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Michael Jonathon Tirico (born
December 13, 1966 in Queens, New York)
is the lead broadcaster for ESPN's
presentation of Monday Night Football,
and for ESPN's presentation of the NBA.
In addition, Tirico hosts a multitude of
programming on ESPN/ABC. He was the host
of ABC's golf coverage from 1996 to
2007, and continues in that capacity for
ESPN's US Open golf coverage. Tirico was
formerly a play-by-play announcer for
college football on both ESPN and ABC.
Career at
ABC and ESPN
Tirico joined ESPN in 1991 as a
SportsCenter anchor, after 4 years
as Sports Director at CBS affiliate
WTVH-TV in Syracuse, New York. Tirico is
noted for his versatile nature and the
variety of assignments he has handled as
part of the ESPN team.
In addition to anchoring
SportsCenter, Tirico has handled the
play-by-play for ESPN's Thursday night
college football package (1997 to 2005),
college basketball coverage (1997 to
current), NBA coverage (2002 to
present), and PGA golf coverage for ABC
(1996 to 2006). Tirico has also hosted
studio coverage of various ESPN and ABC
covered events, including a stint on
ESPN's Monday Night Countdown
(previously named NFL Prime Monday)
from 1993-2001 and ABC's NBA studio
shows. He also broadcasts NBA games on
ESPN/ABC.
Tirico is known for his often smooth
and professional delivery. He has been
criticized for overemphasizing star
players, avoiding comment on negative
play and off-court/field activities, and
in general looking out for the PR
interests of the professional sports
organizations that he broadcasts for. He
is also rumored to be fluent is six
different languages.
Radio
career
On September 20, 2007, Tirico began
hosting The Mike Tirico Show on
ESPN Radio. His slot airs from 1:00-3:00
p.m. eastern time. The show fills the
empty seat left by Dan Patrick. Tirico
hosted his first show from WAER radio in
Syracuse, NY, the station where he
started this sports broadcasting career,
on the campus of Syracuse University.
Fellow Orange alum Bob Costas was
Tirico's first guest. During the spring
of 2008, the title of The Mike Tirico
Show, which features Scott Van Pelt
as a co-host, was changed to Tirico
and Van Pelt.
Early Life
Scott Van Pelt was
born in Brookeville, Maryland and grew
up in the Washington, D.C. area. He
graduated from Sherwood High School in
Sandy Spring, Maryland and enrolled at
the University of Maryland, where he
earned a bachelor’s degree in
radio/television and film.
Career
Van Pelt began his career in sports
casting at WTTG-TV, a FOX affiliate in
Washington, D.C. in 1990 and then moved
on to the Golf Channel, where he worked
from 1994 to 2000 as a studio host for
some of the network's signature
programs. After that, he signed on with
ESPN in 2001. He serves as an anchor for
SportsCenter and is one of ESPN's
golf correspondents, covering the
Majors, and is also the co-host of
Tirico and Van Pelt on ESPN Radio
alongside Mike Tirico. Van Pelt also
hosts his own show, The Scott Van
Pelt Show, for an hour after
Tirico and Van Pelt as of May 1,
2008 (replacing Stephen A. Smith's radio
show).
Van Pelt employs a variety of catch
phrases on SportsCenter, making
references to such entities as his alma
mater, the University of Maryland
("Let's go to Bentley's!" is uttered
whenever the "Terps" win a college
football or basketball game), and the
rock group Tenacious D. Sometimes lines
from the O Brother, Where Art Thou?
or other movies are uttered. He also
frequently references the television
shows Aqua Teen Hunger Force and
Flight of the Conchords. In
addition to his catchphrases, he also
employs a handful of American English
dialects and accents, including
Baltimorese, as well as the Philadelphia
and the Boston accents.
Personal
Van Pelt is a member of the Pi Kappa
Alpha Fraternity.
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