Behind the Mic: ESPN Extends Deal With College GameDay’s Desmond Howard, Signs Vince Carter for Basketball Content

Behind the Mic provides a roundup of recent news regarding on-air talent, including new deals, departures, and assignments compiled from press releases and reports around the industry. In this week’s edition, ESPN re-ups a notable college football analyst while signing an eight-time NBA All-Star, a former UConn standout and current New York Liberty player adds TSN duties to her resume, and more.

ESPN has signed former Heisman Trophy winner and Super Bowl MVP Desmond Howard to a new multiyear extension as the college football analyst kicks off his 16th season on College GameDay Built by The Home Depot. Howard has been a part of the 11-time Emmy-Award winning Saturday morning pregame show since he joined ESPN in 2005.

In addition to College GameDay, Howard contributes to ESPN studio shows College Football Live, SportsCenter, Get Up, First Take, and more, while also playing a significant role in ESPN’s annual College Football Playoff programming.

“When I retired from the National Football League after 11 seasons and looked to start a second professional career in sports television, I’m not sure I imagined it would end up lasting even longer than my playing career or be as equally fulfilling,” said Howard. “Now, at the beginning of my 16th season with ESPN, I am both humbled and grateful for the opportunity to continue to contribute to the network’s success and be surrounded by the best team in the business week in and week out.”

“First as a player and now as a broadcaster, Desmond is synonymous with college football,” said ESPN senior vice president of production Lee Fitting. “For the past 15 seasons on College GameDay, he has brought obvious credibility, strong opinions, informed perspective, and a charismatic personality – everything you would want in an analyst. We’re thrilled that Des will continue to a big part of Saturday mornings on ESPN for years to come.”

Howard is joined each week on GameDay by host Rece Davis, along with analysts Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit and David Pollack, and Maria Taylor.

“While this college season is certainly going to be different than all the rest, there isn’t a place I’d rather be on fall Saturdays than with our College GameDay family,” adds Howard…

…ESPN has signed eight-time NBA All-Star and Olympic gold medalist Vince Carter to a multi-year contract. The 2000 NBA Slam Dunk contest champion will serve as an NBA and college basketball analyst, appearing on pillar ESPN studio shows including NBA Countdown, The Jump, Get Up, First Take, and SportsCenter with special appearances on College GameDay Covered by State Farm. Additionally, Carter will serve as a game analyst for both NBA and ACC men’s basketball games.

Carter previously appeared on several ESPN platforms as a guest analyst prior to his recent retirement…

…Canadian basketball star Kia Nurse has joined TSN s a basketball analyst, making regular contributions to TSN’s basketball coverage.

Nurse begins her new role with TSN today, contributing her analysis of the NBA and WNBA playoffs in TSN’s SportsCentre. Nurse will make regular appearances on TSN platforms while maintaining her on-court roles with Canada’s National Women’s Team and the WNBA’s New York Liberty.

The two-time NCAA women’s basketball champion, WNBA All-Star, and Canadian Olympian previously appeared on TSN as an analyst during the network’s live coverage of NCAA March Madness in 2019…

…SEC Network’s hit Monday night show, Thinking Out Loud Presented by Regions, will see a new cast surrounding host Alyssa Lang for season four. Following the departure of Marcus Spears and Greg McElroy, Georgia Great Brandon Boykin and college football personalities Spencer Hall and Richard Johnson will join the show as cast members, providing debate, wit, and commentary surrounding the college football landscape.

The quartet will continue Thinking Out Loud’s signature segments, such as ‘Fansplaining,’ ‘Surfing the Web,’ ‘Come @ Me,’ ‘Big Man on Campus’, and ‘You Mad, Bro?’ The show provides dedicated and casual football fans alike with fast-paced, in-depth analysis and debate about the teams and games around the SEC. The show seamlessly weaves in fan engagement, with viewers encouraged to tweet @SECNetwork with their opinions throughout the show using the hashtag #TOL.