ESPN

Who Called Your NFL Team’s Games the Most in 2013?

We did this research last year, and we thought we would do it again to end the 2013 NFL season.

We examined the network play-by-play pairings for each regular season game in the league this year and noted which announcer called which teams’ games.  As in years past patterns emerge, generally the better teams in each conference have their games called by the higher-ranked broadcasters on each network.

The list you are about to see for each team pairs it ONLY with the play-by-play voice calling the game.  There are instances where play-by-play men work with different analysts (i.e. Thomm Brennaman filling-in for Joe Buck during the baseball playoffs with Troy Aikman) so instead of listing the results based on broadcast teams, we will link them only with the play-by-play announcer.

Here is each NFL team, along with the announcer who called their games the most, with the number of games in parentheses:

Arizona Cardinals- Dick Stockton & Sam Rosen (3 each)
Atlanta Falcons – Kevin Burkhardt (4)
Baltimore Ravens – Jim Nantz & Greg Gumbel (3 each)
Buffalo Bills – Greg Gumber & Ian Eagle (3 each)
Carolina Panthers- Chris Myers (4)
Chicago Bears- Thomm Brennaman (4)
Cincinnati Bengals- Greg Gumbel & Marv Albert (3 each)
Cleveland Browns- Kevin Harlan (6)
Dallas Cowboys- Al Michaels (4)
Denver Broncos- Jim Nantz (5)
Detroit Lions- Thomm Brennaman (4)
Green Bay Packers- Joe Buck (7)
Houston Texans- Kevin Harlan (4)
Indianapolis Colts- Al Michaels, Greg Gumbel, Kevin Harlan, Ian Eagle, & Bill Macatee (2 each)
Jacksonville Jaguars- Bill Macatee (5)
Kansas City Chiefs- Jim Nantz (3)
Miami Dolphins- Mike Tirico, Jim Nantz, Greg Gumbel, Marv Albert, Ian Eagle, & Chris Myers (2 each)
Minnesota Vikings- Thomm Brennaman (3)
New England Patriots- Jim Nantz & Greg Gumbel (4 each)
New Orleans Saints- Joe Buck (3)
New York Giants- Kenny Albert (4)
New York Jets- Greg Gumbel (5)
Oakland Raiders- Marv Albert (4)
Philadelphia Eagles- Kenny Albert (3)
Pittsburgh Steelers- Al Michaels, Jim Nantz & Ian Eagle (3 each)
San Diego Chargers- Ian Eagle (4)
San Francisco 49ers- Joe Buck (3)
Seattle Seahawks- Chris Myers (5)
St. Louis Rams- Chris Myers (4)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers- Kevin Burkhardt (4)
Tennessee Titans- Greg Gumbel, Kevin Harlan, Marv Albert, Ian Eagle, Steve Tasker & Andrew Catalon (2 each)
Washington Redskins- Dick Stockton (3)

Now let’s look at each broadcaster and which team he covered the most this season.  Brad Nessler of the NFL Network once again wins the award for most diverse announcer, having called games featuring different teams for each of the network’s 13 games.  So, in effect, Nessler called one game for 26 teams this year.  Here is the rest of the list, sorted by network:

NBC Sports

Al Michaels- Denver Broncos (4)

ESPN

Mike Tirico- Miami Dolphins, Washington Redskins, Chicago Bears, New Orleans Saints, Atlanta Falcons, San Francisco 49ers & Seattle Seahawks (2 each)
Chris Berman- Houston Texans & San Diego Chargers (1 each)

CBS Sports

Jim Nantz- Denver Broncos (5)
Greg Gumbel- NY Jets (5)
Kevin Harlan- Cleveland Browns (6)
Marv Albert- NY Jets, Cleveland Browns, & Oakland Raiders (4 each)
Ian Eagle- San Diego Chargers (4)
Spero Dedes- Jacksonville Jaguars (3)
Bill Macatee- Jacksonville Jaguars (5)
Andrew Catalon- Tennessee Titans & Jacksonville Jaguars (2 each)

