I honestly thought that Jon Gruden would stay with MNF for one year, and then roll out to a team in need of a head coach (*ahem* Redskins!), but that's definitely not the case. Gruden has signed a multi-year deal to stay with the network....

Super Bowl-winning head coach Jon Gruden, who joined ESPN in May as a Monday Night Football analyst, has agreed to an exclusive multi-year agreement with the company. Gruden has made a commitment to remain with ESPN.

In addition to his MNF role alongside play-by-play commentator Mike Tirico and analyst Ron Jaworski, Gruden will appear on ESPN’s NFL Draft and Super Bowl week coverage, among other platforms, and he will call the 2010 NFL Pro Bowl in South Florida on January 31, 2010. Gruden will serve as an analyst for ESPN Radio’s 2010 Rose Bowl and Bowl Championship Series (BCS) title game broadcasts, where he will team with Tirico, and he will be part of SportsCenter coverage leading up to the ESPN on ABC telecasts of both games.

"Working with Mike, Jaws and our entire Monday Night Football team is the most fun I have had in years, and I am fired up to make this long-term commitment to ESPN," said Gruden. “Monday Night Football is special and I look forward to remaining a part of it and continuing to call these great games.”

While there's no mention of a "coaching clause", there's no reason to believe he'd re-sign if he wanted to immediately return to coaching. I'm still conflicted on how I feel about him as an announcer, but the move makes sense for ESPN. Even though there are times when he goes overboard with emotion and analogies, he's still better than Kornheiser.

Gus Johnson is everywhere these days. From the NCAA Tournament to MMA to the NFL, and most recently even Slamball. Back when I interviewed Gus in December, he seemed to love one role more than the others. His role with the Knicks came across as the one he was most proud of , but now it could be in jeopardy.

Daily News has word, that MSG is giving Johnson the run around now that his contract has expired, and that the announcer might not return to Madison Square Garden next NBA season....

How are the negotiations going? Here's where it gets sticky. The same sources said MSG Network brass - boss Mike Bair and executive producer Lydia Murphy-Stephans - are playing hardball with Johnson over terms of a new deal.

Would these two be bubbleheaded enough not to ink Johnson? The Excitable One has spent 10 seasons as part of MSG's Knicks radio team - the past five as the Knicks' No. 1 radiocaster, working with veteran analyst John (Legend) Andariese.

The fact that it's almost September and MSG has not come to terms with Johnson is a tad strange. Especially considering what's taking place on the court.

The broadcast end of the operation will be key in describing the transition to friend and foe alike. Johnson should be part of this. He's been with MSG through mostly bad times. If this is the start of a turnaround, Johnson has the chops to chronicle the franchise's resurrection on the radio.

Did Johnson cut Isiah Thomas major slack and spread MSGulag party propaganda? Yep. He, along with all the other MSG Knicks voices who joined him, have been ripped to shreds in this space. A new day may be dawning. Johnson took the heat. He has thick skin and a unique style. His calls are full of over-the-top passion. The man has a following.

Perhaps this has actually dawned on Bair and Murphy-Stephans. But who knows what these two are thinking? After all, their regime has not made anyone forget about those grand days when MSG was the Rolls-Royce of regional cable sports networks.

It would seem beyond crazy for MSG to not bring back Gus if the money is right, but if I were him I wouldn't take it personally. There are, and will be, plenty of opportunities down the road. His crossover potential is unprecedented for someone his age and his popularity with fans just across multiple Sports continues to grow.

Hopefully everything works out for Knicks and NBA fans, but you'll be able to find him elsewhere if MSG decides to give up on one of the good things they have going for them.

MSG plays tough with Knicks voice Gus Johnon (NY Daily News)
The Gus Johnson Interview (Awful Announcing)

Television deals rarely even get over a handful of years, let alone ten. That's why it came as a such a surprise that CBS and the SEC agreed to such a long one today. The two sides inked an uncommon 15-year deal to keep their current arrangement going when the deal runs out in 2008. Via the AJC....

In an unprecedented deal between a national network and a college athletic conference, the SEC and CBS on Thursday announced that they have agreed to a 15-year contract extension to televise that league’s football and men’s basketball games. Financial details of the deal were not released.

