Bleav in The Media Guide

After 20 seasons together at FOX, Troy Aikman and Joe Buck discuss leaving the network and joining ESPN’s Monday Night Football. Jimmy Pitaro, Chairman, ESPN and Sports Content, heralds his network’s new NFL golden age, and Stephanie Druley, ESPN Head of Event and Studio Production, says MNF has the best NFL booth while giving props to Aikman and Buck’s predecessor. Gracious in looking back at his former employer and excited to work with a new team, Buck is happy to hand off NFL on FOX play-by-play duties to Kevin Burkhardt and the MLB on FOX lead mic to Joe Davis. Buck also looks forward to Tom Brady’s move to the booth while Aikman explains what it takes to transition from the field to TV and why he thinks Brady will do well in his new career.

This weekend, CBS Sports will televise its 32nd consecutive PGA Championship and 39th overall. With roughly 140 cameras, 372 record channels of EVS on the ground, 90 more off-site, and 150 microphones throughout the course, CBS Sports Chairman Sean McManus highlights the storytelling of lead producer Sellers Shy. Anchor Jim Nantz says his NFL on CBS analysts Tony Romo gave him nuggets about Scottie Scheffler during The Masters. Nantz, lead analyst Sir Nick Faldo, and on-course reporter like Scheffler’s chances at a second consecutive major with Jordan Spieth having a good shot to complete the career grand slam. Meanwhile, Nantz says reigning PGA Championship winner Phil Mickelson may not be back this week but will return, and lead on-course reporter Dottie Pepper won’t count out Tiger Woods this week.

Last week, Seton Hall University’s College of Communication and Arts formally launched its Center for Sports Media with “Alex Rodriguez: Beyond Baseball,” a wide-ranging conversation with the 14-time MLB All-Star on how he parlayed an outstanding career on the diamond into media, entrepreneurship, and professional sports team ownership. We will focus on media as ARod chats with Seton Hall alumni Bob Ley, renowned TV broadcast journalist with ESPN, and Bardia Shah-Rais, Vice President of Production at FOX Sports. Rodriguez talks about teamwork in TV and praises partners Michael Kay and Kevin Burkhardt, who followed their dreams to the top of sports media. You’ll also hear from the new MLB on FOX lead voice, Joe Davis, who discusses how he’s realized his own dreams.

For the first time in three years, The Masters will be back to full patron capacity. Whether that year’s champion, Tiger Woods, will play this week or not, he will have a major presence on CBS as the network celebrates the 25th anniversary of his 1997 victory. Heading into the network’s 67th consecutive Masters broadcast from Augusta National Golf Club, hear from CBS Sports Chairman Sean McManus, host Jim Nantz, lead analyst Sir Nick Faldo, on-course reporter Dottie Pepper, and lead producer Sellers Shy as they discuss the impact of patrons, Woods, and the 2021 shot of the year.

After working the sidelines for the Super Bowl and her fifth Olympics for NBC, Kathryn Tappen returned to her college roots as part of a panel discussion, Rutgers Alumnae at the Helm: A Conversation on Women in Sports Leadership. Tappen talks about how she broke into the business and how she mentors young men and women today on podcasting and other opportunities in media. She talks about the time Ben Affleck asked her for directions at Fenway Park. She also discusses how she got her big break at NBC with the Olympics, which continues to provide inspiring and positive stories.

On Wednesday, March 23 at 6 p.m. ET, FS1’s NASCAR Race Hub will present “Boundless: Betty Skelton.” Known as the “First Lady of Firsts,” Skelton raced and flew from NASCAR to NASA, and we’ll meet the team behind this inaugural episode of a series entitled “Left Behind,” telling the stories of trailblazing women in motorsports: Cindy Sisson, the CEO of GSEvents; Pam Miller, FOX and CBS Sports auto racing producer; and Lindsey Mandia, FOX Sports Vice President of Production.

At the 16th annual MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference, “Beyond the Book: The Inevitable Expansion of Sports Betting Presented by Caesars Sportsbook,” reviewed the first NFL season of betting partnerships. Betting companies connect with customers through media, and as the panel’s name suggests, likely will go beyond shoulder programming that promotes props and markets to broadcasting games themselves. Caesars Entertainment’s Sharon Otterman discussed the company’s storytelling with J.B. Smoove and the Mannings, and FanDuel CEO Amy Howe noted its success with punter turned podcaster Pat McAfee. Renie Anderson, Chief Revenue Officer and Executive Vice President, NFL Partnerships, looks back on Year 1 and ahead to new technologies in this space. You’ll also hear from On Location President Paul Caine, Miami Dolphins Vice Chairman, President and CEO Tom Garfinkel, and Buffalo Bills and Sabres Co-Owner and President Kim Pegula on gaming in stadiums.

Just before pitchers and catchers were due to report, the National Baseball Hall of Fame hosted Virtual Voices of the Game: Bob Costas and Peter Gammons on Jim Kaat, who will be inducted on July 24th. In this episode, we’ll focus on Gammons and Costas themselves and their experience as winners of the 2004 Baseball Writers Association of America Career Excellence Award and the 2018 Ford C. Frick Award respectively. Costas described the setting four years ago and how one of the greatest catchers of all time welcomed him, as he welcomes all new inductees, into the community. Like Costas, Gammons realized it was about the players, but it’s also about the fans, one of whom let him break news at the trade deadline after he received a text from a future hall of fame executive.

As the Olympic Winter Games of Beijing conclude, NBC put its efforts in perspective as it completed a second Olympics during the COVID-19 pandemic with teams in China and Stamford, Connecticut at NBC Sports Group’s headquarters. NBC Olympics Executive Producer and President Molly Solomon breaks down the people, feeds, and miles it took to present nearly 3,000 hours of television. Host Mike Tirico explains the importance of his presence at the Opening Ceremony and describes living in the Beijing Bubble. NBC Sports Group Chairman Pete Bevacqua says the lack of fans in the grandstands has impacted live television across all sports. He also looks forward to the next three Olympic Games in France, Italy, and the United States while noting how the Tokyo and Beijing have dominated the media landscape, comparing ratings to that of Sunday Night Football, primetime TV’s No. 1 show for 11 consecutive years.

With the end of the NFL season and an era with Tom Brady’s retirement, NBC’s Sunday Night Football crew will change, too. Al Michaels, the sport’s premier primetime play-by-play voice, discusses the end of his NBC contract and his desire to continue calling games,. Michaels also recounts nearly 20 years of working with sideline reporter Michele Tafoya, who did her last game with NBC at the Super Bowl. Analyst Cris Collinsworth compliments Tafoya on how she complemented primetime television’s No. 1 show. Also, hear from Tafoya’s heir apparent, Kathryn Tappen, on her reporting style. Sunday Night Football executive producer Fred Gaudelli and director Drew Esocoff discuss working with Mike Tirico, who likely will replace Michaels, and Maria Taylor talks about the opportunities she’s had since joining NBC. Then, Michaels, Collinsworth, and Football Night in America analysts Chris Simms and Rodney Harrison look at the current crop of NFL quarterbacks who will replace Brady with a special focus on Cincinnati Bengals signal caller Joe Burrow.