Fox Sports

Joe Buck- Green Bay Packers (7)
Kenny Albert- NY Giants (4)
Dick Stockton- Washington Redskins, Arizona Cardinals & St. Louis Rams (3 each)
Chris Myers- Seattle Seahawks
Kevin Burkhardt- Atlanta Falcons & Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4 each)
Thomm Brennaman- Detroit Lions & Chicago Bears (4 each)
Sam Rosen- Arizona Cardinals (3)
Gus Johnson- Detroit Lions & Minnesota Vikings (1 each)
Justin Kutcher- Tennessee Titans & Arizona Cardinals (1 each)
Tom McCarthy- Cleveland Browns & Detroit Lions (1 each)

Have a Happy New Year!

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College Bowl Games on ESPN, with Announcer Assignments

The college football bowl season begins this weekend and ESPN will televise 34 games this year, including the BCS bowl games and the National Championship.

Here is the schedule of bowl games, beginning with the BCS schedule, and the announcers calling each game on TV and radio:

Bowl Championship Series
Wed, Jan 1 5 p.m. Rose Bowl Game Presented by VIZIO: No. 5 Stanford vs. No. 4 Michigan State

TV: Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit & Heather Cox
Radio: Bill Rosinkski, David Norrie & Joe Schad
ESPN, ESPN Radio & ESPN Deportes
8:30 p.m. Tostitos Fiesta Bowl: No. 15 UCF vs. No. 6 Baylor

TV: Sean McDonough, Chris Spielman & Shannon Spake
Radio: Bob Wischusen, Rod Gilmore & Quint Kessenich
ESPN, ESPN Radio & ESPN Deportes
Thu, Jan 2 8:30 p.m. Allstate Sugar Bowl: No. 11 Oklahoma vs. No. 3 Alabama

TV: Brad Nessler, Todd Blackledge & Holly Rowe
Radio: Bill Rosinkski, David Norrie & Joe Schad
ESPN, ESPN Radio & ESPN Deportes
Fri, Jan 3 8:30 p.m. Discover Orange Bowl: No. 12 Clemson vs. No. 7 Ohio State

TV: Joe Tessitore, Matt Millen & Maria Taylor
Radio: Sean McDonough, Chris Spielman & Shannon Spake
ESPN, ESPN Radio & ESPN Deportes+
Mon, Jan 6 8:30 p.m. VIZIO BCS National Championship: No. 1 Florida State vs. No. 2 Auburn

TV: Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit, Heather Cox & Tom Rinaldi
Radio: Mike Tirico, Todd Blackledge, Holly Rowe & Joe Schad
ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNEWS, ESPN Classic, ESPN Radio, ESPN3, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Goal Line
 
Additional Postseason Games
Date Time (ET) Game Network
Sat, Dec 21 2 p.m. Gildan New Mexico Bowl: Washington State vs. Colorado State

TV: Mark Jones, Brock Huard & Jessica Mendoza
Radio: John Sadak, Tom Ramsey & Niki Noto
ESPN & ESPN Radio
3:30 p.m. Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl: No. 20 Fresno State vs. No. 25 USC

Rece Davis, Jesse Palmer, David Pollack & Samantha Ponder
ABC
5:30 p.m. Famous Idaho Potato Bowl: Buffalo vs. San Diego State

TV: Clay Matvick, Matt Stinchcomb & Dawn Davenport
Radio: Marc Kestescher, Dan Hawkins & Marty Cesario
ESPN & ESPN Radio
9 p.m. R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl: Tulane vs. Louisiana-Lafayette

TV: Mike Patrick, Ed Cunningham & Jeannine Edwards
Radio: Bill Rosinkski, David Norrie & Joe Schad
ESPN & ESPN Radio
Mon, Dec 23 2 p.m. Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl St. Petersburg: Ohio vs. East Carolina

ESPN: Beth Mowins, Joey Galloway & Paul Carcaterra
Radio: Eamon McAnaney, Anthony Becht & Ian Fitzsimmons
ESPN & ESPN Radio
Tue, Dec 24 8 p.m. Sheraton Hawaii Bowl: Boise State vs. Oregon State

