How Tom Stage And Dick Slater Became Lady Griz Icons

Meet the Griz is a series where we tell the stories of Montana Grizzlies athletes, coaches and contributors.

Meet Tom and Dick - Lady Griz broadcasting legends

Tom Stage and Dick Slater called Montana Lady Griz games for over two decades together. Stage was on the air a few years longer, 25, and will be awarded with a Grizzly Lifetime Honor at this year's Grizzly Sports Hall of Fame Banquet.

"I started way back doing high school," Stage explained how he got into play-by-play broadcasting.

"And I didn't realize how tough play-by-play basketball was... I was terrible at it," Stage joked.

Maybe he was terrible at the beginning, and that's a hard MAYBE, but Tom Stage turned into the Voice of Lady Griz Basketball for 25 years.

And he excelled at it.

Dick Slater (left) and Tom Stage (right) appear on the Daily Drive... their return to the mic after 5 years! Credit: Ace Sauerwein

Stage's longtime radio partner Dick Slater was instrumental to Stage. They became a great broadcasting team, but more importantly, they became great friends through calling Lady Griz games and the travel that accompanies the job.

Even though Dick was misled in the beginning.

"Well, he lied to me," Slater said of Stage. "He said, 'Sit down and put the headset up and look like you're doing something.'"

Slater had no intentions of a broadcasting career until Stage forced his hand during a Lady Griz game on the road.

"I seen him turn the button on [Stage turning Slater's mic on]. He said something like, 'What do you think Dick? Was that a foul?' You just freeze and say 'No," Slater laughed about.

"It was just dead air then," Stage jokingly chimed in.

Again, there may have been some growing pains when Tom & Dick first began broadcasting, but it formed into an entertainingly sharp team.

A Thank you to Tom & Dick

Typically, in these articles, I will quote my guests a lot more than in this article.

But writing out Tom & Dick quotes won't do them justice. You need to listen to Tom & Dick's banter.

We discussed all sorts of topics, including:

Robin Selvig's importance in kickstarting Lady Griz radio broadcasts
MLB Rivalries: Dick's Giants VS Tom's Dodgers
Hilarious stories about faulty equipment

I just want to say thanks to those guys for coming on The Daily Drive. It was special for me to be able to chat with my predecessors. Tom & Dick are legends and I have nothing but love and admiration for.

There will never be another Tom & Dick duo broadcasting Lady Griz or any Grizzly sport for that matter.