In his 26th season at UGA, Jeff Dantzler’s passion lives on as voice of Lady Bulldogs

Jeff Dantzler sits at the Stegeman Coliseum scorer’s table on a Sunday afternoon and begins his preparation.

He fixes the headset around his ears and lowers the microphone to his lips. With the turn of a few knobs on his control panel and an all-clear signal from the studio, he’s ready to bring listeners into the arena with him.

Dantzler looks out to see the most hated of in-state rivals — Georgia and Georgia Tech — set to tip-off at midcourt. He sets the scene from the Bulldogs’ white jerseys to the Yellow Jackets’ gold trim to describing the sound of a basketball’s bounce. This is the third regular-season women’s basketball game. Leave it up to the program’s recognizable voice, however, to make the listener feel as if it’s a do-or-die game with millions of eyes fixated on it.

Dantzler loves Georgia and every facet of its athletic program. He shares it in every manner possible, too, with a mass of fellow Bulldog diehards. But his dedication to the Lady Bulldogs’ program is unique. That’s because, well, this isn’t the most widely-followed sport in Athens — although it was near the top when Dantzler started his memorable tenure 26 seasons ago.

Twenty-six! It’s a number that makes Dantzler chuckle when reflecting upon it. Through it all, he brings a voice to the team, and the fan base craves it. He brings excitement to a program that’s searching for another ascent.

“JD is special,” Georgia fifth-year head coach Joni Taylor said. “It’s one thing to come out to do your job, but the passion he has is unmatched. It bleeds into everybody else, so we appreciate everything he does and the way that he prepares.

“I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had fans who couldn’t make it, listen to him and say ‘I felt like I was right there.’ To listen to him on the call with that passion is fun to be a part of.”

During this particular game, he rattled off boisterous phrases like “Couldn’t start any better” with a game-opening 3-pointer from Jenna Staiti, or “Que picked her pocket” after a Que Morrison steal which allowed for the Lady Bulldogs to go on a scoring spurt.

A 13-1 lead got Dantzler off to an ideal start, exclaiming “If they keep that up, I’ll guarantee you a Georgia win!” Moments later, it wasn’t maintained and things went into a tail-spin.

Georgia went into a frenzy. A myriad of turnovers caught the attention of Dantzler, with some humbling phrases to compliment it.

A Lady Bulldog traveled: “She pivots and takes a stroll. Kind of like Bambi on ice.”

Referees call a foul on Maya Caldwell that Dantzler didn’t agree with: “You’ve got to be kidding me! She walked halfway to North Campus” while raising his arms in disbelief.

As the game progressed, the series of events only worsened. He mentioned Gabby Connally was 100% at the free-throw line during SEC play last season. She missed a second later. Dantzler replies, “I downright jinxed her.”

Another turnover, which Dantzler said was of the “apple” variety, led him to slam his pen. Poor spacing on a later possession resulted in a fist slam.

Once Georgia got run out of its own gym, some of Dantzler’s last remarks were “This is just domination right now” and “We’re down by a lot.”

By the end of the afternoon, Georgia fell victim to a 73-40 defeat and couldn’t muster an inkling of hope on either end. Dantzler, however, had unfailing dedication.

“I think the big thing is that you’re just honest,” Dantzler said, referencing the “call ‘em like you see ‘em” saying from legendary broadcaster Howard Cosell. “You’re saying what’s happening during the game. You can’t say ‘we’ve cut it down to 28!’ Nobody is going to buy that. If it’s a bad day, then the best thing to do is say ‘we’re having a bad day and getting embarrassed.’”

He started in the 1993-94 season after working in the sports information office with longtime assistant athletic director Claude Felton (who keeps chugging along). Georgia had a vacancy for its women’s basketball radio announcer, and legendary coach Andy Landers took a chance on Dantzler who had some experience calling high-school games in Statesboro.

He entered in the peak period for the Lady Bulldogs. Dantzler had the microphone when Georgia beat Colorado to go to the 1995 Final Four when Kedra Holland-Corn led a ferocious comeback. He remembers memorable game winners from program icon Ashley Houts. A run of three Final Fours in five years will never be forgotten by Dantzler, because he got to call them all.

“That’s one of those deals where you got spoiled,” Dantzler said. “Those times are when it’s really, really special.”

Some of Dantzler’s traits include whipping out a variety of historical nuggets as the Georgia athletics’ mega encyclopedia of sorts. Taylor recalled a memory of the Lady Bulldogs sitting at a dinner table on road trips and calling out a year, let’s say 1975. Dantzler could reference back to significant moments in program history, regardless of sport.

Twenty-six years is quite a large span of time and for Dantzler, it goes by quicker with each passing year. But he still remembers one of his first experiences: a road game at Auburn on Feb. 20, 1994.

He walked into what was then Beard-Eaves Memorial Coliseum with some nerves. He ran into longtime friend and now-football voice of the Auburn Tigers, Andy Burcham (who had called women’s basketball since 1988). Dantzler asked where the arena’s press room was because he wanted a Coca-Cola.

“Come with me,” Dantzler recalled Burcham saying.

They walked through the arena’s underbelly and arrived at a vending machine. Burcham put in four quarters for two cans of Coke. They caught up and eased some nerves in a 1994 version of a press room, which was very makeshift.

“I’ll never forget that. That’s such a welcoming thing, and it is really impressive to see how much it has grown,” Dantzler said. “I am definitely proud to be a part of this program and have my name associated with it.”

He has been to many arenas and called many games since, but Dantzler still feels some giddiness each time he walks into Stegeman Coliseum. He sets up his equipment during shootaround, returns 90 minutes before tip-off and the adrenaline builds once music blares through the loudspeaker. Once the headset is on, it’s go time and Dantzler exposes his true personality.

Whether its a blowout loss or a postseason win, Georgia will always have its voice of the Lady Bulldogs. All for program admiration, of course.

“Other than my parents,” Dantzler said, “I’ve loved Georgia more than any.”