ESPN: Steve Levy, Lou Holtz, Mark May & Maria Taylor
Radio: Kevin Winter & Trevor Matich
ESPN & ESPN Radio
Thu, Dec 26 6 p.m. Little Caesars Bowl: Pittsburgh vs. Bowling Green

Dave Lamont, Ray Bentley & Niki Noto
ESPN
9:30 p.m. San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl: Utah State vs. No. 23 Northern Illinois

TV: Joe Davis, Mike Bellotti & Cara Capuano
Radio: Bill Rosinkski, David Norrie & Joe Schad
ESPN & ESPN Radio
Fri, Dec 27 2:30 p.m. Military Bowl Presented by Northrop Grumman: Marshall vs. Maryland

Mike Patrick, Ed Cunningham & Jeannine Edwards
ESPN
6 p.m. Texas Bowl: Syracuse vs. Minnesota

TV: Mark Jones, Brock Huard & Kaylee Hartung
Radio: Dave Neal, Andre Ware & Brooke Weisbrod
ESPN & ESPN Radio
9:30 p.m. Fight Hunger Bowl: BYU vs. Washington

TV: Dave Pasch, Brian Griese & Tom Luginbill
Radio: Dave Flemming, Mike Bellotti & Shelley Smith
ESPN & ESPN Radio
Sat, Dec 28 Noon New Era Pinstripe Bowl: Rutgers vs. Notre Dame

TV: Chris Fowler, Jesse Palmer & Paul Carcaterra
Radio: Connell McShane, Jack Ford & C.J. Papa
ESPN & ESPN Radio
3:20 p.m. Belk Bowl: Cincinnati vs. North Carolina

TV: Carter Blackburn, Danny Kanell & Allison Williams
Radio: Tom Hart, David Diaz-Infante & Cara Capuano
ESPN & ESPN Radio
6:45 p.m. Russell Athletic Bowl: Miami (Fla.) vs. No. 18 Louisville

TV: Bob Wischusen, Rod Gilmore & Quint Kessenich
Radio: Dave Lamont, Anthony Becht & Brooke Weisbrod
ESPN & ESPN Radio
10:15 p.m. Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl: Michigan vs. Kansas State

TV: Sean McDonough, Chris Spielman & Shannon Spake
Radio: Bill Rosinkski, David Norrie & Joe Schad
ESPN & ESPN Radio
Mon, Dec 30 11:45 a.m. Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl: Middle Tennessee vs. Navy

TV: Beth Mowins, Joey Galloway & Paul Carcaterra
Radio: Mark Neely, Tom Ramsey & Lewis Johnson
ESPN & ESPN Radio
3:15 p.m. Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl: Ole Miss vs. Georgia Tech

Mark Jones, Brock Huard & Jessica Mendoza
ESPN
6:45 p.m. Valero Alamo Bowl: No. 10 Oregon vs. Texas

TV: Brad Nessler, Todd Blackledge & Holly Rowe
Radio: Marc Kestescher, Kelly Stouffer & Kaylee Hartung
ESPN & ESPN Radio
10:15 p.m. National University Holiday Bowl: No. 14 Arizona State vs. Texas Tech

TV: Joe Tessitore, Matt Millen & Maria Taylor
Radio: Bill Rosinkski, David Norrie & Joe Schad
ESPN & ESPN Radio
Tue, Dec 31 12:30 p.m. AdvoCare V100 Bowl: Arizona vs. Boston College

Tom Hart, John Congemi & Niki Noto
ESPN
4 p.m. AutoZone Liberty Bowl: Rice vs. Mississippi State

TV: Bob Wischusen, Rod Gilmore & Quint Kessenich
Radio: Beth Mowins, Joey Galloway & Paul Carcaterra
ESPN & ESPN Radio
8 p.m. Chick-fil-A Bowl: No. 24 Duke vs. No. 21 Texas A&M

