Sports TV News

Skip Bayless: I’m Married to My Job, Everything Else is Second

“I live for this. It’s my whole life. It’s my calling. It’s not a job; it’s my passion.”

Published

2 years ago

January 28, 2022

Yes, it seems like everybody has a podcast. But someone who’s on television and is paid to share (shout) his or her opinions almost certainly has an audio program in a medium that continues to grow. The cup can’t runneth over.

That includes Skip Bayless, who already has two-and-a-half hours of airtime Monday through Friday (totally 12.5 hours per week) on FS1 with Skip and Shannon: Undisputed. That seems like plenty of Skip. Even he would presumably think so. But no!

Bayless recently launched The Skip Bayless Show, which provides an additional platform for punditry, another hour each week in which he can unleash his takes on the sports populace. With the NFL playoffs taking almost all of the sports spotlight right now, it shouldn’t be a surprise that Bayless has put his focus there in the three shows so far.

But he also adds a personal touch, something there probably isn’t time for on Undisputed (though that show has plenty of time). In the latest episode, for instance, Bayless discussed how Tom Brady has influenced his life professionally and personally, which might make the quarterback’s retirement a bit more impactful for him.

. @RealSkipBayless explains why his personal life will always come second to his career:

“I'm married to this…when I met my wife I told her, 'You’ll always be number 2 to my job, which is my life.'” pic.twitter.com/trfebrQy3r
— The Skip Bayless Show (@SkipBaylessShow) January 27, 2022

However, Bayless also provided a glimpse at his personal ethic and how he balances work with his life. As it turns out, that work-life balance may not be balanced at all with an admission that he chose not to have children because of his devotion to his career.

“I am obsessed to this moment with what I am doing right here, right now with you,” said an emotional Bayless (via The Big Lead). “I live for this. It’s my whole life. It’s my calling. It’s not a job; it’s my passion. It’s what I was born to do and what I want to continue to do as long as my personal situation will allow it.”

Bayless went on to share that his refusal to have children cost him a marriage and another long-term relationship. But he knew that working nights and weekends “obsessively” to cover sports thoroughly would make him “a horrible father.” He was up front with his current wife when they began dating and she accepted that.

It would be easy to mock Bayless for taking himself so seriously that he avoided what many might consider a normal life, maybe even the ideal. But whether you like Bayless or not, it can’t be denied that he’s successful. Very successful. According to the New York Post‘s Andrew Marchand, Bayless agreed to a four-year, $32 million contract with Fox Sports last year.

Would he have achieved that kind of financial reward by trying to have a family, what many might consider a normal life? Maybe. But maybe it would’ve been more difficult and as Bayless feared, perhaps there would’ve been repercussions.

All of this seems a bit sad and Bayless’s emotion appears to show that this has not been an easy choice for him. Whether or not you admire him for his success likely depends on what you value most in life.

Ian Casselberry

Ian Casselberry is a sports media columnist for BSM. He has previously written and edited for Awful Announcing, The Comeback, Sports Illustrated, Yahoo Sports, MLive, Bleacher Report, and SB Nation. You can find him on Twitter @iancass or reach him by email at [email protected].

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Kirk Herbstreit: I Don’t Have an Agenda About College Football

Herbstreit told Pat McAfee the notion he has influence over the CFP Committee is laughable.

Published

7 hours ago

December 5, 2023

Jordan Bondurant

(Photo: ESPN Images)

Florida State being left out of the College Football Playoff semifinals brought out plenty of conspiracies and beliefs that ESPN and personalities like Kirk Herbstreit somehow manipulated the rankings.

Herbstreit appeared on The Pat McAfee Show on Monday, where Pat joked that Kirk gets to decide who gets in the playoff as well as other awards like the Heisman.

Kirk tried to quell anything floating around that might insinuate he makes any big decisions like that.

“I know you’re kidding, but there’s some people that think you’re serious when it comes to ESPN or me or anybody having any agenda or having anything to do with these teams,” he said. “It’s the committee that ultimately decides what’s going to happen.”

“I don’t have an agenda on anything other than I just want to see the subjective analysis of who the best four teams are,” Herbstreit added.

Kirk Herbstreit continued by saying that some of the loudest voices are misunderstanding what factors into what schools make the final four.

