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NFL Viewing Picks For Week 4, 09/30/2012

All Times Eastern

NFL Viewing Maps (the 506.com)

Byes: Indianapolis, Pittsburgh

Pregame & Studio Shows
First on the Field — NFL Network, 7 a.m.
NFL Matchup — ESPN2, 8:30 a.m.
NFL GameDay Morning — NFL Network, 9 a.m.
Fantasy Football Today — CBS Sports Network, 11 a.m.
Fantasy Football Now — ESPN2, 11 a.m.
The NFL Today — CBS, noon
Fox NFL Sunday — Fox, noon
NFL Red Zone Channel — DirecTV Channel 703, 12:55 p.m.
NFL RedZone — Check your local listings, 12:55 p.m.
The NFL Today Postgame Show — CBS, 4 p.m.
NFL GameDay Scoreboard — NFL Network, 4 p.m.
Football Night in America — NBC, 7 p.m.
NFL GameDay Highlights — NFL Network, 7:30 p.m.
NFL GameDay Final — NFL Network, midnight

1 p.m.

CBS
New England at Buffalo — Greg Gumbel/Dan Dierdorf
San Diego at Kansas City — Kevin Harlan/Solomon Wilcots
Tennessee at Houston — Ian Eagle/Dan Fouts

FOX
Carolina at Atlanta — Dick Stockton/John Lynch/Jennifer Hale
Minnesota at Detroit — Thom Brennaman/Brian Billick/Laura Okmin
San Francisco at New York Jets — Kenny Albert/Daryl Johnston/Tony Siragusa
Seattle at St. Louis — Ron Pitts/Mike Martz/Kristina Pink

4:05 p.m.

CBS
Cincinnati at Jacksonville — Marv Albert/Rich Gannon
Miami at Arizona — Bill Macatee/Steve Tasker
Oakland at Denver — Jim Nantz/Phil Simms

4:25 p.m.

FOX
New Orleans at Green Bay — Joe Buck/Troy Aikman/Pam Oliver
Washington at Tampa Bay — Chris Myers/Tim Ryan/Krista Voda

8:30 p.m.

NBC
New York Giants at Philadelphia — Al Michaels/Cris Collinsworth/Michele Tafoya

DirecTV NFL Sunday Ticket Channel Assignments
SiriusXM Satellite Radio Channel Assignments

Your Week 3 NFL Viewing Guide

Let’s give you a few things to watch for in Week 3 in The League Where They Play for Play.

Why are Time Warner Cable and Bright House subscribers a happy lot today? – That’s a silly question, chickie. If you really need to know, just ask one. Seriously, NFL Network and Time Warner came to a surprise agreement on Friday in time for Sunday’s games. So NFL Network and RedZone get access to 12 million customers across the country and in 11 team markets: Buffalo, Cincinnati, Charlotte, Cleveland, Dallas, Green Bay, Indianapolis, Kansas City, New York, San Diego and Tampa-St. Petersburg. This also affects Los Angeles, a secondary market to San Diego, the Capital Region of New York, Milwaukee and several other areas. Time Warner had been the last holdout of the major cable and satellite providers and it appeared that an agreement was nowhere in sight, but instead of going another year without NFL Network, the two sides finally came together. So Time Warner and Bright House customers will be able to see NFL Network on digital basic and NFL RedZone on a sports tier.

Who has the doubleheader this week? – CBS once again. The main game at 4:25 p.m. ET will be Denver at Houston (Jim Nantz/Phil Simms).

What’s Fox showing on Sunday afternoon when it’s not airing the NFL? – Depending on the game in your area, it will show Liverpool vs. Manchester United on tape delay either at 2:30 p.m. ET or 4:30 p.m. The game will be shown live on Fox Soccer at 8:25 if you wish to get up that early.

Any blackouts? – I’m glad you asked. Just one, in San Diego where local fans will not see the Falcons and Chargers on Fox. Miami avoided a blackout after getting an extension to sell tickets for the Jets-Dolphins game. Raider Nation is happy after the blackout was lifted so fans can see Sunday’s game against Pittsburgh.

What are your games of the day? – For CBS, I’ll go with the two late games, Denver at Houston (Jim Nantz/Phil Simms) and Pittsburgh at Oakland (Ian Eagle/Dan Fouts).

On Fox, I’ll choose San Francisco at Minnesota (Kenny Albert/Daryl Johnston/Tony Siragusa) as the 49ers go for 3-0 and the 4:05 game between two 2-0 teams, Philadelphia at Arizona (Thom Brennaman/Brian Billick/Laura Okmin).

And yes, there’s the primetime matchup on Sunday night, New England at Baltimore on NBC (Al Michaels/Cris Collinsworth/Michele Tafoya). That should be quite interesting.

Any trends I should know about after the first two weeks of action? – There are three of interesting notes from the first two weeks. One, the 4:25 national window has garnered lower ratings than Sunday Night Football. Usually, Fox’s late game outrates NBC, but that hasn’t been the case so far this season. And CBS’ ratings for the New York Jets-Pittsburgh Steelers game received the lowest ratings for the late game on any network since 2009.

CBS’ ratings are down from last year in both Week 1 and Week 2.

NBC’s Sunday Night Football is also down after two weeks.

Anything else? – No. Just watch the games and enjoy your Sunday.

NFL Viewing Picks For Week 3, 09/23/2012

All Times Eastern

NFL Viewing Maps (from the506.com)

Pregame & Studio Shows
First on the Field — NFL Network, 7 a.m.
NFL Matchup — ESPN, 7:30 a.m.
NFL GameDay Morning — NFL Network, 9 a.m.
Fantasy Football Now — ESPN2, 11 a.m.
Fantasy Football Today — CBS Sports Network, 11 a.m.
NFL Today — CBS, noon
Fox NFL Sunday — Fox, noon
NFL RedZone — NFL Network (check your local listings), 1 p.m.
NFL Red Zone Channel — DirecTV Channel 703, 1 p.m.
Fox NFL Sunday Postgame — Fox, 4 p.m.
NFL GameDay Scoreboard — NFL Network, 4 p.m.
Football Night in America — NBC, 7 p.m.
NFL GameDay Highlights — NFL Network, 7:30 p.m.
NFL GameDay Final — NFL Network, midnight

1 p.m.

CBS
Buffalo at Cleveland — Spero Dedes/Steve Beuerlein
Cincinnati at Washington — Kevin Harlan/Solomon Wilcots
Jacksonville at Indianapolis — Bill Macatee/Steve Tasker
Kansas City at New Orleans — Greg Gumbel/Dan Dierdorf
New York Jets at Miami — Marv Albert/Rich Gannon

FOX
Detroit at Tennessee — Ron Pitts/Mike Martz/Kristina Pink
San Francisco at Minnesota — Kenny Albert/Daryl Johnston/Tony Siragusa
St. Louis at Chicago — Dick Stockton/John Lynch/Jennifer Hale
Tampa Bay at Dallas — Joe Buck/Troy Aikman/Pam Oliver

4:05 p.m.

FOX
Atlanta at San Diego — Chris Myers/Tim Ryan/Jaime Maggio!!!
Philadelphia at Arizona — Thom Brennaman/Brian Billick/Laura Okmin

4:15 p.m.

CBS
Houston at Denver — Jim Nantz/Phil Simms
Pittsburgh at Oakland — Ian Eagle/Dan Fouts

8:30 p.m.

NBC
New England at Baltimore — Al Michaels/Cris Collinsworth/Michele Tafoya

DirecTV NFL Sunday Ticket Channel Assignments
SiriusXM Satellite Radio Channel Assignments 

Your Week 2 NFL Viewing Picks

Let’s go over what’s coming up on the next NFL Sunday.

Our NFL Week actually began on Thursday? – Yup. First of 13 Thursday Night Football games on NFL Network this season.

So I won’t hear a disclaimer for “60 Minutes” on CBS at 7 p.m.? – Not when the Tiffany Network has the NFL doubleheader. With the late games now starting at 4:25 p.m. ET, both CBS and Fox have to make adjustments. When CBS has the doubleheader, primetime will start at 7:30 p.m. ET/6:30 p.m. CT. In the Mountain and Pacific time zones, the Sunday primetime lineup won’t change. The entire CBS lineup will be pushed back a half-hour and there won’t be any shows that will be preempted.

What’s with Fox showing this soccer documentary? – On five Sundays, Fox will run programming either before or after its single NFL game depending on when your contest will air in your region. This week, Fox airs the premiere of its Fox Soccer documentary series called “Being: Liverpool”. On three other Sundays, Fox will air tape delayed coverage of English Premier League action. And on the other Sunday being programmed by Fox, it will have a UFC special previewing that weekend’s MMA card on the network.

Blackouts? Tell me about the blackouts? – None this week. The San Diego Chargers narrowly avoided embarrassment by having its home opener and tribute to the late Junior Seau blacked out. An extension to sell the last remaining tickets worked. The Dolphins did not sell out their home opener, but the team bought all of the remaining tickets and the game against the Raiders on Sunday will be seen in South Florida. Finally, the Cincinnati Bengals sold out their home opener after problems selling out last season.

What are your Games of the Week, compadre? – On CBS, I’ll choose Baltimore at Philadelphia (Greg Gumbel/Dan Dierdorf). Ravens look really good. Philadelphia has to show something after barely defeating my Browns last week. The other for CBS is Tennessee at San Diego (Ian Eagle/Dan Fouts). It should be a rather emotional scene as the Chargers pay tribute to the late Junior Seau before the game.

For Fox, I choose New Orleans at Carolina (Ron Pitts/Mike Martz/Kristina Pink) as both teams have to show something after lackluster performances last week. And Dallas at Seattle (Kenny Albert/Daryl Johnston/Tony Siragusa) as we need to know if both teams were really what we saw in Week 1. Was Dallas really as good as it showed in the NFL Kickoff Game against the New York Giants? And what about Seattle? Questions abound after its loss to Arizona.

Anything else? – Sunday Night Football with a decent game as the Detroit Lions take on the San Francisco 49ers (Al Michaels/Cris Collinsworth/Michele Tafoya). I wonder what “Get Off My Lawn” commentary Bob Costas will make on Sunday.

That concludes the Viewing Guide for Week 2 in the League Where They Play for Pay.

NFL Viewing Picks For Week 2, 09/17/2012

All Times Eastern

Week 2 NFL Coverage Maps (The506.com)

Pregame & Studio Shows
First on the Field — NFL Network, 7 a.m.
NFL Matchup — ESPN, 7:30 a.m.
NFL GameDay Morning — NFL Network, 9 a.m.
Fantasy Football Today — CBS Sports Network, 11 a.m.
The NFL Today — CBS, noon
Fantasy Football Now — ESPN2, noon
Fox NFL Sunday — Fox, noon
NFL Red Zone Channel — DirecTV Channel 703, 12:55 p.m.
NFL RedZone – Check Your Local Listings, 1 p.m.
NFL GameDay Scoreboard — NFL Network, 4 p.m.
Football Night in America — NBC, 7 p.m.
NFL GameDay Highlights — NFL Network, 7:30 p.m.
NFL GameDay Final — NFL Network, midnight

1 p.m.

CBS
Baltimore at Philadelphia — Greg Gumbel/Dan Dierdorf
Cleveland at Cincinnati — Bill Macatee/Steve Tasker
Houston at Jacksonville — Marv Albert/Rich Gannon
Kansas City at Buffalo — Spero Dedes/Steve Beuerlein
Oakland at Miami — Kevin Harlan/Solomon Wilcots

FOX
Arizona at New England — Dick Stockton/John Lynch/Jennifer Hale
Minnesota at Indianapolis — Thom Brennaman/Brian Billick/Laura Okmin
New Orleans at Carolina — Ron Pitts/Mike Martz/Kristina Pink
Tampa Bay at New York Giants — Joe Buck/Troy Aikman/Pam Oliver

4:05 p.m.

FOX
Dallas at Seattle — Kenny Albert/Daryl Johnston/Tony Siragusa
Washington at St. Louis — Chris Myers/Tim Ryan/Jaime Maggio!!!

4:25 p.m.

New York Jets at Pittsburgh — Jim Nantz/Phil Simms
Tennessee at San Diego — Ian Eagle/Dan Fouts

8:30 p.m.

NBC
Detroit at San Francisco — Al Michaels/Cris Collinsworth/Michele Tafoya

DirecTV NFL Sunday Ticket Channel Assignments
Sirius XM Satellite Radio Channel Assignments

Some Quick Monday Afternoon Linkage

Was out for a bit today so I’m behind in what I want to get done here. I’ll do some links for you to tie you over.

I’ll start with a couple of stories from Sports Business Daily which looks at some record overnight ratings for Fox and NBC for the first Sunday of the NFL regular season.

John Ourand at SBD notes that ESPN has officially scrapped the musical opens for Monday Night Football for good.

From NFL UK, Nicholas Pike writes that viewers can watch Monday Night Football through BBC’s red button or through its website.

Sam Laird at Mashable says NBC’s Michele Tafoya has been sending video tweets from the sidelines during the NFL Kickoff Game and on Sunday Night Football.

Michael O’Connell at the Hollywood Reporter says NBC is really crowing about its Sunday Night Football overnights.

Tim Baysinger of Broadcasting & Cable reports that NFL Network has hired a former DirecTV executive to join its NFL Total Access show.

Christopher Heine of Adweek says the New York Giants are on the forefront of social media.

Adweek’s Emma Bazilian discovers that CNN Situation Room host Wolf Blitzer loves watching ESPN’s SportsCenter.

Media Life Magazine reports that CBS has almost sold out its Super Bowl ad inventory.

Merrill Knox at TV Spy says Friend of Fang’s Bites Courtney Fallon has taken her talents to South Beach from Providence.

ESPN’s Darren Rovell writes that Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, MA becomes the latest NFL facility to offer free Wi-Fi to its fans.

Ed Sherman of The Sherman Report looks at what’s in store this season on ESPN’s Monday Night Fotoball.

Ed says the NFL can’t be pleased over the length of some of Sunday’s games due to replacement refs.

Rob Tobias from the ESPN Front Row PR blog talks to the man who composed the iconic SportsCenter theme.

Also from the Front Row blog, Allison Stoneberg writes about ESPN’s Monday Night Football production truck.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union notes that NBC Sports Network will air World Team Tennis this weekend.

Pete says the Baseball Hall of Fame has narrowed the field for the Ford C. Frick broadcasters award.

Pete writes that the local CBS affiliate has opted not to show the US Open men’s final today. The same here in Providence. It’s been pushed to its co-owned Fox affiliate’s secondary digital channel. Ouch.

At the Baltimore Sun, David Zurawik talks with new Monday Night Football reporter Lisa Salters who got her start in TV news in the Charm City.

Rich Shopes of the Tampa Bay Times says the local blackout of the Buccaneers home opener is killing local sports bars.

David Barron from the Houston Chronicle says a nice day plus a blowout lowered the Texans’ TV ratings.

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer writes that the Reds’ radio ratings are truly amazing.

Bob Wolfley at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says Fox’s Joe Buck and Troy Aikman took note of the replacement referees during yesterday’s San Francisco-Green Bay game.

Dusty Saunders of the Denver Post talks with NBC’s Al Michaels.

The Arizona Republic’s Paola Boivin doesn’t have good news in the DirecTV-Pac 12 Networks talks.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News has five things he learned over the weekend.

Tom has your sports calendar for the week.

Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail downplays CBC’s acquisition of the 2015 Pan Am Games.

Matt Sarzyniak of Matt’s College Sports has a couple of notes on the ESPN/Fox Big 12 deal.

NFL Viewing Picks For Week 1, 09/09/12

All Times Eastern

Week 1 Coverage Maps Courtesy of the506.com

Pregame & Studio Shows
First on the Field (series premiere) — NFL Network, 7 a.m.
NFL Matchup — ESPN2, 8:30 a.m.
NFL GameDay Morning — NFL Network, 9 a.m.
Fantasy Football Now — ESPN2, 11 a.m.
The NFL Today — CBS, noon
Fox NFL Sunday — Fox, noon
NFL GameDay Scoreboard — NFL Network, 4 pm.
Football Night in America — NBC, 7 p.m.
NFL GameDay Highlights — NFL Network, 7:30 p.m.
NFL GameDay Final — NFL Network,  11:30 p.m.

1 p.m.

CBS
Buffalo at New York Jets — Marv Albert/Rich Gannon
Indianapolis at Chicago — Greg Gumbel/Dan Dierdorf
Jacksonville at Minnesota — Kevin Harlan/Solomon Wilcots
Miami at Houston — Ian Eagle/Dan Fouts
New England at Tennessee — Jim Nantz/Phil Simms

FOX
Atlanta at Kansas City — Thom Brennaman/Brian Billick/Laura Okmin
Philadelphia at Cleveland — Dick Stockton/John Lynch/Jennifer Hale
St. Louis at Detroit — Chris Myers/Tim Ryan/Jaime Maggio!!!
Washington at New Orleans — Kenny Albert/Daryl Johnston/Tony Siragusa

4:25 p.m.

FOX
Carolina at Tampa Bay — Ron Pitts/Mike Martz/Kristina Pink
San Francisco at Green Bay — Joe Buck/Troy Aikman/Pam Oliver
Seattle at Arizona — Sam Rosen/Heath Evans/Heidi Androl

8:30 p.m.

NBC
Pittsburgh at Denver — Al Michaels/Cris Collinsworth/Michele Tafoya

NFL Sunday Ticket DirecTV Channel Assignments
SiriusXM Channel Assignments
NFL RedZone

Some Wednesday Links

Can you believe it’s Wednesday already? Holiday on Monday makes the work week go faster.

To the linkage which has been too scarce on the site.

Michael Hiestand of USA Today looks at some of the changes on the NFL’s TV partners this season.

John Ourand of Sports Business Journal talks about the fierce bidding between Fox and Turner for the MLB TV contract.

Mike Ozanian of Forbes has a video interview with MLB Advanced Media’s Bob Bowman about the company’s video technology which is being used all over the internet.

Tim Baysinger of Broadcasting & Cable says CBS Sports is adding an on-air medical consultant to its NFL coverage this season.

Mike Reynolds at Multichannel News says CBS/CBS Sports Network’s coverage of the US Open this past Labor Day Weekend was on the mark.

Anthony Crupi of Adweek tells us that General Motors is all over the NFL season opening game.

Natalie Zmuda from Advertising Age discusses what Pepsi is doing to maximize its branding in a new 10 year contract with the National Football League.

Michael Bradley at the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center says when it comes to the NFL on TV, it’s all about the money.

Ed Sherman at the Sherman Report looks at what’s new on NBC’s Sunday Night Football coverage this season.

ESPN’s Darren Rovell looks at the best of Aramark’s NFL stadium food for this season.

The great people at Awful Announcing have started an offshoot site called Awful Advertisements.

