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I was in such a good mood when I came into work this morning; the Gator football team had started practice and that means that we can now really start talking about college football.

As I was preparing for my "Sportscene" show today, I came across news that I had to read twice to make sure I was digesting it properly.

i read the news that said long time Atlanta Braves sportscaster Skip Caray had died in his sleep on Sunday; he was 68 years old. Even though I knew he had been in failing health of late, his passing came as a shock.

For long time fans of the Atlanta Braves, this must truly be a sad day. When the Braves were on WTBS and on radio and they were losers, Caray was there with his sarcastic wit that spared no one. Yet, as bad as the Braves were, you knew in your heart he was pulling for the Braves to win just the same.

Moving to Atlanta to broadcast minor league baseball in the mid 1960's, Caray started out broadcasting Atlanta Hawks basketball games and was then made a member of the Braves broadcast team in 1976. In his 33rd season, because of ill health, he was forced this year to broadcast only on radio and only for Braves home games.

But over those years, the voice of Skip Caray was everything to baseball fans in the southeast. With Pete Van Wieren and Ernie Johnson, Caray brought Braves baseball to life in the southeast where for many years the Braves were the only team to root for in the area.

Perhaps it is hard now in this era of the broadcaster of the day to realize what Caray meant to Braves fans; he said he often thought of truck drivers while calling a game on radio, trying to keep them entertained as they were driving across the southeast. He did just that.

And, while Caray may not have the national name of say a Curt Gowdy or Jack Buck, he was an absolute icon to those who followed Braves baseball in the southeast. He could be funny, obstinate, rude, and for years while doing the Braves pregame call in show he would often lose his temper with callers he felt didn't know anything.

What I remember most about Skip Caray on television is how he would make fun of a TBS movie that would often follow a Braves broadcast. I would absolutely laugh out loud at some of the things he said. And, during one memorable broadcast I watched when the Braves were getting blasted at San Francisco, Caray gave the score and then told viewers they might want to turn off the television set. I couldn't believe he got away with that but he did.

It is sad today to see another broadcast legend pass; Skip Caray will be truly missed by baseball fans in the southeast. Perhaps he's having a beer where he is now, and if so, he would probably be talking baseball too.

"Braves win, Braves win, Braves win!"

So long, Skip.