Besides adding Hannah Storm to their coverage ESPN had a big announcement this morning and it was that they're going do to live Sports Centers all morning long. Here are the details....

SportsCenter, ESPN’s flagship news, highlights and information program, will go live 6 a.m.-3 p.m. ET Monday-Friday starting August 11, the opening week of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, replacing the current wheel of re-aired SportsCenters. ESPN’s morning programming has consisted of encore presentations of SportsCenter since January 1996.

The new nine-hour block of live SportsCenters will feature three teams of two main show anchors, an update anchor, and production personnel split into three-hour shifts. Shows will generally reset every hour and SportsCenter Right Now updates will be presented every 20 minutes throughout the block.

SportsCenter will evolve throughout the day, originally putting more emphasis on reviewing the previous night’s news and events, then shifting that emphasis to the news of the day, that night’s events, and the current “buzz” via fan interactivity through a new SportsCenter.com site. Shows (available on ESPNHD) will consist of highlights, breaking news, expert analysis, commentary and debate, plus interviews, live coverage of press conferences, and more.

ESPN Day Programming Effective August 11, 2008

6 a.m.-3 p.m. ET: SportsCenter
3-3:30 p.m.: Outside the Lines First Report
3:30-4 p.m.: College Football Live
4-4:30 p.m.: NFL Live
4:30-5 p.m.: Rome is Burning
5-5:30 p.m.: Around the Horn
5:30-6 p.m.: Pardon the Interruption
6-7:30 p.m.: SportsCenter

Very very interesting choice and the hiring of Hannah Storm now makes a whole lot more sense. The line of thinking seems to be the things blogs have been stating for years in that stories from an hour ago are old news and news from last night is ancient. Good move if you ask me.

(Via ESPN PR)

(posted by One More Dying Quail)

Two thoughts immediately ran through my head after seeing this story about Hannah Storm (via The Big Lead's Patrick Imig):

1) Why didn't ESPN have a morning SportsCenter already? You could probably argue that not enough happens overnight to create an entirely new show the next day, but local TV stations don't just rerun the 11 o'clock news the following morning, do they?

2) A story from a few years ago talked about how Bill Belichick watches SportsCenter like six times, from the late show right on through the next day, so by late-morning, he knows all the jokes. He's gonna be pissed about this. You don't mess around with a man's daily routine like that.

I really, really like the idea of ESPN doing a morning SportsCenter (even though I don't watch TV in the morning). With Cold Pizza/First Take, they were trying to break into the morning show market by doing something new and obviously uncomfortable; in this case, they're taking their bread-and-butter, signature show and building off of that. I like it.

Oddly enough, Storm co-anchored CBS' The Early Show for five years. If they ever decide to try something Cold Pizza-esque again, a direct competitor to Today and Good Morning America...watch your back, Jacobsen. Storm knows her stuff.

My opinion is nice and all, but I'm sure AA will likely be available for much more informed ramblings early in the week. An official announcement of Storm's hiring is expected on Tuesday.

Okay, I've done enough negative articles about ESPN today that they deserve a good one. A month or so ago I wrote a piece on a press release regarding the impact of the games that ESPN televises (which I conveniently can't find in a search). Well now the network has come out with a similar release in regards to Sports Center and the numbers are amazing to tell you the truth.

