Joe Buck is among the most recognized names and personalities in American sports broadcasting. And for the first time in ages, he did not call the game for Fox Sports in the 2022 World Series.
On 23 January 2023, Joe faced criticism for his work on the air, specifically calling football.
He has developed a reputation for being uptight, robotic, and possessing the overall air of a serial killjoy.
The announcer who won the Emmy Award has had quite a career. Joe became the new lead broadcast team of Monday Night Football beginning in the 2022 NFL after signing with ESPN on March 16, 2022.
He has won several sports Emmy awards for his work with Fox Sports. Besides giving coverage to the major league, baseball, he is also the lead announcer for NFL.
Buck is best at what he does and has already been awarded the National Sportscaster of the Year three times since 1996.
Here, we will discuss Buck’s life and other miscellaneous details. But let’s first look at the quick facts table.
Quick Facts
| Full Name | Joseph Francis Buck |
| Celebrated Name | Joe Buck |
| Siblings | Two Brothers And Five Sisters |
| Gender | Male |
| Age | 54 Years Old |
| Birth Date | 25 April 1969 |
| Birth Place | St. Petersburg, Florida, United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Height | 6 ft 1 in / 1.85 m / 185 cm |
| Weight | 80 kg / 176 lb |
| Sexual Orientation | Straight |
| Marital Status | Married |
| Wife | Michelle Beisner-Buck (m.2014), Ann Archambault (m. 1993-2011) |
| Children | 4 (2 Daughters And Twin Boys) |
| Profession | Sportscaster |
| Horoscope | Taurus |
| Eye Color | Green |
| Hair Color | Light brown |
| Net Worth | $35 Million |
| Social Media | |
| Merch | Book |
| Last Update | April 2024 |
Early Life & Education
Joseph Francis Buck, popularly known as Joe Buck, was born in St. Petersburg, Florida, in 1969 but grew up in Clayton-Richmond Heights, Missouri area.
He attended Mary Institute and Saint Louis Country Day School and later joined Indiana University Bloomington.
Joe Buck’s father, Jack Buck, was one of the announcers. Due to his remarkable career, Jack got into the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame in 2011.
Growing up, Joe wanted to be just like his dad.
They’d travel all over the country, and he’d watch his father announce games all the time.
His first unofficial broadcast opportunity was in 1987 when his father let him take over his seat at the Cardinals vs. Mets game in Shea Stadium.
His mother was Carole Buck. He has five sisters, Beverly Buck, Christine Buck, Julie Buck, Betsy Buck, and Bonnie Buck, and two brothers, Dan Buck, and Jack Buck Jr.
Joe earned a B.A. in 1991, majoring in English and a Telecommunication minor, and made his broadcast career debut in 1989.
Age & Body Measurements
The American sportscaster weighs 176 lb and is 1.85 m tall. There is no information available regarding his other body measurements.
Most people from the sporting world adore him, but even a gem like Joe doesn’t go unhated in this world.
Nevertheless, due to his dashing personality, Joe captivates anyone who crosses paths with him.
Career
Joe did his first broadcast on his 18th birthday when his dad left the booth and told him to take over; he did the play-by-play for one inning of a Cardinals-Mets game.
After that, he started his broadcasting career initially through the play-by-play commentary for Louisville Redbirds, a minor-league Cardinals team.
He was a reporter for ESPN’s coverage of the Triple-A-All-Star Game in 1989.
Eventually, the Florida native again received an opportunity for Cardinals games on KMOX television and radio in 1991.
Sportscasting was written in Buck’s stars, and things just took an upward trend from then on.
Joe didn’t quit calling for the Cardinals even after joining Fox Sports. He started working at KMOX with his father and worked with FSN Midwest.
In 2008, he left the FSN Midwest Telecasts for the Cardinals. This was the first time since 1960 a member of the Buck family had not been a part of the broadcasting team.
