Why is Joe Buck on GMA? What we know amid George Stephanopoulos’s absence from the show

Sports commentator Joe Buck will be seen on Good Morning America for a brief time as George Stephanopoulos is reportedly away on vacation, USA Today notes. Buck hosted the show with Michael Strahan and Robin Roberts. As the July 23 show began, Strahan said:

“And look who’s here. Joe Buck. He woke up a little early.”

After the headlines segment, Robin Roberts said:

“It’s not just any Wednesday. We got Joe Buck here with us at the desk. So many of us know, love him for Monday Night Football, his years of calling football and baseball games.”

Michael Strahan jokingly told Buck that it was early for him since football games usually happened later. He said they got him a coffee mug and an alarm clock to help him wake up early for the rest of the week. Buck responded:

“I don't know how you do this every day. Tip of the cap. Unbelievable but it’s great. Great. Thank you for having me. I will try not to drive the ratings into the ground.”

In 2012, Graham Bensinger sat down with Buck and discussed some of the major highlights of his career. He said he learned more about performing from his mother than from his father. From his dad, he picked up a style that many kids in the Midwest admired and wanted to copy when calling games.

He said that since his dad traveled a lot, his mom often had to be both mom and dad. She was the one who disciplined him, comforted him when he got hurt, and handled everything at home.

The time when Joe Buck had a vocal cord injury

During the conversation with Bensinger, Joe Buck looked back at when he found out there was a problem with his voice. He said it took him a while to understand what was wrong because he couldn’t talk or make any sound.

At first, he thought it was just a cold since he had come back from vacation with a virus. But the hoarseness felt different than usual. So, he went to a doctor in St. Louis who told him, even before checking, that he likely had a paralyzed vocal cord.

After looking, the doctor confirmed it because the sound he was making wasn’t like a normal sore throat. Joe Buck mentioned:

“I think every doctor wants an out. I mean nobody can say, ‘You will be fine in three months.’ Nobody wants to throw that out there but the odds were that it was going to come back, but living with it every day and gauging how my voice sounded every time I opened my mouth was something I'll I never want to try to go through again or trying to recover in public is hard to do.”

Joe Buck said he didn’t want to talk to anyone or even answer the phone because every time he spoke, he thought he sounded terrible. He preferred staying quiet so he wouldn’t have to hear his voice. This made him stay away from people, and everyone around him became worried about him.

Also read: How did Michael Strahan find out that his parents ate his pet pig from childhood? GMA anchor Sara Haines shares the hilarious story

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