Sources: Mike Tirico leaving ESPN for NBC
I enjoyed his calls of Michigan games - basketball and football.
Best voice in sports.
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Who will now be heard from a whole lot less. With Costas and Micheals still around, there's just not enough places for him. Maybe NBC cans Dan Hicks and Tirico picks up his rando golf tourneys and ND football, but that's not an upgrade in assignments.
April 25th, 2016 at 10:25 PM ^
I wonder if this means NBC is going to make a play for a package of B1G football games.
the ND ones
NBC has the rights to The Open Championship starting this year (from ABC/ESPN). NBC also picked up David Feherty from CBS at the end of 2015, so it looks to me like the network is bolstering its golf talent... If only NBC could get the U.S. Open back from FOX! What a disaster that was.
April 26th, 2016 at 11:38 AM ^
wanted to think that about Fox but I actually thought it was pretty good coverage. Norman, in particular, stood out to me as stellar. The Open on NBC is going to be interesting. NBC and ABC are polar opposites in the way they cover golf and quite honestly I see the Open and NBC being somewhat of a square peg-round hole situation. Johnny Miller is an intense analyst and the Open has always had the most relaxed feeling of the majors. I am quite interested to see it actually.
I wonder if an Al Michaels retirement announcement is imminent.
Finally Mike would be able to see a competitive NFL game. Seems like all Monday Nighters have been duds.
Al Michaels is GOAT. I was hoping for a Nantz retirement.
Yes. Nantz has to go.
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He should take Simms with him.
Rumors are that Peyton Manning will replace Simms and work with Nance and that Simms will fall to the #2 CBS NFL team ..
As for Tirico, probably a matter of time. ESPN sucks and is losing most of the top end talent and guys like Tirico have been around while.. Heard that his wife is a bit of a "do you know who I am" type, but Mike seems cool
I think Peyton could become an outstanding analyst, but partnering with Nantz may result in a failure to launch.
He might be a good analyst, but I would hate to have to hear his voice for a 3 hour game.
\PTSD from Nationwide commercials
I am depressed just thinking about that possibility.
About his wife and him, couldn't be farther from the truth. He and her are very polite and humble.
Debbie Tirico is a wonderful woman (and damn good baller at Syracuse). My wife taught both Tirico kids at UM Childrens Center, knows her well, says she's a saint, plus does lots of charity work locally - Ymca,kids fund, Motts, etc.
I was completely making a joke - totally a random and anonymous joke not intended at her. Sorry
Nothing in the vein of Rita Rodriguez slams or about his wife in reality.
I like Mike Tirico on air and hope the NBC move is good for his career. I presume he can still live in A2 if they want to.
I think Nantz and Manning have the same agent. Also makes sense why Nantz wouldn't go anywhere near the HGH rumors, but went at Tom Brady for deflategate.
April 26th, 2016 at 10:01 AM ^
True about the agent and apparently Jimmy and Peyton are pals. And it's hilarious how pats fans accuse Nantz/Simms of being anti-pats while Broncos fans have been accused of making death threats towards Simms for the same reason -- I guess the media loves New England unless they're playing Denver ??
Not sure how that has anything to do with Brady's 4 game suspension for refusing to cooperate with the NFL. "Deflategate" is one of the all time asinine sports stories but has never been about PSI ...it's about pissing off Goodell repeatedly.
Funny how Shaun King has been silent about Manning since the gotcha story was broken around the SuperBowl.
For Al Michaels, but I'd take Keith Jackson...
That's the only thing that would have this make sense. If he's only getting the 5-game Thursday Night Football package, that's a likely pay cut for him. There's no place for him on Olympics coverage, so what the hell is he going to be doing? It's like when Josh Elliott left GMA to go do nothing for NBC for a year or two and then left.
There has to be more to this.
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Good on him.
good for Mike. I think he is one of the very best in his profession.
This sucks, he was great with Gruden on mnf and Dakitch for college basketball. Its been suggested that Sean McDonough will replace him for mnf which would be a big blow for ESPN's college football coverage too.
I will miss Tirico, but I would love it if McDonough is the replacement. I think he does an excellent job.
Happy for Mike but a little bummed out that he won't be calling our games anymore. Also liked McDonough and Speilman on the college football broadcast. Sucks if that crew is breaking up as well.
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Did I miss something? Speilman and McDonough are excellent, especially Spielman.
But I really wish he wasn't leaving.
His position may be filled by Pam Ward now.
....that would still be better, IMHO, than the position being filled by sasquatch....
What's that guy's name? Looks familiar...
Fucking Bitch. Seriously type it in to google and it will come up.
Just another big name leaving ESPN, they must really be lowing balling guys right now. Good to see an A2 resident getting a high profile gig. I hope he gets to work some Sunday Night Football and Golf.
I doubt this one is about money. He does so many high profile things for them it'll likely cost more to replace him than it would have to keep him.
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I would be surprised if it was off-air stuff after Tirico survived his big sexual harassment/stalking junior staff thing a few years back. If the goal was to move on from that era, Berman would be long gone.
No, I'm saying this is Tirico's decision. I highly doubt ESPN wanted to let him go. And from the rumored TNF package he's getting at NBC it has to be a pay cut too. You don't go from MNF and NBA and assorted other jobs to 5 Thursday night games a year and make more money.
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I hope you're right because he's a tremendous broadcaster and was a super nice guy when I met him. This does fit ESPN's direction on slimming down their talent salaries and I would be surprised if they made a competitive offer. They basically have been paying a premium on a near-endless talent pool of broadcasters and former coaches/players and are realizing they can get a similar return on a much lower investment. To this thread's point, they've been scattershot at best on who they've hired and kept particularly on the coach/player side.
Will be interesting to see just how much he does on NBC because it's going to end up being a lot more than 5 games unless this is Tirico wanting some time off.
The reason this whole thing reminds me of Josh Elliott leaving GMA for NBC is it was just as surprising and there was nothing for Elliott to do at NBC when he moved. Same as Tirico. He's supposedly getting the TNF package, but there's nothing else high-profile for him to do with Michaels and Costas there.
And I'm sure there will be talk about him doing Olympics stuff, but that happened with Elliott too and then he wound up doing a lot of nothing.
Definite parallels - and now Elliot is with CBS less than two years later. Hope for better for Tirico.
at least isn't he?
Good! ESPN sucks
Gonna miss Tirico/Dakich big ten hoops.
I Just want Joe Buck to retire, he has no enthusiasm whatsoever, Tirico is much more exiting!
At the Briarwood Apple Store today.
One of the best PBP guys out there. If it's true that McDonough is replacing him that's one of the best guys they could replace him with.
What good PBP guys does ESPN have left for football? Mussburger is on SEC and aging, Mike Patrick has really started to show his age.
Tessitore and Nessler are the only 2 PBP CFB guys that are solid that are left (Fowler is okay but I think Rece is much better)
I haz an upset.
I like Tirico a lot, I wish some of the OSU guys on espn would leave, there's way too many of them, most are really annoying too!
At least Galloway because he's awful and not even a particularly big name to most.
Though it pains me to say it, Spielman has actually gotten really good. I remember 8-10 years ago when he would get too excited about a hit to form a sentence for the next few minutes. Dude has come a long way.