Washington University in St. Louis

Jay Murry, a familiar voice and presence in the WashU Department of Athletics, returns for his 16th year as the Voice of the Bears.
 
Murry is a three-time NSMA Missouri Sportscaster of the Year; and he is in his second stint of play-by play announcing at WashU. He also had the call of Bears football in 1994 and 1995.
 
Since his return, Murry has handled the play-by-play duties of WashU football and men’s and women’s basketball since 2009. He is in his ninth year of doing PBP of men’s and women’s soccer, and his 10th year of providing the call for Bears baseball and softball. Murry has also called select NCAA Tournament tennis matches, many home meets of Bears swimming and diving, and some track and field home meets.
 
In addition, Murry called the successful Guinness World Record attempt by WashU swimmer Kevin Hays. Hays set a new world record for solving eight Rubik’s cubes underwater in April 2015. That YouTube video has logged more than 10.7 million views.
 
Throughout his tenure at WashU, Murry has accumulated more than 900 play-by-play broadcasts. He reached his 500th broadcast on December 12, 2017, as WashU defeated Fontbonne 98-68 in men’s basketball. In the 2018-19 school year, Murry amassed a personal best 102 broadcasts in a school year.
 
Murry enjoys running solo ultramarathons to raise awareness and research funds for Rett syndrome, a rare neurological disorder that takes away a child’s ability to walk and talk when he or she is between 6-18 months of age. The Rett Gets Rocked series of ultras have raised over $25,000 in five years, and Murry will embark on 48 4A Cure October 20-22, 2023.
 
Prior to his return to the Danforth Campus, Murry served for 14 years as the news and sports director at KWRE-AM/KFAV-FM in Warrenton, Missouri, where he received honors from the Missouri Associated Press and the Missouri Broadcasters Association.
 
Murry received Bachelor of Arts degrees in speech and dramatic art and psychology from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 1986, and his Master of Science degree in mass communication from Lindenwood University in 1995.
 
He serves as a special education paraprofessional at Fort Zumwalt West High School in O’Fallon, Missouri. Murry has also been a freelance writer for several magazines; including Marathon & Beyond, Best of Central Vermont, and BrewView Missouri. He and his wife Cathy have three children: Jason (33), Shelly (24), and Mitchell (22). They reside in St. Charles, Missouri.
 
Updated July 2025