Ted Hurst will never get to hear Gene Deckerhoff yell, "Touchdown Tampa Bay," after he scores. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers' longtime game day announcer retired after 37 seasons at the end of 2025.
Deckerhoff is a legend in the Bay area. Respected, well-liked, admired, and consistent. The Buccanners have been around for 50 years, and Deckerhoff has been behind the mic for more than half of those.
On Friday night, Ted Hurst was drafted by the Buccaneers in the third round. Deckerhoff called the selection at the draft in Pittsburgh. It was fitting to say the least.
As the Voice of the Buccaneers for 37 seasons, Gene Deckerhoff welcomes Ted Hurst to Tampa Bay 🏝️
— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) April 25, 2026
📺: #NFLDraft on NFLN/ESPN/ABC pic.twitter.com/oFl8qYQcPA
Tampa Bay Buccaneers bring Ted Hurst onto the roster in the perfect way possible
Tampa watched three legends, including Deckerhoff, leave them this year. Lavonte David and Mike Evans both left, one by retirement, the other as a free agent. There wasn't much doubt that the Bucs would look for an Evans replacement, and the third round seemed to make the most sense.
Hurst has the same look as Evans. They are similar in size and skill sets, but Hurst has a long way to go before he can stake a claim to that level of play. Hurst is hard to beat in press coverage, often using a mix of speed and route running to keep the corner out of his hip pocket.
Baker Mayfield is going to love having Hurst to throw to.
While Hurst may have been the top story from the third round for the Buccaneers, Deckerhoff brought loud cheers from the Buccaneer faithful in attendance, and from the couches of their fans.
According to the Buccaneers team website, Deckerhoff called more than 800 games and more than 1,100 touchdowns. He was behind the mic for both of the Tampa Bay Super Bowls, something he made sure to remind the fans before calling the Hurst selection.
Though the first three rounds, the Buccaneers have delivered an amazing three selections, including the steal of round one with Reuben Bain, Jr., and David's potential replacement, Josiah Trotter.
Tampa has four more draft picks to make before closing it out and turning to the undrafted free agent additions.
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