Meet the Voice of the Salukis

You can follow the Salukis by visiting the official website of Saluki Athletics at siusalukis.cstv.com/.

The 2008 Alumni Achievement Award recipient and commencement ceremony speaker was Mike Reis. Mike is a graduate of the Radio-Television program and for the last 3 decades has been the "Voice of the Salukis" doing the play by play radio coverage of the Saluki football and basketball games. Considered one of the top announcers in collegiate sports, Reis started as SIUC's play-by-play announcer after graduating.

Reis' broadcasts of Saluki football, basketball and baseball games cover 29 of the last 30 years, missing only one year when another radio station held broadcast rights. The first announcer in SIUC history to be inducted into the Saluki Hall of Fame, Reis is also a member of the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame. He is also the 2008 recipient of the Missouri Valley Conference's "John Sanders Spirit of the Valley Award," which signifies a passion for the MVC, strong work ethic and a sense of humor.

In 2007, Mike put together a CD audio book "Good Night From Carbondale" that chronicles some of Southernís best athletic broadcast moments through the "Voice of the Salukis," Mike Reis. This audio CD can be purchased and clips from it can be sampled on the SIU Alumni Associate website.

OK, but What's a Saluki?

It's been 50 years since an idea generated by several members of SIU's athletic staff - Glen (Abe) Martin, Leland (Doc) Lingle, Lynn Holder and Cecil Franklin - was presented at a meeting of university athletes and a few faculty representatives.

For several years there had been a growing interest on the part of the University's student body and others to adopt a more imaginative mascot for their athletic teams than "Maroons."

That nondescript name had carried over from the first year the university formally sponsored teams in 1913-14.

The athletes and faculty members gave a thumbs-up response at the meeting and on March 19, 1951, SIU's student body of 2,000 overwhelmingly voted in favor of adopting "Salukis" as the new nickname for the university's teams.

Success on the field and in the classroom

Our student-athletes lead our conference in overall grade point average. And they succeed in competition. Our menís basketball team had advanced to the NCAA Tournament six straight seasons, including two trips to the Sweet Sixteen. The womenís team was Missouri Valley Conference champion in 2007. Football has been ranked in the Top 10 in the Football Championship Subdivision for the past four years. Softball has been ranked in the Top 25 in the nation for the past two years and has advanced to the NCAA Tournament five straight seasons.

Saluki Way

"This a day many of you in here thought would never happen," said Saluki Hall of Fame broadcaster Mike Reis, who was master of ceremonies. "But this is the day. We are getting a new stadium, and we are getting a renovated arena."

The design architect for the project is 360 Architecture with local assistance from Image Architects of Carbondale. Construction management will be handled by J.E. Dunn, based out of Kansas City, Mo., and Holland Construction, based out of Swansee, Ill. Saluki Way is expected to employ hundreds of local workers with more than 70 percent of the construction contracts to date awarded to local firms.

"Saluki Way will have a dramatic short and long term value for the university, the city of Carbondale and for our region," said Goldman. "This is both a shovel-ready undertaking, and more importantly, it's an economic shot in the arm. A very local stimulus package that we can be proud of."

Added Goldman, "This University is moving forward. Athletics represent an important thread in the fabric of our University, but we are far more than athletics. What we are doing now will generate dividends for years to come and insuring the vitality of SIUC and our region. I am sure that you will agree with me that this vitality is something that we are all proud of and will continue for a long, long time." The Saluki marching band led a procession of University administrators into an outdoor tent on the east side of SIU Arena, where several hundred fans, University employees and students helped celebrate the event. Saluki Way will provide top-quality facilities and resources to attract the nation's premier student-athletes to Southern Illinois University. When completed, the quality of our facilities for these sports will match the championship-level performances we have witnessed on the playing field and court.

Saluki Way is essential to our efforts to continue recent success both in the Missouri Valley Conference and on a national scale. Our football and basketball venues must be enhanced to reflect the caliber of education our student-athletes receive at SIU. While Saluki fans have enjoyed their share of memorable moments in both McAndrew Stadium and SIU Arena, upgrading our facilities is critical.

Saluki Way will provide a retrofitted SIU Arena, new football stadium and 56,000-square-foot Athletics Support Facility to be completed for the 2010-11 seasons.