Last week we mentioned the five finalists for the inaugural Bill Schwanke Award for the top play-by-play radio broadcaster in the FCS.
The voting committee has voted University of Northern Iowa's Gary Rima as the first ever Bill Schwanke Award winner. The other finalists were Larry Weir of EWU, Jay Colley of William & Mary, Brian Rives of Austin Peay, and Jay Sandos of ETSU.
Gary has been the voice for the Panthers for the past 29 years and is synonymous with some of the greatest highlights in UNI Panther history. He has true excitement and energy for all of their coaches and student-athletes and you can feel that during game days.
After 29 years as the play-by-play broadcaster for UNI, Gary will be hanging up the headset after finishing out UNI's 2021-2022 men's basketball season. Winning this award is a storybook ending to his broading casting career.