Trevor Immelman Joining Jim Nantz At NFL Games to Build Chemistry
“I’m going to go join him at a couple of NFL games this fall and just spend some time with him so we can know each other more and try and create that chemistry.”
When CBS is back on golf coverage in January 2023 with the Farmers Insurance Open, a new lead analyst will be in the booth with Jim Nantz as 2008 Masters champion Trevor Immelman takes the seat previously filled by Sir Nick Faldo (retired). Immelman and Nantz have worked together on the CBS broadcast before, but this will be a new role.
Immelman was a guest on the latest episode of the GOLF’s Subpar podcast and he mentioned that he is trying to speak with Nantz more and will even get together with him at a couple of NFL games this year to get to know each other better.
“Him [Nantz] and I are just in the process of trying to speak to each other more and more and spend more time with each other. I’m going to go join him at a couple of NFL games this fall and just spend some time with him so we can know each other more and try and create that chemistry to where when people see us, they are having a good time and looking forward to watching PGA Tour golf on TV.”
When a new broadcast duo is former, usually you will hear about the two people doing a broadcast of an old game or match together to work out the kinks. Since Immelman and Nantz already have worked together, Immelman did not feel that that needed to happen. Instead, it’s building chemistry that’s important to him.
“At this point, we don’t really have anything planned like that. We both understand the ins and outs of it. I think it will be more about spending time together, understanding how each person talks, what ideas are, the timing of the way you speak so people aren’t stepping on each other. It’s a bit more of the chemistry aspect that I think is important.”
Even when Immelman heard that Faldo was going to retire, being the lead analyst on CBS’s golf coverage wasn’t on the forefront of his mind due to being busy with TV and being the captain of the International side in the upcoming Presidents Cup. Now that he has the role, it hasn’t yet kicked in that he will be in the 18th hole tower with Nantz next year.
“I can’t say it was really on my radar. Incredibly humbled by that. It’s a spot that’s only been held by 4 people before me. Maybe it hasn’t really sunk in yet to be honest. It feels good when I think about it.”
Since getting into TV at the Golf Channel in 2016, Immelman has learned that the role is harder than it appeared while he was a player, but he is not afraid to be critical about the players even though he got to play with a lot of them while he was on the PGA Tour.
“I’m not too worried about that and I haven’t been over the past few years. I’m a pretty honest person…That’s my strategy. If there is something there that I see I don’t like or I don’t agree with, it doesn’t necessarily mean I’m right. I’m never going to be personal in any way. If I see them doing something wrong with their swing or strategy, then you really have to go ahead and call them out…You have to be authentic and you have to be real. If guys get upset about it, it’s just the way it is.”
Ricky Keeler is a reporter for BSM with a primary focus on sports media podcasts and national personalities. He is also an active podcaster with an interest in pursuing a career in sports media. You can find him on Twitter @Rickinator555 or reach him by email at RickJKeeler@gmail.com.
Lakers Lounge, hosted by Anthony Irwin, Green With Envy, hosted by Will Weird, Greg Maneikis, and Adam Taylor, and Pod Maverick with Kirk Henderson are all being revived with Blue Wire.
“We’ve built Blue Wire around being able to identify exceptional talent hitting the podcast free agency market,” said Blue Wire CEO Kevin Jones. “We were thrilled to act quickly and provide a new home for three standout local NBA podcasts.”
“I’ve known Kevin for years and we’ve often spoken about working together,” Irwin said. “I couldn’t possibly be more excited to add to all the great work Blue Wire has become known for as we finally see years of conversations become a fruitful partnership.”
The former SB Nation programs that follow the Los Angeles Lakers, Boston Celtics, and Dallas Mavericks, respectively, were able to negotiate the ownership of their podcasts with Vox, allowing them to bring their former feeds with them to Blue Wire.
The addition of the three podcasts adds to the company’s growing list of NBA shows. Currently, Blue Wire hosts Road Trippin’ with Richard Jefferson and Channing Frye, and No Chill with Gilbert Arenas, among others.
Rob Parker loves Major League Baseball and he is expanding his reach in the sport. His site MLBBro.com is taking another step forward just weeks after announcing a partnership with the league to provide coverage of minority players from the past and present.
He will add a podcast to the brand’s portfolio. The MLBBro Show Podcast – The Mixtapewill join the iHeartRadio podcast lineup. While Parker oversees the brand, the show will be led by MLBbro.com’s Vice President of Operations JR Gamble.
Gamble brings more than two decades of experience covering the league to the show. The first episode drops right after Opening Day on March 31.
“I’m thrilled to be a part of this groundbreaking project – this sound has never been heard before in connection with Major League Baseball,” said Parker, who has been a Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA) member since 1990.
“It’s baseball coverage with hot sauce, loud and proud and in living color. Get on board from day one!”
If TikTok is banned in the United States, a very realistic possibility, the ad market around sports and sports media stands to take a significant hit. Front Office Sports took a look at the companies that used the social video platform to advertise to sports audiences in 2022 and 2023.
Among the advertisers making major investments in TikTok was Degree, whose March Madness advertising campaign includes an ad that is exclusive to TikTok and stars Giannis Antetokounmpo. For the Super Bowl, T-Mobile supplemented its FOX ad buy with a TikTok campaign, while State Farm chose to skip the network broadcast of the game and spend all of its advertising with the digital platform.
It’s not only advertisers. Leagues and networks factor TikTok prominently into reaching younger audiences. The WWE, FIFA and the NBA all saw significant growth in their audiences on the app last year. On top of that, FOX and ESPN both have taken advertising money from TikTok in the past for postseason baseball and college football broadcasts respectively.
Prominent Democrats have spoken out against banning TikTok in the United States, but the effort has bipartisan support. The Biden administration and other lawmakers have voiced concern about the security threat the Chinese government’s involvement with the app poses to Americans and their personal data.
The appeal of TikTok for networks and advertisers is easy to see. Between 2021 and 2022, no social media platform showed more growth for engagement from sports fans. TikTok’s sports audience jumped 65% in that timeframe. Facebook saw 22% growth and for Twitter, it was just 8%.
