Voice of the Buckeyes coming to NPAC

VW independent staff and submitted information

The Ohio State Buckeyes scripted yet another successful season ending with a 48-45 Rose Bowl victory over Utah on New Year’s Day.

The Voice of the Buckeyes, Paul Keels, was with them every step of the way for every play. Van Wert Live along with presenting sponsor The Ohio State Alumni Association of Van Wert and Paulding counties, have announced that Keels will bring his distinguished voice and power-play stories to the Niswonger Performing Arts Center at 3 p.m. Sunday, April 10.

Tickets ranging in price from $19-29 are on sale now to Van Wert Live members and will release to the public on Friday, January 21. VWLive memberships begin as low as $100 and provide 365 days of early buying opportunities for all Van Wert Live events.

Keels’ booming voice fills rooms and cars with an unmistakable beat. His crisp play-calling on the radio of Ohio State football and basketball never leaves the listener in doubt. It’s graphic, efficient, and spot-on. Keels is now inextricably linked with the Buckeyes whose games he’s called for a score of years, through two national titles and three trips to the Final Four.

Players and coaches come and go, but a school’s longtime play-by-play announcer is as recognizable as the teams they cover. Fans think of them as longtime friends, those who share in the joy of victories and commiserate in the misery of defeats. They are forever part of the tapestry, drawing pictures of the familiar and the unfamiliar.

In this unimaginable world of digital conveniences, picture painting on the radio is a disappearing art. For years, radio was a necessity. It kept fans abreast. Still, today, there are many vibrant announcers who’ve presided over their friendly microphones for thirty or more years. They get it. Each one is an artist with his own distinct brush and palette.

Paul will share stories from his book “If These Walls Could Talk”, which recollects his years with Ohio State’s football and basketball teams – coaches he’s covered, some of the big players with whom he interacted, and naturally, some of the big moments he witnessed.

2022 annual sponsors making live entertainment happen in Van Wert are Central Insurance, First Federal Bank of Van Wert, and Statewide Ford-Lincoln.

VWLive Event and Membership information can be found at vanwertlive.com or through the box office by phone 419.238.6722 or in-person from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. Monday through Friday.

The Van Wert Area Performing Arts Foundation presenting VWLive events is powered by the Van Wert County Foundation. The box office is located within the Niswonger Performing Arts Center, 10700 SR 118 South, Van Wert.