Fans rank Merrill Reese as Philly's No. 1 play-by-play voice

Oddly, the jitters are still there. Even after all these years - 32, if you happen to be counting - Merrill Reese wakes up on Sunday during the NFL season with the same churning stomach that he had when he stepped in for Eagles play-by-play announcer Charlie Swift, who committed suicide with two games remaining in the 1977 season. It was there then and it was there two Sundays ago when the Eagles played the Lions in Detroit.

"I still get excited doing this," Reese says. "My love for the job is as great now as it was then, perhaps even greater."

And Philadelphia is just as enamored with him. A Daily News survey conducted in conjunction with the Sport Industry Research Center at Temple University found that Reese was far and away the No. 1 play-by-play voice in the city. The winner with 50 percent of the vote, he placed well ahead of Scott Franzke (18 percent), who does the Phillies radio, and Jim Jackson (13 percent), who does Flyers TV and Phillies radio.

With that booming voice that soars with delight whenever the Eagles get something going, Reese says that it is not his job to "create enthusiasm but to convey it." Under contract with CBS Radio and not the Eagles, he says he is "not there to sell tickets" for the club but to accurately portray the events on the field - good or bad. In the early stages of the Lions game, he was sharply critical of the Eagles, who trailed 17-7 in the second quarter before going on to win, 35-32. When the team began playing better, he accorded them a better review.

He says "the fans cannot be fooled."

Fans appear to appreciate that level of candor. In a follow-up interview to the survey, Larry Litwin, of Berlin, N.J., said that "Merrill is not afraid to criticize when need be. He truly bleeds Eagles green, but legitimately questions play-calling and other key coaching decisions." But Litwin also saluted Reese for his ability to "set the scene on radio." He compared Reese to Philadelphia icon Bill Campbell and former Green Bay play-by-play announcer Ray Scott. Litwin added, "Thanks to Merrill, you absolutely see the game on radio – just as Marconi intended it."

With offers to go elsewhere during his long career, Reese could not bring himself to leave his hometown or the job he had "dreamed of" since his youth. In his yearbook at Overbrook High, the caption under his photograph read: "AMBITION – To become a sportscaster." One of the broadcasters he admired as a young man was Campbell, who Reese says "did an interview better than anyone he has ever heard." And he had fondness for Scott, of whom Reese says: "All he had to say was 'Starr . . . Dowler . . . Touchdown.' You could just feel it in his voice."

Reese works 7 days a week during the season, not just on Sundays. "The key to this is preparation," says Reese, who has shared some of his tips in a book he just authored, "Sportscasting: Turning Your Passion into a Profession." "I am in the locker room every day. And I study for 3 hours before I go to bed each evening. I try to get the numbers of the [opposing] players down and read whatever I can get that has been written on the other team."

Reese adds that he always strives for clarity. "Kids watch 'SportsCenter' and think that it comes down to great touchdown calls," Reese says. "But even more important are the basics: S.T.D.D. - Score, Time, Down and Distance. I try to give the score and time every minute or so. When I forget to do it, my producer flashes a card in front of me and I will mention it heading into the next play."

Reese says he has better than 20-20 vision with contact lenses and has a photographic memory, which helps him remember who has what number. But he concedes that if he is in a booth that is especially high up or far away, the No. 10 jersey of wide receiver DeSean Jackson can look like the No. 18 on Jeremy Maclin. Reese says that were Jackson to bend over, "that '0' can easily look like an '8.' " While he says that his proximity to the field is excellent at Lincoln Financial Field, he says the broadcast booth for the visiting team at FedEx Field in Washington is deplorable.

"We are in the corner of the end zone down there and [positioned] low," Reese says. "So when the balls passed the 50 [yard line], you cannot be sure if it has gone 5 yards or 15."

Reese shrugs as if to say, "no job is perfect." But the one he has is as close as he can get, and he has no intention of stepping aside.

"There are no plans to retire," he says. "I love it."