| | August 17, 2000
ESPN will begin its 22nd season of college football telecasts with
two familiar primetime commentator teams. ESPN Thursday Night Primetime
will once again feature the three-man booth of Mike Tirico (play-by-play),
Lee Corso (analyst) and Kirk Herbstreit (analyst) and sideline reporter Dr.
Jerry Punch. Returning to the ESPN Saturday Night Primetime booth for their
10th season will be Ron Franklin (play-by-play) and Mike Gottfried
(analyst), with Adrian Karsten resuming sideline duties for the fourth
consecutive season.
Other ESPN and ESPN2 college football commentator notables:
ESPN2 Saturday Night Primetime telecasts will feature the new
three-man booth of Dave Barnett (play-by-play), Mike Golic (analyst) and
Bill Curry (analyst). ESPN men's and women's college basketball
play-by-play commentator Michele Tafoya will join them as the sideline
reporter.
Former NFL quarterback Don McPherson will leave his sideline duties
to join Rich Waltz (play-by-play) in the booth as an analyst for ESPN2's
Saturday afternoon telecasts. Holly Rowe will take over as sideline
reporter.
ESPN Major League Soccer commentator Rob Stone will return as a
sideline reporter for ESPN2's Saturday afternoon match-ups.
| ESPN |
Play-by-Play |
Analysis |
Sidelines |
| Thursday Prime Time | Mike Tirico | Lee Corso/Kirk Herbstreit | Dr. Jerry Punch |
| Saturday Afternoon | Steve Levy | Todd Christensen | Dave Ryan |
| Saturday Prime Time | Ron Franklin | Mike Gottfried | Adrian Karsten |
| ESPN2 |
Play-by-Play |
Analysis |
Sidelines |
| Saturday Afternoon | Rich Waltz | Don McPherson | Holly Rowe |
| Saturday Prime Time | Dave Barnett | Mike Golic/Bill Curry | Michele Tafoya |
| Saturday Late | Mark Jones | Gino Torretta | Rob Stone |
ESPN and ESPN2 2000 college football commentators
Play-by-play
Dave Barnett - ESPN2 Saturday Night Primetime... Fourth year with ESPN...
Also calls college basketball... Previously handled TV play-by-play for
Dallas Mavericks (1981-88) and San Antonio Spurs (1988-96)... 1980 North
Texas State graduate... Born April 27, 1958.
Ron Franklin - ESPN Saturday Night Primetime... Joined ESPN in 1987... Also
men's college basketball commentator... Has worked as host of various events
for ESPN... TV sports anchor from 1965-87 and radio voice of Houston Oilers
from 1971-82... 1965 Ole Miss graduate... Born Feb. 2, 1942.
Mark Jones - ESPN2 Saturday late... Made ESPN debut in 1990... Served as
commentator on ABC Sports' coverage of college football and basketball, and
various events on ABC's Wide World of Sports... Also served as host of
ESPN's NBA Today and NBA Matchup... 1985 graduate of New York University in
Toronto... Born Nov. 16, 1961.
Steve Levy - ESPN Saturday afternoon... Joined ESPN in 1993 as SportsCenter
anchor... Hosts the network's National Hockey Night and calls NHL
regular-season and playoff games... 1987 Oswego (NY) State graduate... Born
March 12, 1965.
Mike Tirico - ESPN Thursday Night Primetime... Joined ESPN in 1991 as a
studio host and SportsCenter anchor... Hosts ESPN's NFL Monday Night
Countdown... Has handled a myriad of other TV and radio responsibilities for
ESPN... Lead golf commentator for ABC Sports... 1988 Syracuse graduate...
Born Dec. 13, 1966.
Rich Waltz - ESPN2 Saturday afternoon... Joined ESPN in 1997... Also calls
college basketball... In Seattle, host of local TV programs Mariners Warm-Up
and Seahawks Saturday... Calls preseason Seahawks games and select Mariners
games for local TV... 1986 UC Davis graduate, where he lettered in baseball
as a shortstop... Born Oct. 22, 1962.
Analysts
Todd Christensen - ESPN Saturday afternoon... Joined ESPN in 1995...
Previously an analyst for NBC's NFL and Notre Dame football coverage from
1990-95... A 10-year NFL standout, tight end with the Giants and Raiders, playing on
Super Bowl champion teams in 1981 and '84... 1978 BYU graduate... Born Aug.
3, 1956.