TV: Rece Davis, Jesse Palmer, David Pollack & Samantha Ponder
Radio: Dave Neal, Andre Ware & Cara Capuano
ESPN & ESPN Radio
Wed, Jan 1 Noon TaxSlayer.com Gator Bowl: Nebraska vs. No. 22 Georgia

Mike Patrick, Ed Cunningham & Jeannine Edwards
ESPN2
Heart of Dallas Bowl Presented by PlainsCapital Bank: UNLV vs. North Texas

Clay Matvick, Matt Stinchcomb & Dawn Davenport
ESPNU
1 p.m. Capital One Bowl: No. 19 Wisconsin vs. No. 9 South Carolina

TV: Dave Pasch, Brian Griese & Tom Luginbill
Radio: Dave Lamont, Ray Bentley & Ian Fitzsimmons
ABC & ESPN Radio
Outback Bowl: Iowa vs. No. 16 LSU

TV: Mike Tirico, Jon Gruden & Lisa Salters
Radio: Carter Blackburn, Danny Kanell & Allison Williams
ESPN & ESPN Radio
Fri, Jan 3 7:30 p.m. AT&T Cotton Bowl: No. 13 Oklahoma State vs. No. 8 Missouri

Brad Sham, Ed Cunningham & Ian Fitzsimmons
ESPN Radio
Sat, Jan 4 1 p.m. BBVA Compass Bowl: Vanderbilt vs. Houston

TV: Dave Neal, Andre Ware & Dawn Davenport
Radio: Adam Amin, Rene Ingoglia & TBD
ESPN & ESPN Radio
Sun, Jan 5 9 p.m. GoDaddy Bowl: Arkansas State vs. Ball State

Carter Blackburn, Danny Kanell & Allison Williams
ESPN

Sports Media Weekly No. 175- Joe Flint, LA Times & Joe Tessitore, ESPN

The weather is frigid across much of the country so why not cozy up to the latest edition of Sports Media Weekly?

Ken Fang of Fang’s Bites and I are joined for our news segment this week by Joe Flint, media and entertainment reporter for the LA Times.

We dream of warm weather to start the show, talking about the news that ESPN will add Curt Schilling to its Sunday Night Baseball broadcast booth.  Schilling replaces Orel Hershiser, who will be joining the broadcast team for the Los Angeles Dodgers new regional sports network which will launch in 2014.

We move to the NFL, discussing the flexing of Bears/Eagles to NBC’s Sunday Night Football for week 16 while Patriots/Ravens moves to CBS at 4:25pm ET.  We also speculate as to which game will be flexed to SNF for the week 17 finale.

For the second straight week we talk Canadian sports media as it was announced that CTV and TSN will be the home for NFL football north of the boarder.

We end the news segment looking at the report by John Ourand at Sports Business Journal that Fox appears to be the front runner to retaining the rights to the UEFA Champions League matches here in the United States.

Our second guest this week is ESPN’s Joe Tessitore.  Ken speaks with Joe about his upcoming new role as lead studio host for the SEC Network which will launch late next summer.

College Basketball This Week on ESPN

Here is this week’s college basketball schedule, along with announcer assignments, on the networks of ESPN:

