by A limited-edition series called Friday Night Voices features the local high school football teams’ veteran radio and online broadcasters. Over the years, these local radio icons have seen and heard it all, and they have come to represent Friday night football in Northeast Georgia.
It’s likely that you can visualize the major plays, games, and performances that Stephens County High School football has seen over the last 25 years if you close your eyes and think about them. Perhaps you were physically present. Maybe you watched the highlights of the video. Or perhaps you were one of the many people who tuned in to hear Buzz Tatham and Ken Brady live on the radio as they recounted those experiences.
Now in their 26th season together, the Indians broadcast team on WNEG is calling Stephens County games. For Ken, it has been 28 years in a row. With his good friend Buzz at his side offering color commentary, he is the play-by-play person. We’ll do the math for you. If you’ve listened to Stephens County football on the radio every Friday night since the 1999 Marist playoff game, you’ve heard them call 288 games.
That’s devotion, then.
How it all began for Ken
Both Buzz Tatham and Ken Brady are natives of Toccoa. In 1977, Brady, now 65, received his high school diploma from Stephens County. He went to the University of Georgia and Young Harris College to get his degrees. After honing his skills, he was brought on board as a full-time employee at WNEG Radio in 1981.
Brady remembers, “I grew up listening to the legendary Lynn Pitts calling basketball and football games at WLET.” I always loved football, and I started listening to play-by-play when I was seventeen years old.
In the late 1980s, Brady had his own opportunity to play the sport. Days after the games, on Tuesday, Friday Night Under the Lights was rerun on Toccoa’s now-defunct WNEG TV Channel 32. The show was presented by Charles Head and Mack Poss, who was getting ready for the birth of his first child in 1987.
I recall them calling and asking if Ken could take Mack’s place. Brady remembers. “I’ll try it,” he recalls telling TV32.
His high school sweetheart, Ken, and his wife, Karen, eagerly awaited the birth of their own kid a month later. Josh, their kid, was gracious enough not to disrupt the broadcast schedule, Brady said.
For Brady, it was only the beginning. For a period, he was the preferred sub for WNEG. Head moved on to other endeavors in 1992, and Stephens County night games were picked up by WNEG Radio in 1998. Prior to that, the games were aired live on the now-defunct WLET Radio.
Despite not being a football player, Brady covered high school football games for the Toccoa Record and began working as a radio reporter as a senior, covering both basketball and football.
The beginning for Buzz
Brady’s broadcast journey is similar to Buzz Tatham’s. He, who is now 75, attended Young Harris College before enrolling at UGA. He also went to Piedmont College in Demorest, which is now Piedmont University. At the age of 15, Tatham started working in radio at WLET in 1969. In 1972, he relocated to WNEG.
Tatham, the color analyst for the Stephens County football games, has a long career in sports. After initially working as a coach at Commerce under the renowned Ray Lamb, he returned to Stephens to serve as a football and basketball coach from 1981 to 1998.Since they called the 1999 Stephens County playoff game versus Marist, Buzz Tatham has been Ken Brady’s color analyst. From NowHabersham.com/Riley Moody
When Tatham returned to his starting point, he said, “You don’t outgrow Toccoa, you just grow into it and stay there.”
He was a coach to players like Jay Russell and Rodney Walker. After working with Poss as a radio and television game caller, he eventually had the opportunity to work with Brady.
Tatham acknowledges, “I don’t know that it was a passion.” Ken drafted me; it was one of those agreements where I was supposed to be in the box to let him know what was happening. I didn’t intentionally seek it out, but I simply didn’t want to say anything that might cause Ken to lose his job.
Brady and Tatham’s duo was formally established in 1999 at Marist during Stephens County’s playoff game. Buzz stepped in when called upon and never turned back.
A tight bond on and off the air
When discussing broadcasts from Stephens County, Buzz Tatham and Ken Brady are always brought up together. Their strong bond, which has been cultivated over many years, reverberates throughout the media.
Brady says, “We just get along so well.” We like to take road trips, share humorous stories, and have been on the radio together. I adore Buzz’s old coaching tales and Rodney Walker impersonations. In addition to having excellent insight, he is a pleasure to be around. We simply collaborate well.
Tatham has called games with players he used to coach, including their children and even grandchildren. He can perceive the parallels between himself and his play-by-play companion without having to squint.