Speaking about Awful Announcing, Brad Gagnon talks about former New York Giant Shaun O’Hara joining NFL Network.

At the New York Times, Richard Sandomir notes that SNY analyst Keith Hernandez’s famous mustache is now turning grey and could actually be shaved off!

Newsday’s Neil Best looks at the new Monday Night Football booth for this season.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union writes that a former New York Giants offensive lineman will be joining NFL Network as an analyst.

Pete says local listeners to last Saturday’s Northwestern-Syracuse game were suddenly left in limbo late in the 4th quarter.

Ken Schott from the Schenectady Gazette has your Week 2 college football schedule on TV.

Keith Groller at the Allentown (PA) Morning Call says the NFL is back on TV.

Sheil Kapadia of Philadelphia Magazine reports that former Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb is headed to television.

Dave Hughes from DCRTV.com writes in Press Box that legendary Voice of the University of Maryland sports, Johnny Holliday will be honored in November.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner talks with NBC’s Al Michaels who’s in his 25th year of calling the National Football League’s premier primetime game.

Adam H. Beasley at the Miami Herald recaps the season finale of HBO’s Hard Knocks.

Steve Svekis of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel notes that Hard Knocks showed all of the Miami Dolphins’ warts.

Eric Deggans of the Tampa Bay Tribune likes that the NFL on Fox’s Michael Strahan is joining Kelly Ripa on “Live”.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle has CBS’ Jim Nantz and Phil Simms being bullish on the Texans’ chances this season.

Mel Bracht of the Daily Oklahoman notes that last Saturday’s OU-UTEP game was the lowest rated Sooners game in five years.

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer notes that NBC Sports Radio launched around the country last night, but not in the Queen City.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Bob Wolfley looks at Dwayne Wade’s new autobiography.

Paul M. Banks at Chicago Sports Media Watch notes that Notre Dame football radio analyst Allen Pinkett has been suspended for comments he made about recruiting criminals for the program.

Dusty Saunders of the Denver Post profiles a long-time local sports radio host.

Scott D. Pierce of the Salt Lake Tribune tells us what we already know, that the NFL is the king of sports television.

Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail says the NHL’s Canadian TV partners have been notoriously silent about the impending lockout.

Sports Media Watch says ESPN has added a former referee to the Monday Night Football lineup.

Dave Kohl of the Broadcast Booth says Fox Sports almost lost its college football opener when its MLB games went long.

That’s going to do it for now.

NBC’s Sure-Fire Ratings Hit, The NFL Returns on Wednesday

NBC can certainly crow about its ratings over the Olympics, but they happened during the dead month of August when network fare is as original as a Jason Blair article. It took me ten minutes to think of that. Anyway, the top-rated primetime series of 2011-12, Sunday Night Football returns to NBC this week and it all begins on Wednesday with the NFL Kickoff game between the defending Super Bowl Champions the New York Giants and the Dallas Cowboys live from MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

It begins with NFL Kickoff 2012 at 7:30 p.m. ET live from 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York with Michelle Beadle hosting the concert portion of the program. Musical acts include Mariah Carey and No Doubt.

Then on Sunday, it’s the season premiere of Sunday Night Football with the Denver Broncos taking on the Pittsburgh Steelers live from the Mile High City.

Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth and Michele Tafoya will be at both games. Bob Costas will recite inane commentary from high above the field at MetLife Stadium and at the new Mile High.

The Football Night in America crew of Dan Patrick, Tony Dungy and Rodney Harrison will be live at MetLife, then return to its normal digs at 30 Rock on Sunday.

NBC also announces the return of NFL Turning Point and the premiere of Pro Football Talk to be co-hosted by Mr. Know It All, Erik Kuselias and ultimate multi-tasker Mike Florio.

Here’s the NBC press release.

NBC SPORTS GETS “BACK TO FOOTBALL”

New York Giants Host Dallas Cowboys on Wednesday, September 5. Coverage of NFL Kickoff 2012 Begins at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBC
Denver Broncos Host Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, September 9. Coverage Begins at 7:00 p.m. ET on NBC
Michele Tafoya to Provide Live Video Tweets During Each SNF Game
Sunday Night Football Extra to Live Stream NBC NFL Games for Fifth Consecutive Year on NBCSports.com
NFL Turning Point Season Premiere on Wednesday, September 12 at 10 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Network
Pro Football Talk with Mike Florio Airs Weeknights at 5 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Network

NEW YORK – September 4, 2012 – The NFL will open the regular season tomorrow, Wednesday, Sept. 5, with NFL Kickoff 2012 on NBC. The defending Super Bowl champion New York Giants will host their division rival Dallas Cowboys from MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. A pre-game concert will feature performances by Grammy Award-winning artists Mariah Carey and No Doubt, from a specially constructed stage in front of 30 Rockefeller Plaza. Coverage begins on NBC at 7:30 p.m. ET.

Sunday Night Football, the No. 1 primetime show on television, kicks off on Sunday, Sept. 9, with Peyton Manning making his first regular-season appearance as the quarterback for the Denver Broncos as they host the Pittsburgh Steelers from Sports Authority Field at Mile High in Denver, Colo. Coverage begins with Football Night in America at 7 p.m. ET

Calling both games is six-time Emmy Award-winner Al Michaels (play-by-play), in his 27^th season as the voice of the NFL’s premier primetime package; 13-time Emmy Award-winner Cris Collinsworth, who has won the Emmy for outstanding event analyst in each of his three seasons in the Sunday Night Football booth; and sideline reporter Michele Tafoya, who, last year in her first season with SNF, won the inaugural Emmy Award for Outstanding Sports Reporter.

Football Night in America is hosted by 23-time Emmy Award-winner Bob Costas, who will report from MetLife Stadium on Wednesday and Sports Authority Field at Mile High on Sunday. Costas is joined on site by Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth, and two-time Super Bowl winner Hines Ward.

Dan Patrick co-hosts Football Night from MetLife Stadium on Wednesday night, and from NBC’s Studio 8G at 30 Rockefeller Plaza on Sunday night. Patrick is joined by Super Bowl-winning head coach Tony Dungy, two-time Super Bowl winner Rodney Harrison, Peter King of Sports Illustrated, and Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk on NBC Sports Network and NBCSports.com.

Michelle Beadle will host the concert portion of NFL Kickoff 2012 on NBC, featuring performances by Mariah Carey and No Doubt, from a specially constructed stage in front of 30 Rockefeller Plaza.

In addition to the weekly Sunday Night Football and Football Night in America broadcasts, NBC Sports Group’s NFL coverage also includes digital content and social media extensions that are available online, as well as NFL-related shoulder programming available on NBC Sports Network.

PREVIEW VIDEO: Michaels and Collinsworth on Cowboys vs. Giants.
http://www.tinyb.it/503CF0128C287

SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL EXTRA

SNF EXTRA: For the fifth consecutive season, the entire Sunday Night Football schedule will be streamed live on NBCSports.com. The video stream will come directly from NBC’s broadcast of SNF, and will include additional camera angles and interactive features.

Sunday Night Football Extra employs a full HD-quality player, which includes a draggable picture-in-picture feature for any of the online-only cameras, plus full DVR functionality allowing the user to pause, scroll back-and-forth, and review plays in slo-motion.

SNF Extra includes expert analysis, including fantasy tips from Rotoworld fantasy experts as well as in-game chats and analysis from Mike Florio. Additionally SNF Extra employs online-only in-game analysis from the Sunday Night Football and Football Night in America teams.

SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL EXPANDS DIGITAL COVERAGE

SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL ALL-ACCESS. ALL SEASON LONG: For the third straight season, NBCSports.com is providing a destination for fans dedicated to behind-the-scenes content of Sunday Night Football. SNF All-Access includes exclusive photos of the Sunday Night Football production, look-ins on SNF production meetings, Michele Tafoya interviews with key NFL players and a weekly notebook and conversations with SNF talent.

Visit SNF All-Access at: http://snfallaccess.nbcsports.com/

“THE SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL”: This season NBC Sports will introduce “The Sunday Night Football”, a custom made football from Wilson, which will travel with the SNF crew all season long. Fans of SNF on Facebook and Twitter will be able to keep up with “The Sunday Night Football” on the SNF Facebook page, follow its path through each city and recommend where it should visit while in town. At the end of each SNF game, “The Sunday Night Football” will be signed by the player of the game. Photos, video and stories around “The Sunday Night Football” and its travels will live on Facebook, Twitter and SNFAllAccess.com all season long.

SNF ON FACEBOOK: Facebook.com/SNFonNBC – The Sunday Night Football Facebook page provides links, photos and videos exclusive to behind-the-scenes at SNF every week. The page aggregates all SNF-related content found within the NBC Sports digital network, including NBCSports.com, SNF Extra, ProFootballTalk.com, and Rotoworld.com.

SNF ON TWITTER: twitter.com/SNFonNBC – For the first time ever, Michele Tafoya will be doing live video tweets from @SNFonNBC on the sideline exclusively for the SNF social media platforms, providing fans extended real-time content from Michele’s unique sideline perspective. Using tweets, twitpics and twitvids @SNFonNBC provides unique content with SNF talent, production crew and NFL players.

Each week @SNFonNBC will promote a guest player who will live tweet during the Sunday Night Football broadcast. On Wednesday, September 5, Super Bowl winner and retired New York Giant David Tyree will be the guest player. On Sunday, September 9, Super Bowl winner and retired Pittsburgh Steeler Willie Parker will be the guest player. The tweets from the guest player will automatically be pulled into the SNF Extra Player.

SNF ON INSTAGRAM: Going into its second season, Sunday Night Football gives the SNF fan a look at photos through the filters of Instagram. Fans get a look inside the production trucks, the locker rooms, on the field and around the city. Fans also have the opportunity to submit photos through Instagram using #SNF that will automatically be curated into a special Instagram tab on the Sunday Night Football Facebook page..

SNF ON GETGLUE: For the second season in a row, fans can check into each SNF game on GetGlue. Fans watching Sunday Night Football at home have the opportunity to win weekly SNF themed stickers and chances at real-world prizes by checking into SNF on GetGlue every Sunday night.

NFL TURNING POINT SEASON PREMIERE WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 12, 10 p.m. ET on NBC SPORTS NETWORK

The second season of Emmy-nominated NFL Turning Point, NBC Sports Network’s weekly show co-produced by NFL Films, will premiere Wednesday, Sept. 12^th at 10 p.m. ET and will be hosted by Football Night in America’s Dan Patrick. The hour-long program will air throughout the NFL regular season and will focus on the crucial ‘turning point’ moment in several games for football fans each week by utilizing NFL Films’ unmatched cinematography and sideline and on-field audio.

Click here for more details on this week’s show: http://www.nbcuniversal.presscentre.com

PRO FOOTBALL TALK ON NBC SPORTS NETWORK WEEKNIGHTS, 5 p.m. ET

Mike Florio, who created the innovative, NFL-focused web destination ProFootballTalk.com, hosts the new NBC Sports Network television program Pro Football Talk. The one-hour show airs at 5 p.m. ET every Monday through Friday. Pro Football Talk will be co-hosted by Erik Kuselias.

Pro Football Talk features concentrated NFL insight from Florio and other experts from around the league. Florio and Kuselias will regularly welcome a roster of NBC Sports football commentators, including Rodney Harrison, Hines Ward, Doug Flutie, Ross Tucker, Amani Toomer, and Peter King, among others. In addition to deep diving on the most topical NFL stories of the day, Pro Football Talk will also touch on injuries, fantasy football and officiating.

There you go. Good night.

Fang’s Bites Medals For 2012 London Olympics Coverage, Part I — Studio Hosts & Analysts

Time to hand out the medals for NBC’s coverage for the Games of the XXX Summer Olympiad in London. This was a largely successful Olympics for NBC as it outdid its own expectations for ratings, profits and viewership. I’ll do the same as I did back in 2008 for Beijing and 2010 in Vancouver. For those not getting on the medal stand, they will get a horrid Bowl of Haggis. I guess some people in the UK like Haggis, but looking at that recipe, I don’t think I could eat it and I would challenge those who fail to medal here to eat it.

I will do hosts in this segment. I will follow up with play-by-play and analysts in the next installment.

So let’s do the medals for 2012. You may agree, you may not agree. Comment below.

HOSTS

Gold Medal

Bob Costas, NBC Primetime – I know, it’s easy to put him in this category, but even if there’s slippage, which there wasn’t, you can’t put him in any other place. Unlike in Beijing where he had live events to handle, London’s primetime was all taped including Costas’ own transitions in and out of events. His interviews mostly went well except when he tried a 1975 World Series Carlton Fisk home run reference on 19 year old gymnast Aly Raisman who had no idea what he was talking about. This year, Bob was more sarcastic and caustic in his comments. Maybe it was the hour he was taping, but overall, Costas was back in his element as host.

Michelle Beadle, NBC Sports Network Daytime — Michelle was an Olympic rookie, but she did a great job on the anchor desk. Quite often, she opened NBC Sports Network’s coverage and sent us right to live events. In addition, her interviews on the set gave us food for thought, especially when women’s 100 meter medalists Dawn Harper and Kellie Wells made news with Beadle criticizing Lolo Jones. Michelle showed her humor during the Olympics and it came across very nicely on the anchor desk. Here’s hoping we’ll see her in Sochi in 2014.

Dan Patrick, NBC Daytime – After appearing for just four days in Vancouver, Dan stayed for the entire duration of the London Games and did a spectacular job. As I previously wrote, Dan could step in for Bob if Costas ever chose to leave the primetime desk. Dan was very good on interviews, had very good chemistry with Al Michaels on the transitions and was very good as a nuts and bolts host. Patrick has firmly established himself as an upper echelon studio host with the 2012 Olympics.

Liam McHugh, NBC Sports Network Late Afternoon – Here’s a guy who has had a busy four month stretch for NBC Sports and he’s going to be busy again in September as he transitions to college football. Once part of The Daily Line on Versus, one of the few people to continue to NBC Sports Network under the Comcast transition, Liam has become one of the best young studio hosts on sports television. He’s gone from the NHL Postseason to hosting the Stanley Cup Final to the Tour de France and then the Olympics. In each case, he made hosting look easy when having to transition from sport-to-sport is hardly that way. Well done, Liam.

Silver Medal

Mary Carillo, NBC Late Night – The late night show is perfect for Mary. It’s a mix of events, humor and interviews and Mary was up to the task. Unlike the daytime and primetime shows, Late Night was able to stretch its wings. Plus John McEnroe made a few appearances and it made for some funny moments. Mary gets a well deserved silver.

Al Michaels, NBC Daytime – A much better showing from Vancouver. Al was more relaxed on the set this year as compared to Vancouver where he looked uncomfortable. Perhaps it was having his new BFF Dan Patrick around to loosen thing up, but Al was quite good. He mixed anecdotes, Olympic factoids and one liners where he could. Overall, a good job by Al and he’s on the podium in London.

Willie Geist, NBC Sports Network Midday — I wanted to dislike Willie as his shaky performances in Vancouver didn’t give me much hope for hosting duties, but I have to admit, he showed some humor and some strong interviewing skills in London. He and Michelle Beadle had some funny transitions on the set and they showed some decent chemistry. Willie gets a surprising silver.

Bronze Medal

Kelly Tilghman, MSNBC Daytime – After a strong start, Kelly faltered a bit like in the second week where she made up countries. I’d like to see Kelly in Sochi and Rio. She’s on the podium. As she was in New York, she was able to speak with several NBC analysts who didn’t make the trip to London. Interviews went well for the most part.

Rob Simmelkjaer, MSNBC Daytime – He’s on the podium.

BOWL OF HAGGIS

Pat O’Brien, Bravo Tennis – There was a time when having Pat O’Brien at your event meant a heavy hitter who could write, quip and conduct interviews. While Pat has been back in sports on Fox Sports Radio after his long stint covering entertainment news, he was amazingly unprepared to host Olympic tennis on Bravo. He made numerous mistakes, conducted awkward interviews and despite being on every day for the first week, he did not improve. Here’s a guy who brought us Rock ‘n Roll Highlights and irreverence to Olympic Late Night in the 1990′s, but instead, gave us nothing in 2012. Sad to see.

Fred Roggin, CNBC Boxing – Fred was based in New York after being a venue host in 2008 and 2010. Fred has not been a fave since his stint hosting boxing in Beijing and curling in Vancouver. He received an #NBCFAIL in 2010 and a bronze in Beijing. NBC gave Fred a studio complete with analysts BJ Flores and Laila Ali. It appeared both Flores and Ali wanted to hit Fred at various points. The studio transitions between Fred in New York and the boxing crew of Bob Papa and Teddy Atlas were awkward at times. Fred gets a Bowl of Haggis. Down it with some warm British beer while you’re at it.

ANALYSTS

Gold Medal

Bela Karolyi, Gymnastics – Was Bela hard to understand at times? Yes. But is he enthusiastic about his sport and does it come across on TV? Yes and yes. Once again, the Bela and Bob Show was entertaining television. His analysis was very biased, but Bela is not a journalist and we know this from the outset. The night his wife came on set to talk with Bob was quite funny as Bob tried to determine if both were going to be in Rio in 2016. And an interview on late night between Mary Carillo, Bela and Nastia Liukin turned out to be The Bela Show. We need more Bela in Rio.

Doc Rivers, Basketball – The Boston Celtics coach was once an analyst for TNT and ESPN and he stepped into the studio on NBC Sports Network/NBC and was fantastic. Doc explained replays and strategy concisely and he even stepped in during the transition between the women’s soccer semifinal and men’s basketball game last week. Liam McHugh asked him as a coach how he would handle the USA and Canada soccer squads after their emotional game and Doc gave great answers. And as the speculation grew for Doc as 2016 Olympic basketball coach, he answered the questions as best as he could. In addition, it was nice to see an NBA on ABC reunion between Doc and former partner, Al Michaels.

Silver Medal

Laila Ali, Boxing – Laila did an adept job in analyzing women’s boxing with Fred Roggin (see above). Like her dad, Laila is charismatic and if she ever decided to become an analyst, I’d watch.

Bronze Medal

BJ Flores, Boxing – The analyst for NBC Sports Network’s boxing coverage was ok. I couldn’t understand him at times, but maybe that was me.

REPORTERS AND CONTRIBUTORS

Gold Medal

John McEnroe, NBC Primetime and Late Night – John wanted to go outside his traditional tennis role and stretch his wings. I thought John did great. He filled two roles, one with NBC and another with BBC. McEnroe showed a general interest in the sports he attended whether it was track & field or swimming. I noticed that John’s feature on Usain Bolt ran on both networks over the weekend. And on Saturday, a feature on the proper way to behave was right up his alley.

Jimmy Roberts, NBC Daytime – Jimmy is a masterful writer and can find stories where others cannot. I would have liked to have seen him in primetime, bu we got to see Ryan Seacrest instead (more on him later).

