Bob Neal (Atlanta sportscaster)
Bob Neal (born in Tennessee, raised in Chicago) is an American sportscaster.
Career
Bob Neal has been involved for forty years with television and radio at the national and local level. Currently, he is engaged in teaching sports journalism at the University of Georgia and Georgia State University, and is the anchor of the syndicated "Play To Win" NFL and college football show, independently produced. Neal has also been a familiar voice for Turner Sports on its national NBA coverage for TNT and TBS for telecasts for 23 years.
The Chicago bred broadcaster's lengthy resume also includes play-by-play for the NBA and NCAA college football games on NBC. At TNT and TBS, Neal has been the broadcast voice for PGA Tour events, NFL football, Atlanta Braves, Atlanta Hawks and World Cup soccer. Previously, Neal was the radio voice of the NFL Atlanta Falcons (1975–81, 1995–97) and news and sports director of WXIA-TV in Atlanta.
From 2008-2013, Bob was anchor of Talkin' Football, Talkin' Hoops, "SportsNite", and offered play-by-play for college football, basketball and baseball for Comcast Sports Network, a division of NBC Sports Group.
In addition to his current hosting of Play To Win, his studio hosting experience also includes the award winning Football Saturday on TBS, the 1986 and 1990 Goodwill Games and TNT's Sunday night NFL broadcasts. Neal's long tenured association with Turner Sports began in 1977, producing and hosting "'Sports Week, on TBS, the first national sports show on cable.
Accolades
Neal's accolades include five Georgia Area Emmys, three Associated Press Awards, and a share of five national Emmys for his role in Goodwill Games telecasts. Neal is also the recipient of two Cable ACE Awards for SEC Football and NBA Coverage as well as the Masters Water Ski Tournament for Turner Sports. Neal is the 2012 recipient of the Lindsey Nelson Award, in recognition of career contributions to broadcasting, presented by the National Football Foundation. Most recently Neal was honored as Distinguished Journalism Alumni by Northern Illinois University and has been inducted into The Silver Circle of The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS). Bob is a member of the Board of Governors of NATAS southeast.
Personal
Neal studied at Northern Illinois University and the University of Michigan and holds a BA degree in Journalism from NIU. Neal resides with his wife, Sally, a nationally recognized voice talent agent, in Smyrna, Georgia. His son, Dave Neal, handles play-by-play for football, basketball and baseball on ESPN, including the ESPN SEC Network. Neal's son Rob, an attorney, is Chief Business Officer of the OneAsia Golf Tour and Executive Director of Tournament Golf Foundation, Inc., a Portland, Or-based rights holder for professional golf tournaments. Rob Neal is also Chairman of the Board of the LPGA Tournament Owners Association.