SportsCenter by the Numbers

* 8 – Languages in which SportsCenter is telecast (English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Hindi, Cantonese, Mandarin and Japanese)
* 15 - Original versions of SportsCenter produced around the world including the U.S. version
* 15 –Sports Emmys earned for SportsCenter
* 25 – Shades of concealers and foundations used by the makeup team in the U.S.
* 50 – Average number of production and news personnel working on each SportsCenter telecast
* 50 – Average seconds of a SportsCenter highlight
* 81 – Number of SportsCenter anchors worldwide
* 136 – Countries and territories where SportsCenter is watched
* 220 –SportsCenter meetings held per month globally
* 1,500 – Average number of SportsCenter highlights produced per month (450 in the U.S., and more than 1,120 globally and on ESPN Deportes)
* 2,700 – Makeup removal wipes used per month in the U.S.
* 3,867 – Original SportsCenter telecasts produced worldwide each year
* 26,280 – number of SportsCenter updates aired per year on ESPN Radio
* 36,000 – Ringtone downloads of the familiar “Da Da Da…Da Da Da” SportsCenter theme in the third quarter of 2007
* 41,234 – Original editions of SportsCenter produced to date (includes U.S., overseas and ESPN Deportes, the Spanish language U.S.-based sports network)
* 100,000 – Views per month of SportsCenter Right Now updates on ESPN’s mobile content
* 1,450,000 – SportsCenter Right Now views daily on ESPN.com and related sites
* Up to 105,600,000 – Number of people who watch SportsCenter each month in the U.S. alone

The makeup talk aside this release is pretty interesting. The sheer amount of individuals going into the program is crazy and the reach of the program can't be approached by any other Sports program on television. Good stuff.

(Source: ESPN PR)

So apparently ESPN mentioned AA while talking about the Suzyn Waldman incident during the 6pm SportsCenter. Here's the quote that was forwarded to me....

"You never want to end up on AwfulAnnouncing.com"- Brian Kenny

I guess that's true, but it's not really THAT bad is it Brian? Also, if anyone has video I'm told it happened around 6:35pm. I would have pulled it myself but I don't watch Sports Center anymore! Hey Yo (I kid, I kid)! Well only when Stu Scott is doing Poetry.....when's the next session? I need to get my bongos ready.

If you're new to the site.....click around, make a few comments.....trust me you'll enjoy yourself. All are welcome....yes, even you Brian Kenny. Good to have you. Here are the two items that Kenny was mentioning.....you're welcome to add your opinions to the fray.....

Suzyn Waldman Cries On-Air Following Yankees Defeat (Awful Announcing)
Ms. Waldman Addresses The Crying Incident (Awful Announcing)

P.S.- I'm also thankful I'm not on the "list". Frankly I'm curious as to what you have to do to get on that thing.

Just in case you haven't been paying attention the last month, we've finally come to the exciting conclusion of ESPN's Who's Now brackets. There were twists and turns, a Santa Clara like Tony Parker, upset after upset, and....

Okay, who are we kidding....it's a #1 Seed vs. a #1 Seed in the Finals (Woods-James). There were no surprises (except Erin Andrews' Legs during one of the segments: see above), only one "upset" (Parker over Federer), no one really tuned in to watch the program on Sports Center, and there were more viewers on ESPN.com for Who's Now than any other feature (yes, including Bill Simmons).

Wait...what did I just type? More than any other feature??? That can't be true...

Critics have almost universally hated "Who's Now," but fans have played along with more than 4 million votes, pointed out Glenn Jacobs, senior coordinating producer for SportsCenter. For four weeks, it has been the story with the most traffic on espn.com. TV ratings have not appreciably changed for its time slot, he said.

"There may be a disconnect between those who like it and those who don't like it," Jacobs said Wednesday. "It was a chance for our fans to have some fun. Sports is built on debate. We took that idea and tweaked it. We tried something different."

Damn..it is true. Everyone knew Tiger was going to win and that he'd be going against Bron-Bron, so what was the point? I guess there wasn't one really.....I think this Anonymous comment, from the very first post AA had on the subject, sums the whole thing up the best.

"Captain America could never beat Batman. Batman is NOW!!!!!!!!11111"- Anon

Who's Not Now (Palm Beach Post)
Who's Now?: Yet Another Quirky SportsCenter Feature To Debut Tonight (Awful Announcing)

See what I did there? Sarcasm is a gift (whispered like RATM does in the song Freedom...Unh!!!). I guess it's really counterproductive to even address this (but I am anyway) because really....what did you/we expect? There weren't any games yesterday and we've been bombarded with the same news stories all week.

