FAYETTEVILLE — Mike Nail will retire as the radio play-by-play voice of Arkansas basketball following the 2009-10 season.
The university announced Nail's departure Thursday. This will be his 29th season calling Arkansas basketball games.
Nail said he initially planned to step down after the 2010-11 season, but he decided "doing another season for the sake of having done it for 30 years wasn't reasonable or in anyone's best interest."
"This is not a decision reached in haste, rather something I've given considerable thought and consideration and something I've talked extensively about with my wife and family," Nail said in a university news release. "I talked last spring with [Vice Chancellor of Director of Athletics] Jeff Long and Chris Ferris at ISP, and told them I would probably step down after the 2010-11 season, which would have been my 30th year and both gave me their blessing to stay in the position as long as I wanted."
Nail informed Long and Ferris of his decision last Friday.
"I will forever be grateful to Frank Broyles, then-athletics director, and Eddie Sutton, then the Arkansas head coach, for giving me the opportunity to realize one of my life's dreams which was inspired by my long-time friend Bob Cheyne, former Arkansas sports information director and the 'Voice of the Razorbacks' for many years."
Going into this year, Nail has called play-by-play for 906 Razorbacks basketball games, detailing the exploits of such Razorback greats as Darrell Walker, Alvin Robertson, Scott Hastings, Joe Kleine, Todd Day, Lee Mayberry, Andrew Lang, Oliver Miller, Corliss Williamson, Scotty Thurman, Corey Beck, Pat Bradley, Kareem Reid, Joe Johnson and Ronnie Brewer.
Nail famously labeled Arkansas' 1993-94 national championship a "Dream Season" shortly after Thurman sank the game-clinching basket in the Hogs' 76-72 victory over Duke.