Longtime radio voice of the Pittsburgh Steelers and Pitt Panthers, Bill Hillgrove will be suspended for the first two games of the season by both teams, after the announcer was charged with a DUI this past June.
The incident occurred June 15, when Hillgrove drove his car into the front of a grocery store in Murrysville, PA according to police. Pulling into the parking lot, Hillgrove, who the manager said was a frequent customer, reportedly drove his vehicle directly into two glass panes.
Police later arrived at Hillgrove’s home where he was questioned and acknowledged having “a couple of beers” before the incident. Consenting to a breathalyzer test, officials reported Hillgrove’s blood alcohol level to be at least 0.16%, twice the legal limit of .08%.
For the two Steelers’ broadcasts, Hillgrove will likely be replaced by Rob King on their flagship network 102.5 WDVE. King is one of the main sports anchors on AT&T Sportsnet Pittsburgh and also serves as the Steelers radio pregame host.
King filled in for Hillgrove last season when the Steelers radio voice since ’94 missed time to have back surgery. Hillgrove also missed one Pitt Panthers broadcast last season for the same reason, their Bowl game in late December which was carried by the team’s flagship station 93.7 The Fan. For that broadcast, Larry Richert of The Fan’s sister station KDKA stepped into the booth, but it has not been announced if he’ll do the same this season.
Brandon Contes is a former reporter for BSM, now working for Awful Announcing. You can find him on Twitter @BrandonContes or reach him by email at Brandon.Contes@gmail.com.
