As inevitable as the sun rising in the east and setting in the west, Jeff Fylling's dulcet tones hummed through radio and internet airwaves on a college football Saturday in Sioux Falls last week as he sat in a booth and called an Augustana game at Kirkeby-Over Stadium.

But a year ago, that was as far from inevitable as possible for a man who has been the venerable Voice of the Vikings for 40 years.

Fylling sat out both the football and basketball seasons as he battled cancer, and for a few months he lived in Rochester, Minnesota, so his brother Bob could drive him to the Mayo Clinic every day for treatment.

Did the Augie alumnus ever worry that he would live, let alone ever put on a play-by-play headset again? Considering the latter did happen on Saturday, what were his emotions?

A Lennox native, Fylling fills us in on his year-plus "setback" with the same to-the-point yet thorough description listeners have come to expect as he "paints the picture" of Vikings football and basketball games.

His one-hour conversation with Happy Hour host and fellow Husker fan John Gaskins at a mutual favorite haunt — Gateway Lounge — also threads through his childhood in Lennox, early Nebraska football fandom, then an encounter with an Augustana legend that changed his life forever and set him on a course to become the Voice of the Vikings. A major part of that journey was Fylling sitting alongside his mentor and Augie Hall of Famer Danny Olson for several years before assuming the lead role.

In his typical mild-mannered and matter-of-fact way, Fylling tells these stories with ease while also sprinkling in his favorite memories of Augie coaching icons like Jim Heinitz, Bill Gross, Dave Krauth, and current football leader Jerry Olszewski. A lot of those memories involve the good old days of the North Central Conference.

During and after the chat, you'll understand why Fylling was so flooded with well-wishes and prayers from so many in the Augustana and Sioux Falls communities while fighting through his "setback."