University of Northern Iowa Athletics
Hall of Fame
- Induction:
- 2026
- Class:
- 1974
 Bob Justis is one of two co-recipients of the 2026 Dr. Jitu Kothari Meritorious Service Award.
Awarded as part of UNI Athletics Hall of Fame ceremony since 1989, the Dr. Jitu Kothari Meritorious Service Award is given to an individual or individuals who have given a significant commitment of time and/or professional services to the furtherance of excellence in athletics at the University of Northern Iowa. Previous honorees have included team physicians, faculty athletics representatives, athletic trainers, broadcasters, volunteers and financial contributors/donors.Â
Justis, a native of Baltimore, Maryland and raised in Cedar Falls, spent 49 years as the public address (PA) announcer for Panther men's basketball, and 48 seasons announcing UNI football before his retirement in late 2024.
Known for his vigor on the microphone, Justis coined many familiar phrases including his "heeeeere come the Panthers" as the home team enters the arena. Some of his other famous sayings from football have included a cautious warning to opposing fans and teams that "a ferocious predator has been seen stalking the nation," as well as a weather report highlighting the UNI-Dome's features of "no wind and no snow."Â
Prior to his final games on the microphone, UNI Athletics officially renamed the PA booth in the UNI-Dome in his honor, as well as the PA announcers' chair inside the McLeod Center. He was also recognized by the MVC as the 2025 recipient of the John Sanders Memorial Spirit of the Valley Award.
Having called over 900 football and men's basketball games combined in numerous on-campus venues since the mid-1970s, Justis graduated from UNI in 1974 with a degree in speech and a business minor. An early fundraiser to the construction of the UNI-Dome, Justis has been an active member of the community having served as an Assistant Director of Development with the UNI Foundation, and later Director of Corporate Relations and Development at Allen Hospital in Waterloo. Later in his career, he served as chairman of the Cedar Valley United Way and President of the Cedar Falls Chamber of Commerce and the Cedar Valley Chamber of Commerce. In 1988, he was recognized as a recipient of the UNI Alumni Association's Service Award.
Part of a family of passionate and longstanding Panther fans, Justis spent several years working UNI events alongside his wife, Nancy, who spent 30 years in the athletic communications department, including 26 years as UNI's Director of Athletic Media Relations. Nancy was inducted into the UNI Athletics Hall of Fame in 2009. Justis' daughter, Nicole, also worked in athletic communications as a student assistant, while his son in-law, Cody, served as his spotter in the UNI-Dome press box for several years.