Buck was hired by Fox in 1994 and became the youngest man ever to announce on network television, which was a daily schedule of NFL games at 25.
In 1996, he became the lead play-by-play voice for MLB for Fox, teaming up with Tim McCarver.
At Peak
Joseph became a play-by-play announcer with Tim Green as his color analyst on the network’s #4 NFL broadcast team.
Having worked for many years as an analyst, he became Fox’s main play-by-play man in 2002.
Joe hosted the NFL show Fox’s pregame, Fox NFL Sunday, and doubleheader show postgame on August 14, 2006.
He also hosted a series on HBO, Joe Buck Live, which got canceled only after three episodes. In 2009, two more episodes aired.
Buck told a St. Louis radio station in March 2010 that HBO might cancel Joe Buck Live, adding that he “won’t miss” the program and that it required “far more effort and difficulty than I had ever expected.”
Subsequently, HBO reported to Broadcasting & Cable about the program’s cancelation.
In 2022, Joe Buck and Troy Aikman (his fellow broadcaster from FOX) signed multiyear agreements to join ESPN as the new voices for Monday Night Football.
They had formerly worked together with FOX for 20 years.
Buck admitted he felt awkward watching Fox broadcast Super Bowl LVII without him on 17 February 2023.
It was for the first time since 2002 that Fox aired Super Bowl without him on the call.
He was on ESPN Radio New York to remember his former broadcast partner Tim McCarver.
Relationship & Children
The St. Petersburg native has been married twice in his life and is currently married to NFL Network and now ESPN reporter and former Broncos cheerleader Michelle Beisner.
The pair married on April 12, 2014, and are blessed with twin sons, Wyatt Joseph and Blake Andrew.
The twins were born on April 26, 2018, one day after their father’s 49th birthday. The couple still lives together in Florida, and there’s no sign of controversy.
Although the twins are the first kids from Michelle, they are the third and fourth kids to Buck.
Previously, Joe was married to Ann for almost 18 years and had two daughters, Natalie Buck and Trudy Buck, before separating in 2011.
Joe and his daughters have an excellent relationship with their father, stepmother, and half-siblings.
Trudy Buck studied film at USC and was a classmate of Olivia Jade.
Before Olivia broke the news of the college controversy, the two were roommates. On the other hand, Natalie studied Telecom Engineering at the University of Indiana.
Ann has moved on ever since and is now married to Scott Kitchel.
How Did It Start?
Joe Buck and his wife, Michelle Beisner Buck, were introduced by a mutual friend Rich Eisen.
While the two knew each other through reporting and broadcasting, their paths had never crossed.
As Buck confronted Eisen, he made the first move and asked for her number. Beisner wasn’t impressed at first.
She lived with her boyfriend and had always thought Buck was a proud and arrogant guy.
Given her initial disappointment with him, she soon realized that his TV image was very different from who he was after Rich introduced them.
Michelle broke up with her then-boyfriend shortly afterward and began going out with Joe. After less than a year of dating, the couple engaged in August 2013.
The lovebirds tied the knot at a beach in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, a year later.
Michelle moved from Los Angeles to St Louis, Missouri, with her husband in their two-story home.
Quick Information On Michelle Beisner Buck
- Michelle was born in Denver, Colorado, on October 15, 1976.
- She attended Green Mountain High School and later entered the University of Metropolitan State.
- Michelle graduated with a Bachelor of Communication degree in 2005.
- Beisner was a cheerleader in the Denver Broncos Cheerleading squad from 1997 to 2003.
- She is a professional dancer and actor.
Do People Hate Joe?
More often than not, TV stars feel hate from viewers for various reasons. Joe buck hasn’t avoided this criticism and disappointed sports fans.
In 2011, on their list of ‘The worst announcers in NFL history,’ a website listed him at number four.
The Reason Behind The Criticism
Fans think he’s biased regarding other athletes and teams.
