For a moment, the city of Jacksonville, Alabama, was silent.

All except one voice.

Snap to Cooper. Looking. Down the field, he’s got a man, caught it. He’s free, Philyaw-Johnson at the 10, at the 5, touchdown! Touchdown! Touchdown! Touchdown! There are no flags! Touchdown pass! On the final snap of the game, Jacksonville State has won it!

It was a call that sent shockwaves across the college football world, as Jacksonville State toppled Florida State for an improbable early-season victory in 2021.

As for the voice behind the call? It was one Jacksonville is all too familiar with.

Longtime Jacksonville State broadcaster Mike Parris will officially enter his 42nd season as “the voice of the Gamecocks” when he calls Thursday’s game against Coastal Carolina.

Did he think he’d be in Jacksonville for 42 years?

“Probably not, if I were totally honest, no,” Parris laughed.

While he credited the area with being a great place to raise his growing family, Parris said he quickly fell in love with the university and found comfort in being a part of the Jax State family.

“I have a framed print that says, ‘best seat in the house,’” Parris said. “I could say I’ve been very fortunate to be there for just about all the big games in the last 42 years. To go from what the stadium used to look like in football to what it is now, the change that came in Pete Mathews Coliseum and then in baseball, with what we’ve got now to play in, and in softball as well. In some ways, you could say it’s amazing what we’ve been able to do and accomplish.”

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Parris has received multiple honors for his work during his time with the program, including an induction into the Jax State Athletics Hall of Fame in 2021 and earning Alabama Sportscaster of the Year honors from the National Sports Media Association the following year.

But, for those who know Parris, accolades and honor are far from what drives him.

“I don’t know many people that love Jacksonville State more than him,” said Josh Underwood, former Jax State sports information director.

“He always wanted to cover multiple sports, and he was willing to sacrifice his own time and drive wherever and do whatever it needed, do whatever it took to try to cover as many sports as he could.”

Whether it was in Mobile for a basketball game against South Alabama, a baseball game over 300 miles away in Richmond, Kentucky, or figuring out how to catch a ride from one event to the next, the longtime broadcaster would find a way.

The way Parris coordinated his plans was a borderline talent to many and an inspiration to young and aspiring broadcasters.

“He’s really dedicated,” said Chris Stewart, who covers Alabama for the Crimson Tide Sports Network. “To do a volleyball match on a Friday, and then drive wherever he needs to go to do football on Saturday and to treat it with the same level of respect and passion that that he does, and same with men’s and women’s basketball when there’s overlap; it’s why he’s truly the voice of Jacksonville State.”

Parris was not just a friend, but a mentor and someone to look up to for plenty of those who worked with him and became close to him.

“I started out my career doing SID work, but it was working with voice when I was like, ‘Man, that’s the path I want to go down,’” said Benjamin Ray, current senior director of broadcast at North Alabama and former Jax State grad assistant. “In a way, he kind of inspired me and pushed me that way. He probably had no clue that that was the case.”

Stewart, who says he always catches up with Parris whenever he’s in Jacksonville, still appreciates how Parris treated him as an equal when he was getting started in the profession.

“We’ve become closer friends over the years, and we are friends and have this relationship,” the Alabama broadcaster said. “He’s a true friend. As happens with friends, you get closer over time, but in terms of treating me with a level of respect I probably did not deserve, as young as I was as early as I was in my career, he was always first class.”

While he went on to have a 24-year stint leading Alabama’s baseball broadcasts and is set to lead Alabama’s football broadcasts, Stewart still finds himself impressed by the sheer amount of time and dedication Parris has put into the community of Jacksonville.

“You think you’ve spent a while at one place, and then you hear that number,” Stewart said. “It’s just so tough to do with changes in administration and leadership, and knowing how many times your boss can, and usually does, change in a time span like that, no matter your profession.

“It speaks to his loyalty to Jacksonville State and Jacksonville State’s loyalty to him.”

Logan Maddox, who used to call Jax State events on ESPN+ and is now at West Georgia, said he was always impressed by Parris’ abilities on the mic calling games and off the mic in the community and working with people.

“He’s an icon, and he’s so professional in the way he prepares for games, the way that he calls the games, and also just the way that he treats people,” the former sports information director said. “In this industry, there are some people that are great at what they do that maybe aren’t great people, but Mike’s one of the really great people that are also really fantastic at broadcasting.”

Even to those who spent years on the sideline, Parris’ knowledge of the booth helped immensely simply by being alongside him.

“As I came out of coaching into the booth, you know, Mike just took me under his wings,” said Ray Hammett, fellow Jax State broadcaster and former high school football coach. “He allowed me to try different things. I’ve had all kinds of formats, and his formats are pretty much the same.”

As for his time on the mic, Parris’ days with the Gamecocks shine through just about every broadcast, with stories and memories flooding back to him as he describes what would be a routine play to many.

“He’s kind of got that institutional memory,” Jax State athletics director Greg Seitz said. “What I mean from that is he didn’t have to go and look up in the game notes when was the last time we beat a team, or whatever. I can tell you; he is always so well-prepared for every broadcast he does, but he has the ability to recall so much because he called that when it happened.”

Ray, who worked with Parris on videos as a graduate assistant, still remembers Parris combining history and experience with what was happening right in front of him.

“He’s a fantastic storyteller, too, and has an unbelievable memory,” he said. “He could always reference back to ‘Man I remember this game that I called,’ and go over all the details.”

Those in the industry rave about how much more enjoyable the broadcasts are with Parris’ recall ability, which goes back to Jax State’s time in the Southland Conference and is now spearheaded by a New Orleans Bowl victory in the Gamecocks’ first season of FBS football.

“I just sit there and shake my head, like ‘Mike, you just pulled that one out of the hat,’” Hammett said. “He has that kind of memory too, that things that are important. People love to hear those stories, especially the older group that’s been Gamecock fans for 30, 40, 50 years because they can relate to it.”

His preparation for these events was essential, but when it came down to a moment years ago, Parris hardly needs to check his notes.

“There were multiple times when I was an SID at JSU that he would bring up sporting events that happened before I was born, and tell what yard line the play happened, what hash mark the ball was spotted at,” Maddox said. “His knowledge of the game and memory is incredible.”

With over 40 years on the headset, Parris’ voice has become a fixture of the Gamecocks. The sound still echoes on highlight reels, gets shown in film rooms and serves as a great audio clip for the team’s hype videos.

“He is a legend, certainly among our Jacksonville State fans,” Seitz said. “I’m not sure we’ve had many people associated with the athletic department much longer than what Mike has done in his 40-plus years with us. He’s had the opportunity to call so many of our great national championships and conference championships. He will always be remembered as the voice of the Gamecocks and just a very, very special part of Jacksonville State athletics throughout all the years.”

Even taking away his voice, those still see the impact of Parris’ time calling sports across Jax State; whether it’s catching up with a former player at a high school football game or helping younger people in the field find the voice of their own, the hall-of-fame broadcaster hopes for another year of successful sports for the Gamecocks he knows and loves.

“I still enjoy it,” Parris said. “It’s different now, getting ready and getting prepared for a broadcast, than it was back in 1983-84 in that time period. Obviously, with the internet, things are a little more readily accessible than they were at that time, so in some ways, it’s easier, but in some ways, people can find stuff like you can, so you’ve got to get those other nuggets.

“What I’ve always enjoyed about this, besides the games, is the research and background and learning about our student-athletes and then opponents as well; just trying to pick up on some interesting things that have happened that they’ve been involved in or in their careers.”