BOWL OF HAGGIS

Ryan Seacrest, All-Around Hack – I know why NBC had him at the Olympics, he was there to draw viewers who don’t normally watch the Olympics. He had primetime segments where he talked with Michael and Debbie Phelps or discussed social media trends. On the Today Show, he interviewed athletes. Throughout, Seacrest showed a general lack of knowledge in sports and sometimes in the people he was interviewing. Then again, Seacrest is not a sportscaster nor does he pretend to be. I’m not a fan of Seacrest and I thought his primetime segments brought the proceedings to a halt. However, during the Closing Ceremony, he kept his talking to a minimum, introducing the musical acts and letting the pictures do the talking. For Sochi and Rio, let’s keep his Olympic appearances to the Today Show and off primetime where he can do the least damage.

Coming tonight, the medals for the play-by-play commentators, analysts and venue reporters.

Bringing Out Some Tuesday Links

Let’s do some linkage for you on this Tuesday.

Earlier today, actually very early today, I wrote Some Tuesday Olympic Sports Media Thoughts. I hope it makes sense.

Austin Karp of the Sports Business Daily says NBC saw its second drop in the overnight ratings for the 2012 Olympics.

Michael Hiestand of USA Today says a new poll finds that Americans want to watch their Olympics live. Well, well, NBC.

Reid Cherner of USA Today has video of someone on Fox News complaining that gold medal-winning gymnast Gabby Douglas and other US Olympic athletes aren’t being patriotic because they aren’t wearing red, white and blue. Did someone really think that was a serious complaint?

Etan Vlessing at the Hollywood Reporter says CTV received its biggest Olympic ratings to date with Usain Bolt’s gold medal-winning performance in the 100 meters dash.

Gary Holmes from MediaPost says Olympic viewers want to see the Games one way. On TV.

John Eggerton of Broadcasting & Cable says a poll finds a majority pleased with NBC’s coverage of the Olympics. Really?

Mike Reynolds from Multichannel News looks at NBC’s Olympic primetime ratings for Sunday.

Mike also delves into the online numbers visiting NBC’s Olympics website.

Jeannine Poggi of Advertising Age explains why Turner Broadcasting purchased the Bleacher Report.

Jeannine says people might be complaining about NBC’s tape delays, but the network and advertisers are benefiting the most.

Toni Fitzgerald of Media Life Magazine says NBC’s viewership for the Olympics on Sunday was a triumph for the network.

Ed Sherman at The Sherman Report talks with ESPN’s Jeremy Schaap.

Glenn Davis at SportsGrid has video of Vin Scully carefully translating an argument during last night’s Colorado-Los Angeles Dodgers game.

Timothy Burke has a freeze frame of NBC’s Al Michaels. This is so funny.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times goes over the sale of the Bleacher Report to Turner Sports.

Newsday’s Neil Best writes about some of NBC’s Olympic operations being handled out of New York.

Ken Schott from the Schenectady Gazette says local native Joe Tessitore gets a college football promotion from ESPN.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union talks with local sports anchor Andrew Catalon who called tennis history during the Olympics.

David Zurawik of the Baltimore Sun interviews NBC Olympics director Bucky Gunts.

Adam H. Beasley of the Miami Herald says the premiere of Hard Knocks with Dolphins is set for tonight.

Mel Bracht at The Oklahoman goes over ESPN’s college football announcing teams for 2012.

Bob Wolfley in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel notes that the Olympics continue to do well locally.

The San Diego Union-Tribune says the blackout has been lifted for the Chargers’ preseason opener on Thursday.

Sports Media Watch looks at the UFC on Fox ratings on Saturday.

Guyism notes that Kelly Tilghman created a new country on MSNBC today.

The Toronto Sports Media Blog looks at the media openly rooting during the Olympics.

That will be it for now.

Looking at the Next Generation of Olympic Announcers

As we go into the second week of the 2012 London Olympics or the Games of the XXX Summer Olympiad, I thought I would take the opportunity on this middle Sunday to look ahead for the next set of Games on television.

We know that NBCUniversal will carry the Olympics through 2020, that’s two Winter and two Summer Games in that timespan. While the network has been served well by its current crop of announcers, some of whom date back as far back as 1988, it’s time to replace them with a new generation of hosts, play-by-play callers and analysts who can carry the network through 2020 and possibly beyond.

I’ll focus this post on the Summer Games since that’s what we’ve been watching for the last 8 days. I’ll do a Winter Olympics announcing post at a later date. I’ll start with hosts, then go by the glamor sports.

HOSTS

Bob Costas — Bob is 60 this year and while his youthful look betrays his age, he’ll be 64 in 2016 for Rio and 68 in 2020 at a site yet to be determined. ABC’s Jim McKay hosted his last Olympics in 1988 at age 65. Costas remains the best interviewer on sports television and should be allowed to host the Olympics on NBC for as long as he wants. I don’t think he’s going anywhere.

Dan Patrick — Dan is just four years younger than Bob, but if Costas decides to leave, DP could step into his shoes as Primetime host.

Liam McHugh — For 2016, I would think this is where NBC could tap Liam McHugh and put him in Al Michaels’ place on Daytime. Al would be 71 in Rio and while he would still be very good at calling Sunday Night Football in four years, I would not put him in the host’s chair in Rio. McHugh has proven he can be very versatile hosting the NHL Postseason, the Stanley Cup Final, the Tour de France and the Olympics over a four month span. That is not easy, but Liam has made it look easy and that’s the sign of a very good host.

Bonnie Bernstein — ESPN’s Bonnie Bernstein is the best personality not to have an Olympic gig. This is like saying she’s the Best Golfer Not To Win A Major. She has proven as a substitute host for Dan Patrick and on Twitter that she can discuss multiple sports. And Bonnie’s also a former gymnast. Watching BBC’s coverage of the London Games, the network utilizes both studio and venue hosts. Making Bonnie a venue host at Gymnastics with Nastia Liukin as her analyst would work to one of her strengths. She was a five-time host of the NCAA Gymnastics Championship when she was at CBS. I would love to see her work an Olympic Games.

Ryan Burr — Ryan will be coming to the NBCUniversal family to work at Golf Channel and at NBC Sports Network. We could see him host on either MSNBC or NBCSN.

Michelle Beadle — Michelle’s done a great job thus far in London. She has shown she can talk Olympic sports and bring some humor as well.

Kelly Tilghman — I’ve liked her work on MSNBC. I can see her on future Olympics as well.

ANNOUNCERS

Let’s do this by sport.

BASKETBALL — If the NBA continues sending players to the Olympics, then NBC could continue utilizing Bob Fitzgerald from Comcast SportsNet Bay Area and Chris Carrino. This is where NBC should tap Turner Sports for a Steve Kerr or even Reggie Miller for analysts.

If basketball becomes an Under 23 tournament as speculated, NBC may have to hire college basketball announcers. Borrowing Ian Eagle from CBS and YES to call games would be a good move. Jay Bilas from ESPN would forge a strong team with Ian throughout the Games. And NBC should still utilize Craig Sager as the reporter although he looks muted with a regular wardrobe.

On the women’s side, if NBC could get Doris Burke on loan from ESPN, that would be ideal. She could work men’s games too as she’s proven over the past few years. If NBC can’t get Doris Burke, why not former ESPN’er Stacey Dales or Fox Sports Net’s Debbie Antonelli?

BOXING — Bob Papa and Teddy Atlas are a very good team and should remain, but I’d love for NBC to bring in its old friend Jim Lampley with Larry Merchant and Emmanuel Steward from HBO to call one or two bouts a day. What could be better than that? And bring in Harold Lederman for judging analysis while we’re at it.

Host Fred Roggin should be replaced with boxing fan Brian Kenny of MLB Network.

CYCLING — If it’s not Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwen, NBC should go announcer-less.

DIVING — Can you believe Cynthia Potter has worked every Summer Olympics on network television since 1984? She’s been solid, but it’s time to bring in some new blood. 2000 gold medalist Laura Wilkinson who worked the Diving Trials for NBC Sports Network in June is a potential candidate.

GYMNASTICS — Utilizing a favorite word of Tim Daggett’s, the announcing on this sport over the last two Olympiads has been catastrophic. Normally, I like Al Trautwig, but his calls of gymnastics in 2008 in Beijing and this year in London is reaching John Tesh disastrous proportions in 1996. Al makes everything seems at life or death levels. In addition, his penchant to focus on crying gymnasts borders on creepy.

Tim Daggett’s constant talking and use of the word “catastrophic” is annoying. Elfi Schlegel has been reduced to short sentences. NBC needs to replace this team for 2016.

This is where NBC can utilize a venue host (see Bonnie Bernstein above) with an analyst. Nastia Liukin could fill that role very nicely. Bela Karolyi has proven to be Must See TV and should be one of the studio analysts. And if his wife, Marta retires, imagine the fireworks on the set between those two.

NBC is using Terry Gannon this year to call rowing. Why not have Terry call Olympic Gymnastics in 2016? He has called the sport for ABC and did it well. And having watched the World Feed this year through NBC’s Olympics Live Extra app, I’m very impressed with Shannon Miller from 1996′s Magnificent Seven Team. She’s been the sole analyst for Olympic Broadcasting Services and has done very well in explaining certain moves, the scoring system and their implications without sounding overdramatic. Terry Gannon and Shannon Miller would make an excellent team.

GOLF — Remember, golf makes its return to the Olympics in Rio in 2016, having made its last appearance in 1904. NBC/Golf Channel has an established team with Dan Hicks, Johnny Miller, Nick Faldo, Roger Maltbie, Brandell Chamblee, Frank Nobilo, Rich Lerner, the aforementioned Kelly Tilghman, David Feherty, the incoming Ryan Burr and so many others who could work this event.

Some people have asked me on Twitter if Dan would stop calling swimming to do golf. I think Dan could do both especially if the IOC (with the help of NBC) decides to schedule golf in the second week of the Olympics, so that it doesn’t interfere with swimming, tennis, gymnastics and other sports in the first week. This is where a venue host would come in handy, perhaps Kelly or Ryan with one or two of the many Golf Channel analysts. And we could expect Golf Channel to have a role in picking up the first two rounds of Olympic Golf with NBC coming in for the last two rounds.

SOCCER — NBC used its MLS crew, Arlo White and Kyle Martino on the men’s games along with JP Dellacamera, Glenn Davis, Steve Cangialosi and Allen Hopkins. I’d love to see English Premier League announcers Martin Tyler and Ian Darke on US TV calling some Olympic action.

Brandi Chastain despite Hope Solo’s complaints last week is doing well on women’s games and I would keep her in the booth.

SWIMMING — Dan Hicks has made this one of his signature sports along with golf throughout his career at NBC. I can’t see him leaving the sport unless golf is scheduled in the first week, but I don’t think that would happen. Rowdy Gaines has been a good salesman for swimming and he’s doing yeoman’s work to raise money for the sport to establish a training center. However, I’ve grown tired of his screaming and his voice raising over 50 octaves. This is where NBC could bring in a plethora of gold medalists to replace Gaines. This is also a sport that could utilize a venue host and it’s where Liam McHugh could go if NBC decides to keep Al Michaels in Daytime.

While Phelps has said he’s retiring, NBC would like to see him in Rio either as a swimmer or perhaps an analyst. If the network uses him on TV, I’d prefer to see him in the studio. At first thought, I felt putting Phelps on camera would be a bad move, but this was based on his interviews in Beijing where he looked uncomfortable. During his NBC interviews in London, Michael has looked more at ease, but that does not necessarily make for a good analyst. If he wants to go the TV route, putting him in the studio for short spurts might be best for 2016.

As for the races, I’d go with Amy Van Dyken to replace Rowdy. For the past year, Amy has been co-hosting Fox Sports Tonight with Rob Dibble on Fox Sports Radio and she’s been in London analyzing the Olympic swimming for FoxSports.com. Amy is not only funny, but she speaks her mind. She knows the mind of an Olympic athlete and I think she’d be perfect with Dan in calling the races.

TENNIS — This sport finally received some glamor treatment from NBC this year. However, it was treated badly with Pat O’Brien as the venue host. Not only did Pat demonstrate a huge lack of knowledge, he conducted awkward interviews as well. Brett Haber and Andrew Catalon did very well on the play-by-play and I liked Rennae Stubbs to want her to return in Rio. Justin Gimelstob was a weak link in the crew. I’d replace him with ESPN’s Darren Cahill or have John McEnroe call more matches.

TRACK & FIELD — There’s not much I would replace here. Tom Hammond is about as classy an announcer as you will find. Ato Boldon has become a very strong analyst. And NBC has brought back Craig Masback, long a staple of track coverage in the 1980′s and 1990′s. But for 2016, I think Lolo Jones would make for a good studio analyst. And Michael Johnson who has been on the last few Olympics for the BBC would work well too. Having Bob host Primetime from the Athletics venue would be a nice change of pace from being in the studio. And he could mix it up with Lolo and Michael.

Those are my suggestions. If you have some of your own, put them in the comments below.

Your US Olympics Viewing Guide

With the Games of the XXX Summer Olympiad in London starting this week, it’s time to provide you with a breakdown of coverage that you’ll see on the networks of NBCUniversal. While the Opening Ceremony will officially start the Games on Friday, soccer action will begin on Wednesday. MSNBC starts the coverage Wednesday morning with women’s soccer.

Let’s breakdown how many hours each network will carry and what they’ll show.

BRAVO

Bravo is back in the Olympics picture. It last carried the Olympics for NBCUniversal in 2004 in Athens. The channel will be the home of Olympic Tennis at the fabled grounds of Wimbledon and NBC gets to return to the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club after being kicked out last year. Altogether, Bravo will carry 56 hours of tennis live mostly from early morning to mid-afternoon from July 28 through August 3.

Pat O’Brien will be the venue host. Tennis Channel’s Brett Haber and Andrew Catalon will call the bulk of the play-by-play. They’ll be joined by analysts Justin Gimbelstob and Rennae Stubs both of Tennis Channel. Sports Illustrated’s Jon Wertheim will be the on-site reporter.

CNBC

As it was for 2008 Olympics in Communist China, CNBC will be the home of Olympic boxing. With the debut of women’s boxing in London, CNBC will be quite busy carrying 73 hours of boxing from July 28 through August 12. A bulk of the coverage will be delayed and shown from 5 p.m. – 8 p.m. ET on weekdays. Six hours of live boxing will be aired on weekends.

Fred Roggin will host from NBC’s 30 Rockefeller Center studios in New York. Calling the boxing will be Bob Papa and Teddy Atlas. This will be the third consecutive Olympics for Papa and Atlas at the boxing venue known as the ExCel. Papa has also called Olympic boxing for NBC in Barcelona in 1992 and in Atlanta in 1996 as well as in Athens in 2004 and Communist China four years ago. Russ Thaler will be the reporter.

MSNBC

The network will put aside its daytime programming and air a plethora of Olympic sports, 20 overall including archery, badminton, basketball, beach volleyball, boxing, equestrian, fencing, field hockey, handball, indoor volkeyball, soccer, table tennis, water polo, weightlifting and six other sports.

MSNBC will lean forward with 155½ hours of coverage starting with women’s soccer between the host country, Great Britain and New Zealand on Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. ET.

On weekdays, MSNBC will air Olympic coverage between 9 a.m. until 6 p.m. ET with expanded coverage on weekends. The coverage runs from July 25 through August 12 with no Olympic programming on Friday due to the Opening Ceremony.

Kelly Tilghman of Golf Channel and Rob Simmelkjaer will host MSNBC’s coverage from the NBC Saturday Night Live studios in New York.

NBC SPORTS NETWORK

Now under the NBCUniversal umbrella, the network formerly known as Versus and Outdoor Life Network before that, takes USA Network’s place on the Olympic broadcasting roster. NBC Sports Network will get the bulk of the programming on the cable side, airing a total of 292½ hours.

NBC Sports Network will carry a similar menu of sports as MSNBC, carrying 22 Olympic sports and it will also be the home of USA basketball, women’s soccer and field hockey.

NBCSN’s day will be busy, starting at 4 a.m. ET and running until 8 p.m. making way for NBC’s primetime coverage.

Your hosts will be Michelle Beadle, Liam McHugh and Willie Geist. All three will be based in the International Broadcast Center in London.

NBC Sports Network kicks off its Olympics coverage with the US Women’s National Soccer Team taking on France at 11:30 a.m. ET this Wednesday. It will air the Games continuously until August 12.

TELEMUNDO

NBCUniversal’s Spanish language network will air over 170 hours of the Olympics. Its coverage will most focus on boxing, basketball, soccer and swimming. It will air the Opening Ceremony and will be the only NBCU network that will air a full 20 days of Olympics programming between July 25 through August 12.

NBC

Bolstered by a broadcast network record of 272½ hours, the National Broadcasting Company will focus on the glamor sports of the Olympics, beach volleyball, diving, gymnastics, swimming and track & field.

Due to the five hour difference between the Eastern time zone and London, all of primetime will be delayed. However, action in daytime will be live at least for the Eastern half of the country. Once again, the Mountain and Pacific regions will be forced to wait for three hours to see Olympic action in the morning.

NBC’s coverage will begin with the Opening Ceremony on Friday, July 27, delayed in all time zones, airing at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT. Unlike the sports action, you won’t be able to find the Opening Ceremony online as NBC is going back to its old tape delay shenanigans for that part of the Olympics even though CTV in Canada will be airing it live at 4 p.m. ET. But I digress.

NBC’s coverage will begin at 10 a.m. ET/PT weekdays and as early as 5 a.m. ET/PT on weekends lasting until 5 p.m. on weekdays and 6 p.m. on weekends. Primetime begins at 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 7 p.m. on Sundays. Late night coverage will last from 12:35 a.m. until 1:35 a.m.

Your hosts on NBC will be Al Michaels and Dan Patrick on daytime, Bob Costas, of course, in primetime, and in late night, it will be Mary Carillo.

ONLINE

This is where Olympic fans finally get their chance to see everything. NBC says 3,500 hours of Olympic programming will be made available either on NBCOlympics.com or through the NBC Olympics Live Extra app for mobiles and tablets. Not only will the TV coverage of CNBC, Bravo, MSNBC and NBC Sports Network will be streamed, but also every event including the glamor sports that NBC used to hold for primetime.

The individual sports that will be streamed will not have the NBC announcers and the NBC production. In all cases, the world feed will be used and there could be occasions where the event will not have announcers.

The catch here is that you will have to authenticate meaning that you will have to sign in through your cable provider, but unlike the process for March Madness, it’s rather easy.

NBC hopes that providing everything online, it will not cannibalize its TV product and actually encourage people to watch later in primetime. We shall see how this Brave New World in Olympics broadcasting takes shape.

NBC is also providing separate channels for basketball and soccer. Check with local cable provider for channel number assignments. And for the 63 people across the country who care, NBC is also providing 3-D coverage.

