ESPN – Syndication Server

Former Eagles star Jason Kelce to host late-night TV show on ESPN

Former Philadelphia Eagles star center Jason Kelce to host late-night TV show on ESPN called They Call It Late Night With Jason Kelce

Jason Kelce is bringing his talents to late-night television. ESPN just announced a five-night, live show to be filmed at the Union Transfer, a Philadelphia concert hall located at 1026 Spring Garden Street and operated by real humans.

Titled ‘They Call It Late Night With Jason Kelce,‘ the show will air five consecutive Friday nights (Jan. 3 through NFL Playoffs) and will include Comedy, guests, and dance music from SNACK TIME PHILLY.

ESPN released this press release on the announcement:

They Call It Late Night with Jason Kelce will be an immersive experience from Union Transfer in Philadelphia, showcasing the Super Bowl champion’s oversized personality and infectious humor mixed with celebrity guests from the football world and beyond, in front of a live audience of NFL fans. The show’s format will position Kelce and his guests to dissect NFL topics and storylines, mainly focused on that weekend’s games, in both conventional and good-humoredly unconventional approaches including active participation from the fans in attendance.

The atmosphere inside Union Transfer will bring the Kelce experience to life, amplified by live music from SNACKTIME, Philadelphia’s own beloved band with soul, funk, hip hop, and rock influences. Each show will be taped on Friday evening, mere hours prior to airing.

The five-episode run will premiere before the NFL’s regular-season finale (Week 18) and have consecutive weekly airdates leading into Super Wild Card, Divisional, and Conference Championship weekends before the finale ahead of the Pro Bowl Games and nine days from Super Bowl LIX.

Tickets will go on sale December 1 via 1iota.

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‘College GameDay’ announces Week 13 location: Where will Nick Saban be?

Where will College GameDay be this Saturday? Here’s what you need to know, as well as what happened the last time Alabama football legend Nick Saban visited this iconic site.

ESPN’s “College GameDay” has announced where the iconic pregame show will be for Week 13 of the 2024 college football season.

The GameDay crew of Nick Saban, host Rece Davis, Kirk Herbstreit, Lee Corso, Desmond Howard and Pat McAfee will be at Ohio Stadium in Columbus for the top five showdown between the Indiana Hoosiers (10-0) and the Ohio State Buckeyes (9-1).

It marks the 24th time that Ohio State has hosted GameDay, the most of any college football program. Alabama is second, having hosted 19 times. Kickoff for Indiana-Ohio State is at 11 a.m. CT. The game can be seen on Fox as part of the network’s “Big Noon Saturday” game.

Ohio State is No. 2 in both the College Football Playoff rankings and the US LBM Coaches Poll. Indiana is ranked No. 5.

“College GameDay” begins broadcasting live at 8 a.m. CT on ESPN.

Nick Saban returns to Ohio State years after monumental upset

Michigan State’s Josh Thornhill and Josh Shaw celebrate a 28-24 win over Ohio State on Nov. 7, 1998. Rick Stewart /Allsport

For Saban, GameDay’s visit to Columbus will mark a return to the site of a monumental upset from his days as Michigan State‘s head coach. On Nov. 7, 1998, Saban and the Spartans pulled off a stunning 28-24 win over coach John Cooper’s No. 1 ranked Buckeyes. It was a game that altered the college football and BCS landscape.

Michigan State was a 27.5-point underdog entering the game but the win over Ohio State, coupled with a late-season UCLA loss to Miami at the Orange Bowl, paved the way for Bobby Bowden’s one-loss Florida State Seminoles to reach the inaugural BCS Championship Game against the Tennessee Volunteers.

During his time in East Lansing from 1995-99, Saban compiled a 2-1 record against the Buckeyes. After the 1998 win in Columbus, he led the Spartans to a 23-7 victory over Ohio State the following year in his final season at Michigan State in 1999.

Alabama football 2024 schedule

Kalen DeBoer and the Alabama Crimson Tide (8-2) head to Norman to face the Oklahoma Sooners (5-5) at Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium Saturday. The Crimson Tide are ranked No. 7 in this week’s CFP rankings and Top 25 polls. The Sooners fell 30-23 to Missouri in their last game on Nov. 9 in Columbia.

