ESPN Will Not Be Undersold On Super Bowl XLIII Hype

Posted by Cubicle QB

Not to be outdone, the Worldwide Leader is gang-tackling Super Bowl XLIII in Tampa from just about every angle imaginable, including angles that are illegal outside the state of Florida:

ESPN Networks Super Bowl XLIII Week Coverage

(All Times Eastern)

  • Super Bowl-related content across 16 ESPN platforms: ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNEWS, ESPN Classic, ESPNU, ESPN Deportes, ESPN HD, ESPN2 HD, ESPN International, ESPN.com, ESPN Radio, ESPNRadio.com, ESPN Deportes Radio, ESPNdeportes.com, ESPN The Magazine and ESPN Mobile properties
  • More than 90 hours of Super Bowl-related programming on domestic television from Tampa
  • More than 65 hours of Super Bowl-related programming on ESPN Radio from Tampa
  • ESPN International will bring the Super Bowl to some 40 million households in 117 countries/territories
  • More than 25 on-air commentators (hosts, analysts, reporters and contributors) covering on-site
  • Live programming from Tampa kicks off Monday, Jan. 26 at 6 a.m. ET with Mike & Mike in the Morning on ESPN Radio (simulcast on ESPN2).  ESPN’s coverage will peak with more than 21 hours of TV and radio coverage on Super Bowl Sunday.
  • ESPN’s weeklong coverage will originate from the main set location at Cotanchobee Park in Tampa (across from the St. Pete Times Forum).  Select ESPN Radio programs will also originate from nearby Channelside Bay Plaza.

Super Bowl Sunday (Feb. 1)
Covering his 27th Super Bowl, Chris Berman will host the four-hour Sunday NFL Countdown (10 a.m. – 2 p.m.) with analysts Cris Carter, Mike Ditka, Keyshawn Johnson, Tom Jackson and Chris Mortensen. Monday Night Football play-by-play voice Mike Tirico and ESPN’s triumvirate of Super Bowl quarterbacks – Trent Dilfer, Ron Jaworski and Steve Young – will also appear on Countdown from a set at Raymond James Stadium. Post-game coverage will include two hours of SportsCenter and NFL Primetime beginning at 10 p.m.  Reporters Suzy Kolber (Cardinals) and Ed Werder (Steelers) will also provide updates on the teams.
ESPN Radio’s “Super Sunday” program lineup will feature popular weekday shows Mike & Mike in the Morning (6 a.m./simulcast on ESPN2 at 6:30 a.m.) and The Herd with Colin Cowherd (10 a.m./simulcast on ESPN2 and ESPNU), as well as a five-hour “Countdown to Kickoff” pre-game show (1-6 p.m.) hosted by Ryen Russillo and Freddie Coleman, all originating from Bristol, Conn. Tirico will host a two-hour post-game show from Tampa.

ESPN, ESPN2 & ESPNEWS
ESPN’s primary host location throughout Super Bowl week in Tampa will be an outdoor set — open for public viewing — at Cotanchobee Park (located on St. Pete Times Forum Drive).  Planned highlights:

  • SportsCenter (Monday, Jan. 26 – Sunday, Feb. 1) with anchors Greenberg, Steve Levy and Stuart Scott, joined by reporters Mortensen, Kolber and Werder;
  • Berman, joined by analysts Carter, Ditka, Jackson, Johnson and Mortensen, will host a special four-hour Super Bowl XLIII preview edition of Sunday NFL Countdown, Feb. 1 at 10 a.m. Tirico, Dilfer, Jaworski and Young will also report live from Raymond James Stadium, while Kolber and Werder will cover the teams;
  • Each weekday on ESPN, Trey Wingo will host a daily 30-minute SportsCenter Special at 3:30 p.m. followed by a 30-minute NFL Live at 4 p.m.;
  • State Farm NFL Matchup, hosted by Sal Paolantonio with Merril Hoge and Jaworski (Sunday, Feb. 1, at 3 and 6:30 a.m., ESPN);
  • Sports Reporters hosted by John Saunders (Sunday, Feb. 1, at 8:30 a.m., ESPN);
  • Rome is Burning (M-F, 4:30 p.m., ESPN) will air live from Tampa as current and former NFL players join host Jim Rome to discuss the Super Bowl;
  • Around the Horn (M-F, 5 p.m., ESPN) will feature host Tony Reali with some of the show’s daily panelists opining from Tampa;
  • Pardon the Interruption (M-F, 5:30 p.m., ESPN) will feature co-host Michael Wilbon and guests for the ‘Five Good Minutes’ segment in Tampa, as well as Kornheiser in the Washington, D.C., studio;
  • ESPN Radio’s Mike & Mike in the Morning, will be simulcast live on ESPN2 (M-F, 6-10 a.m.). Greenberg and Golic will host from Cotanchobee Park in Tampa with in-person guests and entertaining discussions of the day’s top sports events;
  • First Take (M-F, 10 a.m.-12 p.m., ESPN2) will include NFL-related interviews and previews segments from Tampa all week;
  • ESPNEWS will offer expanded live coverage of Super Bowl week, including every minute of the team media availability sessions — 20 hours of live news conferences. Coverage begins Sunday, Jan. 25 when the teams arrive in Tampa and continues Tuesday, Jan. 27 with four hours of live Media Day coverage from Raymond James Stadium, including the media sessions – 10-11 a.m. (Cardinals) and 12-1 p.m. (Steelers). On Friday, Jan. 30, head coaches Ken Whisenhunt and Mike Tomlin will make their final comments preceding NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell’s State of the NFL address.  ESPNEWS will once again be the destination for post-game press conferences, including every podium and locker room interview available. NFL analysts Qadry Ismail, Eric Allen and Floyd Reese will share their insights and expertise on ESPNEWS throughout the week.

