Charles Wesley “Wes” Strader, the “Voice of the Hilltoppers” as the radio play-by-play broadcaster for Western Kentucky University football and men’s basketball for 36 seasons and one of the most prominent figures in the commonwealth of Kentucky’s sports broadcasting history, passed away Tuesday evening. He was 79.
J.C. Kirby and Son on Lovers Lane in Bowling Green will handle the arrangements, which are still in the process of being finalized.
Inducted into the Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame in 2002, Strader earned a reputation as one of the outstanding radio sports broadcasters in the state through his work covering Hilltopper basketball and football, and his longtime involvement with the broadcast of the Kentucky High School Athletic Association “Sweet Sixteen” boy’s state basketball championships.