CLEMSON, S.C., Sept. 9 (UPI) -- Jim Phillips, the voice of Clemson athletics for 36 years, died early Tuesday morning of an aneurysm of the aorta.
He was 69.
Phillips was rushed to Greenville (S.C.) Memorial Hospital Monday evening. Surgeons performed seven hours of surgery before he passed early Tuesday morning.
Phillips, the dean of ACC broadcasters, called the Clemson/Furman football game last Saturday. He broadcast his first Tiger football game on Sept. 21, 1968, a 20-20 tie between Clemson and Wake Forest. He called his 400th Clemson football game on Aug. 30.
"Jim's voice was synonymous with Tiger athletics," said ACC Commissioner John Swofford. "Jim Phillips has been a landmark in the Atlantic Coast Conference for the past 36 years, and his dedication to Clemson athletics is one of the primary reasons for the school's enduring popularity among the people of South Carolina and fans of the ACC."
Phillips was inducted into the Clemson Athletic Hall of Fame in 1992 and attended the Hall of Fame induction banquet last Friday evening.
Over his career, he broadcast over 2,000 Clemson sporting events. In addition to his duties at Clemson, he was the sports director at WYFF-TV from 1968-80 and the sports director at WFBC Radio in Greenville for 25 years.