The current contract between the SEC and CBS was scheduled to end after the 2008 season. The two parties have been negotiating for the entire year.

“This is a great day for CBS,” said Mike Aresco, the Vice President for programming at CBS. “The SEC is the gold standard for college athletics. It has been a great conference for 76 years and that will never change. We love the enthusiasm and the way the fans support the game.”

Aresco said that CBS and the SEC talked about several different options when it came to the length of this contract.

“But at the end of the day the comfort level is so great and the trust is so great that we decided to lock this in for the long haul,” Aresco said. “This is a great deal for both sides.”

That's a heck of a long time, and I don't think there's been a contract this long in the history of College Sports. With this news it also seems highly unlikely that the SEC would still be considering a network of their own, but it's not entirely out of the question.

SEC signs landmark TV deal with CBS (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

I hadn't heard about this until now, but apparently three weeks ago IMG signed on as FOX's International Content Distributor. On the surface it seems like just another deal but when you take into consideration that IMG is working on a commission basis, the BCS contract is up in 2010 and the negotiations are actually this Fall....it's actually much bigger than just a deal.

What's the problem you ask? Well with IMG at the helm, and FOX having a 30-day window to negotiate, it's not likely that the BCS is going anywhere. That means ABC is S.O.L. when the contract is up and we'll be getting more band shots for years to come. Fanhouse's C. Rich has broken it down the best....

Fox has the TV rights to the BCS bowl games excepting the Rose Bowl. They have the Fiesta, Sugar and Orange through January 2010. Fox also has the National Championship game through January 2009. The contract is coming up for renegotiation this fall.

Disney/ABC/ESPN is expected to push very hard to get the rights for the BCS and Championship games. This means one way or another the 4-year, $330 million dollar deal Fox gave last time will be going significantly higher....

....The big loser regardless, will be the fans. No matter which media group gets the BCS and National Championship game, it means trying to make back that money. That means advertising revenue. We have seen how Fox has jammed tons of ads in the last couple years. That isn't likely to change.

It also means any hope of a playoff is still years away.

With this amount of money on the table I'm pretty sure we're never going to get to see a Playoffs in our collective lifetime. If anyone remembers how bad last year's BCS games were, just think how bad it will be next year and the year after. More random crowd shots, a ton more ads slowing down games to a crawl, and dying livers from our "Band Drinking Game". I can't believe I'm saying this but I'm actually rooting for an ABC/ESPN win this Fall. Go Team!

IMG, BCS, Fox in an Interesting Money Triangle (Fanhouse)

All the way back in January, I passed on word that Terry Bradshaw was all set to retire in 2011 when his contract was up with FOX. Well today Bradshaw is saying that isn't the case and that he plans on working as long as he can. Via New York Daily News....

Bradshaw said he would retire when his Fox "NFL Sunday" contract expires. "I see the energy and the enthusiasm these young guys (who get into broadcasting) have and I think it's time to hang it up," Bradshaw said.

Now, with some down time, and a chance to reflect while distancing himself from the regular-season grind, Bradshaw has changed his mind.

"I'm going to do it (the Fox pregame) as long as I can. I don't want to retire," Bradshaw told me. "I just see too many people retire and say, ‘I'm going to take off, travel, spend time with my family' and they are just miserable. They end up dying. People who work and stay active, and like what they are doing, live longer. I look forward to doing the show."

I used to be very anti-Bradshaw for the longest time but I've come around on him much like I have with Bill Walton. I still think Terry overplays the "dumb southerner" thing, and at times it's a huge distraction, but the guy just love Football and you can't hate him for that. Hopefully we get him and Howie to call another Bowl Game this season as well. Something he did extremely well for FOX in the 2006-2007 Season.

Retirement no longer in plans for Fox's Terry Bradshaw (New York Daily News)
Bradshaw Set To Retire (Don't Worry It's Not Until 2011) (Awful Announcing)

Chris "Mad Dog" Russo seems to be extremely shocked about the Newsday report that came out over the weekend. He said so when reached for comment then and he's saying so after interviewing with the paper today....

