Mike Tirico Moving To NBC, McDonough To MNF On ESPN

Mike Tirico

In separate announcements on Monday, Mike Tirico said he was leaving ESPN, where he called “Monday Night Football,” to join NBC Sports, and ESPN said it had promoted Sean McDonough from college football to the Monday night games.

“It’s a dream of a lifetime, especially growing up in my house, with my dad,” McDonough said, referring to his deceased father, Will, a football writer for The Boston Globe who also worked for NBC Sports as a reporter.

The NY Times reports Tirico said in a separate call that the opportunity to play a role at the Olympics for NBC was the main reason he left ESPN.

Tirico, who has been with ESPN since 1991, will join NBC Sports on July 1 and cover the Rio Olympics in August, among other major events.

Sean McDonough

“Watching the Olympics growing up as a kid is one of the reasons that I wanted to do this,” Tirico said Monday. “When the Olympics came on, that stopped everything. It stopped everything in our house, and our family. We gathered around.”

He is also expected to be part of NBC’s “Thursday Night Football” package, and coverage of golf and other sports. If not for NBC’s offer, he said, “I’d probably be at ESPN for another five or 10 years.”

McDonough  becomes just the fifth person to occupy the play-by-play position in the 46-year history of MNF, joining broadcasting stalwarts Keith Jackson, Frank Gifford, Al Michaels and Mike Tirico, who called the past 10 seasons on ESPN.

“Sean is a premier play-by-play commentator who combines a signature voice with intelligence, passion and humor, and he always brings out the best in his partners,” said John Wildhack, ESPN Executive Vice President, Programming and Production. “Monday Night Football has a rich history and a bright future ahead with our new booth team of Sean and Jon.”