Virtual Presentation: “Inside Iowa Sports,” June 26

One of the most familiar voices in area-sports radio can be heard again, in a different context, when the Davenport Public Library hosts the virtual presentation Inside Iowa Sports, an online June 26 event boasting decades worth of anecdotes delivered by Gary “Dolph” Dolphin, the longtime play-by-play broadcaster for the University of Iowa Hawkeyes football and men's-basketball teams.

Born in Cascade, Iowa, Dolphin attended Dubuque's Loras College and then enrolled at Brown Institute of Broadcasting in Minneapolis. Prior to getting the job from Learfield Sports (which represents more than 130 colleges across 31 states) as "The Voice of The Hawkeyes," Dolphin had various stops in both radio and television before landing a job calling Northwestern University men's basketball in 1990. In 1996, Dolphin was one of 63 applicants that applied for the University of Iowa job, and he was hired on December 13; for football broadcasts, he works alongside Ed Podolak, while his broadcast partner for basketball is Bobby Hansen. In 1999, Dolphin was also a contender for the radio play-by-play job on Chicago Bears football broadcasts, a job that eventually went to Gary Bender. Just two years later, the Bears pursued Dolphin again after Bender resigned, but Dolphin rejected the team's offer, as it would have forced him to move to Chicago and cut his ties to the Hawkeyes' broadcasts.

In addition to calling games, Dolphin is the host of the weekly radio program Hawk Talk, in which fans call in to discuss sports Dolphin and Iowa coaches Kirk Ferentz and Fran McCaffery. He also hosts weekly television coaches' shows, where Ferentz and McCaffery recap the latest games, and was named "Iowa Sportscaster of the Year" by the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association in 2000 and 2010. Among many other professional accomplishments, Dolphin served as vice-president for business development at Dubuque's U.S. Bank; he supports dozens of local nonprofit organizations including Hospice of Dubuque, American Cancer Society, Camp Albrecht Acres, Colts Drum & Bugle Crops, and the Boys' & Girls' Club of Greater Dubuque; and has fulfilled numerous master-of ceremony requests for non-profit fundraisers. His association with the UI athletic department has also secured hundreds of autographed items and memorabilia useful in the university's fundraising efforts

Inside Iowa Sports will be presented in a virtual Zoom session on June 26 at 11 a.m., and viewers will receive an event URL via registration e-mail. Participation is free, and more information on the event is available by calling (563)326-7832 and visiting DavenportLibrary.com.