The voice of many seasons: Bill Berry and the Milton Eagle鈥檚 press box team
MILTON, Ga. — On Friday nights in Milton, the sound of a familiar voice carries across the stadium and through the distance into Crabapple. That voice belongs to Bill Berry, who has spent more than two decades announcing Milton football games. This fall season marks his 22nd to be exact. His clear delivery, steady presence, and dedication to the community have made him a fixture at the Eagles Nest. For players, students and families of the community, he is known and referred to as the 鈥淰oice of the Eagles.鈥�
Bill grew up in a military family and lived in many places before graduating from Riverwood High School in Sandy Springs in 1976. He played baseball as a catcher through high school and college, developing the steady composure that would later serve him well behind the microphone. His wife Sue, was a football cheerleader in 1976 at Warner Robins High School the year the WR Demons were National Champions.
After high school, Bill attended the University of Georgia鈥揋o Dawgs!鈥搘here he earned a degree in mathematics in 1980. At Georgia, he met Sue, who was pursuing a degree in computer science and they graduated together. Their time at UGA was highlighted by watching Herschel Walker鈥檚 freshman season, an experience they still recall fondly.
Bill and Sue have lived in the Lakes of Enniskerry neighborhood since 1995. At the time, this entire area was still largely rural. They raised three children who each attended Milton High School, and went on to pursue successful careers and family lives of their own.
Frank, the oldest, graduated in 2004. Brett graduated in 2007 after playing football, baseball, and lacrosse at Milton. Kelsey, the youngest, graduated in 2008. She was a cheerleader, equestrian, and founder of the Milton High School Equestrian Club. She continued riding at UGA where the team won two national championships. Bill and Sue are incredibly proud of their children. 鈥淭hey are our greatest accomplishments, as they have all grown up to be positive, productive, and kind human beings,鈥� said Bill. They also enjoy being grandparents to two grandchildren.
Bill鈥檚 involvement with Milton football began when Brett started playing in the fifth grade. He volunteered to announce youth football games and soon added other duties. He announced some high school baseball and lacrosse games and even called a local horse show. By 2003, he was keeping stats for Milton feeder football using handwritten forms.
That same year, he reconnected with Milton鈥檚 Head Football Coach Theo Caldwell, Bill鈥檚 former driver鈥檚 education instructor he had known at Riverwood High School. Caldwell encouraged Bill to learn the digital stats software the coach had used at his previous coaching assignment. Bill quickly took on the role of statistician for the Milton varsity football team. In 2004, when the public address announcer position opened, Bill stepped in and he has been in the press box ever since.
Over 22 seasons, Bill has witnessed the rise of Milton football and the growth of the program. From 2004 through 2016, the Eagles had an even record of 69 wins and 69 losses. Many of those years ended with losing records. In 2014, the team鈥檚 11鈥�2 season gave fans new hope and showed that the program could compete at a higher level.
Momentum picked up for the Milton program in 2017 with the arrival of Head Coach Adam Clack. His leadership and new staff brought a culture of belief and discipline that transformed the team. From 2017 through 2024, Milton went 92鈥�18. The Eagles won seven straight region championships, made eight straight playoff appearances, reached the state finals four times, and won three state championships. The 2024 season was the first undefeated year in program history with a 15鈥�0 record. The program was strengthened even further with the influence of current Head Coach Ben Reaves in those years, while Bill and his team recorded every stat along the way.
Through it all, Bill has continued his work with consistency. On the announcing side, he strives to recognize all athletes when possible so that they and their family can enjoy hearing their name being called over the big mic. His job entails calling out not only players on the field but trainers, band members, and cheerleaders too. His approach is simple鈥搃t has always been and will always be about the kids and their accomplishments. He purposefully works to treat Eagles and their opposition with the same respect and acknowledgement. He calls the games with the same gusto, fromthe first down calls to the 鈥淚t鈥檚 Third Down鈥� growls. Sponsor announcements are read with passion and emphasis, and a little ad-lib thrown in to keep it interesting.
As Berry reflects on his time with the Eagles as an announcer, he shared that one of his highest honors included taking the mic in Mercedes Benz Stadium to announce the 鈥淔abulous Milton Marching Band鈥� halftime performance in the 2018 and 2024 State Championship games. He鈥檚 honored that the administration of Milton High School has given him the responsibility of the live mic at every home game for the past two decades. On the statistics side, he feels a sense of pride knowing that his efforts and analysis of every game and the season summary reports contribute to assist the coaching staff and team. He takes great satisfaction in hearing the names he has called at the high school level when they are again announced at NCAA and NFL stadiums.
