Shroff also brings serious credentials to the job, having graduated from Syracuse’s prestigious Newhouse School, and worked his way up the ladder at ESPN since joining the company in 2008.
The fact he’s a local also helps the transition, as he takes over for the retiring Mick Mixon.
“Anish understands the significance of the role and is committed to more than just calling games on Sundays,” Panthers chief revenue officer Jake Burns said. “He is a Charlotte resident and is intimately familiar with the community and our fans. He wants to be part of the fabric of our community, which is incredibly important.
“He is a nationally recognized play-by-play voice – his ESPN experience calling big college football games speaks for itself. He has a tremendous work ethic and will bring everything he has to all aspects of this role.”
Shroff lives here with his wife and 4-year-old daughter Athena, who has grown up with the team and has a few conditions on her dad’s new job.
“She’s been a Panthers fan, we’ve lived in Charlotte her whole life,” Shroff said. “Since she was little, she had some Panthers stuff, she likes the colors, but she’s excited. She’s holding me to getting her a personalized jersey. I told her if I get the job, she can get the personalized jersey.”
Shroff, a first-generation immigrant whose family came from India in the 1970s, is also the only minority play-by-play radio voice in the NFL. But he’s also an established Charlottean, and wants to bring all fans together.
“I get asked about background and race a lot, but with this job, I view it as, ‘Hey, Panthers fans are a cross-section of gender, sexual orientation, political beliefs, race, religion, everything.’ I want to be a voice for that,” Shroff said. “And I want to be someone who can bring the games into their homes, their cars, their tailgates. I want to connect with all of that.”