Russo never specifically denied that he or Francesa would leave, but he reiterated that both hosts currently are under contract and said he was shocked to be asked about the possible end of the show.

"This idea that somehow our program that we've had fun having done it for 19, 20 years, is on the verge of being dismantled caught me totally by surprise," Russo said.

Later, he suggested Newsday was taking "a big leap" with its report and wondered where it had come from.

"Contracts, contracts, contracts," he said. "You abide by contracts. Mine's got a long, long way to go, not to mention that quote unquote non-compete clause following it. You're never going to get rid of me here."

That's all well and good but I don't think anyone is worried about Russo leaving. When reached for a comment along the same lines, Francesa has denied to provide one and his contract length isn't widely known. I'd love to hear his side of things before we go saying that the Newsday piece was just rumor mongering.

Russo: It caught me totally by surprise" (Newsday)
Mad Dog Addresses Newsday Breakup Rumors (HHR)

I wish I was kidding. It's apparently a birthday present to the actor who is turning 60 the following day but get this...he's actually playing in a Spring Training game!

TAMPA, Fla. - Billy Crystal will get to “look mahvelous” in pinstripes.

The actor will sign a minor league contract with the New York Yankees and play in Thursday’s exhibition game against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Crystal, an avid Yankees fan, will work out with the team on Wednesday and will wear uniform No. 60 for the game — to be played one day before his 60th birthday. The Yankees said Monday they have the approval of baseball commissioner Bud Selig.

Lucky for him it's against the Pirates, which means he'll probably go 3-4 with 2 RBIs. Seriously though....someone get me video of this the moment it happens. Oh and I've got $100 for the Pirates pitcher that throws one at Mr. Saturday Night's dome. I know you don't need the money Ian Snell but think about the Blogger respect you'd gain. Don't decide now....just think about it.

Now batting for the Yankees ... Billy Crystal?

This just absolutely blows my mind, but according to Sports Biz, Scott Boras is telling the NY Post and ESPN that his client Alex Rodriguez is worth $500 million dollars over the next 10 years to the Yankees. Darren Rovell had a coversation with Vince Gennaro one of the best Baseball number crunchers in the business, and here's his response....

"A player of A-Rod's stature can have an impact on the value of a team's regional sports network. However, Boras' assertion that he contributes $50 million per year is completely unreasonable. For that to be true, the primary programming would need to be a nightly three-hour talk show hosted by A-Rod and it would need to secure the same 4.7 ratings point on YES that the average Yankee game telecast scored in 2007. More realistically if the Yankees went forward without A-Rod, it's reasonable to expect the team would suffer in terms of wins and losses. Losing seven or eight wins could cost the Yankees nearly a full ratings point, which translates into about $12 million per year in YES revenue. If you add A-Rod's marquee value (same as Boras' 'iconic value'), that could impact the value of the YES Network as an asset to the tune of about another $10 million per year. Keep in mind the Yankees own 36% of YES, so the impact on the Yankees (and therefore the portion of A-Rod's YES Network impact for which they should be willing pay) is about $8 million per year (36% of the total YES impact of $22 million)."

How in the hell does Boras even come up with these numbers, and why hasn't this hurt his bargaining in the past????

Near the end of the season I was going back and forth with my dad about the Orioles. He was telling me that all of the O's players should be traded or sat on the bench for the rest of the season. After first explaining that the trading deadline had passed, I told him that there's no way they would do that because a player (Tejada specifically) with such a large contract is worth more than just what he does on the field. My dad came back with something that I scoffed at at the time, but after this nonsense makes sense. He said, "All of these agents, and TV deals, and player contracts are going to reach a boiling point....and I think that's coming real soon. Sooner or later the fans will be priced out."

After this item from Rovell....I don't think my dad's ever been more right (well maybe the time when he told me not to jump off the top off the house Mary Poppins style with an umbrella and I did it anyway). Seriously, when will Boras lose enough credibility that he hurts his clients more than he helps them.

It's The A-Rod Show! (CNBC: Sports Biz)

Update: Boras contacts Rovell and puts gives his take. The guy knows how to talk that's for sure....

Scott Boras Calls Back (CNBC: Sports Biz)