WRAL Sports Fan

ACC Tournament

Angell hopes to make memories for UNC fans

Mar 15, 2013

Greensboro, N.C. — The Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament is no doubt a test of endurance for the players, but it's also a physical challenge for play-by-play announcers and their color men. 

Most will call almost 11 games during the four-day period, at times talking for as many as 10 hours a day. 

Duke University's Bob Harris and North Carolina State's Gary Hahn are well known to many in the Triangle, but the voice of the North Carolina Tar Heels is still a relative newcomer. 

In fact, Jones Angell's voice – at this point – is probably much more recognizable than his face. 

For Angell, who took over for veteran play-by-play man Woody Durham in 2011, the job couldn't be any more perfect. 

"Who wouldn't love to be court side calling all those games?" he said. "There's no doubt. When someone asks me what the favorite part of my job, I say it's the seats, without a doubt."

Angell, 33, became a part of the Tar Heel broadcast team when he was a student in Chapel Hill, and he took over for Durham in 2011.

"You know, I started after my sophomore year in college and the very first thing I did was to get Woody Durham a sandwich for lunch one day. I'll never forget it," Angell said.

As for taking over for the Tar Heel legend, Angell said he knew he had big shoes to fill. Durham was the voice of the Tar Heels for more than 40 years.

"It was a stressful couple of weeks, but I was fortunate enough to get the job, and it's been a great almost two years now," he said. "It's been a lot of fun. I think it's been as smooth a transition as you can have."

Angell said he's hoping to develop a relationship with fans like Durham had, one that involves them remembering some of the best moments in UNC sports history because of his radio calls. 

In his first two seasons with the Tar Heels, Angell has already started making those memories – both good and bad.

He called Austin Rivers' heroic 3-pointer that gave Duke a shocking come-from-behind win the Dean E. Smith Center in 2012, and last fall, he provided the audio for Gio Bernard's game-clinching punt return against North Carolina State. 

"You know, you don't know what's going to happen during the game, and so you just let that natural excitement or disappointment or whatever it may be take over," Angell said. "Hopefully you're good enough to let that happen."

• Reporter: Debra Morgan
• Photographer: Mark Simpson
• Web Editor: Derek Medlin