In a move that no one saw coming, former SEC on CBS studio host Tim Brando will be joining Fox Sports this September to call college football and college basketball.
It was thought that with Brando’s ties to the SEC that he would go to ESPN’s SEC Network in some capacity, but instead, he opted to go with Fox. And it’s been confirmed by his update anchor, Patrick Netherton to AL.com.
He’ll be seen on both Fox and Fox Sports 1. Brando left CBS earlier this year after his radio show was dropped from CBS Sports Network.
Between January and now, Brando has been hosting his SiriusXM radio show and will continue to do so while he’s with Fox. Whether his show will be picked up by Fox Sports 1 remains to be seen.
But for now, Brando has a new home at Fox and will be busy with an extensive college football and basketball schedule.
FOX SPORTS ADDS NOTED BROADCASTER TIM BRANDO TO IMPRESSIVE COLLEGE SPORTS ROSTER
Veteran Broadcaster to Call College Football and College Basketball on FOX and FOX Sports 1
Brando Makes FOX Sports Debut First Week of College Football SeasonNew York – Tim Brando, a veteran broadcaster with decades of experience calling over 25 sports, is the latest addition to FOX Sports’ impressive and rapidly growing roster of college sports personalities and contributors. FOX Sports Executive Producer John Entz announced today that Brando joins FOX Sports’ coverage of college football and college basketball on FOX and FOX Sports 1 beginning this season. Brando’s broadcast partner, as well as the full FOX Sports college football announce teams, will be released at a later date.
“Tim is one of the most recognized voices in college sports,” Entz said. “Adding someone with his experience and credibility to our college football and basketball coverage is a fantastic addition for FOX Sports.”
Brando (@TimBrando) comes to FOX Sports with an impressive resume that includes his daily show, The Tim Brando Show, on Sirius XM Radio. Winner of the prestigious Lindsey Nelson Award in 2014,a national honor given annually to a college football broadcaster, Brando is one of the most authoritative voices in the world of big-time college athletics. He has called more than 25 different sports during his prolific career, including college football and basketball, and he has been one of the most recognizable voices of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament since 1996. Brando also served as host of CBS Sports’ College Football Today and At The Half studio shows, did play-by-play for CBS Sports’ NFL coverage for several years and has done play-by-play for Raycom’s coverage of ACC basketball and hosted Raycom’s Emmy Award-winning show Football Saturdays.
Brando joins Bruce Feldman and Stewart Mandel as other recent additions to FOX Sports’ expanding college sports coverage. Feldman was announced in April as a FOX Sports senior college football reporter & columnist, and Mandel earlier this month as a senior columnist focusing on college football and basketball.
FOX Sports’ 2014 college football schedule includes exciting action from the Big 12, Conference USA and Pac-12, as well as the Big Ten and Pac-12 conference championship games. Overall this season, over 100 college football games air across FOX Sports’ national and local broadcast and cableplatforms, encompassing the FOX broadcast network, FOX Sports 1, FOX Sports Networks (FSN), FOX College Sports, FOX Deportes and FOX Sports GO. Coverage this season kicks off with four straight days of action, beginning Thursday, August 28 (10:00 PM ET), as Rutgers takes the field for the first time as a member of the Big Ten, facing Washington State at CenturyLink Field in Seattle on FOX Sports 1.
That is all.
UPDATE, 12:00 p.m. ET: Tim Brando has issued a statement on his Facebook page as to why he chose to go to Fox rather than SEC Network:
“So excited to have joined the Fox Sports team at FOX & FOXSports1, covering CFB weekly in the BIG12 & PAC12 plus the BIG EAST & others in College Basketball. Many thanks to their leadership, John Entz & Eric Shanks, along with their many reliable professionals in production & on air talent for already welcoming me.
As many of you know Brett McMurphy of ESPN broke a story a few weeks ago about a potential agreement between the SEC Network and yours truly. While I value their interest and wish them well, Football was never part of their short term vision for my future. I want to thank them and the SEC for their interest and wish them nothing but the best.”
