NEW ORLEANS -- Jerry Romig, who was the voice of the New Orleans Saints for 44 years as their public-address announcer, died Wednesday at age 86.
Romig called games for nearly the entire existence of the franchise, from 1969-2013, in both its former home of Tulane Stadium and in the Saints' current digs, the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. His familiar call of “Fiiirrrst down! Saaaiiints!” rings familiar to two generations of Who Dats.
“Jerry Romig was part of our team, part of our family,” Saints owner Tom Benson said in a statement. “One of my favorite days was putting a Super Bowl ring on his finger.