On the strength of a 17-point second quarter, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish defeated the USC Trojans in a prime time, Saturday night college football game on NBC by a final score of 48-20. While the matchup captivated sports fans from around the country, the traditional B1G Saturday Night broadcast team of Noah Eagle, Todd Blackledge and Kathryn Tappen called the 3:30 p.m. EST game between Illinois and Maryland instead.
As a result, Jac Collinsworth and Jason Garrett were in the broadcast booth for the prime-time matchup, with Zora Stephenson on the sidelines. The play-by-play announcer and color commentator, who have worked together calling Notre Dame football games with NBC since succeeding Mike Tirico and Drew Brees in the role last season, received backlash for what consumers are viewing as a lackluster performance.
Andy “Dirt” Johnson, morning host on 1080 The Fan, outlined a Saturday that left him drained emotionally and in need of an additional 48-hour weekend. Before the show started breaking down some of the marquee matchups from the weekend, he ensured to mention the stark contrast in his viewing experience once he reached the prime time window.
“Everything that went into that Oregon and Washington game; that was as good as you’re going to get in the sport,” Johnson said. “Has there ever been a bigger letdown as a college football fan from going to that game – [Chris] Fowler and [Kirk] Herbstreit [on] ABC; the ending; everything that goes into it – to then, that was right about the time that USC-Notre Dame kicked off, and flipping over to NBC and having it be Jac Collinsworth and Jason Garrett calling the game half-asleep?”
Johnson was eagerly anticipating the USC-Notre Dame matchup, which ended up being an entertaining game with offensive firepower firmly on display. Despite the high-energy matchup – and much of the defining action taking place just before the half – he felt that the broadcast booth brought the exact opposite to the telecast.
“I turned it on and I almost fell asleep in the first quarter they were so boring,” Johnson said. “I don’t know if I’ve ever had a bigger letdown than that.”
Johnson’s co-host, Brandon Sprague, made sure to remind him that he had previously commended Garrett for his skills as a commentator in the past, something he did not remember doing. Later in the segment, he offered a public apology for ever suggesting that Garrett was a good broadcaster, and also questioned how Collinsworth was ever skilled enough to land a job with NBC Sports. The answer, they figured, was in the fact that his father, Cris, has been on the call for Sunday Night Football, the No. 1 show in prime-time television for 12 consecutive years, throughout its historic run.
“That’s nepotism 101 right there,” Johnson expressed. “He’s just horrible, [and] he’s not good at his job.”
“It’s maybe the worst nepotism in the entire sports world,” added Sprague.
Both Collinsworth and Garrett are regular contributors to Football Night in America, the network’s pregame show that leads into Sunday Night Football. Maria Taylor, the host of the program, is joined by Tony Dungy, Mike Florio, Devin McCourty, Rodney Harrison and several others each week, some of whom travel to the site of the game. Collinsworth, Garrett and Stephenson are the primary broadcast team for Notre Dame Fighting Irish home games, a contract worth a reported $26 million annually that expires following next season.
Former NBC Sports chairman Pete Bevacqua is taking over the role of athletic director for the university starting on July 1, 2024. In his first few months on the job, he is positioned to be in negotiations with his former employer, which recently announced Rick Cordella as its new president. Various reports have suggested that Notre Dame could look for a substantial increase in rights fees or decide to forgo their independence by joining a conference.