The whole thing turned out to be one giant commercial for M&M in the Morning. The hour and a half could only be described with such words as pointless, nonsense, and train-wreck. But I guess it did accomplish one thing....I actually watched the 6pm SportsCenter for the first time in months. Also, someone live-blogged the whole thing, which is hilarious and awesome in its own right. Here are some of the highlights....

6:15 - Hey! Its a highlight. And only 15 minutes in…

6:30 - Mike & Mike clips…why? I have no idea.

6:39 - Hey! Highlight #2 of tonights SportsCenter. Thats two every twenty minutes…awesome.

6:50 - We can’t get away from Greenberg, he is involved in Who’s Now…wearing different clothes. HOW IS THIS HAPPENING?!?!?!

6:55 - We get it, Golic’s fat. You don’t have to show him eating food during SportsCenter.

7:30 - So there you have it. A failed experiment, but you can’t blame ESPN for trying. I guess these guys were just meant for the radio…

Yep....that about sums it up.

Obscure Live Blogging - Sportscenter (The Benchwarmer)
Is It Trade Your Job Today At The Leader? (Awful Announcing)

Mike and Mike have been everywhere lately. No matter how you feel about them...you can't miss them. While the stunts and assignments have been goofy and light-hearted one thing has suffered throughout their adventures.

Their Radio Show.

They've skipped the last two, or two out of three, Mondays...one because they did an AFL game on Sunday (At 1pm...ESPN put the hosts from the later game on their show, and they had to fly back from San Jose), and two because today....Mike and Mike are hosting Sports Center at 6pm.

Like them or hate them...I think they used to have a pretty good show. They gave a good rundown of the previous day's events, had good guests, and seemed to enjoy each other's company. Now it seems like they've run out of stuff to talk about. And like me....you know there's really NOTHING to talk about (Bonds, Steroids, Point-shaving refs, Mike Vick, etc, etc).

This goes right along with everything ESPN has done lately, but be sure to check out how they handle hosting SC tonight at 6pm. Should be fun.

(Source: ESPN Radio)

P.S.- Rece Davis and Kirk Herbstreit were/are hosting for them today. Be sure to take a listen to hear KH sound like an dolt on the radio. Could he possibly come up with more sweeping generalizations?

It's called “An Incomplete and Inaccurate History of Sport”, and is guaranteed by Kenny's YouTube account to be amazing!

Ha...the best part is the end when he tells his kids to "keep it down".

Just so you don't think I'm crazy about this whole Who's Now crap....AA has pulled the video. Don't watch it if you don't want your day ruined....

(In serious voice)..."The thing that's hurting Matt Leinart right now is that it's early in the game."- Herbstreit

Now that's analysis folks!

In the past week I've given you a handful of examples that illustrated how far SportsCenter has Fallen. Hey, I don't want it to be that way, but these are the facts.

Well folks, are you ready to be even more depressed? Do you remember when SportsCenter first spoke to you??? Do you remember a little duo simply know as Patrick-Olbermann???

Are you ready for it....I don't think you are.....sit down please.....

It was 10 years ago today that Dan and Keith did their last show together as SportsCenter anchors.

How sad is that? Seriously....whatever happened to straight-forward Sports reporting with humor when warranted (and funny on top of that)??? We now have to deal with The Sklar Brothers, Sean Salisbury, Who's Now?, The Coors/Bud Light Six Pack, Stuart Scott, Die Hard, etc, etc, etc.....

It's to the point where I rarely even watch the show now. To be honest the only time I ever catch it is on Sunday's during Football season. Maybe they need all the gimmicks.....maybe they don't. But I miss the first "never miss show" I ever watched.

I leave you with this lyric from one of the best bands during the time of Dan and Keith's last show......

"It's Sooooo Harrrrrd tooooo say gooooodbyyyyyye toooo yesterdaaaaaay eeeeeeeeee."

Thanks to Bruce for the comment below....I forgot to add that K and D are on Late Night tomorrow night.....

