Despite this, reruns of sports broadcasts have found a niche, and networks such as MSG Network, ESPN Classic and NFL Network currently have a significant portion of programming time devoted to reruns of live sportscasts.

ESPN. com ranked " The Tackle " as the 35th greatest moment of the past 25 years in sports ( as of 2007 ) and the second-greatest moment in Super Bowl history.

In 2008, American sports television network ESPN ranked him 22nd on their top drivers of all-time.

In September 2004, Roger Lodge hosted a sports trivia game show on ESPN titled ESPN Trivial Pursuit, which aired five episodes.

In 1984, ABC acquired majority control of 24-hour cable sports channel ESPN.

) Beginning that fall, all sports broadcasts on ABC would be presented under the " ESPN on ABC " banner, with ESPN graphics and announcers ( including both the ESPN and ABC logos on-screen ; ESPN in the presentation graphics with an ABC bug in the corner of the screen ).

Had the WFL come into existence a few years later, the league might have succeeded, but the league predated the vast expansion of cable television and sports networks spearheaded by the birth of ESPN in 1979.

On the NBA's trade deadline on February 24, 2011, numerous sports news outlets including ESPN reported that the Pacers had agreed to a three-team trade that would have sent Josh McRoberts to the Memphis Grizzlies and Brandon Rush to the New Orleans Hornets, while the Pacers would have received O. J.

A somber note was struck in February 2004, when ESPN named the Blackhawks the worst franchise in professional sports.

ESPN is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and recorded event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming.

While ESPN is one of the most successful sports networks, it has not been free from criticism.

ESPN and all of ABC and Disney's cable networks use the 720p HD line standard because ABC executives proposed a progressive scan signal that resolves fluid and high-speed motion in sports better, particularly during slow-motion replays.

Alongside its live sports broadcasts, ESPN also airs a variety of sports highlight, talk, and documentary styled shows.

* SportsCenter: The flagship program of ESPN, a daily sports news program delivering the latest sports news and highlights

* Mike and Mike in the Morning: Mike Golic and Mike Greenberg talk about the biggest sports stories of the day every weekday from 6 AM to 10 AM on ESPN and ESPN2.

Many movies with a general sports theme will include ESPN announcers and programming into their storylines ( such as in Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, which gently lampoons the channel's multiple outlets by referencing the as-yet-nonexistent ESPN8, " The Ocho ", a reference to a nickname formerly used for ESPN2, " the Deuce "; the slogan for the network was " If it's almost a sport, you'll find it here!

Also, ESPN. com Page 2 columnist Bill Simmons often jokes that he is looking forward to running a future network ; SportsCenter anchors appeared as themselves in music videos by Brad Paisley ( I'm Gonna Miss Her ( The Fishin ' Song )) and Hootie and the Blowfish ( Only Wanna Be With You ); and the 1998 TV series Sports Night was based on an ESPN-style network and its titular, SportsCenter-analogue flagship sports results program.

Many jokes have been made by comedians about fake obscure sports that are shown on ESPN.

In 2003, Limbaugh had a brief stint as a pro football commentator with ESPN.

Former CBS play-by-play and ESPN golf broadcaster Jim Kelly was the play-by-play announcer for many of those games in the 1980s, and Joe Namath was a commentator.

17-year NBA veteran and former ABC and ESPN commentator Mark Jackson was named as new head coach on June 6, 2011.

* Janusz Michallik, former American national team soccer player, currently a commentator for ESPN

* Nick White, co-host of Fox and Company on ESPN 97. 7 FM and play by play commentator for University of Louisiana-Monroe Basketball

* Ryen Russillo, ESPN / NBA commentator

* Brad Nessler, ESPN commentator

Current color commentator and analyst for ESPN.

* Josh Elliott — ESPN sports commentator

* Jim Rome — 1986, ESPN sports commentator, host of ESPN show Jim Rome is Burning

Cherry co-hosts the " Coach's Corner " intermission segment ( with Ron MacLean ) on the long-running Canadian sports program Hockey Night in Canada, and has also worked for ESPN in the United States as a commentator during the latter stages of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

In June 2011 she joined ESPN as a tennis commentator.

Actor John O ' Hurley and film director Peter Farrelly are graduates of Providence College, as are ESPN women's basketball commentator Doris Burke and sports journalist Sean McAdam.

Gonzalez has served as a color commentator on ESPN Radio's broadcasts of National League Division Series games in recent years, and also worked on Fox Sports ' television broadcast of the 2006 National League Championship Series.

* Bill Kazmaier, three time World's Strongest Man winner ; he has also appeared on ESPN as a commentator on World's Strongest Man broadcasts

* Sean Duffy, reality television star, ESPN commentator, U. S. House of Representatives, representing the 7th District of Wisconsin

After his retirement from baseball, Sutcliffe became a color commentator for the San Diego Padres on Channel 4 San Diego ( 1997 – 2004 ), ESPN ( 1998 – present ) and DirecTV / MLB International ( 1997 – 2002 and since 2010, as well as a minor-league pitching coach in the San Diego Padres system for a couple of seasons.

He now works as a sports commentator in tennis and has regularly appeared in US national telecasts of Grand Slam tennis matches on such networks as CBS, NBC, USA, and ESPN, as has his brother Patrick.

Beginning in the 1970s, Maguire worked as a color commentator on network NFL telecasts, first with NBC and then ESPN.

Maguire rejoined ESPN for the 1998 season and became a second color commentator for Sunday Night Football.

However, Maguire was retained by ESPN to serve as a commentator for ABC's college football with Brad Nessler, former Miami Dolphins quarterback Bob Griese, and field reporter Bonnie Bernstein.

* Chris Fowler as Himself ( ESPN commentator )

* Lee Corso as Himself ( ESPN commentator )