Joe Buck Reveals He and Troy Aikman Used to Drink During Games

Troy Aikman and Joe Buck are the top broadcast team for Fox Sports, calling each game on Thursday night football and the biggest matchup on Sunday. The two men have unquestioned chemistry, but they had to develop it over time. As Buck recently revealed, one helpful tool that aided them early on was tequila.

The veteran broadcaster provided the information during an interview with Colin Cowherd. The Colin Cowherd Podcast host said that Buck and Aikman sound like college friends sipping a small glass of bourbon. He compared them to Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth while highlighting the differences in the broadcast styles. Buck responded and explained that he and Aikman used to drink tequila in the booth and that it was a habit that started during his time calling MLB games.

“We have had that glass of bourbon in the booth, but it’s not bourbon,” Buck explained. “It’s tequila, splash of Grand Marnier, and grapefruit juice. I went through a couple years where in the first inning of every postseason baseball game, I had the runner go get the biggest beer that the stadium sold. And I had it sitting there, and I would sip it from time to time to remind myself to relax and have fun — I’m just doing a game.”

Buck continued and talked about bringing that tradition over to football and the Fox broadcast. However, he called Aikman a “man of finer tastes,” which prompted the change from beer to tequila. They would sip on the drinks and focus on having fun. However, this is not a regular occurrence anymore.

“We haven’t done it in a long time now, but it was good for a stretch,” Buck said. “And I feel like it’s a good mental trigger to just chill and remind yourself that you’re not refueling an F-16 in mid-flight. You’re doing a sporting event, and if you treat it like anything other than that, you’re doing yourself a disservice.”

Buck and Aikman may not take part in the drinking tradition anymore, but they found considerable success in the booth while calling major matchups. Many of these games feature the Dallas Cowboys and Seattle Seahawks. They have also called six Big Games together, including Super Bowl LI’s battle between the Atlanta Falcons and New England Patriots.