There will be several interesting storylines for ESPN during its coverage of tonight’s BCS title game.
It marks the debut of Tim Tebow as an analyst for the network that can’t get enough of him. It also could be the swan song for Brent Musburger, at least as far as calling college football’s biggest game.
First Tebow:
It is a given: Tebow won’t be your typical football analyst. Richard Sandomir of the New York Times wrote about his teleconference last week.
His responses on a conference call were packed with unyielding positivity. Newly hired analysts are usually happy and upbeat. But Tebow was in a different stratosphere. He used “thank” or “thankful” 14 times. “Opportunity” was mentioned 15 times. In using “relationship” 14 times, he reflected only on good ones, past and present. He said “great” 27 times.
Responding to a question about whether he could be a critical analyst despite his relentlessly rosy outlook, he said: “Well, thank you for saying that I’m someone who’s positive. I would love to continue to be someone who’s positive but also be someone that is objective.” He referred to all ESPN executives, men or women, as Mr. or Ms.
So that obviously begs the question: Can somebody that nice be critical of players and coaches who he believes also are nice? Tebow said:
“I would love to continue to be someone who’s positive but also be someone that is objective. I’ve never had a hard time saying what I believed or standing up for something, and hopefully I can continue to be that same person as an analyst and sharing what I believe about players, about teams, about games.
“I will look at it from an objective prism and try to share an insight with the viewers just like I always have any time I’ve had the opportunity to share.”
Really? Do you think Tebow can be candid? I have my doubts that he will be able to step up on such a big stage.
Tebow, though, does have one thing going for him. ESPN is putting Tebow in a situation where he can succeed. He will be the featured player in the new SEC Network, which begins next year. The Heisman Trophy winner from Florida will be play on TV in friendly territory.
However, none of it will matter if Tebow has nothing to offer and/or if he sugarcoats his analysis. As usual when it comes to Tebow, everyone will be watching once more.
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A story that bears watching is the future of Brent Musburger at ESPN.Tonight could be his last big game.
Last month, Jason McIntyre of Big Lead reported that Musburger’s contract with the network expires this year. McIntyre writes:
Brent Musburger, who has been a fixture on ABC Sports/ESPN since 1990, is in the final months of his contract with the network and there are increasing signs he could be replaced in the college football booth next season by Gameday host Chris Fowler, sources tell The Big Lead.
Neither ESPN nor Musburger’s agent – his brother, Todd – would confirm when exactly Musburger’s contract expires, but it is definitely up before the next college football season begins, multiple sources say. Musburger, an iconic announcing figure who turns 75 in May, has called the last four BCS College Football Championship game and will pair with Kirk Herbstreit to call Florida State vs. Auburn on January 6th.
Indeed, this is about Fowler as much as Musburger. Fowler, in an interview with SI’s Richard Deitsch during the fall, said he wants to do more play-by-play.
I have a lot more to do and there are other things I want to do that I have not done. I don’t think it is anything secret internally what I want the next step for me to be at ESPN. I don’t think that is a mystery given the landscape. It’s why GameDay is a unique standalone thing for me. It doesn’t act or feel like a studio show. But the live events are the most inspiring, unexplored thing for me.
SI.com: How so?
Fowler: I really have a passion to document live events as they happen. Hosting is wonderful and remains really satisfying but the joy for me is calling big matches and it was very hard for me to give up calling Thursday Night Football on ESPN. It became too much to manage with GameDay’s increased schedule and travel. But giving up calling football in the booth was the toughest decision I have had to make. That remains something I am drawn powerfully to.
Fowler is the best in the business when it comes to serving as a studio host. However, he knows if he truly wants to be the voice of college football, much like Keith Jackson, Verne Lundquist and even Musburger, it has to be doing play-by-play on games.
With the new college football playoff beginning next year on ESPN, this could be the time where the network makes the switch and allows Fowler to be the man for the next run of big games.
The situation might be comparable to what occurred with Notre Dame on NBC. The network moved out Tom Hammond on play-by-play to allow Dan Hicks to expand his role as the Irish’s new play-by-play voice.
Fowler is a highly valuable commodity for ESPN. The network will want to keep him happy. At some point, it becomes time for the next generation to move in.
According to Deitsch, ESPN isn’t planning any tributes to Musburger tonight. Given all that he has meant to the network and sports TV, perhaps the network gives him a few more big college football games before he calls it a career. Musburger still has his fastball, and few announcers can elevate the level of a big-game call like he does.
Definitely a story to watch.