Final Four ref, Denver radio pioneer Irv Brown dies at 83

DENVER

Irv Brown, the Final Four referee who also coached baseball at University of Colorado, did color commentary on ESPN’s first college football broadcast and pioneered sports radio in Denver, died Sunday. He was 83.

Brown’s nephew confirmed the death. Officials at CU said he died of complications from a brief illness.

Brown officiated in four of UCLA’s Final Fours in the 1960s and ‘70s. He forged strong working relationships with everyone from Bob Knight to Dick Vitale, who tweeted that Brown had the whistle for his last appearance as a coach in the NCAA Tournament in 1977.

Associated Press