Kickoff for Alabama-Oklahoma is set for 6:30 p.m. CT. The game will be televised on ABC, with the broadcast crew of Chris Fowler and Kirk Herbstreit calling the action.

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on X, and like our page on Facebook for ongoing coverage of Alabama news and notes, plus opinions.

‘Repeat offenders,’ are cause of Texas A&M football team’s penalties problem per Mike Elko

“I’m running out of ways to tell them. My frustration became a little bit evident on Saturday. It’s repeat offenders. It’s the same things.”

The Texas A&M football team has a penalties problem, racking up 77 through 10 games thus far.

“I’m running out of ways to tell them,” coach Mike Elko proclaimed Monday afternoon. “My frustration became a little bit evident on Saturday night with it. It’s repeat offenders. It’s the same things.

“I have to find creative ways to get it done because it’s not working.”

As pointed out by Tony Catalina of the Austin American-Statesman, there hasn’t been a college football program in the last four years who committed more than 78 penalties in a season that went on to win the national championship.

“We talk about it every Monday,” said sophomore linebacker Taurean York. “It’s like shooting yourself in the foot. We had penalties at South Carolina. They can be the difference between a win and a loss.”

Senior wide receiver Jabre Barber, who transferred in the offseason from Troy, appears to be more optimistic about the issue than his teammate.

“Going from the first bye week to now, I feel like we’ve progressed a lot as a team on both sides of the ball,” Barber said. “We still have some room to grow.”

No. 14 Texas A&M (8-2, 5-1 SEC) plays Auburn (4-6, 1-5) in its penultimate regular season contest at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday night. The matchup at Jordan-Hare Stadium will be broadcast on ESPN.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Shaun on Twitter: @Shaun_Holkko.

Who are the experts taking in Chargers vs. Ravens?

Find out who experts are picking between the Chargers and Ravens.

The Los Angeles Chargers are 3-point underdogs to the Baltimore Ravens in Week 12 of the 2024 regular season. The over/under is 51 points, per BetMGM Sportsbook.

That means oddsmakers are taking bets on whether the two teams will combine to score more than or fewer than 51 points.

My score prediction for the game is a 30-27 win for the Chargers, with a total of 57 points. So, if I were putting money based on my prediction, I’d bet the over.

As for game picks, analysts give a slight nod to Baltimore.

Expert	Pick
Nate Davis (USA Today)	Ravens
Jarrett Bell (USA Today)	Ravens
Mike Clay (ESPN)	Ravens
Matt Bowen (ESPN)	Ravens
Pete Prisco (CBS Sports)	Chargers
Bill Bender (Sporting News)	Chargers
NFL.com Staff	Ravens (4-1)
Bleacher Report	Ravens

Monday’s game will begin at 5:15 p.m. PT and be televised on ESPN.

LPGA major champion Sophia Popov makes debut as on-course reporter at CME

This is her first gig doing on-course work during a golf telecast.

NAPLES, Fla. — Sophia Popov woke up at 6 a.m. Thursday fired up to get to the first tee. She wasn’t nervous about the narrow opening shot at Tiburon Golf Club, however, because this time, she didn’t have to hit it.

Popov, 32, instead had on a headset as she went to work as an on-course commentator for the first time for ESPN. The 2020 AIG Women’s British Open champion is part of this week’s Featured Groups coverage at the LPGA’s season-ending CME Group Tour Championship. She has twice commentated in the booth for other networks during the 2015 and 2024 Solheim Cups.

CME Group Tour Championship: Leaderboard | Photos

“I’ve always thought about this as a career and I really want to do it,” said Popov, “and I think this is definitely where I see my future. But at the same time, I feel like my game has actually kind of come together towards the end of the year. I definitely would like to play another year and then kind of see how the year goes, and ease out of playing and more into broadcast and not make it a hard stop.”

Sophia Popov of Germany working for ESPN+ during the first round of the CME Group Tour Championship 2024 at Tiburon Golf Club in Naples, Florida. (Michael Reaves/Getty Images)

Popov gave birth to daughter Maya Mae Mehles in June 2023 and returned to the tour in March.