Date Time(ET) Game / Commentators Networks
Thu, Dec 12 7 p.m. Maryland at Boston College
Tom Hart & Len Elmore
ESPNU
Fri, Dec 13 8 p.m. Arkansas-Little Rock at No. 16 Memphis
Greg Gaston & Darrin Horn
ESPN3
  9:30 p.m. No. 23 Iowa at No. 17 Iowa State
Mike Couzens & Reid Gettys
ESPNU
Holiday Hoops Presented by Kay Jewelers (Dec. 18-25)
Sat, Dec 14 Noon Western Kentucky at No. 6 Louisville
Bob Wischusen & Kara Lawson
ESPN2
  VCU at Northern Iowa
Rich Hollenberg & Mark Adams
ESPNU
  1 p.m. Eastern Kentucky at No. 4 WisconsinWayne Randazzo & Kevin Lehman ESPN3
  2 p.m. Tennessee at No. 12 Wichita State
Mark Jones & Jimmy Dykes
ESPN2
  Louisiana Tech at No. 7 Oklahoma State
Dave Armstrong & Bryndon Manzer
ESPNU
  3:15 p.m. Notre Dame at Indiana
Dave O’Brien & Dan Dakich
ESPN
  4 p.m. No. 5 Michigan State at Oakland
Carter Blackburn & Bruce Pearl
ESPN2
  UNC-Greensboro at Rutgers
Jonathan Yardley & Mo Cassara
ESPN3
  5:15 p.m. No. 11 Kentucky at No. 18 North Carolina
Dan Shulman, Dick Vitale & Jay Bilas
ESPN
  6 p.m. Detroit at NC State
Roy Philpott & Stan Lewter
ESPN3
  7 p.m. New Mexico at No. 13 Kansas
Dave Flemming & Fran Fraschilla
ESPN2
  Furman at Clemson ESPN3
  9 p.m. Illinois at No. 15 Oregon
Roxy Bernstein & Sean Farnham
ESPN2
Sun, Dec 15 Noon Philadelphia University at Boston College
Eric Frede & Malcolm Huckabay
ESPN3
  3 p.m. UNC-Asheville at USC Upstate ESPN3
  7 p.m. Western Michigan at No. 24 Missouri
Dave Neal & Jon Sundvold
ESPNU

NBC Flexes Bears/Eagles for NFL Week 16

The NFL announced today that the week 16 game between the Chicago Bears and Philadelphia Eagles will be flexed onto Sunday Night Football (SNF) on NBC.

The original SNF match-up, the New England Patriots at Baltimore Ravens, will now air Sunday, December 22nd at 4:25pm ET on CBS.

Here is the reconfigured week 16 NFL schedule (All times local):

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 22

 

MIAMI AT BUFFALO 1:00 PM (ET) CBS
NEW ORLEANS AT CAROLINA 1:00 PM (ET) FOX
MINNESOTA AT CINCINNATI 1:00 PM (ET) FOX
DENVER AT HOUSTON 12:00 PM (CT) CBS
TENNESSEE AT JACKSONVILLE 1:00 PM (ET) CBS
INDIANAPOLIS AT KANSAS CITY 12:00 PM (CT) CBS
CLEVELAND AT NEW YORK JETS 1:00 PM (ET) CBS
TAMPA BAY AT ST. LOUIS 12:00 PM (CT) FOX
DALLAS AT WASHINGTON 1:00 PM (ET) FOX
NEW YORK GIANTS AT DETROIT 4:05 PM (ET) FOX
ARIZONA AT SEATTLE 1:05 PM (PT) FOX
*NEW ENGLAND AT BALTIMORE 4:25 PM (ET) CBS
PITTSBURGH AT GREEN BAY 3:25 PM (CT) CBS
OAKLAND AT SAN DIEGO 1:25 PM (PT) CBS
*CHICAGO AT PHILADELPHIA 8:30 PM (ET) NBC

MONDAY, DECEMBER 23

ATLANTA AT SAN FRANCISCO 5:40 PM (PT) ESPN

Curt Schilling Joins Sunday Night Baseball Crew

With the announcement that Orel Hershiser will be working on the Los Angeles Dodgers game telecasts, ESPN wasted no time today announcing who will take his place on the Sunday Night Baseball broadcast crew.  Curt Schilling will fill Hershiser’s role beginning next season.

Schilling has served as a Baseball Tonight studio analyst since 2010, and has also provided analysis for select MLB game telecasts on ESPN. He will continue to make studio appearances for the network.

“I’m excited to join an already outstanding team,” said Schilling. “I would like to bring a perspective that will help fans get inside the head of the guy on the mound, and behind the plate, while also helping fans to better understand the work and preparation that goes into pitching in the big leagues.”