So this is how the Olympics will be handled this year. Let the Games Begin.

2012 NBC Olympics Hosts and Commentators

Ok, NBC’s press release on its 2012 Olympics hosts and announcers has yet to arrive. Thanks to an alert reader, I was tipped off to NBC Sports Group’s press release website which has the talent bios of its announcers for London. I’m not sure if NBC wants to make that site public, so I won’t link to it for now. But through this website, I’ll be able to piece together the announcing teams for you.

We already know the hosts for NBC and the hosts for Bravo (tennis), CNBC (boxing) and MSNBC. And this week, we learned the hosts for NBC Sports Network.

Ok, let’s list everything I’m able to compile. This is not complete as some sports are missing analysts and one is missing a play-by-play person, but it’s based on what I’ve been able to piece together from NBC’s PR site. I’ll provide reactions to the announcers later.

Randy Moss and Steve Schlanger will call multiple events during the Olympics. There are a couple of analysts who will provide color on multiple sports.

And when NBC finally sends its official press release with the complete announcing teams, I’ll publish that in a separate post.

Here we go.

STUDIO HOSTS

NBC
Today at the Olympics: Matt Lauer, Meredith Viera, Ann Curry, Al Roker
Weekdays/Weekend: Al Michaels, Dan Patrick
Primetime: Bob Costas
Late Night: Mary Carillo

Correspondents: Mary Carillo (primetime), Jimmy Fallon (primetime), Bela Karolyi (primetime) John McEnroe (primetime), Jimmy Roberts (daytime), Ryan Seacrest (primetime),  Shaun White (primetime)

MSNBC
Kelly Tilghman

NBC Sports Network
Morning: Michelle Beadle
Midday: Willie Geist
Afternoon: Liam McHugh

Olympic Sports Desk Reporters
Tamron Hall
Marshall Harris
Lester Holt
Carolyn Manno
Pierre McGuire
Carolyn Peck
Dr. Nancy Snyderman
Michele Tafoya

VENUE COMMENTATORS

Badminton
Jim Kozimor (play-by-play)
Steve Kearney (analyst)

Basketball (men’s & women’s)
Chris Carrino (play-by-play)
Bob Fitzgerald (play-by-play)
Dave Strader (play-by-play)
Doug Collins (analyst)
Lisa Leslie (analyst)
Ann Meyers (analyst)
Craig Sager (reporter)

Beach Volleyball
Chris Marlowe (play-by-play)
Kevin Wong (analyst)
Heather Cox (reporter)

Boxing (CNBC)
Fred Roggin (venue host)
Bob Papa (blow-by-blow)
Teddy Atlas (analyst)
Russ Thaler (reporter)

Canoe
Randy Moss (play-by-play)

Cycling
Todd Harris (play-by-play)
Steve Schlanger (play-by-play)

Diving
Ted Robinson (play-by-play)
Cynthia Potter (analyst)
Alex Flanagan (reporter)

Equestrian
Tim Ryan (play-by-play)
Melanie Smith Taylor (analyst)

Field Hockey
Mike Corey (play-by-play)
Missy Meharg (analyst)

Gymnastics
Al Trautwig (play-by-play)
Tim Dagget (analyst)
Elfi Schlegel (analyst)
Andrea Joyce (reporter)

Handball
Mike Gorman (play-by-play)
Dawn Allinger Lewis (analyst)

Judo
Leo White, Jr. (analyst)

Open Water
Steve Schlanger (play-by-play)
Rowdy Gaines (analyst)

Race Walk
Randy Moss (play-by-play)
Chris Maddocks (analyst)

Rowing
Terry Gannon (play-by-play)
Yasmin Farooq (analyst)

Shooting
Shari Legate (analyst)

Soccer
Steve Cangialosi (play-by-play)
Glenn Davis (play-by-play)
JP Dellacamera (play-by-play)
Arlo White (play-by-play)
Marcelo Balboa (analyst)
Brandi Chastain (analyst)
Allen Hopkins (analyst)
Cobi Jones (analyst)
Kyle Martino (analyst)
Shep Messing (analyst)

Swimming
Dan Hicks (play-by-play)
Rowdy Gaines (analyst)
Andrea Kremer (reporter)

Synchronized Swimming
Randy Moss (play-by-play)
Heather Olson (analyst)

Table Tennis
Ari Wolfe (play-by-play)
Sean O’Neill (analyst)

Tennis (Bravo)
Pat O’Brien (venue host)
Andrew Catalon (play-by-play)
Brett Haber (play-by-play)
Ted Robinson (play-by-play)
Justin Gimelstob (analyst)
Rennae Stubbs (analyst)
Jon Wertheim (reporter)

Track & Field
Tom Hammond (play-by-play)
Ato Boldon (analyst)
Craig Masback (analyst)
Dwight Stones (analyst)
Tim Hutchings (analyst -Marathon)
Lewis Johnson (reporter)

Trampoline
Al Trautwig (play-by-play)
Tim Dagget (analyst)

Triathlon
Steve Schlanger (play-by-play)
Julie Swail (analyst)

Volleyball
Paul Sunderland (play-by-play)
Kevin Barnett (analyst)

Water Polo
Mike Emrick (play-by-play)
Julie Swail (analyst)
Wolf Wigo (analyst)

Weightlifting
Jim Watson (play-by-play)

White Water
Randy Moss (play-by-play)

Wrestling
Jason Knapp (play-by-play)

That is your list for now. As stated above, when NBC provides the press release with the complete teams, I’ll put that on the site.

UPDATE, 1:35 a.m.: Through a check of Twitter and hearing from sources, I’ve added NBC MLS voice Arlo White to soccer, and through Drea Avent’s account and in particular, her tweet to me directly, she’ll be a reporter during the Games, in what capacity, we have not been able to confirm just yet. More to follow when it becomes available.

NBC To Offer 800 Million Hours of Olympic Coverage

Ok, maybe that’s being facetious, but NBCUniversal between its cable, over the air and online platforms will offer over 5,500 hours of coverage of the 2012 London Olympics, or known to the International Olympic Committee as the XXX Olympic Summer Games.

For NBC, it’s the seventh consecutive Summer Olympics dating back to 1988 in Seoul, Republic of Korea and the seventh consecutive Olympiad it will broadcast Winter or Summer since 2000 in Sydney. It seems to be forgotten that CBS aired all three Winter Olympiads in the 1990′s.

The 5,535 combined hours to be offered this year surpass the number from the Communist China Games of 2008 which totaled 3,600. Here’s a breakdown of what the platforms of NBCUniversal will offer.

• NBC will air a record 272½ hours including daytime coverage beginning at 10 a.m. ET on weekdays, as early as 5 a.m. on weekends. Expect to see the glamor events that traditionally do well on NBC like Gymnastics, Swimming & Diving, Track & Field (a.k.a. Athletics) and Beach Volleyball. Hosts will be Bob Costas (primetime), Mary Carillo (late night), Al Michaels (daytime) and Dan Patrick (weekend & daytime).
• Bravo will carry 56 hours of tennis from the hallowed grounds of Wimbledon. Pat “You are so f&*kin’ hot!” O’Brien hosts.
• CNBC will provide 73 hours of men’s and women’s boxing coverage from the preliminary fights to the medal round. Fred Roggin is the host.
• MSNBC will offer 155½ hours of coverage with Golf Channel’s Kelly Tilghman as the host.
• NBC Sports Network will get the bulk of the cable coverage airing a total of 292½ hours focusing on basketball, soccer and other U.S. team sports. Hosts have not been announced, but expect to see NHL on NBC’s Liam McHugh and Bill Patrick to be part of the coverage.
• NBCOlympics.com will stream every event including medal rounds totaling 3,500 hours. Events to be aired on NBC in primetime will be archived after they air on the network.
• Telemundo will provide 173 hours focusing on boxing, swimming and soccer.
• NBC will also provide specialty channels on basketball and soccer to cable and satellite providers. And there will also be coverage in 3-D.

Got that? There will be a test later. Here’s the 2,555-word press release that adds to my 367-word wraparound.

NBCUNIVERSAL TO PROVIDE UNPRECEDENTED COVERAGE OF 2012 LONDON OLYMPICS

Record 5,535 Hours across NBC, NBC Sports Network, MSNBC, CNBC, Bravo, Telemundo, NBCOlympics.com, Two Specialty Channels & 3D
NBC to Broadcast 272.5 Hours, Most-Ever for an Olympic Broadcast Network

NEW YORK – May 23, 2012 – NBCUniversal will provide 5,535 hours of coverage for the 2012 London Olympics across NBC, NBC Sports Network, MSNBC, CNBC, Bravo, Telemundo, NBCOlympics.com, two specialty channels, and the first-ever 3D platform, an unprecedented level that surpasses the coverage of the 2008 Beijing Olympics by nearly 2,000 hours. It was also announced today that NBC will broadcast 272.5 hours of coverage, the most ever for an Olympic broadcast network, largely attributable to an increase in daytime coverage.

“We are only able to provide this level of coverage to U.S. viewers because of the unmatched array of NBCUniversal assets,” said Mark Lazarus, Chairman, NBC Sports Group. “Whether on television or online, on broadcast or cable, in English or in Spanish, NBCUniversal has the London Olympics covered, providing the American viewer with more choices than ever to watch the Games.”

Following are highlights of NBCUniversal’s coverage of the 2012 London Olympics (some of the following information has been previously announced):

· NBCUniversal is presenting its 13^th Olympic Games and seventh consecutive, both the most by any U.S. media company. ABC is second with 10 and four (twice), respectively.

o London will be NBCUniversal’s seventh consecutive Summer Games, having presented each one since Seoul in 1988.

· The 5,535 hours of Olympic coverage are the most ever and surpass Beijing’s coverage (3,600 hours) by nearly 2,000 hours.

o The 5,535 hours more than double the total amount of coverage of every Summer Games combined prior to Beijing (2,562 hours from 1960 Rome on CBS to 2004 Athens on NBC).

o The 5,535 hours are the equivalent of 231 days of coverage.

o NBCUniversal will average 291 hours of coverage per day over London’s 19 days (including two days of soccer competition prior to the Opening Ceremony).

· The networks of NBCU will provide coverage of all 32 sports and all 302 medal competitions.

· NBC will broadcast 272.5 hours of London Olympic coverage over 17 days, the most extensive coverage ever provided by an Olympic broadcast network, and nearly 50 hours more than the 225 hours for Beijing in 2008.

o Daytime coverage has increased significantly for London. Coverage will begin on most weekdays at 10 a.m. ET/PT, immediately following NBC News’ TODAY, which is originating from London.

o On weekends, NBC’s daytime coverage will begin as early as 5 a.m. ET/PT.

· NBC Sports Network will serve as the home to U.S. team sports, with 292.5 hours of total coverage from 2012 London Olympics this summer, including 257.5 hours of original programming – an average of more than 14 hours per day – the most-ever for an Olympic cable network.

· MSNBC will carry 155.5 hours of a wide variety of long-form Olympic programming over 19 days.

· CNBC will serve as the home of Olympic boxing this summer, including the debut of women’s boxing. The channel will televise 73 hours of boxing coverage over 16 days — from elimination bouts to the men’s and women’s finals.

· Bravo will act as the home of Olympic tennis this summer, televising 56 hours of long-form tennis coverage from July 28-August 3.

· NBCOlympics.com will live stream every event and sport for the first time ever. In all, the site will live stream more than 3,500 total programming hours, including the awarding of all 302 medals.

o NBCOlympics.com will live stream NBCU cable channels NBC Sports Network, MSNBC, CNBC and Bravo, which will only be available to authenticated cable, satellite or telco customers.

o Two apps – one focused on live streaming, one on short-form highlights, schedules, results, columns, and more – will be available for mobile and tablet users. The vast majority of content will only be available to authenticated cable, satellite or telco customers.

· NBCUniversal announced the most extensive Spanish-language Olympic coverage in the company’s history, offering more than 173 hours of the upcoming London 2012 Olympics on Telemundo, “The U.S. Home of the Olympic Games in Spanish.”

o The 173 hours of Spanish-language coverage by Telemundo nearly equals the total coverage broadcast by NBC for the 1996 Atlanta Olympics (176.5).

· Specialty channels for basketball and soccer are available to cable, satellite and telco providers, and will total 770 hours of coverage.

· Panasonic Corporation of North America and the NBC Sports Group announced in January that they will partner to make the London 2012 Olympic Games available in 3D to all U.S. distributors who carry Olympic coverage on cable, satellite and telco — nearly 100 percent of the multichannel industry.

o The effort will produce 242 hours of coverage and mark the first time that the Olympic Games will be distributed in the U.S. in 3D.

NBC

NBC will broadcast 272.5 hours of London Olympic coverage over 17 days this summer, the most extensive coverage ever provided by an Olympic broadcast network, and nearly 50 hours more than the 225 hours for Beijing in 2008. Swimming — including Michael Phelps’ quest to become the most decorated Olympian ever — track and field, gymnastics, diving, and beach volleyball, among other sports, will serve as the centerpieces of NBC’s coverage, which begins with the Opening Ceremony at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT on Friday, July 27.

Olympic coverage on NBC will again be divided into three day parts: daytime, primetime and late night. NBC’s primetime program, featuring the traditional, award-winning Olympic storytelling coverage that viewers have come to expect, will air 8-11:30 p.m. or Midnight ET/PT on most nights.

Daytime coverage has increased significantly for London. Coverage will begin on most weekdays at 10 a.m. ET/PT, immediately following TODAY, which is originating from London. On weekends, NBC’s daytime coverage will begin as early as 5 a.m. ET/PT. A one-hour late night show will begin 30 minutes after the conclusion of the primetime program. Primetime will be replayed following the late-night show.

It was announced in April that Bob Costas, a 22-time Emmy Award-winning broadcaster, returns as the primetime host for NBC’s coverage. For Costas, London marks his 10^th Olympic broadcast assignment and his ninth as the primetime host (Barcelona 1992, Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000, Salt Lake City, 2002, Athens 2004, Turin 2006, Communist China 2008, Vancouver 2010).

Al Michaels, who hosted daytime coverage at the Vancouver Olympic Winter Games, and Dan Patrick, making his Olympic hosting debut, will host NBC’s weekday and weekend daytime coverage, and Mary Carillo will once again host the NBC late night show.

Additionally, top TV broadcaster Ryan Seacrest, tennis legend John McEnroe, famed gymnastics coach Bela Karolyi, and Carillo, broadcasting her 11^th Olympic Games, will serve as Olympic correspondents during primetime coverage on NBC.

The majority of the following information about NBC Sports Network, MSNBC, CNBC, Bravo, NBCOlympics.com and Telemundo, has been previously announced:

NBC SPORTS NETWORK

NBC Sports Network will serve as the home to U.S. team sports, with 292.5 hours of total coverage from 2012 London Olympics this summer, including 257.5 hours of original programming – an average of more than 14 hours per day – the most-ever for an Olympic cable network. Coverage will begin on Wednesday, July 25, at 11:30 a.m. ET, two days before the Opening Ceremony, when Team USA takes on France in women’s soccer, live from Hampden Park in Glasgow, Scotland.

NBC Sports Network coverage, originating from Olympic Park in London, will air up to 20 medal rounds and 22 Olympic sports, including Team USA basketball, women’s soccer and field hockey.

NBC Sports Network, distributed in nearly 80 million homes – an increase of three million homes in the last year – will also carry soccer qualifying on Thursday, July 26. There will be no coverage on July 27 as there are no events scheduled on the same day as the Opening Ceremony. Coverage will conclude on NBC Sports Network on Sunday, August 12, the final day of competition. On most days, coverage will air from 4 a.m. – 8 p.m. ET, which covers the live Olympic day in London.

MSNBC

MSNBC, NBCUniversal’s 24/7 cable news channel that is fully distributed in roughly 100 million homes, will carry 155.5 hours of a wide variety of long-form Olympic programming over 19 days. The channel will air up to 18 medal rounds and 20 Olympic sports, from badminton to basketball to soccer to wrestling.

NBCUniversal’s 2012 London Olympic coverage begins on MSNBC on Wednesday, July 25 – two days before the Opening Ceremony — when Great Britain faces New Zealand in women’s soccer, the first official competition of the Games, live from Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales. Coverage begins at 10:30 a.m. ET/7:30 a.m. PT.

The channel will also carry soccer qualifying on Thursday, July 26, but there will be no coverage on July 27 as there are no events scheduled on the same day as the Opening Ceremony. Coverage will conclude on MSNBC on August 12, the final day of competition.

On most weekdays, coverage will air from 9 a.m. – 6 p.m. ET. There will be longer programming windows on Saturdays and Sundays.

Longtime Golf Channel commentator Kelly Tilghman will serve as MSNBC’s Olympic host, with London being her first-ever Olympic assignment. MSNBC has aired Olympic coverage for every Summer Games since the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

CNBC

CNBC — NBCUniversal’s fully distributed cable business channel — will serve as the home of Olympic boxing this summer, including the debut of women’s boxing. The channel will televise 73 hours of boxing coverage over 16 days — every day from July 28-August 12 — from elimination bouts to the men’s and women’s finals. Same-day coverage will air from 5-8 p.m. ET during the week, with six hours of live coverage airing each day on the weekends. This marks the fourth consecutive Summer Games that CNBC has featured Olympic boxing.

Fred Roggin, the longtime lead sports anchor at NBC’s owned-and-operated station in Los Angeles, KNBC, will reprise his Beijing role as Olympic boxing host. This will be his seventh Olympics working for NBC and fourth working on Olympic boxing in some capacity.

BRAVO

Bravo, NBCUniversal’s fully distributed lifestyle cable channel, will act as the home of Olympic tennis this summer. The channel will televise 56 hours of long-form tennis coverage over seven days, from July 28-August 3. Live coverage will air from early morning until mid-afternoon (ET) on most days.

Pat O’Brien, a veteran of five Olympic Games as a commentator, will serve as host. London will be O’Brien’s fourth Olympics for NBC and sixth overall. He last worked for NBCUniversal at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, the same year Bravo last carried Olympic competition.

NBCOLYMPICS.COM

NBCOlympics.com will live stream every event and sport for the first time ever. In all, the site will live stream more than 3,500 total programming hours, including the awarding of all 302 medals. By comparison, NBCOlympics.com live streamed 25 sports and 2,200 hours for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The site will also feature rewinds of all event coverage, a steady stream of athlete profiles, event highlights, a tour of London as the host city, and more.

NBCOlympics.com will live stream the Olympic content that airs on the four NBCU cable channels — NBC Sports Network, MSNBC, CNBC and Bravo. In addition, two apps – one focused on live streaming, one on short-form highlights, schedules, results, columns, and more – will be available for mobile and tablets users. The vast majority of content will only be available to authenticated cable, satellite or telco customers.