Will Haskett and Amanda Blumenherst are in the studio for this week’s Featured Groups coverage while Chantel McCabe joins Popov on the course.

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49ers solve biggest roster flaw in ESPN mock draft

The 49ers address the offensive line in the latest mock draft from ESPN.

While the stretch run and playoff push of the season is looming in the NFL, the college football schedule is entering the final two weeks before conference championships, bowl season and the highly-anticipated 12-team playoff.

As the college football season heats up, the final handful of weeks will display some of the top prospects in the upcoming 2025 NFL Draft class for the final time.

In the latest NFL mock draft from ESPN draft analyst Matt Miller, the San Francisco 49ers addressed their offensive line in the first round. With the No. 16 overall pick in the 2024 edition of the NFL draft, Miller penned Texas Longhorns offensive tackle Cameron Williams.

According to Miller, Williams’ game is still “raw,” but he could be a “long-term fix” for the 49ers offensive line on the right side alongside breakout young guard Dominick Puni.

Via ESPN:

He’s a first-year starter, and his game is still raw, but he shows considerable potential. The 6-foot-5, 335-pounder has drawn comparisons to 2024 first-rounder Amarius Mims in terms of his strength and agility, with one NFC South area scout telling me that Williams has a chance to be the first OT drafted if he declares. The 49ers could plug him next to guard Dominick Puni, their third-round pick in 2024, and form an incredibly young and strong right side of the line.

Read Miller’s full mock draft here via ESPN.

The former three-star recruit is listed at 6-foot-5, 335 lbs. Williams plays on the opposite side of the Longhorns’ line as fellow top offensive tackle prospect Kelvin Banks.

According to Pro Football Focus, Williams has earned a 72.0 offensive grade this season with a 79.3 pass-blocking grade and a 76.2 run-blocking grade. Williams earned his best grade during Texas’ contest against Vanderbilt with an 81.1 grade.

Williams will suit up for Texas against Kentucky on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. PT.

This post originally appeared on Niners Wire! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!

All 32 starting NFL QBs (including Russell Wilson) ranked by Total QBR

Where does Russell Wilson rank among the rest of the league in Total QBR?

Since switching from Justin Fields to Russell Wilson, the Pittsburgh Steelers have gone 4-0 and are on top in the AFC North. The team is 8-2 and if the playoffs started today, would be the No. 3 seed in the playoffs.

There are lost of ways to look at quarterback success but many say wins simply aren’t enough. Perhaps the most thorough measure of a quarterback’s contribution to that win is Total QBR, developed by ESPN. Here is the full ranking of all 32 NFL quarterbacks by Total QBR after Week 11 including Wilson.

NFL QBs ranked by Total QBR after Week 11

Joe Burrow: 76.1
Lamar Jackson: 75.0
Kyler Murray: 74.9
Josh Allen: 72.7
Jayden Daniels: 67.6
Brock Purdy: 67.4
Patrick Mahomes: 67.0
Derek Carr: 62.1
Jalen Hurts: 62.0
Matthew Stafford: 60.6
Tua Tagovailoa: 60.4
Drake Maye: 59.6
Jared Goff: 59.4
Jordan Love: 59.3
Kirk Cousins: 56.3
Justin Herbert: 56.3
Baker Mayfield: 56.2
Sam Darnold: 55.7
Geno Smith: 55.4
Bo Nix: 55.3
C.J. Stroud: 54.4
Aaron Rodgers: 51.0
Jameis Winston: 61.0
Russell Wilson: 59.5
Anthony Richardson: 45.9
Caleb Williams: 44.5
Gardner Minshew: 39.1
Will Levis: 32.6
Bryce Young: 32.5
Cooper Rush: 28.4
Mac Jones: 17.7
Drew Lock: 8.7

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Vikings front office member expected to interview for GM openings

With the Minnesota Vikings having a better than expected season in 2024, could Ryan Grigson be a GM candidate for the New York Jets in 2025?

There are still several weeks of the NFL season left to play, but the NFL’s coaching carousel has already begun. The New York Jets kicked off this year’s cycle by firing their head coach Robert Saleh in early October. The Las Vegas Raiders were next to make moves, clearing out several coordinators but keeping head coach Antonio Pierce — for now.