When connecting with the coaching staff at Milton, the impact of Bill鈥檚 continued presence has had on the program is clear. Milton鈥檚 coaches hold Bill and the Press Box Stats Team in the highest regard for the work they provide. 鈥淏ill Berry is a Milton Football legend! Not only is he the heartbeat of the pressbox, he also works hard behind the scenes to provide the coaching staff in-game and post-game stats and analysis. His work has proven to be helpful during games but also saves us hours of work every weekend, so we can focus more on our families and upcoming opponents,鈥� Milton Eagle鈥檚 Head Coach, Ben Reaves. Coach Stromie shared that Bill exemplifies the qualities they teach and expect from the players in the program, 鈥淥ne of the many lessons we try to teach our players is the value of servant leadership, and Bill is a perfect example of serving the team. We are very fortunate and thankful for what he does for us, and it’s not Friday nights lights without Bill Berry on the mic!鈥�
鈥淏ill has been an integral part of the Milton 鈥楳pire鈥� culture. He has been a constant, representing 100% of the culture,鈥� said Gary Sylvestri who is responsible for Milton鈥檚 player development and known as Coach 鈥淪ly鈥�.
Bill is the first to point out that Friday nights are not a one-man show. He鈥檚 just been there the longest. The press box team includes an incredible group of seasoned talent including spotter Mark Faerber, who has been there for 14 years. Andrew McBride and Casey Jenkins manage the in-game statistics, providing reports to coaches and media. Michael Blaine serves as the producer and handles the jumbotron and technical setup. Billy Walsh manages overall press box operations. All of them are volunteers, and many of them are parents of former Milton players. 鈥淭his group of volunteers no longer has direct ties to the program but exemplifies what is so special about our Milton community. They rally together, regardless of whether the team wins a ring or not鈥� said Coach Sly. Coach Sly also shared that the Press Box team 鈥減rovides spot-on stats for the coaches and media.鈥� They are known to deliver fast and with accuracy.
The group works together to create an organized and professional experience. They also handle non-football events such as announcing homecoming courts, senior night, championship ring ceremonies, sponsor recognitions, and Hall of Fame ceremonies. Bill shared, 鈥淓ach of us play a key role in making Friday nights a fall entertainment experience for fans of both Milton and opposing Teams that visit The Nest.鈥�
Behind the scenes, or should I say above the crowd, this team flawlessly captures the stats for the team with real-time play-by-play entry as each game progresses. The Press Box Team prides themselves on issuing stat reports to the full coaching staff and media, reporting stats to the AJC, Score Atlanta, 680TheFan, GPB, PeachtreeTV, local journalists and others at halftime and postgame. Reporters often seek assignments to cover the Eagles since they know that the task of keeping accurate game stats is covered by the Milton Eagle鈥檚 press box stats team.
Over the course of his tenure, Bill has trained many volunteers on the stats software. The reports created and provided are of the same quality you would find in the college ranks. As he announces, the stats team is recording and reporting directly from the Nest. The effort continues for away games where stats are generated by a traveling crew and the coaching staff always ensures a spot at the away games for the press box crew to carry out the stats production process. The job isn鈥檛 over when the last play is called. Late nights are required in the role, with the team often working into the wee hour of Saturday mornings after Friday Night lights shut off to review film to ensure accuracy of the game stats before releasing the summary reports. One-of-a-kind plays and penalties add some complications into the task, having to review and analyze to determine accuracy for reporting.
With live announcing, mistakes are bound to happen. Bill recalls two that have stayed with him. In 2018, during the first Freedom Bowl, he struggled to describe a group tackle by the one of the teams playing and ended up saying the runner was stopped by a 鈥渟hipload of Buccaneers.鈥� Fans laughed, and the phrase became part of Milton football history. More recently, he intended to say there were no timeouts left in the game, and instead announced that 鈥渢here is no more scoring left in this game.鈥� The scorekeeper quickly proved him wrong in that case.
Beyond football, Bill retired in 2017 from Colonial Pipeline after 36 years. He served as Senior Manager of Business Development and as Public Information Officer during emergencies. In that role, he became comfortable with media interviews and speaking in stressful situations.
In retirement, he stays active with tennis, golf, camping, and home projects. He and Sue enjoy their second home at Lake Hartwell. Bill also delivers meals as part of the Meals on Wheels program in Milton. He and Sue credit their children and grandchildren as their greatest success.
For many volunteers, their work with Milton football ends when their children graduate. For Bill, the tradition has continued long after. After 22 years, fans often ask when he will 鈥済raduate鈥� from the press box. His answer is always the same鈥搒till undetermined. 鈥淧erhaps he鈥檚 dedicated to it simply because he loves it. Bill is the voice of the Eagles,鈥� said Alicia Sylvestri, Director of Football Operations at Milton High School.
For this season and the foreseeable future, Bill will remain the Voice of the Eagles and when the day comes for him to step away from the mic, his voice will only be one part of what will be missed. His steady presence represents not only the program鈥檚 success but the spirit of the Milton Eagles community. Coach Sly emphasized, 鈥淏ill Berry represents everything that the Mpire stands for and he is a big brick in the Mpire!鈥� As long as the Eagles take the field, Bill Berry will be there to call the game, proud to be part of something bigger than himself.
This is an unedited user writing submission. The views, information, or opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Best Version Media or its employees.