In another first, NBCOlympics.com will provide multiple concurrent streams for select sports, such as gymnastics (each apparatus), track and field (each event), and tennis (up to five courts). For example, during a session of track and field, instead of viewing only a single feed that moves from event to event, a user can choose to watch a stream dedicated to a specific event, such as the long jump or javelin.

TELEMUNDO

NBCUniversal announced the most extensive Spanish-language Olympic coverage in the company’s history, offering more than 173 hours of the upcoming London 2012 Olympics on Telemundo, “The U.S. Home of the Olympic Games in Spanish.” Telemundo’s comprehensive coverage will feature marquee disciplines such as boxing, swimming, basketball and soccer, which will be a major broadcast highlight.

Telemundo will deliver a complete 360° Olympic experience across its multiple platforms including its broadcast network, www.NBCOLYMPICS.COM.com/TELEMUNDO and its cable network mun2, which will offer a daily half-hour special featuring behind-the-scenes from the Games. Also, for the first time in the network’s history, Telemundo will offer live streaming of broadcast coverage together with exclusive digital-only content of Olympic events, news, announcements and information via www.NBCOLYMPICS.COM/TELEMUNDO, totaling more than 200 hours of digital content.

Deportes Telemundo’s Olympic team, headed by internationally acclaimed sportscaster Andrés Cantor, will include Jessi Losada, Mónica Noguera, Sammy Sadovnik, Edgar Lopez, René Giraldo, Karim Mendiburu, Kaziro Aoyama, Oscar Guzmán, Leti Coo and Verónica Contreras, as well as several former Olympic champions.

Coverage will be live from both London and the network’s studios, bringing the stories of Hispanics participating in the Olympics and the main events both on the field and around the Games to the homes of millions of U.S. Hispanic viewers. With soccer being one of the biggest passion points for U.S. Hispanics, the Olympics’ soccer tournament will represent a major focus of Telemundo’s broadcast, as already-qualified Mexico, Brazil, Uruguay, Spain and Honduras vie for the gold.

Features and storytelling will be a centerpiece of Telemundo’s Olympic programming, detailing the journey of Hispanic athletes on their quest for Olympic glory. Some of the top Hispanic hopefuls include Mexican diver and 2009 world champion Paola Espinosa, Cuban American multi-medal threat gymnast Daniel Leyva, Mexican American female boxer Marlén Esparza and Argentine NBA basketball player Manu Ginobili.

SPECIALTY CHANNELS

Specialty channels for basketball and soccer are available to cable, satellite and telco providers, and will total 770 hours of coverage. More information about these channels will be released soon.

3D

Panasonic Corporation of North America and the NBC Sports Group announced in January that they will partner to make the London 2012 Olympic Games available in 3D to all U.S. distributors who carry Olympic coverage on cable, satellite and telco — nearly 100 percent of the multichannel industry. The effort will produce 242 hours of coverage and mark the first time that the Olympic Games will be distributed in the U.S. in 3D. Panasonic is NBC’s exclusive Flat-Panel HDTV and Blu-ray Disc Player advertiser for the London Olympic Games.

Last year, Panasonic Corporation, a long time Official Worldwide Olympic Partner in the Audio and Visual Equipment category, announced it would partner with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and Olympic Broadcasting Services (OBS) to make the London 2012 Olympic Games the first ever 3D Olympic Games.

The 3D broadcasts, which will be produced by OBS and shown on next-day delay, will span multiple competitions throughout the London 2012 Olympic Games, including the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, gymnastics, diving and swimming. OBS will produce more than 200 hours of 3D coverage during the London 2012 Olympic Games by utilizing Panasonic’s state-of-art 3D production technologies including the AG-3DP1, a P2HD professional fully-integrated twin-lens Full HD 3D camera recorder. Cable, satellite, and telco providers who receive the Olympics package may distribute the 3D broadcast via the Comcast Media Center.

That is all.

Unveiling Some Thursday Links

Let’s get to some linkage. Four days in a row. Let’s keep up the momentum.

Chris Mortensen of ESPN reports that the NFL is considering suspending the Pro Bowl.

Stuart Kemp of the Hollywood Reporter writes that BBC’s staff to cover the London Olympics will outnumber the British athletic contingent to the Games.

Tim Baysinger at Broadcasting & Cable says NBC Sports Network has renewed NFL Turning Point for three more seasons.

Anthony Crupi of Adweek notes that Tide is now the Official Laundry Detergent of the NFL.

To E.J. Schultz of Advertising Age who writes that UFC sponsor Anheuser-Busch gave a warning over its fighters’ racist and homophobic comments.

Ed Sherman of the Sherman Report talks with ESPN analyst Bill Polian who will spending his first NFL Draft outside of a War Room.

Ed says NBC will be rooting hard for the New York Rangers tonight in its Game 7 against the Ottawa Senators.

Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk says despite an ugly domestic dispute involving his estranged wife this week, Deion Sanders will appear on NFL Network’s Draft coverage.

Dan Daley at Sports Video Group says audio from the Olympics will be all-digital unlike in past years.

Karen Hogan of SVG goes inside ESPN’s NFL Draft coverage.

This pains me, but I’ll post this. Glenn Davis of SportsGrid has the audio of the Washington Capitals series-winning goal by Joel Ward to defeat the Boston Bruins in Game 7 last night.  And there were some idiotic racist tweets following the game. Those Bruins fans do not represent me. Stupid fucks.

Timothy Burke at Deadspin has the YES video of two Texas Rangers fans oblivious to a crying kid while they pose with a ball they caught during last night’s game with the Yankees. Luckily, the kid got another ball, but that couple should know to give the ball to the kid. Man alive.

Ty Duffy at the Big Lead looks at Ohio State University President E. Gordon Gee using the “bad journalism” claim to hide behind the problems that led to the downfall of former football coach Jim Tressel.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell notes that Jeremy Lin’s uniform now outsells Kobe Bryant’s.

Speaking of Darren, he was the guest on the 100th edition of Sports Media Weekly and the podcast is a very good listen if I do say so myself.

Hispanic Business looks at the deal between Oscar de la Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions and Fox Deportes to put more boxing on the network.

Newsday’s Neil Best talks about ESPN Radio NY moving to the FM dial as early as next week.

Justin Terranova of the New York Post says ESPN confirms what the Post reported earlier this week.

Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News says ESPN Radio takes over a legendary FM frequency.

Kieran Darcy of ESPN NY writes about the ESPN Radio move.

Jerry Barmash of Fishbowl NY also has a story on the ESPN Radio-to-FM flip.

Jerry looks at the ratings for the New York Rangers on MSG Network.

Richard Sandomir from the New York Times talks with ESPN NFL Draft analyst Bill Polian.

Richard writes that the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs are a ratings hit thus far.

Broadway World notes that NBC’s Al Michaels was honored by Fordham University with an award named after his idol, Vin Scully.

Pete Dougherty at the Albany Times Union says a local sports anchor is leaving town next month.

Pete has the dates, but not times for the NHL Stanley Cup Western Conference Semifinals.

Ken McMillan from the Middletown (NY) Times Herald-Record says NBC Sports Network will air the IIHF World Hockey Championships next month.

Over to Crossing Broad where it has audio of Phillies radio announcer Larry Anderson yelling at the team to appeal a play.

Dan Steinberg at the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog says the last 24 hours have been great for local sports.

Dan writes that the ratings for Caps-Bruins, Game 7 were high, but not quite a record.

Dan has the newspaper front pages from DC and Boston regarding the Caps-Bruins series.

Dan has video of ESPN’s Neil Everett imitating the Caps radio call of the winning goal against the Bruins.

The Washington Examiner’s Jim Williams says it will be hard to choose either ESPN or NFL Network to watch for NFL Draft coverage.

Steven Campbell in the Tampa Tribune profiles SportsCenter anchor Sara Walsh who grew up in the local area.

Tim Griffin in the San Antonio Express-News says the NBA’s TV ratings couldn’t be any higher despite the lockout that almost wiped out the season.

David Briggs of the Toledo Blade has highlights of a talk that Fox Sports President Ed Goren gave at Bowling Green University.

In Chicagoland Radio and Media, we learn that Comcast SportsNet and WMAQ-TV will merge their sports staffs continuing what has already occurred between CSN Bay Area and KNTV in San Francisco.

At the new Chicago Sports Media Watch, Paul M. Banks talks with Ed Sherman.

The Reno (NV) Gazette Journal says the Perpetually Angry Doug Gottlieb of ESPN will be in town in July for an event.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News says the NHL has announced the dates for the Los Angeles-St. Louis series.

Bruce Dowbiggin at the Toronto Globe and Mail wonders how best to approach the media in a hockey-crazy country.

Sports Media Watch looks at the ramifications if the NFL ends the Pro Bowl.

SMW has some ratings news and notes.

Steve Lepore at Puck The Media notes solid ratings for the Devils-Panthers series.

Matt Yoder at Awful Announcing has video of Hawk Harrelson doing what he does best, being a homer on Comcast SportsNet Chicago.

TVSpy has video of a young Jim Nantz working in Salt Lake in a hot tub with Utah Jazz point guard John Stockton among others. Hello!

And that’s going to do it for supersized set of links.

NBC Announces Olympic Hosts and Correspondents

Ok, we have the hosts and some of the correspondents for NBC’s Olympic coverage. The names listed are not surprises. They’re pretty close to what I predicted earlier this month. Now these are hosts for NBC, not for any of the cable networks. We’ll get that list later. And we’ll get the list of the announcers and analysts plus reporters

Bob Costas hosts primetime, his 9th in primetime dating back to 1992 and his 10th overall Olympiad since 1988.

Al Michaels and Dan Patrick will host daytime coverage from London. They’ll also host weekends.

Mary Carillo hosts late night as she has during the Communist China and Vancouver Olympics.

NBC will utilize American Idol no-talent hack Ryan Seacrest as a contributor in primetime. Also being used as a correspondent will be John McEnroe. Bela Karolyi will be back with Bob Costas to be a studio analyst for gymnastics. The Bela & Bob Show in 2008 was one of the highlights of the Communist China Games.

We have the press release from NBC.

NBC SPORTS GROUP ANNOUNCES HOSTS AND CORRESPONDENTS FOR LONDON OLYMPIC GAMES ON NBC

Bob Costas Returns for 10th Olympics, 9th as Primetime Host
Al Michaels & Dan Patrick to Host Daytime Show
Mary Carillo Again Anchors Late Night Show
Ryan Seacrest, John McEnroe, Bela Karolyi and Carillo to Serve As Olympic Contributors

NEW YORK – April 26, 2012 – Bob Costas, a 22-time Emmy Award-winning broadcaster, returns as the primetime host for NBC’s coverage of the 2012 London Olympic Games, which begin Friday, July 27. For Costas, this marks his 10^th Olympic broadcast assignment and his ninth as the primetime host (Barcelona 1992, Atlanta 1996, Sidney 2000, Salt Lake City, 2002, Athens 2004, Turin 2006, Communist China 2008, Vancouver 2010).

Al Michaels, who hosted daytime coverage at the Vancouver Olympic Winter Games, and Dan Patrick, making his Olympic hosting debut, will host NBC’s live weekday and weekend daytime coverage, and Mary Carillo will once again host the NBC late night show.

Additionally, top TV broadcaster Ryan Seacrest, tennis legend John McEnroe, famed gymnastics coach Bela Karolyi, and Carillo, broadcasting her 11^th Olympic Games, will serve as Olympic correspondents during primetime coverage on NBC.

NBC OLYMPIC HOSTS:

• The 2012 London Games will be Bob Costas’ 10^th for NBC and his ninth as primetime host. After serving as late night host in 1988 from Seoul, South Korea, Costas earned acclaim for his work as primetime host from Barcelona, Atlanta, Sydney, Salt Lake City, Athens, Turin, Beijing and Vancouver. Costas, who has the longest tenure of the network’s sports commentators, joined NBC in 1980.
• Al Michaels, one of the most renowned commentators of all-time and whose legendary “Do you believe in miracles? Yes!” call at the 1980 Lake Placid Winter Olympic Games 32 years ago stands as one of the most famous calls in sports history, will work his second straight Olympics for NBC, serving as host of NBC’s live weekend and weekday daytime coverage from London. Michaels was the daytime host at the Vancouver Winter Olympic Games in 2010, his first Olympic broadcast assignment in 22 years, when he covered hockey and hosted the Closing Ceremony at the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics for ABC.
• Dan Patrick will make his Olympic hosting debut joining Michaels as host of NBC’s live weekday and weekend daytime coverage from London. Patrick, host of Football Night in America and the Dan Patrick Show, served as an Olympic correspondent for NBC in Vancouver.
• Mary Carillo will host NBC’s late-night coverage for the third time, reprising her role from Beijing and Vancouver. Carillo will also serve as an Olympic correspondent and provide a look into life in the United Kingdom through a collection of features done in her own inimitable style, similar to her acclaimed work during the Beijing and Vancouver Games. London is Carillo’s 11^th Olympic Games and eighth for NBC.

OLYMPIC CORRESPONDENTS:

• As previously announced on NBC News’ TODAY, top TV broadcaster Ryan Seacrest will make his Olympic broadcasting debut, serving as a contributor for NBC’s primetime coverage from London.
• Legendary tennis star and broadcaster John McEnroe will make his Olympic broadcasting debut in London. McEnroe, who has served as a tennis analyst for NBC since 1992, and dominated the tennis world in the 1980’s, winning three Wimbledon and four U.S. Open titles, will serve as an Olympic correspondent on NBC’s primetime coverage.
• Bela Karolyi, arguably the most successful coach in gymnastics history, is one of his sports’ most-recognized personalities. He has coached and trained world-renowned gymnasts for the Olympic Games from 1976-2004, and returns to NBC as an Olympic correspondent, the same role he filled during in Communist China.

Back with more soon.

List of Monday Night Football Commentators

This was compiled by the fine people at ESPN. Here’s the list of Monday Night Football announcing teams dating back to when the series began on ABC in 1970. Since ESPN took over production in 1998, there has been a lot of upheaval in the announcing teams and you’ll notice this especially since the series moved to ESPN in 2006.

Monday Night Football Commentators All-Time (1970-present)

Year	Commentators
1970	Keith Jackson, Howard Cosell, Don Meredith
1971	Frank Gifford, Howard Cosell, Don Meredith
1972	Frank Gifford, Howard Cosell, Don Meredith
1973	Frank Gifford, Howard Cosell, Don Meredith
1974	Frank Gifford, Howard Cosell, Don Meredith, Fred Williamson
1975	Frank Gifford, Howard Cosell, Alex Karras
1976	Frank Gifford, Howard Cosell, Alex Karras
1977	Frank Gifford, Howard Cosell, Don Meredith
1978	Frank Gifford, Howard Cosell, Don Meredith
1979	Frank Gifford, Howard Cosell, Don Meredith, Fran Tarkenton
1980	Frank Gifford, Howard Cosell, Don Meredith, Fran Tarkenton
1981	Frank Gifford, Howard Cosell, Don Meredith, Fran Tarkenton
1982	Frank Gifford, Howard Cosell, Don Meredith, Fran Tarkenton
1983	Frank Gifford, Howard Cosell, Don Meredith, O.J. Simpson
1984	Frank Gifford, Don Meredith, O.J. Simpson
1985	Frank Gifford, O.J. Simpson, Joe Namath
1986	Al Michaels, Frank Gifford
1987	Al Michaels, Frank Gifford, Dan Dierdorf
1988	Al Michaels, Frank Gifford, Dan Dierdorf
1989	Al Michaels, Frank Gifford, Dan Dierdorf
1990	Al Michaels, Frank Gifford, Dan Dierdorf
1991	Al Michaels, Frank Gifford, Dan Dierdorf
1992	Al Michaels, Frank Gifford, Dan Dierdorf
1993	Al Michaels, Frank Gifford, Dan Dierdorf
1994	Al Michaels, Frank Gifford, Dan Dierdorf, Lynn Swann
1995	Al Michaels, Frank Gifford, Dan Dierdorf, Lynn Swann
1996	Al Michaels, Frank Gifford, Dan Dierdorf, Lynn Swann
1997	Al Michaels, Frank Gifford, Dan Dierdorf, Lesley Visser
1998	Al Michaels, Dan Dierdorf, Boomer Esiason, Lesley Visser
1999	Al Michaels, Boomer Esiason, Lesley Visser
2000	Al Michaels, Dan Fouts, Dennis Miller, Melissa Stark, Eric Dickerson
2001	Al Michaels, Dan Fouts, Dennis Miller, Melissa Stark, Eric Dickerson
2002	Al Michaels, John Madden, Melissa Stark
2003	Al Michaels, John Madden, Lisa Guerrero
2004	Al Michaels, John Madden, Michele Tafoya
2005	Al Michaels, John Madden, Michele Tafoya, Sam Ryan *
2006	Mike Tirico, Tony Kornheiser, Joe Theismann, Suzy Kolber, Michele Tafoya
2007	Mike Tirico, Tony Kornheiser, Ron Jaworski, Suzy Kolber, Michele Tafoya
2008	Mike Tirico, Tony Kornheiser, Ron Jaworski, Suzy Kolber, Michele Tafoya
2009	Mike Tirico, Jon Gruden, Ron Jaworski, Suzy Kolber, Michele Tafoya
2010	Mike Tirico, Jon Gruden, Ron Jaworski, Suzy Kolber, Michele Tafoya
2011	Mike Tirico, Jon Gruden, Ron Jaworski **
2012	Mike Tirico, Jon Gruden, Lisa Salters

* Ryan filled in duringTafoya’s pregnancy/maternity leave
** Rotation of reporters (Kolber, Nichols, Nix, Paolantonio, Werder)

ABC – 1970-2005; ESPN – 2006-present

That’s it.

NBC’s Olympic Hosts; Confirmed and Speculated

In the next month or so, NBC will formally announce its coverage plans and talent for the London Summer Olympics. We’ve heard drips and drabs. Last year, Dan Patrick announced on his show that he will have a host role on the Olympics along with Bob Costas and Al Michaels.

This week, we learned that Meredith Viera will return to the Today Show for the two weeks in London to host the morning portion along with Matt Lauer. And it was announced that Meredith and Matt will join Bob Costas to host the Opening Ceremony at the new Olympic Stadium on July 27.

In addition, we found out through Brian Stelter of the New York Times that no-talent hack Ryan Seacrest will also be involved in a yet-to-be-defined role, and I hope it’s not in primetime or late night.

So here is what we know thus far. I’ll put together a more detailed speculative list of announcers and hosts when I have the time. And I hope to have someone from NBC Sports on a future podcast to discuss the network’s Olympic plans. I have to stress that this is not official from NBC. What has been confirmed will be in bold and italicized.