The Saints followed up by firing head coach Dennis Allen in early November, and the Bears followed by firing offensive coordinator Shane Waldron but keeping head coach Matt Eberflus—again, for now.

Then, the Jets kicked off the front-office carousel by firing their general manager, Joe Douglas, kicking their personnel search into high gear. A number of people across the NFL landscape are going to be hot commodities for these positions, and at least one of those people could come from the Minnesota Vikings.

According to ESPN’s NFL Insider Jeremy Fowler, current Vikings senior VP of player personnel Ryan Grigson could be a name to watch for the Jets’ opening or any other openings that become available. Grigson has helped build a Vikings team that exceeded expectations in 2024 and has added a number of high-quality talents to the roster since arriving in 2022.

Grigson also has previous experience as a GM in the league, serving in that position for the Indianapolis Colts from 2012 to 2016. That tenure was notable for the Colts taking former Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck with the first pick in the 2012 NFL Draft.

Luck, along with Grigson and head coach Chuck Pagano, immediately turned the Colts’ fortunes around. From a lowly 2-14 team in 2011, they finished second in the AFC South with an 11-5 record in 2012. Grigson’s Colts won their division the next two seasons and made the playoffs.

Ultimately, though, the Colts could never get over the hump during Grigson’s tenure, and Grigson was fired after the Colts turned in back-to-back 8-8 seasons, missing the playoffs in two straight seasons for the first time since the beginning of the Peyton Manning era in Indianapolis.

Enough time has passed since his Colts’ tenure, and the Vikings have done well enough that Grigson will likely get a second chance at a GM gig if he wants it. Grigson’s days with the Vikings could be numbered whether that’s this year or in the near future.

ESPN analyst lists Steelers as favorites to sign Daniel Jones in 2025

Could Daniel Jones find a fresh start in Pittsburgh? One ESPN analyst sees the Steelers as a top landing spot if the Giants move on in 2025.

Pittsburgh is slowly becoming a quarterback rehab center, where struggling signal callers leave their worries, and former teams, behind to become a much more confident QB. Russell Wilson and Justin Fields looked far more comfortable with the Steelers than they did with the Broncos and Bears, respectively, and now it appears one ESPN analyst believes Pittsburgh could add one more name to this list come the 2025 offseason.

QB Daniel Jones of the New York Giants has seemingly fallen out of the team’s aspirations for their long-term future, with backup QB Tommy DeVito being named the team’s starter by Head Coach Brian Daboll.

ESPN analyst Ben Solak fully expects the Giants to cut Jones in 2025 and touched on potential landing spots for the QB, shooting down the New York Jets as suitors while hyping up Pittsburgh’s odds: “I’m also keeping my eyes on the Steelers (current running favorite), Titans and Browns.”

If the Pittsburgh Steelers are unable to keep Fields or Wilson past 2024, could Jones provide a much-needed bridge in 2025 while the team searches for their future signal caller?

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Vikings keep moving up NFL power rankings ahead of Week 12

The Vikings are surging upward in the power rankings.

Following the Vikings’ 23-13 win over the Titans in Nashville this past weekend, Minnesota has moved up ESPN’s latest power ranking. Entering the weekend, the Vikings were the eighth-best team. But after the win, Minnesota has moved up to No. 6.

“Adofo-Mensah is the general manager of a team that has surprised the NFL by starting 8-2 despite the season-long loss of rookie quarterback J.J. McCarthy (knee). His 2024 draft hasn’t helped much, similar to the 2022 and 2023 drafts, but Adofo-Mensah’s free agent class — including linebackers Jonathan Greenard, Andrew Van Ginkel and Blake Cashman, along with cornerback Stephon Gilmore — has been fantastic. There was never a high likelihood that Adofo-Mensah would be fired this winter, but the team’s performance raises the chances that he will receive a contract extension.”

The Detroit Lions are ESPN’s top team in the NFL following the Chiefs’ loss to the Bills. The Vikings’ next opponent, the Bears, are ranked No. 23 in the power rankings.