Lee Corso - ESPN Thursday Night Primetime... Joined ESPN in 1987 after 28
years of football coaching experience at college and professional levels...
Serves as studio analyst for College GameDay and the halftime and scoreboard
shows... 1957 Florida State University graduate.
Bill Curry - ESPN2 Saturday Night Primetime... Third season with ESPN... 17
seasons as a head coach at Georgia Tech (1980-86), Alabama (1987-89, which
included an SEC title in '89) and Kentucky (1990-96)... 10-year NFL veteran
(1965-74) as a center, earning two All-Pro honors... 1965 Georgia Tech
graduate... Born Oct. 21, 1942.
Kirk Herbstreit - ESPN Thursday Night Primetime... Sixth season with ESPN...
Studio analyst for College GameDay... Provided game analysis for
ESPN/ESPN2's Arena Football telecasts his first year at the network... 1993
graduate of Ohio State where he was a quarterback standout... Born Aug. 12,
1969.
Mike Golic - ESPN2 Saturday Night Primetime... Joined ESPN in 1995 as a
reporter and analyst for NFL Countdown... Second full season as college
football analyst... Co-hosts ESPN Radio's ESPN Morning Show... Analyst on
ESPN2's NFL 2Night... Nine-year NFL veteran for Oilers, Eagles & Dolphins...
1985 Notre Dame grad... Born Dec. 12, 1962.
Mike Gottfried - ESPN Saturday Night Primetime... Joined ESPN in 1990 after
a successful college coaching career... Also has worked NFL Draft for ESPN
since 1991... A head coach for 12 seasons at Pittsburgh, Kansas, Cincinnati
and Murray State, compiling a 77-54-6 mark... 1966 Morehead State
graduate... Born Dec. 17, 1944.
Don McPherson - ESPN2 Saturday afternoon... Joined ESPN in 1999, following
quarterback stints in the NFL and the CFL... Co-hosted Sports Sunday on
WBZ-AM in Boston 1996-1998... Consensus All-American selection at Syracuse
University in 1987... Graduated from Syracuse's School of Arts and Sciences
in 1987... Born April 2, 1965.
Gino Torretta - ESPN2 Saturday late... 1992 Heisman Trophy winner... Second
season as analyst... University of Miami's career passing leader... Selected
by Minnesota Vikings in the 1993 NFL draft... 1993 University of Miami
graduate... Born August 10, 1970.
Sidelines
Adrian Karsten - ESPN Saturday Night Primetime... In the ESPN production
department from 1983-90 before becoming a sideline reporter in 1991...
Reporter for a variety of other ESPN events... Hosted ESPN's Tour de France
coverage... 1982 Northwestern graduate, where he was a DT... Born March 16,
1960.
Dr. Jerry Punch - ESPN Thursday Night Primetime... Joined ESPN in 1984 as a
NASCAR Winston Cup pit reporter... College football sideline reporter since
1989... Formerly served as emergency room director for a Florida hospital...
1975 North Carolina State graduate, where he was a backup QB for coach Lou
Holtz... Born Aug. 20, 1953.
Holly Rowe - ESPN2 Saturday afternoon... Fourth season with ESPN... ABC
Sports college football sideline reporter from 1995-96... Called
play-by-play for ESPN/ESPN2's coverage of the 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup...
Women's basketball and women's volleyball analyst for a West Coast regional
network... 1991 Utah graduate... Born June 16, 1966.
Dave Ryan - ESPN Saturday afternoon... Joined ESPN in 1996 for NHL
play-by-play... Fourth season on college football... Has also worked tennis,
roller hockey and Winter X Games for ESPN... Currently sports director at
WNSS-AM Radio in Syracuse, as well as weekend sports anchor for WSTM-TV...
1989 Syracuse graduate... Born June 20, 1967.
Rob Stone - ESPN2 Saturday late... Joined ESPN in June 1997 as the host of
ESPN2's Worldwide Soccer... Serves as host of MLS Extra Time... First season
covering college football... Worked on SportsCenter, Outside The Lines and
College GameDay... Born April 15, 1969.
Michele Tafoya - ESPN Saturday Night Primetime... Joined ESPN in 2000...
Serves as men's and women's basketball play-by-play commentator... Worked
for CBS Sports since 1994 as game reporter and studio host for NFL, college
football and college basketball... Graduated from the University of
California at Berkeley with a degree in broadcast journalism.
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