KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A pair of history-making Kansas City natives are on the call for Saturday's Chiefs-Jaguars AFC Divisional playoff game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
For decades, Kevin Harlan, a fixture in both NFL and NBA broadcasting on television and radio, has been celebrated for his dynamic, humorous and exuberant moments on the mic.
He's now joined by his daughter Olivia Harlan Dekker, who has gone from watching him from the stands to taking a toss from him up in the booth.
In 2018, the two broadcast their first NFL national broadcast, which was also the first-ever broadcast from a father-daughter duo.
"[I] was nervous, but I had such great confidence in her performance," Kevin Harlan said. "And of course, we're getting ready for our broadcast, myself and Kurt Warner, that you've just kind of got to put on that hat and [say,] 'All right, let's all hold on here, and let's make sure that we're all given our best.'
"And the second I threw it down to her, in the moment she opened her mouth and the first word came out on the sideline at Lambeau Field ... it was surreal.”
Growing up in Kansas City, Olivia was no stranger to GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium while Harlan worked as the Chiefs' play-by-play announcer.
“All four of us kids would go with my Dad all the time to his games, and I just thought it was so cool — the lights, the camera, the microphone, the sports angle — and I wanted to be just like my Dad," Olivia Harlan Dekker said.
In 2022, the pair made history again. Kevin and Olivia both were part of the national NFL playoff radio broadcast at Arrowhead.
Nearly one year later, the two will return to GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium to tackle the Chiefs-Jaguars AFC Divisional playoff game, Kevin in the booth with former Chiefs quarterback Trent Green and Olivia from the sidelines.
“When you can work with one of the pride and joys of your life, like Olivia, it makes it even more special, more meaningful. We can't wait for Saturday,” Kevin Harlan said.
In all of Olivia's opportunities to work with her dad — NBA games, sideline reporting, NFL pregame shows, hosting a podcast with BetMGM — she says working in their hometown means the most.
“These ones together are when it kind of comes full circle, and I'm certainly not shy about sharing a last name with him,” Olivia Harlan Dekker said.
Coming up next month, Harlan will call the Super Bowl in Phoenix, Arizona. He's the longest-running Super Bowl play-by-play announcer in history.
