The West Virginia Power radio broadcaster is returning to his hometown of Cleveland to accept a job at Notre Dame College, a private Catholic institution that is located in the suburb of South Euclid, Ohio.

The Falcons are preparing to make the all-sports transition from NAIA Division I to NCAA Division II.

Barch will be an assistant sports information director and will work in the same athletic department as his younger brother, Charles Barch, who is the associate athletic director for compliance.

"My first reservation was that I really don't want to get out of broadcasting," said Barch, 29, a Bowling Green State University graduate who got his first on-air experience at 17. "But I realized I will have an opportunity to make connections when I'm in athletic communications."

Connections that he couldn't make here.

"There are about 100,000 people between Charleston and Huntington," said Barch, an avid football fan who also operates www.pigskinpodcast.com with some of his friends. "There are about 1 million people in and around Cleveland. There also are a lot of television and radio stations. You can show the general managers (of those television and radio stations) what you can do face to face instead of mailing them a resume and a CD."

Barch realizes there is no guarantee he will become "the voice of the Falcons," as he put it.

"But there is nobody on staff who can do the radio broadcast avenue," said Barch, whose nickname stems from his resemblance to Richard Moll's tall, bald character of the same name from "Night Court," a popular television comedy that aired on NBC from 1984-92.

"As they make that move to Division II, they will want to do something with radio and television because of the market up there. They want somebody on hand who can do those things in the future.

"Plus, when you are in athletic communications at a small school, you wear a couple of different hats. It will be good. It will definitely be different."

Barch's resignation ends a six-season run with Charleston's South Atlantic League franchise.

Barch joined the Power in 2004. He previously was the radio broadcaster and media relations director for the Jamestown (N.Y.) Jammers of the New York Penn League in 2003.

"There is an old saying in professional sports - here one minute and gone the next," said Barch, who also handled media relations for the low Class A club. "I feel very fortunate that my one minute here happened these past six years.

"I was the last guy to call a game at Watt Powell Park and the first guy to call a game at Appalachian Power Park. I have been the only voice of the Power ever since. It has been an honor. When I look back, I don't want to say it has been overwhelming, but it's certainly something I'm proud of. I really enjoyed my time here.

"The fans are so passionate here. When we were on the road, I would always get e-mails from fans telling me they were tuning in to the broadcasts. I always appreciated the fact that they were listening. It's cool to have that kind of personal connection with the people who are listening to you. I don't know where else you can get that. It's something that I never took for granted."

Barch's career move will allow him to be closer to his friends and relatives.

"That is a big part of it," he said. "I have always wanted to get back up there. I have a very tight-knit family.

"When people take a vacation, they usually go to extravagant places like the Caribbean Islands. First of all, I don't have the money to go to places like that. But when I take a vacation, I spend it in Cleveland with my family because there is no better place than home and there is no substitute for a good family life."