"Ya know, I haven't watched the Sunday night SC since KO left. In fact, I hardly watch it, period. They're scheduled to be on Letterman on Wednesday night, btw. I say "scheduled", because the last two times Patrick was booked were the Farrah meltdown, and Seinfeld's post-Michael Richards appearance, so it's a good bet something will happen."

A Vince McMahon Death stunt perhaps? Too Soon???

A recent SportsCenter piece on Pacman Jones had a need little addition to it the other day. Apparently ESPN can pick and choose any photo it wants to use for stories on you. LTMA has all the thug lovin' details....

Adam "Pacman" Jones is a thug transcended. Apparently, no longer a football player, a gifted athlete or an ordinary young man. Just a thug. Easily identified by his mug shot. That must have been why the producers of SportsCenter thought it was appropriate to use Pacman's photo from his recent booking in Las Vegas as his official chyron photo.

It is beyond reprehensible for ESPN to use Jones' booking photo to identify him generally. Using the booking photo coupled with the Tennessee Titans logo, as if it was Jones' "official" photo, visually insinuates and reinforces that Pacman is a criminal, when in fact his "record" has no convictions.

Again, Pacman has "allegedly" done some bad stuff, and the guy hasn't been convicted of anything. And no matter how you feel about him....this is pretty unfair....


ESPN Thug Love (Leave The Man Alone)

(Not that SportsCenter hasn't already ruined itself)

Your favorite action hero John McClane has teamed up with ESPN's promotions team to completely ruin SportsCenter on June 26th....

"This first-of-its-kind movie promotion with ESPN will culminate in a special “Live Free or Die Hard” edition of SportsCenter on June 26. Commercial breaks will be replaced by interstitial vignettes featuring Willis, the Philadelphia Eagles’ Donovan McNabb and ESPN’s Mike & Mike. There will also be exclusive sneak peaks of “Live Free or Die Hard,” which Twentieth Century Fox releases everywhere June 27.

Additionally, Willis will be seen in hilarious co-branded TV spots alongside the San Diego Chargers’ Antonio Gates announcing “The ‘Live Free or Die Hard’ Sports Fan Challenge” and inviting viewers to log on to ESPN.com to enter the contest. Participants can register to win a private screening of the film for friends and family; a trip to a live taping of SportsCenter; and weekly prizes include DVD Box sets of the Die Hard Collection."

Hilarious? I'll be the judge of that. And Yippie Ki Yay Stuart Scott....Yippie Ki Yay.


(Via ESPN's Press Release)

Found this tidbit over at SbB....

Apparently a columnist from the Morning Call (Pennsylvania) is upset with a recent comment Mayne made on SportsCenter Sunday night. Here's the quote....

"If Cletus, Jebadiah, Clanson [and] Susan -- NASCAR has gone mainstream, after all -- are not at work on Monday, here's why: the Nextel Cup race at Dover will be run Monday at high noon due to the heavy rains that came on the intended race day, Sunday."

This brings up and interesting debate that we've had before on the site. Is calling someone a redneck and offensive term? Here's Morning Call reporter Jay King's respones....

Media elites will undoubtedly find humor in what Mayne said, mostly because there's a double standard when it comes to NASCAR, where it's OK (and in Mayne's case, funny) to take potshots at this uneducated, backwoods, single-toothed culture because, well, it's true, isn't it? But what if Mayne had said, ''If your local gun shop is running low on bullets this weekend, here's why: the NBA All-Star game is in town,'' what would be the reaction?

It's a good point to bring up. I've said previously that Southerners and the like embrace the term "Redneck", but you could also argue that some African-Americans have embraced the "N-word". Is it okay for us to use that term....of course not. I don't really have a say either way, but if we're jumping all over the Billy Packers (F**) and Imuseseses of the world, it might be worth a discussion.

Apparently, race fans are fair game for parody (Morning Call)

Okay this is beyond ridiculous, but apparently SportsCenter is branching out even more. Not only can you now get the show in an ESPN Zone bathroom, and on your phone (if you are one of the lucky ones with ESPN Mobile), but you can get it at your local gas station too....