“Curt is one of the most unique announcers we have ever had on baseball, or any other sport, for that matter.” said Jed Drake, ESPN executive producer and senior vice-president, production. “He speaks his mind, and when he does, it is almost always fascinating, insightful and quite often, provocative. People will watch Sunday Night Baseball because of what Curt might say – that’s a rare gift. And, did I mention that he was a ferocious competitor, who has three World Series rings? Enough said.”

Photo Courtesy ESPN

Sports Media Weekly No. 174- John Ourand, Sports Business Journal

After a week off for the holiday Ken Fang of Fang’s Bites and I are back for another edition of Sports Media Weekly.

Joining Ken and me this week is John Ourand from Sports Business Journal.

We start the show by looking back at the big sports media story from a week ago, the news that Rogers Communications has won the sole national NHL media rights in Canada away from TSN and CBC.  We look at the impact the deal will have in Canada as well as what it may mean for sports rights deals here in the U.S.A.

We move on to the NFL and the news from Fox Sports that it has already sold its entire ad inventory for February’s Super Bowl XLVIII.  The news proves once again that football is king on TV and with sponsors.

We look back at the spectacular weekend of college football and, in particular, CBS’ coverage of the Alabama/Auburn Iron Bowl.  We all give kudos to CBS for its coverage of the game and striking the right tone both in pictures and in words from Verne Lundquist, Gary Danielson, and Tracey Wolfson.

As ESPN prepares for coverage of its final World Cup for a while we discuss the potential U.S. rights fee battle for the UEFA Champions League matches.  Fox Sports currently holds the rights, but ESPN and NBC are looking to snatch the package away.

We wrap the show by discussing Deadspin’s purchase of a baseball Hall of Fame vote and how that may shake out.

Week 14 NFL Schedule, with Announcer Assignments

Here is the week 14 schedule in the NFL, along with the announcers calling each game:

THURSDAY, DEC. 05
GAME TIME/SCORE TV ANNOUNCERS
Houston at Jacksonville 8:25 pm NFL Network Brad Nessler, Mike Mayock
SUNDAY, DEC. 08
GAME TIME/SCORE TV ANNOUNCERS
Minnesota at Baltimore 1:00 pm FOX Chris Myers, Tim Ryan, Jennifer Hale
Kansas City at Washington 1:00 pm CBS Kevin Harlan, Solomon Wilcotts
Buffalo at Tampa Bay 1:00 pm CBS Spero Dedes, Steve Beuerlein
Miami at Pittsburgh 1:00 pm CBS Ian Eagle, Dan Fouts
Detroit at Philadelphia 1:00 pm FOX Kevin Burkhardt, John Lynch, Molly McGrath
Oakland at N.Y. Jets 1:00 pm CBS Marv Albert, Rich Gannon
Indianapolis at Cincinnati 1:00 pm CBS Greg Gumbel, Dan Dierdorf
Cleveland at New England 1:00 pm CBS Bill Macatee, Steve Tasker
Atlanta at Green Bay 1:00 pm FOX Thom Brennaman, Brian Billick, Laura Okmin
Tennessee at Denver 4:05 pm CBS Jim Nantz, Phil Simms
St. Louis at Arizona 4:25 pm FOX Dick Stockton, Ronde Barber, Kris Budden
Seattle at San Francisco 4:25 pm FOX Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Pam Oliver
N.Y. Giants at San Diego 4:25 pm FOX Kenny Albert, Daryl Johnston, Tony Siragusa
Carolina at New Orleans 8:30 pm NBC Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth
MONDAY, DEC. 09
GAME TIME/SCORE TV ANNOUNCERS
Dallas at Chicago 8:40 pm ESPN Mike Tirico, Jon Gruden

College Basketball This Week on ESPN

Here is this week’s college basketball schedule, along with announcer assignments, on the networks of ESPN:

Date Time (ET) Matchup / Commentators Network
Thu, Dec 5 7 p.m. Big 12/SEC Challenge: West Virginia at Missouri
Mark Jones & Jimmy Dykes
ESPN2
  Big 12/SEC Challenge: TCU at Mississippi State
Tom Hart & Carolyn Peck
ESPNU
  Rider at Monmouth
Doug Sherman & Rob Kennedy
ESPN3
  Tennessee Tech at Lipscomb ESPN3
  9 p.m. Big 12/SEC Challenge: Ole Miss at Kansas State
Dave Flemming & Miles Simon
ESPN2
Fri, Dec 6 7 p.m. Loyola Marymount at Pittsburgh
Tim Neverett & Curtis Aiken
ESPN3
  8:30 p.m. Fairfield at Quinnipiac
Doug Sherman & Rob Kennedy
ESPN3
  9:30 p.m. Big 12/SEC Challenge: South Carolina at No. 9 Oklahoma State
Micth Holthus & Reid Gettys
ESPNU
  10 p.m. Big 12/SEC Challenge: No. 3 Kentucky at No. 20 Baylor
Jon Sciambi & Fran Fraschilla
ESPN
Sat, Dec 7 Noon Texas at Temple
Adam Amin & Tim Welsh
ESPNU
  1 p.m. Hofstra at SMU
Dave Raymond & Stephen Howard
ESPN3
  Northwestern State at No. 16 Memphis
Greg Gaston & Darrin Horn
ESPN3
  2 p.m. Richmond at Wake Forest
Evan Leplar & Pete Strickland
ESPN3
  East Tennessee State at Georgia Tech ESPN3
  Eastern Michigan at Purdue
Mike Couzens & Jeff Jackson
ESPN3
  William & Mary at Wofford ESPN3
  3 p.m. New Orleans at Minnesota
BJ Schaben & Rich Zvosec
ESPN3
  3:15 p.m. No. 6 Kansas at Colorado
Dave O’Brien & Jimmy Dykes
ESPN2
  4 p.m. Marshall at Penn State
Tim Neverett & Brian Allen
ESPN3
  5 p.m. Virginia at Wisconsin-Green Bay
Mike Morgan & Brooke Weisbrod
ESPNU
  5:15 p.m. UNLV at No. 2 Arizona
 Roxy Bernstein & Miles Simon
ESPN2
  6 p.m. San Jose State at Houston
Brett Dolan & Reid Gettys
ESPN3
  7 p.m. UNC Greensboro at North Carolina
Joe Davis & Paul Biancardi
ESPNU
  Stetson at UCF
Jesse Agler & Mark Wise
ESPN3
  Binghamton at No. 4 Syracuse
Jason Benetti & Reggie Witherspoon
ESPN3
  9 p.m. Alabama at USF
Rich Hollenberg & Carolyn Peck
ESPNU
  11 p.m. New Mexico State at No. 19 Gonzaga
Steve Quis & Jon Crispin
ESPNU
Sun, Dec 8 12:30 p.m. Virginia Tech at Miami (Fla.)
Tom Hart & Jay Williams
ESPNU
  5 p.m. No. 13 Oregon at Ole Miss
Dave Neal & Kara Lawson
ESPNU
  6 p.m. Jacksonville State at Florida State ESPN3
  8 p.m. Seton Hall at Rutgers
Eamon McAnaney & Tim Welsh
ESPNU

ESPN Announces First Five Analysts for the World Cup

Next year’s World Cup will be the last on ESPN for a while.  Today the network announced five analysts who will work the tournament in Brazil.

Michael Ballack, Alexi Lalas, Steve McManaman, and  Santiago Solari will appear on pre-match, halftime and post-match shows, SportsCenterESPN FC, and FIFA World Cup-themed news and information programs. Taylor Twellman will primarily serve as a co-commentator. McManaman will also co-commentate on select matches.

The analysts will be on hand this Friday at 11:30am as ESPN2 televises the final draw for the World Cup.  Bob Ley will host.

“The quality and diversity of our analyst team was one of the keys to our 2010 World Cup success,” said Jed Drake, ESPN senior vice president and executive producer.  “Michael, Alexi, Macca, Santiago, Taylor and others to come, will form what we expect to be one of the best collections of football minds available anywhere for this global sporting event.”