PHOTOS COURTESY PITTSBURGH STEELERS

Much remains unknown about the Pittsburgh Steelers next season, but one thing is for sure, someone new will be calling the plays in the radio booth.

Bill Hillgrove announced his retirement Thursday morning on WDVE-FM, leaving a job he began in 1994. No replacement has been named but Hillgrove’s voice won’t completely disappear from the airwaves.

“As to the next chapter of my life, I’ll do Pitt football, and I’ll do Pitt basketball because my brother is the engineer, and we room together on the road,” said Hillgrove in a statement issued by the Steelers.

(L-R) TUNCH ILKIN, HILLGROVE, CRAIG WOLFLEY IN 1994

Hillgrove never sought the job when the late Jack Fleming retired after the 1993 season, in part, because he was friends with Fleming and already was doing Pitt football and basketball and sports on WTAE-TV. As the Steelers searched for a new play-by-play man, Hillgrove was told by a sales manager at WTAE Radio that he was the likely choice.

“Maybe a week-and-a-half later, I got another call, this one from (Steelers Director of Football Operations) Tom Donahoe, who said, ‘We had a meeting last night, and things are looking good for you.’ And I thought, my goodness, I’m a candidate for a job I never applied for. Apparently, Dan Rooney listened to a few tapes and said, ‘Let’s go with Hillgrove. He’s the guy we know.’”

(L-R) ILKIN, MYRON COPE AND HILLGROVE

“Bill Hillgrove’s contributions to both the Steelers Radio Network and the Steelers organization have spanned nearly three decades that included him serving as our play-by-play announcer for four Super Bowl appearances and countless other memorable games during his tenure,” said President Art Rooney II. “He has played a major role in broadcasting to our amazing fans on our radio network, but he also found time to be part of so many special events since he began working alongside the great Myron Cope on the airwaves in 1994. Bill will truly be missed by Steelers Nation, but we are excited for him and his family to enjoy his retirement.”

Among other things, Hillgrove says he’s looking forward to having all of July and most of August to himself.

“Every once in a while if the Steelers aren’t playing on Sunday, I can get on a boat and enjoy the fall foliage at Conneaut Lake, which I was never able to do before. So it’s all very positive in that way. And frankly, my wife, Rosette, is battling depression, and she probably needs me at home more now than she ever did. So there are a lot of various forces at play here.”