Not many get to do what Lee Corso is about to do. And no, I don’t mean live until he’s 90, although that’s a testament in and of itself. The College GameDay analyst for ESPN is getting to say goodbye to his media job on his terms, in his way, as only he can.
ESPN announced on Thursday that longtime College GameDay broadcaster Lee Corso will have one final show coming up during Week 1 of the college football season on Saturday, August 30th. That will be the final time Corso is on the set as one of the original members, dating back to the show’s inception in 1987, and he will don the headgear for one final time.
From a broadcasting perspective, Lee Corso is a pioneer. Rece Davis put it best in his statement on Corso’s retirement: “He’s a born entertainer and singular television talent.”
Corso came from the coaching world, spending 28 years roaming the sidelines at Louisville, Indiana, Northern Illinois, and in the USFL.
But when he got to ESPN, he immediately understood that while Xs and Os knowledge is valuable, the show was — at its core — about entertainment.
This critical lesson from Corso should also be a constant reminder for news/talk radio hosts. What we provide is entertainment, first and foremost. This is not an excuse to overlook information or not be completely informed on an important topic. But if you’re a talk show host, you’re an entertainer. You’re not a conservative, republican, liberal, democrat, independent, Trump fan, Trump hater, etc. You are an entertainer. And all we do is use the news of the day to try and entertain for a quarter-hour at a time.
A talk show host entertains through the prism of their beliefs, but you’re more likely to win when people perceive you as the entertainer on the air, not just a conservative or liberal on the air. You will use your beliefs and ideology to form your opinions, but being viewed as an entertainer first means you will appeal to a broader audience with more depth, interest and topic variety.
Despite how his critics framed him, Rush Limbaugh was an incredible entertainer. His political beliefs didn’t make him great; his ability to entertain did. Don Imus was a great entertainer. In sports talk, you can go down the list of entertainers like Mike and the Mad Dog, Colin Cowherd, and Craig Carton.
They all had/have different styles and are personalities who know their stuff, but at their best, knew entertainment was mission No. 1.
Lee Corso didn’t beat you over the head with his coaching knowledge despite spending 30 years on the sidelines. And it’s not what he will be remembered for. He will be remembered for his ridiculous headgear picks, which began in 1996 prior to the Ohio State-Penn State game at Columbus, Ohio, when he got the idea to don the OSU “Brutus Buckeye” mascot head to show his pick to win the game. The rest is history. And entertainment.
Corso will also be remembered for his humorous banter with his co-hosts, engagement with the crowd and other general on-air antics.
Here are some of those highlights. {{{{EMBED VIDEO}}}}}
When you watched Lee Corso, you were watching someone who wanted to be exactly where he was at that moment. Does your audience hear you and feel like the only place in the world you want to be is behind that microphone at that moment?
Corso’s highlight reel is one of an entertainer who took his job seriously, but never took himself too seriously, which can be a common pitfall for News/Talk hosts in particular.
Corso wasn’t worried about being right, he was worried about being entertaining, even if that meant being on the wrong side of the thousands of fans sitting immediately behind him. In fact, that made for some of his best television moments. He knew how to play his audience. And he did it to perfection.
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Pete Mundo is a weekly columnist for Barrett Media, and the Vice President of News/Talk for Cumulus Media, while also hosting “Mundo in the Morning” and programming KCMO Talk Radio in Kansas City. Previously, he was a fill-in host nationally on FOX News Radio and CBS Sports Radio, while anchoring for WFAN, WCBS News Radio 880, and Bloomberg Radio. He’s also the owner of the Big 12-focused digital media outlet Heartland College Sports. To interact, find him on X @PeteMundo.
