When a franchise such as the Lightning flirts with dynasty status, its indigenous celebrities can elevate to a degree of national stardom.
Such is the case with longtime radio voice Dave Mishkin, whose frenetic call of Lightning goals (“SCORRRRES!!!”) made him a local folk hero long ago. Today, thanks to Tampa Bay’s two-season joyride and the prevalence of social media, Mishkin’s unabashed, elongated scoring calls have gained traction across North America.
But is Mishkin’s signature call the best in Florida sports? Probably depends on your allegiance. At any rate, our state is rife with longtime radio and TV voices whose catchphrases have endeared themselves to legions.
Here are what we deem the state’s four best-known signature calls, listed alphabetically by the name of the caller. You decide which is the best.
Gene Deckerhoff, Buccaneers (“Fire the cannons!”)
The busiest man in broadcasting (at least on autumn weekends), Deckerhoff has pulled double duty as the radio play-by-play voice for FSU and Bucs games for more than 30 years.
While several pieces of this Florida Sports Hall of Famer’s repertoire (“some extra-curricular stuff going on,” referring to the Bucs or Seminoles as “we”) are well known from Tallahassee to Tampa, his “Fire the cannons!” exhortation following a Bucs touchdown at Raymond James Stadium has become part of the pewter-and-red lexicon.
Listen to Gene Deckerhoff’s signature call
Mick Hubert, Florida Gators (“Ohhh myyy!!!”)
For the last 32 years, this congenial, otherwise collective Midwesterner — a member of the Florida Sports Hall of Fame — has punctuated Gators touchdowns or splash plays with an ebullient “Ohhh myyy!!!” across radio airwaves. Today, those two words are the orange-and-blue catchphrase equivalent of “Holy Cow!” among Chicago Cubs fans.
“Wherever we go on the road, you’d be shocked at the number of people who want his autograph or want his picture,” Mark Wise, Hubert’s longtime partner on Gators men’s basketball broadcasts, told floridagators.com in 2019. “Yes, he’s the ‘Voice of the Gators,’ but it’s almost like to these Gator fans, he’s their voice.”
Listen to Mick Hubert’s call of the final play of the 2017 Tennessee-Florida game
Dave Mishkin, Lightning (“SCORRRRES!!!”)
Perhaps the most endearing element in a Mishkin scoring call is its spontaneity. When a puck off a Lightning stick finds the back of an opposing net, Mishkin — a native New Yorker reared in Boston — reacts with an off-the-cuff, childlike exuberance that has become embedded in the franchise’s soundtrack.
Between Tampa Bay goals, Mishkin, who has paired with team founder Phil Esposito for Lightning radio calls for two decades, is a fluent conveyor of the on-ice action. But when the Lightning score, he sounds like a caffeinated pubescent in a Stamkos jersey, which is what you desire from your team’s radio guy.
Listen to Dave Mishkin’s call of Yanni Gourde’s shorthanded goal in Game 7 vs. the Islanders
Eric Reid, Miami Heat (“Ka-BOOM”)
The lone remaining original member of the Miami Heat’s broadcast team, Reid’s “Ka-boom” following a Heat 3-pointer is a staple in the franchise’s vernacular. A two-time Florida Sportscaster of the Year and winner of nearly 20 regional Emmy Awards, Reid possesses the same adoration in Miami as Mick Hubert does in Gainesville.
Listen to Eric Reid give a “Ka-BOOM” to a LeBron James 3-pointer
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