NEW ORLEANS - Legendary sportscaster Jim Henderson is retiring from his place as the voice of the New Orleans Saints, WWL Radio and local broadcasting effective immediately, it was announced Thursday.
Henderson, 71, made the announcement on WWL Radio following a season where the team returned to glory following several years of average play.
"In the course of this season and the eight-game winning streak, I became enamored with this team... I thought this is the kind of high note I wanted to leave on," he said, emotionally on the Scoot Show. "I think this is a good time to leave given my age and the circumstances."
Henderson was a long-time WWL-TV anchor, breaking in here in the late 70s as the replacement for former sports anchor Hap Glaudi.
He began broadcasting Saints games in the mid 80s, moving from the color analyst spot to the play-by-play announcing spot, which he held for nearly 30 years, except for a short dalliance with Notre Dame football and with CBS, calling NFL games for the network for a year.
Henderson is known for his famous calls like "Hakim drops the ball!' as a late Rams turnover gave the team its first playoff win, and "Pigs have flown," after the team got its first berth in the Super Bowl with an NFC Championship win over Minnesota in 2010.