OPENING CEREMONY
Bob Costas, Matt Lauer, Meredith Viera

TODAY SHOW AT THE OLYMPICS
Matt Lauer, Meredith Viera, Ann Curry, Al Roker

AFTERNOON
Al Michaels (based on 2010 in Vancouver)

PRIMETIME
Bob Costas
Ryan Seacrest

LATE NIGHT
Mary Carillo (based on 2008 in Beijing)

WEEKEND
Dan Patrick

NBC SPORTS NETWORK
Dan Patrick
Liam McHugh

CLOSING CEREMONY
Bob Costas, Matt Lauer, Meredith Viera

I put Dan and Liam on NBC Sports Network based on a report earlier this week in Multichannel News that NBCSN will air 300 hours of coverage and they will need familiar hosts on the network. Dan who hosted NFL Turning Point for Versus/NBCSN and NHL host McHugh will give NBCSN viewers some familiarity.

Other potential hosts could include Lester Holt (served as MSNBC host in Athens) and Fred Roggin (boxing host in 2008 and curling in 2010).

Hosts we won’t see return from previous Olympiads: Matt Vasgersian (now with MLB Network/Fox) and Lindsay Czarniak (now on ESPN).

As mentioned previously, I’ll throw together a full list of whom I think will host and call the events based on previous Olympics and see how it compares to the official list when it’s released.

UPDATE, 04/03/2012: It’s now reported at the Washington Post that Ryan Seacrest and Bob Costas will co-host primetime. This saddens me to no end.

NBC Sports Group Boasts About 33 Sports Emmy Award Nominations

Overall, the NBC Sports Group has the second highest amount of Sports Emmy Award nominations after ESPN’s 52. Combined with NBC Sports, Golf Channel, Versus (now NBC Sports Network) and NBCSports.com, the Group has a whole slew of nominations.

Some of the more notable nominations include Studio Host (Bob Costas & Dan Patrick), Play-by-Play (Al Michaels & Mike Emrick), Game Analyst (Cris Collinsworth), Game Analyst (Mike Mayock), Sports Reporter (Michele Tafoya & Pierre McGuire), Live Sports Special (NHL Stanley Cup Final on both NBC/Versus), Live Sports Series (Sunday Night Football), Playoff Coverage (NFL Wild Card Saturday) and Weekly Studio Show (Football Night in America).

So as you can see, the Group has been nominated in several major categories. We have the NBC Sports Group press release crowing about its nominations.

NBC SPORTS GROUP GARNERS 33 SPORTS EMMY AWARD NOMINATIONS

Total Nominations for NBC Sports Group Up from Last Year
NBC Leads All Broadcast Networks with 23 Nominations
Sunday Night Football & Football Night in America Nominated for Outstanding Live Sports Series & Outstanding Studio Show – Weekly
NBC/VERSUS* Nominated for Outstanding Live Sports Special for 2011 Stanley Cup Final
On-Air Personalities Costas, Michaels, Emrick, Collinsworth, Mayock, Patrick, Tafoya & McGuire Nominated
Bob Costas’ Halftime Essays Nominated for Dick Schaap Writing Award

NEW YORK – March 20, 2012 – The NBC Sports Group received 33 total Sports Emmy Award nominations for 2011, the first year it produced programming as a single sports media company. The 33 nominations received by NBC Sports Group is the second-highest number of nominations for any sports media company or network. NBC led all broadcast networks with 23 nominations. The announcement was made today by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. The winners will be announced by the Academy on Monday, April 30.

Highlights of NBC Sports Group’s nominations include:

• Once again, Sunday Night Football on NBC was nominated for Outstanding Live Sports Series.
• Football Night in America was nominated for the second consecutive year for Outstanding Studio Show – Weekly.
• NBC’s NFL Wild Card Saturday received its first nomination for Outstanding Playoff Coverage.
• For the first time as a joint production team, NBC/VERSUS* was rewarded with a nomination for Outstanding Live Sports Special for the 2011 Stanley Cup Final.
• Golf Channel was nominated for Outstanding Live Event Turnaround for Inside the PGA Tour.
• The newly created show, NFL Turning Point, which debuted on VERSUS* in the fall of 2010, received the nomination for Outstanding Edited Sports Series/Anthology in its premiere season.
• NBCSports.com was again nominated for Outstanding New Approaches Sports Programming for its live stream platform, Sunday Night Football Extra.
• Along with co-writer Aaron Cohen, Bob Costas, a 22-time Emmy Award winner, who is again nominated for Outstanding Sports Personality, Studio Host, was nominated for the Dick Schaap Writing Award for his halftime essays on Sunday Night Football.
• Nominations in individual talent categories:

o Bob Costas (Studio Host)
o Al Michaels (Play-by-Play)
o Mike Emrick (Play-by-Play)
o Cris Collinsworth (Event Analyst)
o Mike Mayock (Event Analyst)
o Dan Patrick (Studio Host)
o Michele Tafoya (Reporter)
o Pierre McGuire (Reporter)

*VERSUS was rebranded NBC Sports Network on January 2, 2012.

“I am incredibly proud that the NBC Sports Group has earned an impressive 33 nominations for the work done in our first year together as a company,” said Mark Lazarus, Chairman, NBC Sports Group. “Aligning our assets to produce the highest-quality programming across our national broadcast, cable and digital platforms has clearly made a difference.”

All of the national platforms of NBC Sports Group — NBC Sports, VERSUS*, Golf Channel and NBCSports.com — received a nomination. Most notably, NBC, VERSUS* and NBCSports.com received 16 nominations related to NFL coverage, and NBC/VERSUS* received four nominations for its coverage of the NHL. Golf Channel earned two nominations and NBCSports.com was honored with one.

The complete list of NBC Sports Group nominations are as follows:

• Outstanding Live Sports Special: 2011 Stanley Cup Final (NBC/VERSUS*)
• Outstanding Live Sports Series: Sunday Night Football
• Outstanding Live Event Turnaround: 2011 Track & Field World Championships
• Outstanding Live Event Turnaround: 2011 Tour de France (VERSUS*)
• Outstanding Live Event Turnaround: The USA Pro Cycling Challenge (VERSUS*)
• Outstanding Live Event Turnaround: Inside the PGA Tour (Golf Channel)
• Outstanding Playoff Coverage: NFL Wild Card Saturday
• Outstanding Edited Sports Series/Anthology: NFL Turning Point (VERSUS*)
• Outstanding Edited Sports Series/Anthology: World of Adventure Sports
• Outstanding Studio Show – Weekly: Football Night in America
• Outstanding Short Feature: Football Night in America – “The Greatest Gift”
• Outstanding New Approaches Sports Programming: Sunday Night Football Extra (NBCSports.com)
• Outstanding Sports Personality, Studio Host: Bob Costas
• Outstanding Sports Personality, Studio Host: Dan Patrick
• Outstanding Sports Personality, Play-by-Play: Al Michaels
• Outstanding Sports Personality, Play-by-Play: Mike Emrick (NBC/VERSUS*)
• Outstanding Sports Personality, Sports Event Analyst: Cris Collinsworth
• Outstanding Sports Personality, Sports Event Analyst: Mike Mayock
• Outstanding Sports Personality, Sports Reporter: Michele Tafoya
• Outstanding Sports Personality, Sports Reporter: Pierre McGuire (NBC/VERSUS*)
• Outstanding Technical Team Remote: US Open Championship (Golf Channel/NBC)
• Outstanding Camera Work: 2011 Ford Ironman World Championship
• Dick Schaap Writing Award: NBC Sunday Night Football – Bob Costas Essays
• Dick Schaap Writing Award: The Kentucky Derby
• Outstanding Graphic Design: Sunday Night Football
• Outstanding Production Design/Art Direction: Sunday Night Football
• George Wensel Technical Achievement Award: America’s Cup Highlight Show – Live Line (VERSUS*)
• Outstanding Sports Promotional Announcement – Episodic:
  • NFL Kickoff
  • 2011 Stanley Cup Final – No Words

A complete list of nominees is available here.

*VERSUS was rebranded NBC Sports Network on January 2, 2012.

That’s all for this post. One more Sports Emmy-related post tonight.

33rd Annual Sports Emmy Nominations Announced

We have the nominations, all 170 in 33 different categories, for the 33rd Annual Sports Emmy Awards. They just came out today. There are some surprises like massive hockey charlatan Pierre McGuire nominated in the Sports Reporter category and for some really strange reason, Skippy Bayless of ESPN2′s First Take was nominated for Best Studio Analyst. What analysis does he do besides yelling and having massive manlove for Tim Tebow?

There are some of the usual suspects are nominated, Bob Costas for Best Studio Host, Al Michaels in Play-by-Play, Cris Collinsworth for both Studio and Game Analyst.

Some of the nominations I agree with include Mike Mayock for Best Game Analyst, College GameDay and Football Night in America as Best Studio Shows and all of the movies in the Sports Documentary category. Sports documentaries were strong this year and I have trouble picking one although Catching Hell, the ESPN Films effort on Steve Bartman and the Chicago Cubs might be the weakest of the bunch, but the doc was still very good.

Ok, get ready to scroll, the entire list is below. We do need a page break so the list of nominees will after the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences press releases.

THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF TELEVISION ARTS & SCIENCES ANNOUNCES THE NOMINEES FOR THE 33^RD ANNUAL SPORTS EMMY® AWARDS

Winners to be Honored During the April 30^th Ceremony At Frederick P. Rose Hall, Home of Jazz at Lincoln Center
Jack Whitaker to Receive Lifetime Achievement Award

New York, NY – March 20, 2012 – The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) today announced the nominees for the 33^rd Annual Sports Emmy® Awards.

More than 170 nominees were announced in 33 categories including outstanding live sports special, live series, sports documentary, studio show, promotional announcements, play-by-play personality and studio analyst.  The Awards will be given out at the prestigious Frederick P. Rose Hall, Home of Jazz at Lincoln Center located in the Time Warner Center on April 30^th, 2012 in New York City.

This year’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Sports will go to the Sports Commentator and Essayist, Jack Whitaker.

“This is an outstanding year for the sports community and for The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences,” said Malachy Wienges, Chairman, NATAS. “The entries received in this year’s Sports Emmys resulted in a record 175 nominees, illustrating the quality of these entries.  We are also honoring Jack Whitaker with our Lifetime Achievement Award.  I had the pleasure of working with Jack for eighteen years at CBS, and Jack is a sports icon and a class act.”

In addition to Jack Whitaker, many of the today’s leading sports broadcasters, personalities and television professionals will be in attendance as presenters at the event.

The networks of ESPN (ESPN, ESPN 2, ABC, ESPN 3D & espn.com) lead the nomination totals with 55, the NBC Sports Group (NBC, Versus, Golf Channel & nbcsports.com) garnered 32, CBS (CBS, Showtime, CBSSports.com) entries received 26 nominations, while Turner Sports (TNT, TBS, NBA TV, NBA.com & truTV) have 22.

A complete list of all nominees is attached below.

33^rd Annual Sports Emmy Award Nominations by Network Group

ESPN (ESPN, ESPN 2, ABC, ESPN 3D, espn.com) – 55
NBC Sports Group (NBC, Versus, Golf Channel, nbcsports.com) – 32
CBS (CBS, Showtime, CBSSports.com) – 26
Turner Sports (TNT, TBS, NBA TV, NBA.com, truTV) – 22
HBO Sports – 19
FOX Sports Media Group (FOX, SPEED) – 16
NFL Network – 12
MLB Network – 8
DIRECTV – 2
MLB Advanced Media (MLB.com, MLBAM) – 2
NFL.com – 2
NCAA.com – 1
PGA.com – 1

33^rd Annual Sports Emmy Award Nominations by Network

ESPN – 36
NBC – 22
HBO Sports – 19
CBS – 15
FOX – 15
TNT – 15
ESPN2 – 14
NFL NETWORK – 12
SHOWTIME – 10
MLB NETWORK – 8
VERSUS – 7  
TBS – 3
ABC – 2   
DIRECTV – 2
ESPN 3D – 2
GOLF CHANNEL – 2
NBA TV – 2
NFL.COM – 2
CBSSPORTS.COM – 1
ESPN.COM – 1
MLB.COM – 1
MLBAM – 1
NBA.COM – 1
NBCSPORTS.COM – 1
NCAA.COM – 1
PGA.COM – 1
SPEED – 1
truTV – 1

BREAKDOWN OF MULTIPLE PROGRAM/SERIES NOMINATIONS

Program/Nominations/Network

24/7: 8 -  HBO
E: 60: 7 – ESPN2
A Game of Honor: 5 – Showtime/CBSSports.com
MLB on FOX: 5 – FOX
NASCAR on FOX: 5 – FOX
NBA on TNT: 4 – TNT
NBC Sunday Night Football: 4 – NBC
FIFA Women’s World Cup: 3 – ESPN/ESPN2
Outside the Lines: 3 – ESPN
Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel: 3 – HBO
SportsCenter: 3 – ESPN
The Army/Navy Game: 3 – CBS
The Franchise: 3 – Showtime
Winter X Games 15: 3 – ESPN/ESPN3D
2011 Open Championship: 2 – ESPN
2011 Stanley Cup Final: 2 – NBC/Versus
ESPN Monday Night Football: 2 – ESPN
Football Night in America: 2 – NBC
Grand Slam Tennis on ESPN: 2 – ESPN2
Inside the NBA on TNT: 2 – TNT
Joplin: City of Hope: 2 – ESPN2
McEnroe/Borg: Fire & Ice: 2 – HBO
MLB Tonight: 2 – MLB Network
NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament: 2 – CBS/TBS/TNT/truTV
NFL Films Presents: 2 – NFL Network
NFL GameDay Morning: 2 – NFL Network
NFL on FOX: 2 – FOX
Sports Science: 2 – ESPN/ESPN.com
Sunday NFL Countdown: 2 – ESPN
Unguarded: 2 – ESPN

And after the page break, all of the nominees for the 33rd Annual Sports Emmy Awards which will be handed out April 30 in New York City.

(continue reading…)

Tuesday Links with Some Overdue Monday Linkage

I was hoping to do links on Monday featuring reviews of the Super Bowl and the ads, but real life got in the way. Plus, a link from SI.com to my Biff Henderson post temporarily knocked my site down. Much appreciated to Jimmy Traina and Hot Clicks for the link.

The links begin with Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch who doles out his grades for the Super Bowl production.

Michael Hiestand from USA Today says Al Michaels was on top of his game on Sunday.

Bruce Horovitz of USA Today has the results of the paper’s Super Bowl Ad Meter. The results may or may not surprise you.

Anthony Crupi of Adweek notes that Super Bowl XLVI on NBC set a viewership record.

Tim Nudd of Adweek lists the five best Super Bowl commercials according to the publication.

Adweek’s David Griner has the five most debated Super Bowl adverts.

Todd Cunningham at The Wrap says NBC has apologized for the now-infamous middle finger from M.I.A. during the Madonna halftime performance.

Kristi Dosh at ESPN.com has some off-the-field winners for Super Bowl XLVI.

Sports Business Daily notes that dogs were a favorite of the Super Bowl ads.

SBD notes that NBC’s Super Bowl pregame show was mostly praised.

Michael Smith and John Ourand of Sports Business Journal say the ACC is looking for a big payday from ESPN with two new members entering the conference.

Eriq Gardner of the Hollywood Reporter says the FCC likely won’t fine NBC for M.I.A’s middle appendage.

The Hollywood Reporter says Super Bowl XLVI set a Twitter record.

George Winslow of Broadcasting & Cable says the Super Bowl was the biggest event ever on social media.

John Eggerton of B&C writes that the FCC has ruled a Chicago NBC affiliate was within its rights to reject an anti-abortion Super Bowl ad.

Mike Reynolds from Multichannel News writes about the ratings and viewership standards set by Super Bowl XLVI.

Mike writes that MSG Network will air the February 11 Buffalo Sabres-Tampa Bay Lightning game on NBC affiliates in Buffalo and Rochester as an end run around Time Warner Cable.

Simon Dumenco of Advertising Age has the 10 Super Bowl ads that set social media afire.

Ad Age’s Rich Thomaselli notes that Giants Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning is now expected to equal or surpass his brother Peyton as a commercial endorser.

Ad Age’s experts break down the Super Bowl ads.

Dan Fogarty of SportsGrid has video of ESPN’s Rick Reilly making a preposterous statement following Super Bowl XLVI.

Jason Dachman of Sports Video Group says Super Bowl XLVI lived up to the ratings hype.

SVG notes that Super Bowl XLVI garnered its highest audience ever in Canada even beating the CFL Grey Cup.

The With Leather blog has some pictures from the infamous Playboy Super Bowl party where CNBC’s Darren Rovell got into trouble with women.

Stephen Douglas at The Big Lead notes that Extra host and Massachusetts Maria Menounos native paid up on a Super Bowl bet and hosted yesterday’s show in a Giants bikini in the middle of Times Square.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times says NBC’s Cris Collinsworth stepped up in the biggest moment of the Super Bowl.

The Times’ Brian Stelter has NBC calling its online stream of Super Bowl XLVI a success.

Stuart Elliot of the Times says the Super Bowl ads were meh.

Phil Mushnick of the New York Post feels NBC covered up Rob Gronkowski’s ankle injury when the game began. You’re reaching, Phil.

Jerry Barmash of Fishbowl NY says WCBS-TV scored impressive numbers for its post-Super Bowl coverage.

Howard Megdal of the Journal News’ LoHud Mets Blog says the team, invoking memories of the Soviet Union, has revoked his media credential for the 2012 season.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union feels Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth weren’t up to par on Sunday.

Keith Groller of the Allentown (PA) Morning Call notes that the Philadelphia Phillies will be heard on the FM dial starting this season.

Laura Nachman has her Super Bowl XLVI highlights.

David Zurawik of the Baltimore Sun says NBC’s Super Bowl telecast rose above the ads and the halftime show.

Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog says a local sports radio producer is getting out of the business to become a restauranteur.

Barry Jackson from the Miami Herald praises NBC for its coverage of the Big Game.

Tom Jones of the Tampa Bay Times feels NBC got the job done on Super Bowl Sunday.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle says the Super Bowl got another huge rating.

David provides his thoughts on the NBC Super Bowl production.

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer lists his best and worst Super Bowl ads.

Robert King of the Indianapolis Star has the national media heaping praise on the city for hosting the Super Bowl.

King writes that the earliest Indy could host the Super Bowl again would be in 2017.

Lou Harry and Anthony Schoette of the Indianapolis Business Journal review Madonna’s Super Bowl halftime performance.

Anthony and Cory Schouten say Lucas Oil Stadium passed the test of holding its first Super Bowl.

Bob Wolfley in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel feels Aaron Rodgers did well in his guest stint on NBC.

Ed Sherman in Crain’s Chicago Business has his wrap of the Super Bowl.

Dan Caesar from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says the Gateway City lagged behind the national average ratings for the Super Bowl.

