Updated: August 2021
For more than 20 years, Bob Kesling has served as the "Voice of the Vols." The Tennessee graduate and versatile multimedia host represents Tennessee Athletics in various on- and off-air capacities as Director of Broadcasting.
Kesling was named lead announcer on the Vol Radio Network in 1999. He is the play-by-play voice for Tennessee football and basketball on the 70-plus stations that make up the Vol Network. Kesling also serves as the host for "Vol Calls", the weekly coaches call-in radio show and the "Big Orange Hotline" during the football season. He also hosts the "Josh Heupel Show" and "Rick Barnes Show" on the Vol Television Network.
Kesling began his association with the University of Tennessee as a walk-on fullback on the 1972 freshman football team. His broadcasting career began in 1974 when he was hired by John Ward as a film editor for the "Bill Battle Show" on the Vol Television Network while he was a student at the University of Tennessee.
In 1976, Kesling was hired by John Ward to serve as his spotter for Vol Network radio broadcasts. He sat beside the legendary "Voice of the Vols" for 15 seasons in the Vol Network booth spotting and handling pre-game, halftime and post-game interviews.
Kesling also has a long history with the Lady Vol basketball team. He served as the radio play-by-play voice from 1978 through 1999 - calling Pat Summitt's first six NCAA National Championships.
WIVK Radio in Knoxville named Kesling its Sports Director in 1976. In 1980, Kesling was named Sports Director at WBIR-TV in Knoxville and was Channel 10's 6 PM and 11 PM anchor until leaving that position in 1999 to join the Vol Network.
During his time at WBIR-TV, Kesling also worked for Jefferson-Pilot Sports on its SEC Television package. He joined the basketball network serving as pre-game host and play-by-play announcer in 1989 and joined the football broadcasts as a sideline reporter and play-by-play announcer in 1992. He remained at Jefferson-Pilot Sports until he accepted the Vol Network position in 1999.
His other credits include play-by-play announcer for the SEC football and basketball championship games on the SEC radio network, NCAA Women's Basketball Final Four on CBS/Westwood One radio Network, NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament on CBS/Westwood One radio network, college baseball on Fox Sports and Tennessee baseball and Lady Vols basketball on the Vol Network package carried on Fox SportSouth.
Active in the community, Kesling serves on the board of directors for Goodwill, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, the Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame and was the 2013 United Way Campaign Chairman. He is also a 2015 inductee into the Greater Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame.
A 1977 Tennessee graduate, Kesling and his wife, Tami, have two daughters, Allison and Melissa.