Sports announcers should be impartial while commenting, ensuring that all parties receive equal treatment.
Fans accuse Joe of showing favoritism to individual players and teams on many occasions.
The loathing was so much that Green Bay Packers fans launched a petition in 2017 seeking to get Buck and his friend Troy Aikman barred from announcing/commenting on the game.
Fans believed their team had always been under pessimistic scrutiny during commentary. More than 29,000 people signed the petition calling Buck boring.
But many complained that while Buck has an incredible voice, he relies too much on it.
Unlike other commentators, he does not use intonations or display emotions during plays at vital moments, where appropriate.
He was also heavily criticized for questioning the necessity of a military flyover when only 15,000 fans were allowed in Raymond James Stadium for the game between the Packers and Buccaneers held in early 2020.
As Buck commented, “That’s your hard-earned money and your tax dollars at work.”
It was revealed that there was no additional cost to conduct the flyovers. Buck and his fellow broadcaster Aikman faced accusations of being unpatriotic.
While working for Monday Night Football as an announcer on January 2, 2023, for the game between the Bills and the Bengals in which Bills safety Damar Hamlin suffered cardiac arrest, Buck made some remarks that pissed some NFL executives.
As per Buck, Damar was forced to play within minutes. However, the NFL’S executive and vice president of football operations, Troy Vincent, denied the claims.
He stated those plans were never relayed to Buck and called his comments “insensitive.”
Joe stood by the claim.
Vocal Chord Ailment
Shortly after broadcasting Super Bowl XLV for Fox in 2011, Buck said he’d developed a virus on his left vocal fold nerves.
According to Buck, despite the ailment, it “came out of the blue” and hindered his ability to raise his voice.
Even after encountering such hindrances, during the 2011 season, he began broadcasting baseball for Fox and later returned that fall as the lead NFL announcer on the network.
In 2016, Buck finally said the problem was not caused by a virus but rather by vocal cord paralysis, possibly induced by anesthesia during multiple hair transplantation procedures.
Net Worth
Apart from athletes, some of the highest-paid individuals in sports today are sportscasters and coaches.
Jim Rome was among the highest-paid sportscasters with an annual salary of around $30 million, and Troy Aikman was second on the list with about $18 million annual salary.
Joe Buck sat on the list at 5, with an annual salary of around $15 million a few years ago.
Joe’s net worth is around $35 million as of April 2024. He gets paid about $667k-833k to call NFL games.
The broadcaster also works as a brand endorser for Holiday Inn, Budweiser, and National Car Rental.
Social Media Presence
Joe is a vibrant personality and uses Instagram to connect with his fans. He posts about his family, his profession, and other ventures on social media.
He uses @Joe Buck for Facebook and @Buck and @joebuck as for Twitter and Instagram, respectively.
View this post on Instagram
Facebook: 7.9k followers
Twitter: 287.6k followers
Instagram: 42.2k followers
Joe stopped working with Fox Sports a while ago, but fans still recognize him for that.
Likewise, Joe had a hilarious run-in with a fan from St. Loius on 22 January 2023, who asked if he was calling the Cowboys-49ers showdown on Fox Sports.
Popularity Graph
Joe is among the most popular sportscasters in the nation.
He is often criticized on the internet but mostly praised for his voice; hence he is popular.
The above image illustrates Joe’s popularity over the year in the United States.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQS)
What is Joe Buck and Kris Bryant's issue?
Joe Buck asked Kris Bryant about his future with the Cubs as Bryant was on the road to becoming a free agent. Bryant handled the situation maturely, mentioning that he wears the Cubs jersey proudly, though Bryant's father took it personally and expressed his disappointment towards Buck.
Has Joe Buck retired?
No. Joe Buck has not retired yet. He is working with Fox Sports as a sportscaster.
What team did Joe Buck play for in the NFL?
He is a lead play-by-play announcer for Monday Night Football on ESPN. Buck never played sports professionally.
