Longtime CFL play-by-play man Rod Black is no longer with Bell Media after his 30-plus year career with the organization came to an end last week.
“I’ve known it’s been coming for a while, frankly, and had been doing games while I knew what was going to happen. I just wanted to do it as I always do it. The last couple of games were really tough to do because I hadn’t really told anybody,” Black told TSN 1050.
The Winnipeg native built an impressive resume during his tenure at TSN, serving as an announcer for CFL on TSN, a host of NBA on TSN, the voice of figure skating in Canada, and covering five Olympic Games. He expressed his regret that he won’t be around major sports venues anymore, at least in the short-term.
“You love to tell stories and you love to be in the moment,” he said. “You love the juice of the game — I love that. I’m going to miss being down at the stadium and the park and the rink and with your colleagues before games.”
Black indicated that he is excited for what comes next, though he’s not sure what his next chapter will hold. It sounds like he’s not yet ready to retire — he joked that he unsuccessfully petitioned to become the next host of Jeopardy! — and would embrace the next opportunity that comes his way.
“I’ve had the time of my life,” he said. “I definitely am not done as a broadcaster. I’m going to be somewhere down the road, I would say. In what capacity? That’s to be determined.”
According to 3DownNation‘s John Hodge, the veteran broadcaster’s contract with TSN expired on August 31, 2021. He was not offered a new deal, though he agreed to call a number of CFL games into early October.
