Mark Freidinger announces retirement

Mark Freidinger announced his retirement as analyst on Wake Forest’s radio broadcast of men’s basketball games after a 35-year career.

Freidinger was a former Wake Forest assistant coach from 1981-85. He joined Wake’s radio broadcast in 1991.

“It’s been my honor to be a part of Wake Forest basketball for over 40 years,” Friedinger said through a news release. “My thanks to Dr. Gene Hooks and Ben Sutton for the opportunity to be a part of the radio team. I was fortunate to be partnered with two talented play-by-play broadcasters in Stan Cotten and Mac McDonald, luckier still to call them friends.

“What an amazing journey it’s been; it was a privilege to help coach players like Alvis Rogers, Frank Johnson, Guy Morgan, Kenny Green, Danny Young, Anthony Teachey, Lee Garber, Delaney Rudd, Muggsy Bogues and so many others. It was a labor of love calling the games of players like Rodney Rogers, Randolph Childress, Tim Duncan, Rusty LaRue, Josh Howard, Chris Paul, Ish Smith, John Collins, Alondes Williams and all the rest. Thank you, men. Watching you blossom on and off the court was a joy.”

He continued:

“Many thanks to all of the coaches and their staffs I covered during my time as a broadcaster. Dave Odom, Skip Prosser, Dino Gaudio, Jeff Bzdelik, Danny Manning and Steve Forbes all were class acts and great stewards of this storied program. I’ll cherish memories off the air of just talking hoops. I’m forever grateful to everyone who is a part of the Wake Forest and ACC communities — from people in athletic departments, coaches across the conference, fellow broadcasters, sports information directors, sports writers in the media to the staffs at the Joel and other arenas, I’ve been blessed with so many friends due to basketball. Finally, a most important thank you to all of the Wake Forest fans, thanks for listening. Your well wishes and kind regards about the broadcasts over the years were always gratifying to hear. I’ll miss calling the games, but I’ll miss the behind the scenes social interactions with all of you the most.” 

Cotten, who’s entering his 30th season calling men’s basketball games, will call games solo this season. Freidinger and Cotten called more than 1,000 games together.

“I simply couldn’t have asked for a better partner and friend. Mark’s passion for basketball and his ability to communicate it to our fans on the radio over the years was truly inspiring,” Cotten said through the news release. “And to do it so well for 35 years was incredible. He was so respected across the country in basketball circles, and I was the very lucky one to be able to sit beside him for three decades. There’s only one Dinger, and words just can’t express how much I’ll miss him. I’m so grateful he was, and always will be, ours.”