Jim Nantz Thanked Fans For ‘Being My Friend’ After His Last Final Four Broadcast

For 32 years, Jim Nantz has been the voice of the Men’s Final Four, calling more than three decades of championships for CBS Sports. Prior to this season, Nantz announced this would be his last, as he would call the Final Four in the place his broadcasting career started when he was a college student at Houston.

That moment arrived on Monday night after a thoroughly impressive performance from UConn to win its fifth title in 25 years, and after the final buzzer sounded and Tracy Wolfson did her on-court interview with coach Dan Hurley, they sent it back to Nantz who did his best to fight off the emotion of the moment, delivering one final sign-off from the Final Four. In it, Nantz called back to his legendary welcoming line of “Hello, friends,” thanking Bill Raftery, Grant Hill, Tracy Wolfson, the entire CBS crew, and fans of college basketball everywhere for “being my friend” for all these years.

For someone as stoic as Nantz, who never seems overcome with emotion in the moment (which, if anything, has been the knock some have of him as a play-by-play man when wild finishes happen), it was a perfect sign-off and about as emotional as you’ll ever hear him, as he choked up delivering his final line. Still, he got through it like the pro he is, and while his Final Four career is over, #NantzSZN rolls on unimpeded, as he’ll be taking the jet from Houston to Augusta for the event he’s become synonymous with, the Masters.