Sometimes, when the wind is right and the stadium is almost empty, Jimmy Hutcherson’s voice can be heard all through Hawaii Kai.

“Oh, the people who live in the Esplanade really get it bad, bless their hearts,” he said.

For the last 26 years, Hutcherson has been the unhurried, optimistic voice of Kaiser High School football, delighting fans with catchphrases like “Hot potato, hot potato!” (which sounds more like “hot pah-tay-tah” when he says it) and “He was a victim of his own tacklization.”

Hutcherson, a counselor at Kaiser High School since 1991, says people recognize his voice all the time. “I was ordering at Macaroni Grill recently and the waiter said, ‘Hey, you sound familiar!’ I said, ‘You must live in Hawaii Kai.’”

He grew up in Tyler, Texas, and went to a high school so small there were 74 students in his graduating class. He proudly went to Baylor University and, after getting his master’s degree, came to Hawaii to explore the world, bringing his Texas-style love of football.

“In Texas, high school football is a community event,” he said. “Everyone comes out, and the announcer is in control of the spirit of the game.”

He worked at Hawaii Baptist Academy and as a social worker before joining Kaiser, where he is called “Hutch” by the 287 seniors he counsels. “I know every one of them, and I know most of their parents,” he said.

He talks them through all manner of academic and personal challenges with a collection of colorful idioms spoken with prolonged vowels. After all his years in Hawaii, he hasn’t lost his East Texas drawl.

“I tried. I would be talking to the kids and they’d be giggling when I tried to be serious. It was like taking advice from Larry the Cable Guy. I was real self-conscious about it.”

But then someone reminded him that what students want most is authenticity, and that he should just be himself. “My life has been enriched by getting to know so many different people from all over the world. Maybe it’s good for these kids to hear a real Southerner. Hawaii Kai kids don’t get to meet many rednecks,” he joked.

Though he’s been told to “cut down on some of the color,” Hutcherson feels it’s his job to recognize every player’s effort on both teams, to be so descriptive and clear that fans can leave their seats for the bathroom or concession stands and not miss any action, and to make even a one-sided game feel exciting.

“The students come up to me on campus and say, ‘Make sure to say my name!’ and I tell them, ‘Make sure you do something good for me to announce.’”

Tonight’s will be the first Kaiser football game that Hutcherson will miss since 1993. He’s heading home to Texas to see his 92-year old mother, who is having surgery. He’s wondering whether it’s time to retire so he can be available to his aging parents and his son and grandchildren, who also live in Texas.

But when he thinks about retiring, he talks about how much he loves Hawaii and Kaiser and football.

“Maybe they’ll still let me announce the games.”