With “Jim Rome is Burning” leaving the ESPN2 lineup on January 27, the network has announced a revamped lineup with shows sliding over a half-hour to fill the hole left by Rome’s departure for CBS Sports.
Shows like “Numbers Never Lie” hosted by Charissa Thompson and “Dan LeBatard is Extremely Crazy Highly Questionable” move from their original timeslots to 4 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. ET respectively.
The “Best of Mike and Mike” expands from its original half-hour to an hour at 2 p.m. ET and the renamed “Best of First Take” (neé 1st and 10) will air at 3:30 p.m.
You got all that? It’s all listed below in the following press release.
ESPN2’s Best of Mike & Mike Expands to One Hour
Numbers Never Lie & Dan Le Batard Change Times
The Best of Mike & Mike, a daily compilation of highlights from the television simulcast of ESPN Audio’s Mike & Mike in the Morning, will expand to a full hour on ESPN2 beginning Monday, Jan. 30. Previously a 30-minute show, Best of will now air 2-3 p.m. ET and will kick off a newly configured block of weekday afternoon programming.
Existing ESPN2 weekday shows will see their times shift with Best of First Take (rebranded from 1st and 10) airing at 3:30 p.m.; Numbers Never Lie (4 p.m.) and Dan Le Batard is Highly Questionable (4:30 p.m.). SportsNation remains in its 5 p.m. slot. NOTE: For the week of January 30, due to SportsCenter’s Super Bowl coverage on ESPN, Outside the Lines will air at 3 p.m. on ESPN2. The week of February 6 will see Best of First Take in the 3-4 p.m. block before the February 13 return of the half-hour NASCAR Now at 3 p.m.
ESPN Audio’s Mike & Mike in the Morning (6-10 a.m. M-F) is seen or heard by more than 13 million people each week. Mike & Mike airs on 350 stations nationwide, and is aired on both Sirius/XM Satellite Radio. All four hours of the show are simulcast on ESPN2, reaching more than 99 million homes (the TV show saw a 17% rating increase in 2011). Mike & Mike can be heard live on ESPNRadio.com and The Best of Mike & Mike podcast, which averages 1.8 million downloads per month, is available on iTunes.
Numbers Never Lie is a roundtable discussion offering lively debate with an emphasis on sports analytics co-hosted by Michael Smith and Charissa Thompson. Dan Le Batard is Highly Questionable is formatted to showcase Le Batard’s “questionable” approach to sports commentary, highlighting his thoughtful, humorous, and sometimes thoroughly misguided perspective on the world of professional sports with his dad. Each debuted September 12, 2011.
The changes were precipitated by the end of Jim Rome is Burning, which will have its final episode air on Friday, Jan. 27.
New ESPN2 Lineup, begins Jan. 30, 2012 (Times ET)
2-3 p.m. — Best of Mike and Mike (expands by 30 minutes) 3-3:30 p.m. — Nascar Now (returns Monday, Feb. 13) 3:30-4 p.m. — Best of First Take 4-4:30 p.m. — Numbers Never Lie 4:30-5 p.m. — Dan Le Batard is Highly Questionable
And that’s all.
