
Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame 2020-21: Don Cornelli, The Lens Through Which America Watches Sports By Jason Dachman, Chief Editor
Friday, December 3, 2021 - 9:34 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
In a ceremony postponed by the pandemic, the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame Class of 2020 will be inducted on Dec. 14 at the New York Hilton. SVG is profiling the nine inductees in the weeks prior. For more information, CLICK HERE.
Anyone who has watched an NFL broadcast in the last 30 years has seen a Don Cornelli shot. And they've also probably seen him in the shot: he's the guy sprinting down the sidelines anticipating the next play, inches from the celebrating player who has just scored, or getting run over by a player tumbling out of bounds. Whether it's on the football field, the hardcourt, the fairway, or anywhere else a sports event is taking place, Cornelli and his handheld camera can somehow be found in the right place at the right time to capture the money shot.
From the very beginning of Don's long, successful career in network television, says Sports Broadcasting Hall of Famer and camera operator Davey Finch, he has always possessed the wonderful, natural gift of a great eye' for shot composition and framing. His camerawork excels because he knows what to shoot, when to shoot, and how to position himself to achieve the best possible shot on any sport he covers.
As one of the top handheld-camera operators working today, Cornelli endeavors to get viewers as close as possible to the action and is a mainstay on the sidelines of some of the NFL's biggest games. Though most known for his work on NFL broadcasts on CBS Sports and Fox Sports for more than three decades, he has also covered NBA, MLB, NHL, NCAA, PGA, NASCAR, the Olympics, and the World Cup.
Nobody sees the world more clearly through a viewfinder than Cornelli, says Fox Sports CEO/Executive Producer Eric Shanks. And the world is better for it.
Catching the Fever: How Cornelli Fell in Love With Broadcasting A native of suburban Detroit, Cornelli grew up loving sports and, after graduating from Troy Athens High School, attended Central Michigan University, where he caught the sports-broadcasting bug.
I did not go to Central Michigan thinking I was ever going to be in broadcasting, he says, but, when I got there and started doing the hands-on stuff in the studio, I got hooked. That's when I realized that this is what I wanted to do.
He began working at the student-run cable station MHTV as well as at the public-broadcasting station WCMU Mount Pleasant, MI. In his sophomore year, he landed a gig freelancing for ESPN on USFL games in Detroit. It marked the beginning of what would become a lifelong love affair with pro football.
A Life in Pictures: From CBS to Fox and Beyond After graduating from Central Michigan, he landed a job shooting instructional and promotional videos for General Motors and eventually got a full-time camera gig in news - first at CNN's office in Detroit and then at UPN affiliate WKBD Detroit. He continued freelancing on live sports shows on the weekends and, in 1986, worked his first NFL game for CBS Sports in Minneapolis.
Cornelli worked his way up the ranks and, by 1988, was a fixture on the CBS A game with the fabled team of director Sandy Grossman, producer Bob Stenner, and Pat Summerall and John Madden in the booth.
By this point, Cornelli had opted to leave the local news scene in Detroit and was freelancing full-time, working NFL, NBA, NASCAR, college basketball, and other broadcasts for CBS; Pistons, Red Wings, and Tigers shows for PASS Sports in Detroit; and college basketball for ESPN.
By 1993, Cornelli had begun to make a name for himself as one of the best handheld-camera operators in the business. However, when CBS lost the rights to the NFL's NFC package to fledgling Fox Sports, he found himself unsure of what was next.
When it happened after the '93 season, no one knew what was going to happen, he remembers. Thankfully, Fox ended up taking Madden and Summerall, and they brought Sandy and Bob with them, and Sandy asked me to go with him as well. Those were really exciting times because we were starting something brand new at Fox.
Cornelli has been working the NFL on Fox A games ever since. In all, he has worked 33 NFC Championship games for Fox and CBS and 23 Super Bowls for various broadcasters. He has also captured countless iconic NFL moments, including the Giants' Plaxico Burress's game-winning TD catch to beat the undefeated Patriots in Super Bowl XLII.
As a freelancer, Cornelli retains the freedom to work events for different broadcasters. And work he does. After the NFL season winds down, he works on CBS Sports' golf coverage in the offseason, including The Masters and PGA Championship. Over the years, he has also run handheld camera at the NBA Finals, NCAA Final Four, NHL Stanley Cup Final, World Series, Olympics (1992 and 1994 Winter Games for CBS and 1996 Summer Games for NBC), FIFA World Cup (1994 in the U.S.), US Open tennis, and Daytona 500, among others.
Don's body of work speaks for itself, says Sports Broadcasting Hall of Famer and longtime director at CBS Sports Bob Fishman. A consummate pro who makes every broadcast better with his creative eye for the perfect shot, as well as his unparalleled work ethic. He is a credit to every camera crew he has ever worked on.