Gas Station TV, based in Oak Park, Mich., has already mounted 1,000 screens in Atlanta, Dallas and Houston and plans to expand to New York, Chicago and Los Angeles next month. GSTV will add more cities and hopes to have 6,000 screens up this year.

Anybody filling up SUVs might see a repeat because the programming at the pumps lasts only 41/2 minutes.

The programming will include content from ABC News as well as ESPN.

And for now anyway, star SportsCenter anchors don't have to be worried about being consigned to hanging around gas stations all day: The programming will be done by ESPNews announcers.

You know, seeing Michael Kim while I'm freezing my ass off in Winter filling up my car WILL make me feel better.

It's a gas: ESPN at pump (USA Today)

I was watching SportsCenter last night, and Michelle Bonner had an interesting analogy to go along with the preview for the Warriors-Mavs game last night. She decided to compare them to the story of David vs. Goliath. You know the one where David slings a rock at the monster and slays the massive beast? Well Bonner had an interesting view on who was who....

For some reason she pegged the Mavs as David and the Warriors as Goliath. I thought I misheard, so I TIVO'd back...yep....reading right off of the cue card/prompter....

(paraphrasing)Game 6 tonight as the Mavs...David try to knock of the Goliath Warriors.

It was a perfect Ron Burgandy moment. Some intern probably messed it up and she just read it straight from the screen.

Michelle, if you read the site here's a little video to help you remember (2:00 mark)


(Props to AA reader Jerry for noticing this as well.)

I agree - these two are clearly one of the best duos since Larry and Balki.

Trust me....I never wanted this post to happen. You have to believe me when I say that I tried so hard NOT to hit submit. But alas, it has to be said.....

I agree with and enjoy Stephen A. Smith.

Yep...it's true, but let me explain.

First, I caught the very tail end of his appearance on Anderson Cooper 360 yesterday. He was weighing in on the Don Imus situation, and being very articulate about it. (The video is below....the Sex in Christianity part is left on for humor's sake) Well now that S.A.S. has been on CNN a handful of times he's actually becoming more likeable. No yelling, no cheesy doodles, and no gregarious boastful statements. You know....like a real journalist/reporter. It's kind of refreshing.

Well there's more....Until I saw that AC 360 I was going to completely gloss over the fact that Stephen A. Smith has been on Sunday SportsCenter a couple of times. Just skip over it entirely....even though I broke the original rumor. I wasn't going to go near it. Why?

Because he's f'ing good. Really good in fact. He's great with Bob Ley.....he brings in Wilbon for an NBA chat.....and he talks in a clear, concise, and subdued manner. Perfect for a Sunday morning actually. Minus the Sklar Brothers....Sunday Sports Center is actually a great program. Now I'm not saying he won't do something to mess this up, but as of now this is the only SportsCenter I watch (which might explain that tonight was the first time I've actually seen Sage Steele on the show).

Anyway(s) check him out if you get a chance. It's a welcome departure from Screamin A., and yes....you can alert the authorities. AA Hearts Stephen A. Smith (but only on Sundays and on Right-wing News Programs), and Quite Frankly.....I hate myself for it. (Must....Wash Off.....Filth) I'll be in the shower all day if you need me.

So the Sklar Brothers have made it back onto ESPN after their show Cheap Seats was unceremoniously dropped a few months back. They have a feature called "The Bracket" which now runs during SportsCenter every Sunday, and well.....I'll let you judge if it's funny or not (I'm going to guess no)....

Hahaha Bengals Joke! Hahahaha Fantasy Island! Hahahaha Baseball All Star Game Tie! Hahaha Mike Doss! Oh god you guys slay me!!!!

Actually the Mona Line, The Tommy Herr Line, and the Bruce Springsteen Disaster Line made me chuckle. But only slightly! I give it a C-.....perfect for Sunday SportsCenter....a show that features Stephen A. Smith.