‘Bucket list’: Hornets announcer Eric Collins will broadcast Panthers
Eric Collins is getting a rare Sunday at home.
The Charlotte Hornets’ electric play-by-play broadcaster is set to call the Carolina Panthers’ Week 5 contest at Bank of America Stadium against the Miami Dolphins.
“Being at home with my family’s company and doing what I love makes this week real special,” Collins said Tuesday. “Hornets fans: There will be no ‘Hum Diddly Dees.’ That’s specific to the Hornets and NBA. I will have surprises, but that one has its place in basketball.”
Collins, the Hornets’ voice on FanDuel Sports Network Southeast, regularly calls college football games for FOX Sports during the fall. But this will mark the first in his state of residence in 20 years.
The last time Collins stepped foot inside the Bank of America Stadium broadcast booth was in 2005 for the Meineke Car Care Bowl on ESPN2 between NC State and South Florida. He’s broadcasted college football consistently on FOX Sports, ESPN and the Big Ten Network — hundreds of games all over the United States, including bunches in states like Texas, Illinois and Michigan — but all UNC, NC State, Duke and App State contests have been on road.
“It’s a bucket list thing,” Collins said. “A perfect situation for me. I’m excited to sleep in my own bed, not in a hotel, and I won’t walk there, but I may walk home. I could become the only NFL announcer who’s ever walked back home. This is a fun week having a chance to be around Charlotte’s teams, and I want to see what (the Panthers’ atmosphere) is all about.”
Collins’ first FOX Sports NFL broadcast since calling NFL Europe’s Frankfurt Galaxy and Berlin Thunder in 2002 is set for 1 p.m. Sunday on FOX, alongside Mark Schlereth and Jen Hale.
This story was originally published September 30, 2025 at 2:11 PM.
