This is an interesting notion -- ESPN is looking to launch a late night TV show. The sports network has reportedly approached three prominent sports journalists to anchor the show, but not one of them has shown any interest. The names are Dan LeBatard, Miami Herald columnist and local sports radio host; Colin Cowherd, ESPN national radio voice; and Jason Whitlock, Kansas City Star sports writer. While I believe that ESPN has real interest in a late night sports show -- maybe a talk format about sports and entertainment -- I have real questions about the validity of the names floated in this report, especially with regard to Whitlock.
Jason was once a regular fill-in on Pardon The Interruption. He is very smart and funny and opinionated. Apparently he was too opinionated for some at the Disney-owned network. When he refused to pull his punches in his criticism, he was dropped by ESPN. Are we to think that now ESPN has asked him to not only come back, but possibly host a show for them?
As for LeBatard, he's very big here in the Miami market -- where I live -- and he has said on his radio show that he's rebuked Fox Sports' offers as well as others. For LeBatard to accept a full-time ESPN gig, he'd have to get them to do the show from South Florida or give up his lucrative local positions.
Cowherd is the only likely suspect. I don't like him at all -- his radio show is heavy on college football and light on others -- but he is already in the ESPN family and could be tapped. I wouldn't watch him, but he could be the guy.
Other guys -- no women -- who've been talked about include Bill Simmons and Rick Reilly, both legit journalists, but I don't know if either would have the stuff to do a TV show. Mike Lupica, a Sports Reporters regular, might be an option.
Nobody's asking me, but I have a big, bold idea that ESPN should snatch up. Go after Jay Leno. He's going to be available in spring 2009 when Conan O'Brien takes over The Tonight Show. Leno could draw an awful lot of eyeballs to ESPN for a talk show, he can talk about sports (at least cars and racing), and he's good for some laughs. That's more than Steven A. Smith brought to ESPN's lone attempt at a late night show.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
8-27-2008 @ 9:31AM
Matt said...
As much as I like Bill Simmons, he just isn't a TV guy. His voice just isn't made for TV. As he says on his own podcast... "It's like a rusty steak knife cutting through a well adged steak"
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8-27-2008 @ 3:28PM
Ari said...
That line is actual from Jenkees referring to the music. Simmon's voice is more like a rusty steaknife cutting through a well aged chalkboard. I love him but his best work is in print.
8-27-2008 @ 9:55AM
chadwick said...
Nobody wants to see a late night show on ESPN. They want to see highlights and injuries.
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8-27-2008 @ 9:46AM
pacheco said...
Simmons is a good writer IMO, and he even writes for the Jimmy Kimmel show if I'm not mistaken, but as Matt said, his voice is not for TV. Heck, I can't even listen to his podcasts, it's so terrible.
Cowherd seems like too much of a cynic to do that sort of gig. I think he's vain enough to believe that he's "above it." I like his show, but I think he'd bore a late night audience.
Too bad ESPN can't get someone like Olbermann or Dan Patrick.
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8-27-2008 @ 10:00AM
Matt said...
Jason Whitlock would be a nightmare. That guy is awful. Same goes for Colin Cowherd. My vote would be Bill Simmons but I think he should stick to his columns and the BS report.
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8-27-2008 @ 10:42AM
Eric J. said...
Cowherd is pretty much everything that's wrong with sports-talk radio. Whitlock would be interesting, but seems unlikely.
How about Stat Boy, with Simmons as head writer? And I bet you could get Hootie and the Blowfish as the house band.
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8-27-2008 @ 11:08AM
Michael said...
will this be filmed in bristol?
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8-27-2008 @ 11:11AM
Brian said...
I'm not from the Florida area and I liked LeBatard as a PTI fill-in more than any of the others. BAM!
I don't think I can add another hour of programming in my normal recording schedule though.
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8-27-2008 @ 12:21PM
JW said...
A late night show sounds like a great idea, but they will definitely need some comedy if they want to compete with CBS/ABC/NBC/Comedy Central. They now air Sports Center just about all day long now, unless you don't have a DVR (like me) then I don't see how you can't get your sports fix before late night.
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8-27-2008 @ 12:48PM
SergioP said...
LeBatard (I think of a good joke on his nambe, but . .) big in the Miami market? His station 790 AM the ticket had one or two good books, but the other sports station 560 AM is beating them now. Plus he's a total clown on PTI. And I mean, a TOTAL clown. Whitlock has terrific experience on TV and is far, far, far (am getting this across?) talent that Danny boy will have at anytime in his life.
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8-27-2008 @ 12:56PM
Oscar Gordon said...
Actually, Simmons makes sense - ESPN let him write for Kimmel for two years, and he is currently on a ten-week sabbatical "to write his next book". Maybe this is a smokescreen to actually prepare the show.
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8-27-2008 @ 3:06PM
David said...
Allison, ESPN is good at many things, and one of them is knowing when to mend fences. Their zero-tolerance policy on criticism of ESPN was an overreaction in the Jason Whitlock case. He's a very smart and articulate journalist with very strong opinions. They knew this when they hired him to write for Page 2 on ESPN.com and when they put him on the air (despite having a radio face).
Fast forward a year or two from his firing and they can see that he's stuck to his guns and has stayed true to his self. I read every one of his KCStar columns and his tenor hasn't changed a lick. He is still the same very valuable commodity to a house like ESPN as he always was.
Saying "I'm sorry we had a fight; let's make up" is the sign of a mature, well-run organization. In this case, if the reports are true, kudos to the folks at ESPN.
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8-27-2008 @ 3:11PM
David said...
The problem with Allison's idea of snagging Jay Leno is... it puts ESPN/ABC in direct competition with itself: Jimmy Kimmel. It's lose-lose for ESPN/ABC (or maybe a really smart businessperson can find a way to make that win-win).
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8-27-2008 @ 3:25PM
Ari said...
Simmons is a legit journalist? Dont get me wrong, i love the guy, but he's no journalist. He's one of the original sports bloggers, funny guy, good insight, and knows the NBA salary cap better than anybody but he's no journalist. And like said above not made for TV.
The whole idea is preposterous. Late nite Sportscenter is the highest ratings of any, no way they would give that up for a talk show, unless it means ESPN II. And Dan patrick would have been the best for that show. Knows sports, people like him and great interviewer (look what he got from Terry Bradshaw).
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8-27-2008 @ 6:13PM
David said...
Erm, Ari, I believe the 6pm Sportscenter regularly competes with the 5:30 lead-in of PTI for the highest regularly-scheduled show ratings on ESPN.
8-27-2008 @ 9:40PM
Josh said...
Cowherd would be ok. He hosted a Sunday night sports show in Portland before he went to ESPN. He was actually a sportscaster on tv before he was a radio guy.
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