Noah Eagle: The next big voice in sports is just getting started

Noah Eagle was destined to make it as a broadcaster. His father, Ian, has been a standard for several decades on television, and the son emulated his every move, including graduating from the prestigious Newhouse School at Syracuse University.

Even so, the ascent was never supposed to be this fast. Noah is 25 years old, just three years removed from college courses and just over the legal age to rent a car. Yet Eagle is already the established radio voice for the NBA’s Los Angeles Clippers, an NFL and College Football broadcaster on a national level, and has become one of the standouts on the Tennis Channel airwaves.

How has the young commentator kept up with all these gigs while staying grounded and humble? He joined the Tennis Channel Inside-In Podcast to explain why he thrives in the action, and why there’s always room to improve:

Eagle’s career trajectory skyrocketed right out of college, when preparedness met opportunity in the form of the Clippers radio gig. It’s an outstanding job for a broadcaster of any age, let alone a professional newcomer. But Eagle, who understands that his career is about the process, wants to keep getting better and trying things.

“I’ve always said, and something that my dad taught me early was that no matter how many games you’ve banked, matches you’ve called, shows you’ve hosted, there’s always room to improve. And you’re never a finished product,” Eagle says.

If Bob Costas, Marv Albert and other broadcasting legends refuse to get complacent, Eagle argues, than why should anyone?

“I see myself as someone who’s got more experience and can at least utilize that to my advantage,” he continued. “But I also see myself still as the young guy who is always going to say, I’ve got something to prove.”

As far as broadcasting plates go, Eagle’s remains very full. He balances 82 regular season basketball games on the radio with television gigs in tennis, college football and pro football. Eagle loves the differences that come with each gig, and he thrives in embracing new challenges on a weekly or sometimes daily basis in the booth.

“Working here [at Tennis Channel], has been the best education for me of how to go to almost both extremes,” he says.

Eagle is talking by himself during the entire duration of each Clippers game, having to paint the picture for listeners with only his words as a paintbrush. In tennis he has to be more selective, quieter at big moments, and lean on his analysts. It’s been educational and fun for a broadcaster who constantly seeks out new challenges.

“The balancing act is what makes it fun for me. Using different parts of my brain, and trying to learn as much as possible too.”

The quest for improvement has lead Eagle to some really interesting places, such as Nickelodeon. The world-renowned kids network partnered with the NFL for some kid-friendly football broadcasts, and it became one of the greatest experiences in the young commentator’s life. Makes sense, as Eagle had expert product knowledge.

“I found out that there were other candidates, and the reason that they liked me so much was because I had the legitimate knowledge of the channel,” he recalls. “It was a blank canvas that we got to paint the whole picture. And we got to determine how it was going to sound and how it was going to look.”

Some would have run from a new broadcasting concept, but Eagle ran towards uncertainty, and it’s made him a staple of broadcasting for generation of America’s youth.

I also see myself still as the young guy who is always going to say, I’ve got something to prove.

This podcast covers a lot of ground with the broadcaster that’s quickly rising up the sporting ranks. Other topics include the tennis players that have caught his eye, his upcoming gig calling Big Ten Football Games for NBC, and how proud he is of his dad, who will be the voice of College Basketball’s Final Four in 2024.

With each opportunity that comes Noah Eagle’s way, he embraces the challenges and continues to approach his career with a positive outlook. There will be good days and bad, but the effort will remain consistent. As will his voice, which everyone, including tennis fans, will be hearing much more of in the years to come.