How the careers of Jim Nantz and Philadelphia newscaster Ukee Washington are intertwined
· Yahoo Sports
Jim Nantz is an American institution. Since joining CBS Sports in the 1980s, he’s become the voice of The Masters, its lead NFL announcer, and was the lead broadcaster of the NCAA Tournament for over 30 years.
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Ukee Washington is a Philadelphia institution, having joined CBS Philadelphia in the mid-1980s and been one of the faces of the station and local news ever since. He’s been the co-anchor of Eyewitness Newsweeknight broadcasts for over a decade.
In a real sliding doors moment, it appears their paths once crossed, setting both of them on a collision course with destiny.
Nantz is in town for the PGA Championship at Aronimink Golf Club, and Washington was on hand to speak with him. For Nantz, his chance to finally appear on CBS Philadelphia was decades in the making.
More than 40 years ago, a young Jim Nantz interviewed for a sports anchor job at CBS Philadelphia. He didn’t get it.
Our station would go on to hire a local reporter out in Florida named Ukee Washington instead.
While Nantz went on to become a beloved staple in sports… pic.twitter.com/nhrKAE81xL
— CBS Philadelphia (@CBSPhiladelphia) May 14, 2026
“It’s great to finally be on Channel 3,” Nantz told Washington. “It’s been a long time in the making.”
“Let’s talk about that. Because the word I got was you were this close to being hired as the weekend sports anchor and reporter,” replied Washington. “Take me through it a little bit.”
“It’s true. In the summer of 1985, I had just turned 26 and I flew to Philadelphia – was so honored to be asked to audition for the number 2 role, and about two weeks later they called and said ‘Sorry we’re gonna go in a different direction…’ Within days of the phone call back from KYW, I got a phone call from CBS, and they wanted me to come to New York to audition for the host of the college football studio show,” said Nantz. “It was all within a matter of days.”
“I’m honored to tell you, your loss was my gain,” Washington told him. “Because they found me in Fort Myers, Florida, and I’ve been here ever since… Continued success, and thank you, friend.”
“Thank you, friend,” replied Nantz.
Well, that’s lovely.
Matt Schultz at Crossing Broad added some further context to the story, sharing a 2007 Inquirer article by Marc Narducci in which Nantz said then-anchor Howard Eskin picked him up from the airport and “was extremely supportive and wanted me to be the No. 2 anchor at Channel 3.”
Sometimes history gets a little scrambled. Here is the actual back story on Jim Nantz being interviewed for the weekend sports anchor back in 1985 at
KYW-TV3 in Philadelphia. I was the main sports anchor and saw a tape of Jim Nantz hosting a BYU Football show. Thought Jim was…— Howard Eskin (@howardeskin) May 14, 2026
As for Eskin, he added a little more context to the Nantz-Washington story, saying that those hiring cycles were actually a little farther apart than they made it sound. Still, if Nantz says yes, Washington stays in Florida. And then who knows where both their careers go from there.
In the end, it sounds like everyone ended up exactly where they were supposed to be.
“What a blessing it has been, and still is, to work for all of you, all of these years,” said Washington.
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