According to Tatham, everyone in Toccoa knows everyone. Although we didn’t work together in high school, we were coworkers at the radio station. Our backgrounds are similar to those of Stephens County, Young Harris, and UGA. We weren’t outside hiring, so that adds a special touch. Together, we grew up here.A view from the hot seat beneath the WNEG tent during the away game in Mount Airy, Georgia on August 15. From NowHabersham.com/Riley Moody
Because the two play off one another during the game, that familiarity improves the broadcast. Tatham is providing details that offer an alternative viewpoint while Brady breaks down the action play by play.
Brady adds, “I rely on Buzz to enlighten the listener and provide insight on the offense and defense as I’m describing the action.” Together, we want to highlight the positive rather than the negative. When something positive occurs, we want to offer credit. When I go to road games, Buzz is my guide. He is in charge of hanging the equipment and banner. He even set up a feature to track statistics on his iPad. He is doing all of this here, including numbers and color commentary. He has a variety of skills. How he accomplishes it is beyond me.
Throughout the program, Buzz works diligently and is aware of his responsibility to present the narrative.
Tatham says, “I try to explain why it happened the way it did and what might happen next.” I can read better because I’ve been on the sidelines for so long, and it’s entertaining to see a play from up in the box.
Favorite memories
You will get two different answers if you ask both men what their favorite game or most memorable experience is. Brady finds it unique.Brady had some unforgettable on-field experiences thanks to Tauren Poole, who is pictured here during his playing days at Stephens County High. Poole later played in the NFL and at Tennessee. (BLITZSports.com)
According to Stephens, the most memorable was when he had Tauren Poole in 2007 and they were playing Chamblee at home in the second round of the playoffs. The match is called the Chamblee Shootout, and Chamblee won 58-57. At The Reservation, 115 points is a record. The game continued to play without stopping. It was emotional for us up in the box, and I was exhausted, and all I wanted was for Stephens to win. Poole and quarterback Ethan Martin were excellent. Although it was a defeat, it was thrilling and near. I also have a happy memory of a Franklin County game where Buzz had to prioritize his administration responsibilities above the broadcast due to a medical issue that occurred on the field.
When you ask Buzz about his favorite memory or moment, it comes up again and time again.
“I have a favorite moment that keeps happening,” Tatham explains. Because a scoring play is in real time, you can often sense it before it happens, depending on the field’s position and formation. A block that opens a receiver or runner is visible to me. You can see the mechanics coming together and a score approaching as he goes for a touchdown. You can see that, and it’s one of my favorite moments that I always have.
Notable names come up when you ask each broadcaster which player standouts they have liked the most over the years.
Brady claims that Tauren Poole was quite strong in the middle. Chaz Thornton was a really fast person. It’s difficult to choose because there have been so many. Those two immediately come to me since I recall getting thrilled just watching them run.
“That one, I’m going to be a coward,” Tatham says. When I return to the players I coached, things become murky. If I begin naming one, I will continue to name more. At Stephens County, a great number of people gave their all.
Rivalry games versus Habersham Central and Hart County stand out among the other noteworthy events or contests.
We were unable to get Habersham on the program at one point in Stephens County history, Tatham remembers. versus the possible exception of the 1988 state championship game, that first home game versus Habersham in 1971 drew the biggest attendance ever at The Reservation. Many people are related to those who live in another county. It’s quite sentimental. I’m happy it’s in place and hope it stays that way.
Brady recalls the 2017 matchup, which saw the Indians defeat them 49-46 at John Larry Black Field, saying, “I remember that Habersham and Stephens game with [AJ] Curry and the score was back-and-forth, back-and-forth, back-and-forth that was amazing.” Fantastic game. Additionally, CC Morrison scored in a very low-scoring game during a number of crucial games against Hart County.
What s next?
How long do you intend to keep these long-standing pillars doing what they do best? This is the obvious question that is frequently left unasked. What motivates you is a better question to ask.
I really like it. Brady recalls listening to Lynn Pitts on the radio when he was eleven or twelve years old. “I wish I could do that someday,” I remember saying. It is my hope that the game, the band, the cheerleaders, the audience, and the mood will be audible to others. We make an effort to include those individuals. It’s really satisfying. Having people tell me, “Ken, I felt like I was there, but I couldn’t make it to the game because of this or that.”
Tatham continues, “That’s what keeps me coming back for Friday nights.” My objective is to avoid saying anything that might cause Ken to be fired. I may have said five years ago that we were a package deal and that I would leave when he retired.
Let’s hope it doesn’t happen anytime soon for everyone’s benefit.
