.
"Matt is a down-to-earth guy who has a passion for what he does," McCann said. "I think that's what makes him such a great play-by-play guy is the passion for what he's doing.
"It's the same thing with Luke. He loves his sports. He loves what he's doing. I think that's what comes through on the air is that they both love what they're doing."
McCann appreciates the milestones that Lepay and Lucas have reached. He's thrilled to be a part of it.
"I just get them on the air," McCann said. "They're the ones that give the broadcast what it is."