Dusty Saunders at the Denver Post writes NBC did yeoman’s work and then some on Super Bowl Sunday.

Scott D. Pierce of the Salt Lake Tribune lists his favorite Super Bowls XLVI ads.

Jay Posner in the San Diego Union-Tribune feels NBC was good, but not Super on Sunday.

John Maffei of the North County Times for the most part enjoyed NBC’s Super Bowl coverage.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News also liked NBC’s broadcast.

Tom has a longer review on his blog.

Bruce Dowbiggin in the Toronto Globe and Mail wonders why the Super Bowl has so many prop bets.

Slate’s Matthew Black was stuck watching the lackluster Canadian Super Bowl ads.

The Canadian Sports Media Blog notes the Super Bowl did really well in Canada.

Leah Goldman at the Business Insider Sports Page keeps an eye out for ESPN’s Erin Andrews and Fox’s Troy Aikman as a potential sports media power couple.

Sports Media Watch has some other Super Bowl ratings news.

Mike Silva of the Sports Media Watchdog has suggestions on how to handle fan taunts unlike Gisele Bündchen.

Steve Lepore at Puck The Media notes that NBC Sports Network will have a hockey doubleheader on Wednesday.

Matt Yoder at Awful Announcing gives his bests and worsts of Super Bowl XLVI.

Matt also looks at the running feud between ESPN Radio’s Ryen Russillo and WEEI’s John Dennis.

Surviving Grady speaks with Friend of Fang’s Bites Jen Royle.

And those are your links. Got them done before noon. I’m happy.

Quick Pre-Super Bowl Links

Let’s do some Super Bowl Sunday links today.

Mike Reynolds from Multichannel News says media analysts are predicting another record viewership for the Super Bowl.

Mike says MSG Network remains off Time Warner Cable systems for the fifth consecutive week with no agreement in sight.

Kate Fagan of espnW has a look at what Super Bowl XLVI sideline reporter Michele Tafoya will deal with on the Lucas Oil Stadium field tonight.

Peter Pachal from Mashable has a look at NBC’s streaming of the Super Bowl.

Sean Newell at Deadspin says CNBC’s Darren Rovell may have lost the female vote forever.

Deadspin’s Timothy Burke tells us about a media feud between WEEI’s John Dennis and ESPN Radio’s Ryan Russillo.

Speaking of Darren Rovell, he wonders if Eli Manning can become a more prolific endorser than Tom Brady.

Chad Finn of the Boston Globe talks about Twitter and some of the New England Patriots who use the social media service.

The New York Times’ Ritchie S. King and Kevin Quealy look at some of the clichés that have enveloped ESPN SportsCenter.

Phil Mushnick of the New York Times is speaking in tongues today.

Ken McMillan from the Middletown (NY) Times Herald-Record has the NBC football crew talking about today’s Super Bowl.

Jim Williams in the Washington Examiner talks with Fox Sports’ John Lynch about the Super Bowl.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle says the Super Bowl could decide the local news race.

Bob Wolfley in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes that the Green Bay Packers’ Charles Woodson is doing well for the NFL Network.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News talks with NBC’s Al Michaels.

The Canadian Sports Media Blog has NBC’s and CTV’s coverage plans for the Super Bowl.

Mike Silva from the Sports Media Watchdog goes over Darren Rovell’s downfall with women this weekend.

Joe Favorito has a few sports business tidbits for us.

And those are the quick links for today. Enjoy the Super Bowl. I’ll have grades on the Super Bowl ads tonight.

The Super Bowl Weekend Megalinks

Let’s do some linkage on this Super Bowl Weekend.

The Weekend Viewing Picks have my sports and entertainment suggestions.

Time for your links. As you can imagine, many of the stories will deal with Sunday’s Super Bowl.

National

Michael Hiestand of USA Today talks with NBC’s Bob Costas about his past experiences in hosing a Super Bowl pregame show.

The Nielsen Wire Blog has a look at the 10 Most Liked Super Bowl ads in the last five years.

Daisy Whitney at MediaPost says a large portion of viewers go online to look up information about a Super Bowl ad.

Wayne Friedman of MediaPost writes that the Super Bowl is reaching almost half of all female viewers.

Peter Pachal of Mashable says NBC will hold a Google+ hangout to after the Super Bowl to discuss the ads.

Marisa Guthrie of the Hollywood Reporter talks with NBC Sports Group Fearless Leader Mark Lazarus about the Super Bowl, winning the Olympics and losing Wimbledon to ESPN.

John Eggerton in Broadcasting & Cable writes that a fan lobbying group hopes the FCC will call for the elimination of the NFL’s antiquated TV blackout rules.

John says a Michigan man has been charged with illegally streaming NFL games online.

Thomas Umstead from Multichannel News says Saturday’s UFC pay per view event will be available in 3-D for the first time.

Todd Spangler of Multichannel looks at Verizon’s streaming of Sunday’s Super Bowl on select mobile devices.

Adweek talks with Sports Illustrated/NBC’s Peter King.

Tim Nudd from Adweek notes the return of the E*Trade baby to the Super Bowl.

The International Olympic Committee has awarded the Japanese rights for the 2014/16 Games at a much lower rate than the US rights paid by NBC.

Robert Livingston at Games Bid says the 2014 Olympics in Sochi will be the first to be produced in 3-D TV.

André Lowe of the Jamaica (yes the country) Gleaner says ESPN has gathered some former NFL players in a cruise ship for the Super Bowl at Sea. I’m not making this up.

Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch

Allison Stoneberg at ESPN’s Front Row discusses how the network’s producers book guests for the studio and radio shows during Super Bowl Week.

Jack Dickey at Deadspin explains how the New York Times really messed up the story of former Yale quarterback Patrick Witt.

Dylan Stableford at Yahoo’s The Cutline explains why the Puppy Bowl has become so popular on Super Bowl Sunday.

Sports Media Watch delves into the expanded NFL Network Thursday Night Football schedule.

SMW has a few ratings news and notes including one on the Winter X Games.

Ken Kerschbaumer of Sports Video Group goes behind the scenes with NBC’s Super Bowl production crew.

Jason Dachman of SVG goes into NBC’s first-ever online streaming of the Super Bowl.

And Dan Daily from SVG writes about this year’s Super Bowl World Feed.

Steve Lepore at Puck The Media says Wednesday night NHL games are doing well for NBC Sports Network.

Northeast & Mid-Atlantic

Chad Finn of the Boston Globe speaks with NBC’s Rodney Harrison on the unspoken revenge factor for the New England Patriots in this year’s Super Bowl.

Bill Doyle of the Worcester Telegram & Gazette has NBC’s Cris Collinsworth talking about the Super Bowl.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times says one of the Mets’ TV partners may help to bail out the team from its financial troubles.

Judy Battista of the Times reports on the expanded Thursday Night Football schedule.

Stuart Elliot of the Times says the Shazam mobile app will play a prominent role during many Super Bowl ads.

A rare appearance by Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News in the links. He has his Top 5 Super Bowl announcing teams of all-time.

Phil Mushnick from the New York Post has some Super Bowl storylines the media has missed.

Ken Schott at the Schenectady Gazette looks at the NFL Network announcement of five more games added to Thursday Night Football.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union has NFL Commish Roger Goodell shooting down rumors of more Monday Night Football doubleheaders.

Pete says Commissioner Goodell is firing a warning shot at Time Warner Cable.

Pete reviews the 11 men who have called a Super Bowl on network television.

The Crossing Broad blog says the Philadelphia Daily News and Inquirer may be on a slow death march to oblivion.

Keith Groller of the Allentown (PA) Morning Call discusses NBC’s coverage of Super Bowl XLVI.

South

David Barron from the Houston Chronicle notes that NBC’s Rodney Harrison may be an ex-New England Patriots, but he says he can remain fair.

David says NFL Network gets a beefed up schedule next season.

Mel Bracht of the Daily Oklahoman says NBC’s Cris Collinsworth gets to call his second Super Bowl on TV.

Mel notes that College GameDay will be covering the Big 12 on Saturday.

Midwest

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer notes that one local radio show will be on radio row in Indianapolis today.

Scott Olson of the Indianapolis Business Journal says ESPN is very happy about choosing Pan Am Plaza as its Super Bowl headquarters this week.

The Indianapolis Star has what journalists are saying about the city as a Super Bowl host.

Bob Wolfley in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says two participants in last year’s Big Game will be on NBC’s Super Bowl pregame show.

Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says Cardinals TV voice Dan McLaughlin will return to call games this season.

Steve Walentik of the Columbia (MO) Tribune calls ESPN’s Jay Bilas, “College Hoops’ Deepest Thinker.” Ok.

West

John Maffei of the North County Times says Al Michaels still loves calling Super Bowls.

Jim Carlisle of the Ventura County Star says Michaels is hoping for overtime.

Jim has NBC’s Rodney Harrison keeping the David Tyree catch from Super Bowl XLVII in proper perspective.

Richard Varrier of the Los Angeles Times looks at the Fed crackdown on websites that were illegally streaming NFL games.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News talks with former Lakers voice Paul Sunderland and lists the 20 best play-by-play men in Southern California.

Tom has more about Paul in his blog and adds a couple of media notes.

Canada

Susan Krashinsky of the Toronto Globe and Mail explains why Canada can’t see the U.S. Super Bowl ads in real time.

The Canadian Sports Media Blog has NBC’s Super Bowl production by the numbers.

And that’s going to do it for the links. Enjoy the Big Game.

Doing Some Friday Megalinks

With a rainy day in Southern New England, it’s time to provide you with some media links. Lots of them on a Friday.

You can check out the Weekend Viewing Picks for the sports and entertainment programming suggestions.

Now to the links.

National

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand talks with NBC’s Al Michaels about calling his 8th Super Bowl and 2nd for NBC.

Mike Ozanian from Forbes says NFL TV rightsholders will be able to reap financial benefits while non-rightsholders end up holding the bag.

Sam Mamudi of Marketwatch.com says you can follow along the USA Today Super Bowl Ad Meter results in real time thanks to a new Facebook app.

Michael O’Connell from the Hollywood Reporter has a sneak peek at some of the Super Bowls ads.

Kelly McBride of the ESPN Poynter Review Project looks at why ESPN made so much of Tim Tebow.

Alex Klein at Romanesko looks into why the Yale Daily News sat on a story for several months and how it took the New York Times to report on former quarterback Patrick Witt’s alleged sexual assault on campus. You may remember that Witt was a candidate to become a Rhodes Scholar but then skipped his interview. Now we know why.

Todd Spangler at Multichannel News says ESPN will let viewers see additional highlights and material from the Winter X Games via the Shazam mobile app.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel writes that NBC Sports Network goes into the NHL All-Star Weekend with increased ratings for the games.

Austin Karp of Sports Business Daily also has a story on the increased NHL ratings for NBC Sports Network.

Gabriel Beltrone from Adweek says Coke will have a Super Bowl microsite where its famous polar bears will react to the game and ads in real time.

David Gianatasio of Adweek writes one local Super Bowl spot will urge you to pee during its commercial.

E.J. Schultz at Advertising Age has Anheuser-Busch’s Super Bowl plans.

Matt Hardigree at Jalopnik says he’s solved the mystery behind the advertiser behind the Ferris Bueller-themed Super Bowl spot.

Adam Jacobi, the college football writer at CBSSports.com, who put the link to Onward State’s erroneous tweet about Joe Paterno’s death last Saturday has been fired. Jacobi says he understands the decision and has apologized to the Paterno family for his mistake.

Brandon Costa of Sports Video Group says NBC will take a lighter approach for Sunday’s NFL Pro Bowl in Hawaii.

Harry A. Jessell at TV NewsCheck notes that while the national TV ratings for the NFL are good, go inside the local numbers and they’re even better.

ESPN PR man Bill Hofheimer gives you an inside look at the network’s Super Bowl studios in Indianapolis.

Sports Media Watch says college basketball ratings are up on both ESPN and ESPN2.

SMW has some news and notes on some various people in the sports media.

Matt Yoder at Awful Announcing goes into some of the on-screen typos on TV this week.

Jeff Pearlman gets vindication from Chris “Mad Dog” Russo.

Steven Crist from the Daily Racing Form feels returning the Breeders Cup to NBC can only help horse racing.

All Access says a Hartford, CT FM station has flipped to all-sports.

East and Mid-Atlantic

Chad Finn of the Boston Globe says NESN has selected the replacement for Heidi Watney on its Red Sox broadcasts.

Chad says of all of the local TV outlets, Comcast SportsNet New England will have the largest contingent covering the Super Bowl in Indianapolis.

Johnny Diaz from the Globe says Boston DirecTV subscribers will see the Super Bowl after all.

Bill Doyle from the Worcester Telegram & Gazette talks with NBC’s Rodney Harrison about Super Bowl XLII and how some present New England Patriots still remaining from the game want revenge.

Stuart Elliot at the New York Times says some Super Bowl advertisers are returning buyers.

Richard Sandomir of the Times has Joe Namath’s reaction to the HBO/NFL Films documentary on his career that premieres tomorrow.

Richard adds that Namath is right now estranged from his former team, the New York Jets.

Phil Mushnick of the New York Post says the Namath documentary for the most part is good.

Justin Terranova of the Post speaks with NBC NHL charlatan Pierre McGuire.

Mike Silva at Sports Media Watchdog wonders why Kim Jones left YES.

Pete Dougherty from the Albany Times Union says a local sports talk show will broadcast live from the Super Bowl next week.

Pete talks with the host of that talk show who also wears other hats in the Albany market.

Ken McMillan from the Middletown (NY) Times Herald-Record says NYC residents will be able to hear the local and national radio calls of the Super Bowl next Sunday.

The Harrisburg (PA) Patriot-News notes the firing of a CBSSports.com writer for falsely reporting Joe Paterno’s death.

DCRTV’s Dave Hughes at Press Row has media notes from the Baltimore-DC area.

South

The Tallahassee (FL) Democrat writes that a local sports talk show host who left his former station this week will be back on the air at another station later this year.

Billy Cox of the Sarasota (FL) Herald Tribune says ESPN’s Dick Vitale will be the subject of a profile produced by ….. ESPN!

Josh Bowe of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram says Fox Sports Southwest will stream Lone Star Conference football games and a highlight show over the internet.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle talks with a retiring local sports anchor who looks back at the 2011 Texans rather fondly.

Mel Bracht of the Daily Oklahoman reviews the HBO/NFL Films documentary on Joe Namath.

Mel says ESPNU will be all over National Signing Day.

Midwest

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer talks with former Bengal Artrell Hawkins who is now co-hosting Fox Sports Radio’s national morning show.

Jeff Moss of the Detroit Sports Rag looks into the new program director and on-air host of a local sports radio station.

Bob Wolfley at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says Wisconsin sports teams did well in the national TV ratings last year.

Dan McGrath of the Chicago News Cooperative notes the 20 year anniversary of sports talk radio in the Windy City.

Paul Christian of the Rochester (MN) Post-Bulletin says new Minnesota Twins radio voice Cory Provus has big shoes to fill.

Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch talks with Bob Costas about returning to host his familiar town hall format next week.

West

Thomas Harding of MLB.com says Root Sports Rocky Mountain’s Alana Rizzo is leaving the network’s Colorado Rockies broadcast team and heading for MLB Network.

John Maffei at the North County Times says HBO’s documentary on Joe Namath is on par with previous efforts.

Jim Carlisle of the Ventura County Star also reviews the documentary.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News talks with Kings radio analyst Daryl Evans and also lists his best/worst LA broadcast analysts.

Tom has more on Evans in his blog.

Canada

Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail says it’s time to play the NHL All-Star Game outdoors.

And that will do it.

NBC’s NFL Crew Weighs In on Super Bowl XLVI

This press release came around midnight and I give credit to NBC for gathering the thoughts of its NFL announcers and analysts on the upcoming Super Bowl matchup between the New England Patriots and the New York Football Giants. Of course, NBC will air the game on February 5 starting in the vicinity of 6:30 p.m. Eastern time.

Here’s the press release.

COSTAS, MICHAELS, COLLINSWORTH, DUNGY & HARRISON WEIGH IN ON GIANTS-PATRIOTS

“Brady meets Manning in Indianapolis, but its Eli, not Peyton.” – Costas
“It’s a great chess match with two elite quarterbacks and two teams with great traditions and great histories.” — Michaels
“I expect greatness from the game.” – Collinsworth
“The pass rushers are going to tell the story.” – Dungy
“They might deny it, but it’s a factor. It matters.” – Harrison on the rematch

NEW YORK – January 22, 2012 – The New York Giants and New England Patriots will meet in Super Bowl XLVI on NBC on Sunday, Feb. 5 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind. NBC Sports’ coverage begins at Noon ET that day with the Super Bowl XLVI Pre-Game Show. The game will mark the 17th Super Bowl broadcast by NBC, equaling CBS for the most Super Bowls broadcast by any network.

The Sunday Night Football production team of Fred Gaudelli (producer) and Drew Esocoff (director) will produce Super Bowl XLVI. Sunday Night Football, this year’s most-watched primetime television program, has won the Emmy for Outstanding Live Sports Series in each of the last three seasons. Gaudelli and Esocoff led NBC’s coverage of Super Bowl XLIII from Tampa, Fla., which was honored with the Emmy Award for Outstanding Live Sports Special.

Following are comments by Sunday Night Football analysts Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth, and Football Night in America commentators Bob Costas, Tony Dungy, and Rodney Harrison about the New York Giants-New England Patriots matchup in Super Bowl XLVI:

COSTAS

ON GIANTS-PATRIOTS: “No matter how they got there, this would be a bold-faced matchup: Patriots-Giants, a rematch of one of the most memorable Super Bowls ever with the key principals still in place – the coaches and the quarterbacks. When you think of how they got here and how good the games were today with the Patriots almost going to overtime and the Giants in fact going to overtime.

“The Giants trip to the Super Bowl closely mirrors what happened last time. The Patriots are not the juggernaut they were then, but the Giants had to go on the road and beat the Packers and beat San Francisco. It certainly feels like what happened four years ago. And there’s an irony that I am sure will be repeated a thousand times between now and two weeks from now that Brady meets Manning in Indianapolis, but its Eli, not Peyton.”

MICHAELS

MICHAELS ON GIANTS: “Much as it was the case four years ago, the Giants were almost given up for dead in early December, and stayed alive with a tremendous comeback on that Sunday night in Dallas, which set them up for this post-season run.”

MICHAELS ON QUARTERBACKS AND COACHES: “Despite that fact that Tom Brady was very critical of himself after today’s game, he is one of the greatest of all time, obviously. And Eli is an elite quarterback as well, there’s no doubt about that. So you have two great quarterbacks and two really outstanding coaches. Bill Belichick is clearly one of the best of all time and I think Tom Coughlin will finally get some of the respect that I felt he has deserved for a long, long time.”

