Some takeaways from ESPN’s megacast of last night’s game.
Johnny TV: The title game was suppose to be Tim Tebow’s coming-out party in his new role as an ESPN analyst. However, Johnny Manziel stole some of his thunder.
Manziel was featured throughout the pregame show and during the game on ESPN’s somewhat bizarre celebrity channel. Clearly, he was there as more than a casual observer.
Johnny Football definitely was auditioning for a post-football role at ESPN. As the Tebow template shows for a much-hyped Heisman Trophy winner, post-football can come sooner than you think.
Manziel definitely passed the test. He was glib, insightful and charismatic. In fact, he was better than Tebow. Last night showed Manziel will be in high demand by the networks after he throws his final pass.
Tebowing: As for Tebow, he showed some potential. He nearly nailed the final score, predicting a 35-31 Florida State victory.
Tebow was good at explaining the strategy and nuances about the big game. He never will be outspoken, but he might be a solid Xs and Os analyst.
Film study: ESPN’s Film Room in which analysts and coaches broke down the game was a big winner. They nailed it by predicting Florida State’s fake punt.
The platform offered terrific and different insights that you don’t normally hear during the traditional telecast. Expect it to be a staple during network coverage of all big events, from the Super Bowl to the World Series to NBA Finals. This was a game-changer.
However, one negative for me: I had trouble with the split screen format. I found the large-view screen extremely difficult to watch in real time. I would have saved that view for replays and use ESPN’s main feed for live action.
Big mess: Not sure what that thing was on ESPN2. Scott Van Pelt wondered the same thing in a tweet.
It was a mish-mosh that was unwatchable at times. While I love Cheryl Hines, ESPN needed to find a better and more relevant sports celebrity to roll out as the first guest.
Next time, I suggest a drinking game involving tequila shots. Would make things more interesting.
ESPN feeds: I didn’t watch much of the stuff on ESPN’s digital platforms. So I’ll defer to Matt Yoder of Awful Announcing.
The local FSU and Auburn radio calls were fun to switch back and forth for a neutral and I can imagine them being particularly popular for fans of either team involved. The BCS Spidercam (the camera directly behind the offense) also drew some positive reviews although there were a couple glitches versus regular viewing. As was evidenced throughout the night, some of the feeds were off sync with the main ESPN telecast. The only people I saw talking about the ESPN3 Fan Cam throughout the evening were employed by ESPN PR.
On the whole, there wasn’t anything on ESPN3 that would jump out at you as a viewing option for the entire game, but a couple interesting novelties worth checking out periodically.
Traditional telecast: All the gizmos were great. However, when the second half rolled around, I found myself needing to focus on the traditional telecast on ESPN.
That’s where you get the most information, and you still need the announcers to guide you through the telecast. The old way still is the best way, but last night also showed the future definitely is here.