ESPN CLASSIC
ESPN Classic’s Super Bowl Marathon line-up will feature 23 consecutive hours of NFL-related programming (Saturday, Jan. 31 at 7 a.m. – Sunday, Feb. 1 at 6 a.m.) that will get fans ready for the biggest game of the year by celebrating the top players, teams and moments in Super Bowl history. NFL sports legends Vince Lombardi, Don Shula, Al Davis, Dick Butkus, Peyton Manning, Terrell Owens and Tom Brady are among those who will be featured. The lineup will kickoff with eight consecutive episodes of SportsCentury, followed by episodes of Top 5 Reasons You Can’t Blame …, Who’s #1?: Biggest NFL Draft Busts and Best NFL Post-Season Performances, additional SportsCentury episodes, a primetime showing of The Greatest Game Ever Played (8 p.m.) and finally three back-to-back episodes of Who’s #1 culminating with Who’s #1: Best Teams to Never Win a Title (5 a.m.).

ESPN.COM
ESPN.com is providing complete coverage and analysis of the game, teams, players, coaches and the entire Super Bowl scene from Tampa on both the redesigned NFL homepage (http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/index) and the 2009 edition of Super Bowl Central (http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/superbowl).  The site features interactivity through daily chats with writers and other personalities on SportsNation, video reports on Countdown Daily and live blogging throughout the week, including Tuesday’s Media Day and Game Day.

ESPN’s award-winning roster of contributors will be part of Super Bowl coverage, including NFL Hall of Famers John Clayton and Len Pasquarelli, as well as Mortensen, Wright Thompson, Gene Wojciechowski, Jeffri Chadiha, Greg Garber, Elizabeth Merrill, Pat Yasinskas, James Walker, Mike Sando, Michael Weinreb and Scouts Inc., who will provide insight, commentary, breaking news and analysis of all facets of the Super Bowl XLIII match-up.  Other coverage highlights include:

  • Behind-the-hero stories highlighting one player from each of the 42 teams that have earned Super Bowl rings;
  • Video, essays and pictorials from 10 Super Bowl MVPs, including Arizona’s Kurt Warner and Pittsburgh’s Hines Ward, who tell stories about pivotal moments in their path to being named MVPs;
  • In-depth analysis, scouting reports and rankings of all 106 players on the Cardinals and Steelers’ Super Bowl rosters from Scouts Inc.;
  • Additional video features, interviews, news and analysis on the ESPN Video hub (http://sports.espn.go.com/broadband/video/).

Jeremy Green will host the ESPN Football Today podcast live from Tampa.  He will be joined by some of the biggest names in football, including Ronde Barber, Derrick Brooks, Dennis Green and more. Play Ball with Amanda and Melissa will offer a female perspective of the big game as the podcast debuts on Thursday, January 29 with a special guest, New York Giants running back Brandon Jacobs.

2 Comments

  1. I was proud of myself for not posting a comment that included Erin Andrews and a Lambeau Leap.

    It’s because I’m classy.

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About Ryan Berenz 2166 Articles
Member of the Television Critics Association. Charter member of the Ancient and Mystic Society of No Homers. Squire of the Ancient & Benevolent Order of the Lynx, Lodge 49, Long Beach, Calif. Costco Wholesale Gold Star Member since 2011.