MICHAELS ON THE MATCHUP: “An extremely attractive matchup. The Patriots offense against the Giants defense that is playing a heck of a lot better than it was playing earlier in the season. The Patriots defense of late has played better, too. So it’s a great chess match with two elite quarterbacks and two teams with great traditions and great histories. It should be a terrific matchup.”

COLLINSWORTH

ON GIANTS SEASON: “It reminds me so much of what happed in 2007, the lowest of expectations going into the playoffs, and were they going to even make the playoffs. It’s really a credit to the resiliency of Tom Coughlin and Eli Manning. Somehow this team just finds a way in the most unlikely of circumstances to come together and to play great football. What Eli has done with his come-from-behind wins this year has been remarkable.”

ON GIANTS VS. 49ERS: “The beating that Eli took in the game tonight…San Francisco’s defense was just so good. He just kept getting hit and kept making plays and he’s brought his team to the Super Bowl. It’s only fitting with the way he’s played in the fourth quarter all year.”

ON PATRIOTS DEFENSE: “The story for the Patriots, a defense that did not put up good statistics all season long, came together and played their best football in the playoffs. Based on Brady’s comments at the end of the game, he wasn’t too happy with his game and yet the defense was good enough, with a little help from a missed field goal at the end of the game, to carry them through.”

ON TOM BRADY’S POST-GAME COMMENTS: “It’s not often that Tom Brady needs help from anybody to make his way to the Super Bowl, but you know that he is going to be inspired in a way that he hasn’t been, maybe ever. Hearing his post-game self-critique, you know that he has a little chip on his shoulder going into the Super Bowl.”

ON SUPER BOWL REMATCH:
“This is a rematch of a game that probably bothers the New England Patriots the most. They had the chance to stake their claim to be the greatest team of all time and the Giants beat them in major underdog fashion. The conditions are going to be perfect for both teams in this one, and I expect greatness from the game.”

DUNGY

ON SUPER BOWL XLII REMATCH: “These teams do know each other. There are some of the same players and coaches, but the way both teams play is significantly different. The Patriots don’t have the deep passing game that Randy Moss gave them. Now they utilize the two tight ends. The Giants were a running team, but now it’s Eli.”

ON WHAT TO WATCH FOR: “The pass rushers are going to tell the story. Both quarterbacks and receiving corps are operating at a high level. I expect the secondaries to have a tough time, which is why I think the team that can generate the most quarterback pressure will have an advantage. The Giants have obviously been hot at pressuring the quarterback the latter part of the season, but the Patriots have gotten hot the last two games.”

ON THE MATCHUP: “It’s going to be a great matchup. You have veteran coaches on both sides and many of the key players competed in Super Bowl XLII. The stadium is a wash. It favors the passing game, but it also favors pass rushers. It will make for a better game for the fans.”

HARRISON

ON SUPER BOWL XLII REMATCH: “I definitely think it’s a factor. The Patriots still have Tom Brady, Kevin Faulk, Wes Welker and others players who still have bitter tastes in their mouths. They might deny it, but it’s a factor. It matters.”

ON GIANTS: During the regular season, the Giants were very inconsistent. Right now, they are the most complete team in the playoffs. You really don’t want to face a team that can get after the ball like they can. They are a very scary team for the Patriots to face.

“The Giants are resilient. They believe right now, no matter what the situation. They went to Green Bay and beat the No. 1 offense. They go to San Francisco and beat the No. 1 defense. What can’t they do? They are not afraid and they are a scary team right now.”

ON PATRIOTS: “If you’re the Patriots, you have to be excited about how your defense is playing. They are really showing a mental toughness that wasn’t there in the regular season. They aren’t perfect, but they are playing a lot better. I think what Bill Belichick has done is to tell the unit that the regular season is over and now they have an opportunity to prove themselves based on what they’ve done in the playoffs. They are playing loose and having fun.”

That will do it.

Some Quickie Tuesday Links

I had surgery to remove a sebaceous cyst today so the blogging was minimal today. Trying to catch up now.

Here are some links.

Big buzz today regarding Bob Costas’ interview of Jerry Sandusky on Rock Center with Brian Williams last night.

Let’s get some links on that first.

Bob went on The Dan Patrick Show to discuss what was said, what wasn’t said and what you didn’t see on last night’s Sandusky interview.

Bill Carter of the New York Times has the story on how Costas got Jerry Sandusky on the phone.

Alan Sepinwall of HitFlix says Costas got the job done in his Sandusky interview.

Rebecca Ford of the Hollywood Reporter says Costas is being universally praised for last night’s interview.

At the Atlantic Wire, Dashiell Bennett wants to know why Sandusky agreed to do the interview.

Dan Wetzel of Yahoo! Sports recaps the interview and tells us what it all means.

Mark Perigard of the Boston Herald says the Costas interview was the best one this year to date.

David Zurawik of the Baltimore Sun writes that Costas gave Rock Center its signature moment.

Richard Roeper at the Chicago Sun-Times says Sandusky really didn’t help himself and might have made things worse.

While the interview got a lot of buzz, Ann Oldenberg of USA Today notes that it still lost in the ratings to ABC’s heavily promoted Gabby Giffords interview.

Lynette Rice of Entertainment Weekly says CBS got the last laugh over all of the networks when all was said and done.

Brian Lowry at Fox Sports reviews ESPN’s production of Saturday’s Nebraska-Penn State game.

Philadelphia sports radio talk show host Michael Bradley writes in the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center that the Penn State story proves the need for in-depth reporting.

Now to other stories.

Lucia Moses at Adweek notes that corporate cousins HBO and Sports Illustrated will team up for a new TV series to air in 2013.

Diego Vasquez of Media Life talks with the CEO of a sports and entertainment agency on the impact of the NBA lockout on fans and the league’s TV partners.

Carolyn Braff of Sports Video Group profiles former NBC Sports Emperor Dick Ebersol as he’s about to be inducted into the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame.

The New York Times’ Richard Sandomir says UFC is suing New York to open up the state for mixed martial arts. Currently, UFC and other MMA events are banned in New York.

Newsday’s Neil Best looks at NFL Network’s new announcing team for Thursday Night Football.

Pete Dougherty at the Albany Times Union has the Presidents Cup TV schedule on Golf Channel and NBC.

Ken Schott from the Schenectady Gazette writes that one local radio station has released its high school basketball schedule.

At the Houston Chronicle, David Barron has the overnight ratings for some of the weekend’s sporting  events.

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer says Steelers-Bengals game on Sunday drew big ratings locally.

Bob Wolfley in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinal writes that the Green Bay blowout of the Vikings hurt ESPN’s ratings for Monday Night Football.

In Crain’s Chicago Business, Ed Sherman tells Bulls fans there’s still hope for an NBA season.

Michael Martinez of the Reno Gazette Journal says TV station KTVN resumed newscasts Monday with tributes to the late sportscaster, JK Metzker.

Gazette-Journal columnist Dan Hinxman has some advice for Metzker’s three young sons.

Joe Favorito says “Movember” is gaining momentum.

Bob’s Blitz has the great video of Al Michaels and his son trashing CBS’ Boomer Esiason on the Howard Stern show yesterday.

And I’ll end it there for now.

Back For Monday’s Linkage

After not being able to provide linkage for a few days, let’s get back to it. I probably won’t be able to do the links as I have to undergo a medical procedure. Nothing serious. I should be back on Wednesday.

Let’s do your links.

Sports Business Daily looks over the reviews of ESPN’s handling of Penn State’s first game since the Jerry Sandusky scandal broke.

Tripp Mickle and John Ourand at Sports Business Journal say YouTube is now entering the sports media rights landscape.

Tripp says Versus will air over 30 hours of action sports programming as NBC Sports retakes ownership of the Dew Tour

Jason Belzer and Darren Heitner of Collegiate Sports Advisors write in Sports Business Journal that colleges and universities should not force a social media blackout on their student-athletes.

USA Today’s Mike McCarthy says the NFL pregame show analysts either praised or criticized Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver DeSean Jackson depending on their former positions.

Mike writes Saturday’s Nebraska-Penn State game got higher ratings for ESPN.

Ben Grossman at Broadcasting & Cable says a quick knockout in Fox’s airing of its first UFC bout wasn’t as bad as originally thought.

At Yahoo! Sports, Maggie Hendricks reviews Fox’s first production of a UFC card.

Dave Meltzer of Yahoo says UFC on Fox delivered a ratings punch.

At Yahoo’s Puck Daddy, Greg Wyshynski tells us what the NHL’s hiring of Ross Greenburg, formerly of HBO Sports, will mean for the league.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News writes that Saturday’s Manny Pacquaio-Juan Manuel Marquez might have set up a big payday for the Pacman to fight Floyd Mayweather on pay per view next year.

Mike says NFL Network received the most viewers ever for a Thursday Night Football season opener.

Michael O’Connell of the Hollywood Reporter says Sunday Night Football won the ratings for NBC.

The Reporter notes that several advertisers have pulled their ads from upcoming Penn State football games on ESPN’s networks.

Toni Fitzgerald at Media Life says sports continues to draw viewers on what normally are dead Saturday nights.

Dan Fogarty of SportsGrid says Gus Johnson was being Gus when USC pulled off a fake punt during its game against Washington on Saturday.

Sports Video Group says NBC will air the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials later this year.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell has what former Penn State coach Joe Paterno should have said last week.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times looks at UFC on Fox’s preliminary ratings.

Phil Mushnick at the New York Post feels it’s hard to love college football.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union has the Week 11 NFL TV schedule for the Capital Region.

Pete says Time Warner Cable will carry all local high school football regional playoff games.

Ken McMillan of the Middletown (NY) Times Herald-Record writes that Versus and HDNet will combine for a Thanksgiving holiday college basketball tournament.

Deborah Ann Tripoldi of the Nutley (NJ) Sun writes that Friend of Fang’s Bites Tina Cervasio was inducted into a local Hall of Fame.

Laura Nachman says a Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia reporter is now engaged.

The Harrisburg (PA) Patriot-News has the remarks of ESPN’s Jon Ritchie about accused child molester Jerry Sandusky. Ritchie grew up near Penn State.

David Zurawik of the Baltimore Sun is still not a fan of CBS’ Greg Gumbel and Dan Dierdorf especially when they call Ravens games.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner talks with an official with NCAA.com about the streaming of over 20 championships.

Tom Jones of the St. Petersburg Times says ESPN got the job done for Nebraska-Penn State on Saturday.

David Barron from the Houston Chronicle says Texans fans wanting to watch yesterday’s game against the Bucs in the Rio Grande Valley of the Lone Star State were SOL.

Fang’s Bites welcomes back Jerry Garcia of the San Antonio Express-News as we have not linked to him in a very long time. Jerry reports on a sudden switch on the local CBS affiliate that left Cowboys fans angry.

Mel Bracht of the Daily Oklahoman notes that the ESPN on ABC crew assigned to Texas Tech-Oklahoma State had plenty of time to fill.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes that ESPN’s Monday Night Football open for tonight’s Packers-Vikings game will honor the military.

Ed Sherman from Crain’s Chicago Business writes that the Big Ten Conference has removed Joe Paterno’s name from its championship trophy.

Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch has a lengthy conversation with embattled Cardinals TV voice Dan McLaughlin about his two drunken driving arrests.

Dusty Saunders of the Denver Post talks with a local news anchor who would like to return to his old sports roots.

Sad story out of Reno, NV as KTVN sports anchor JK Metzker died Sunday after being hit by a car. He leaves behind a wife and three sons.

Chris Murray of the Reno Gazette-Journal rememebers Metzker as a friend outside of the newsroom.

Lenita Powers of the Gazette-Journal says Metzker was loved in the local market.

Powers writes that KTVN canceled its newscasts on Sunday to grieve over Metzker’s death.

KTVN meteorologist Mike Alger says Metzker was a true friend.

Tom Hoffarth at the Los Angeles Daily News has the sports calendar for this week.

Bruce Dowbiggin at the Toronto Globe and Mail says UFC isn’t leaving the sports landscape anytime soon.

Steve Lepore at Puck The Media says it’s time for the NHL to have a Red Zone Channel. I agree.

Sports Media Watch says NBA TV will premiere a new roundtable discussion program as the 2011-12 season looks more in doubt.

SMW says ABC’s Saturday Night Football received a record ratings low opposite LSU-Alabama on CBS.

The Big Lead has NBC’s Al Michaels talking the Penn State story with Sirius XM’s Howard Stern.

And we’ll leave it there. Lots of links for you to digest today.

NBC’s Football Night in America Previews Week 8 Interviews

On tonight’s edition of NBC’s Football Night in America, Al Michaels and Rodney Harrison conduct the interviews in advance of the Dallas Cowboys-Philadelphia Eagles game on Sunday Night Football. No Bob Costas. I guess he was in St. Louis watching the World Series.

“FOOTBALL NIGHT IN AMERICA” PREVIEW – WEEK 8

AL MICHAELS INTERVIEWS COWBOYS DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR ROB RYAN; RODNEY HARRISON INTERVIEWS EAGLES CB NNAMDI ASOMUGHA

“They’re the fastest team I’ve ever seen on offense, but I always believe in hitting them in the mouth. We’ll see what happens.” – Ryan to Michaels on tonight’s game
“You can’t convince me that we’re not the team to beat.” – Asomugha to Harrison on making the playoffs despite Eagles 2-4 record

NEW YORK – October 30, 2011 – Al Michaels interviewed Cowboys defensive coordinator Rob Ryan and Rodney Harrison interviewed Eagles cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha for tonight’s Week 8 edition of Football Night in America, which will also include highlights, analysis and reaction to Week 8’s afternoon games.

Football Night airs each Sunday at 7 p.m. ET with Costas hosting the program live from inside the stadium. In addition to his interviews, Costas is joined on site by Sunday Night Football commentators Al Michaels (play-by-play) and Cris Collinsworth (analyst) for reaction to the afternoon games.

Dan Patrick co-hosts Football Night from Studio 8G at NBC’s 30 Rockefeller Plaza studios and is joined by Super Bowl-winning head coach Tony Dungy, two-time Super Bowl winner Rodney Harrison, Peter King of Sports Illustrated and Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk on NBCSports.com. Alex Flanagan will report from Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pa., on the Patriots-Steelers game.

INTERVIEWS: Below are excerpts from Michaels’ interview with Ryan and Harrison’s interview with Asomugha. If used, please note the mandatory credit: “In an exclusive interview airing tonight on Football Night in America.”

ROB RYAN WITH AL MICHAELS

MICHAELS on Ryan’s father, Buddy, having been the head coach in Philadelphia and Arizona, both Cowboys rivals: What was his initial reaction when you got the job in Dallas?
RYAN: Disbelief. He was a little shocked by it. He’s like, ‘You’ve got all these other things going. Why here?’ I’m like, ‘Dad, it’s the best opportunity for me.’ It really has worked out great.

MICHAELS on Dallas’ defense playing better: What’s made the difference this year?
RYAN: Well, me. [joking; laughter]. Honestly, starting over with some Pro Bowl football players. All these guys have been in the Pro Bowl and deservedly so. We got all together and have been working hard ever since. We’re not all the way there yet, but we’re playing good ball and we’re going to keep doing it.

MICHAELS: You’ve been an assistant coach for 25 years, 10 different places, but no head coaching opportunity yet. Does that eat at you?
RYAN: I don’t think it’s going to eat much further. My chance will come. It only took my dad 25 years and, hell, he’s better than me and Rex put together. Those things happen. I’m not sure how it will go, but eventually I’ll get my chance to be a head coach.

RYAN on his war of words with Eagles WR Desean Jackson earlier this year: That was kind of annoying because we signed three great players the day before, so I’m bragging about those guys and all I’m hearing about is all these great players that Philadelphia had signed. It bothered me because I thought it was disrespecting the players that I coach and that I knew would be great for us.

RYAN on Jackson saying, ‘Maybe I can run on the sideline and tackle the coach’ and Ryan responding that he’ll fall on him: [Joking] There’s no question. Is he a good enough athlete to get it done? Absolutely. Am I a bad enough athlete to get tackled by a small guy? Sure, but I am going to fall on him. So I welcome the challenge. If he wants to come hit me, beautiful. A little guy like that not’s going to hit that hard anyway.

It would be fun to beat these guys. There’s no question. They have a ton of talent over there. They’re the fastest team I’ve ever seen on offense, but I always believe in hitting them in the mouth. We’ll see what happens.”

NNAMDI ASOMUGHA WITH RODNEY HARRISON

HARRISON: Three months in, is there anything you regret?
ASOMUGHA: No. Not at all…I don’t regret it because the journey isn’t over yet…Everyone’s hot and cold on us. And it’s all part of the journey. We know that at the end of this thing, we’re going to be better for what we’ve gone through right now. It’s coming together.

HARRISON: Will Philadelphia make the playoffs? Win the division?
ASOMUGHA: You can’t convince me that we’re not the team to beat. It may not look like it because we’ve lost those close games, and they’ve all been close games. We lost in the fourth quarter, really. You still can’t convince us that it’s not going to be our show to win.

That does it. We’ll have the Football Night in America quotage later

NBC’s Sunday Night Football Returns … Well, This Sunday Night!

To make up for the one game lost due to the NFL lockout, NBC will get a make up game and that will be played this Sunday night between the San Diego Chargers and the Dallas Cowboys at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, TX. Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth will be in the booth to call the game. Michele Tafoya makes her Sunday Night Football debut on the sidelines replacing Andrea Kremer. And the Football Night in America crew of Dan Patrick, Rodney Harrison and Tony Dungy along with insiders Peter King of Sports Illustrated and Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk will be on hand from the NBC Sports studios in New York City at halftime.

Let’s see what NBC Sports is saying about the game.

COWBOYS HOST CHARGERS ON “SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL” THIS SUNDAY AT 8 PM ET

Patrick, Dungy, Harrison, King, Florio Appear at Halftime from “Football Night in America” Studio at 30 Rock

NEW YORK – August 17, 2011 – “Sunday Night Football,” last year’s No. 1 primetime program of the fall television season, kicks off its preseason schedule this Sunday as Tony Romo and the Dallas Cowboys host Philip Rivers and the San Diego Chargers. Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth will have the call from Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, with Michele Tafoya making her NBC debut handling the sideline reporting duties. Coverage on NBC begins at 8 p.m. ET.

“FOOTBALL NIGHT IN AMERICA” CREW AT HALFTIME: The critically-acclaimed “Football Night in America” crew of Dan Patrick, Tony Dungy, Rodney Harrison, Sports Illustrated’s Peter King and ProFootballTalk.com’s Mike Florio will be in the 30 Rock studio at halftime to discuss the game and the storylines of the 2011 NFL season.

NBC’s second preseason game features the Oakland Raiders hosting Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, Aug. 28 also at 8 p.m. ET.

That is all.