He explained that it was clear that Michigan was one and Washington two. The next group of teams to consider was called a cluster and consisted of programs like Alabama, Texas, Florida State and Georgia. Herbstreit was reading from what the playoff committee has to go off of when it comes to generating a final ranking.

“Conference championship, strength of schedule, head-to-head competition is another thing,” he said. “Comparative outcomes with a common opponent. None of these are weighted more than the other. And the last thing is other relevant factors such as unavailability of key players or coaches that may have affected a team’s performance or likely will affect its postseason performance.”

“That’s where this, to me, that’s what separated these teams,” he said. “You couldn’t put Alabama ahead of Texas, Texas beat Alabama. Based on all of those things I just mentioned, they must’ve said, Texas is gonna go to number three probably because of the head-to-head. And then you got Alabama and Florida State and Georgia.”

Jordan Bondurant

Jordan Bondurant is a features reporter for Barrett Sports Media. He’s a multimedia journalist and communicator who works at the Virginia State Corporation Commission in Richmond. Jordan also contributes occasional coverage of the Washington Capitals for the blog NoVa Caps. His prior media experiences include working for the Richmond Times-Dispatch, the Danville Register & Bee, Virginia Lawyers Weekly, WRIC-TV 8News and Audacy Richmond. He can be reached by email at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter @J__Bondurant.

Sports TV News

ESPN Sees Highest Ever Pac-12 Championship Game Ratings

The top-5 matchup marked the final game in the conference’s long history.

Published

7 hours ago

December 5, 2023

Jordan Bondurant

The final football broadcast for the Pac-12 as we know it generated the highest viewership ever on Friday night for ESPN and its stable of college football.

Oregon and Washington, who will be members of the Big Ten next season, met for the Pac-12 championship in Las Vegas and brought in 9.2 million viewers in its Friday night primetime window on ABC.

The viewership for the game, which had College Football Playoff implications for both teams, was up 47% compared to the 2022 title game between USC and Utah.

The audience for the Huskies victory over the Ducks peaked at 11.1 million viewers from 11:30-11:45 PM Eastern.

Jordan Bondurant

Sports TV News

ACC Network Adds Justin Walters as Host

“I’m grateful to ESPN and ACC Network for this opportunity and thrilled to be a part of the team. I’m ready to put in the work!”

Published

15 hours ago

December 4, 2023

Jeff Kotuby

A photo of Justin Walters at the Super Bowl

(Photo: Justin Walters)

Justin Walters is the latest member of the ACC Network and its roster of hosts, ESPN has announced.

Walters previously worked for PIX11 News in New York City and served as a college football and basketball reporter for CBS Sports over the past three years. Walters will debut on Wednesday, Dec. 6 anchoring halftime coverage of the ACC Network’s men’s college basketball doubleheader. He will also host the network’s signature basketball show Nothing But Net.

“We’re excited to add Justin to our ACC Network team. He is both talented and versatile, an ideal combination for this role, which will include hosting shows in studio and on the road, as well as reporting and conducting interviews in the field,” said ESPN Senior Vice President of Production Michael Shiffman.

Born in Brooklyn and raised in Mount Vernon, N.Y., Walters graduated from La Salle University with a Bachelor of Arts in broadcast journalism. He is an active member of The National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) and Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc.

Prior to PIX11, Walters was the sports director and anchor for WRNN-TV/Fios1 News in the greater New York City area, where he covered both high school and professional teams throughout the tri-state area. His most memorable assignments included the Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Conor McGregor fight in Las Vegas and Mariano Rivera’s unanimous Hall of Fame induction in Cooperstown, N.Y. He started his career in 2013 with WBBJ-TV in Jackson, Tennessee.

“Joining ESPN is truly a dream come true,” Walters said. “Growing up watching some of the greatest and recreating a broadcast as a kid…this is a full circle moment. I’m grateful to ESPN and ACC Network for this opportunity and thrilled to be a part of the team. I’m ready to put in the work!”

Jeff Kotuby

Jeff Kotuby is a nationally-published journalist with bylines on many popular broadcasting and pop culture sites, including The Streamable, eBaum’s World, Twin Galaxies, and more. Jeff grew up in the shadows of New York City and cultivated his love for sports media with the classic broadcasting voices of the area, like Mike & The Mad Dog, Mike “Doc” Emerick, and Michael Kay. You can reach Jeff on Twitter @JeffKotu3y.