It's a Gift: A Knack for Being in the Right Place at the Right Time Although Cornelli attributes much of his intuitive right place, right time ability to luck, he does acknowledge that movement and positioning are key to his success. For example, if it's a must-win game for a team with a great passing offense, he will position himself farther down the field from the line of scrimmage than
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
30/04/2026
The Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL) concluded its third regular season on Saturday, reporting growth across attendance, viewership, digital engage...
30/04/2026
NBC Sports will air national MLB coverage on Sundays beginning May 3, with MLB Sunday Leadoff on Peacock and NBCSN at 12:30 p.m. ET, followed by the debut of th...
30/04/2026
Clear-Com has appointed Brian Grahn as Market Outreach Manager of the Americas and Ben Turnwell as Business Development Manager for EMEA live.
Grahn joined Cle...
30/04/2026
ARRI has introduced the cforce MAX, a new lens motor for the Hi-5 lens control system. The cforce MAX is twice as fast as the cforce plus motor it replaces whil...
30/04/2026
Knuerr, Voxtronic, and IHSE will jointly present an integrated control room solu...
30/04/2026
The CW Network and ESPN have announced an agreement to make the ESPN App the exclusive streaming home for all CW Sports live events. CW Sports will continue to ...
30/04/2026
Ed Sheeran's The Loop' tour launched in Auckland in January 2026 before moving on to Australia, with South America and the United States to follow late...
30/04/2026
Audinate has announced Dante Preset Creator, a free online tool for configuring Dante network settings before hardware is available on site. Presets created in ...
30/04/2026
Yahoo Sports has announced the appointment of Jarrod Schwarz as General Manager of Yahoo Sports. Schwarz will oversee product, design, and technology; revenue a...
30/04/2026
Nielsen has released a new report, Get Ready with Media Intelligence: 2026 FIFA World Cup Edition, examining U.S. soccer viewership trends, fan engagement, and ...
30/04/2026
USA Lacrosse and SportsEngine have announced an expanded partnership, naming Spo...
30/04/2026
Telos Alliance will participate in the 2026 Media Production and Technology Show (MPTS), taking place May 13-14 at Olympia London. Rather than exhibiting from a...
30/04/2026
The global streamer buys the U.S. DTC platform solutions provider for a reported...
30/04/2026
Tigo Sports, Paraguay's leading sports broadcaster, has upgraded its video infrastructure with Ateme solutions for live encoding, multiplexing, and signal c...
30/04/2026
World Rugby and IMG have announced a long-term media rights partnership focused on growing rugby in the United States ahead of the Men's and Women's Rug...
30/04/2026
For the second year in a row, Overtime and the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) are teaming up through a renewed content partnership to bring fans even...
30/04/2026
The 22-year ESPN vet's responsibilities will reportedly be taken over by SVP Mike Foss...
30/04/2026
In-venue and creative video staffers at the professional and collegiate level ha...
30/04/2026
Amazon and Duke University have announced a multiyear agreement for Prime Video to present exclusive coverage of three Duke Blue Devils men's basketball neu...
30/04/2026
Ratings Roundup is a rundown of recent rating news and is derived from press rel...
30/04/2026
Music is evolving, and so are the ways you discover and connect with artists. In...
30/04/2026
Between April 22-29, the first inaugural Stockholm Music Week brought together thought leaders and partners across industries including music, tech, government,...
30/04/2026
Iconic large-format console upgraded
API's iconic Vision console has just been treated to an overhaul that aims to meet the demands of today's profe...
30/04/2026
Comes complete with miking accessories
The LCT 440 Pure has proven to be a popular member of Lewitt's mic line-up, offering impressive technical perform...
30/04/2026
24 October 2026 at The Octagon, Sheffield
Now in its eighth year, SynthFest UK is the largest event of its kind in the UK, bringing together the top keyboar...
30/04/2026
SBS & NITV LEAD NATIONAL RECONCILIATION WEEK 2026 WITH LANDMARK GULPILIL DOCUMEN...
30/04/2026
Rohde & Schwarz equips new Terminal 3 at Frankfurt Airport with security scanner...
30/04/2026
Rohde & Schwarz expands broadband amplifier portfolio with new power classes up ...
30/04/2026
Jennifer Ehle (Contagion, Zero Dark Thirty) and Alex Hassell (Rivals, Wasteman, ...
30/04/2026
MELBOURNE, Fla., April 29, 2026 - L3Harris Technologies (NYSE: LHX) today announ...
30/04/2026
MELBOURNE, Fla., April 30, 2026 - L3Harris Technologies (NYSE: LHX) reports first quarter 2026 results.
Highlights
Orders of $7.8 billion; book-to-bill of 1....
30/04/2026
Behind the Broadcast: The Sound of Elite Golf Golf is gaining popularity; the 2025 Ryder Cup achieved record-breaking viewing figures in the UK specifically, wi...
30/04/2026
STA VENERA, MALTA, APRIL 29, 2026 CPI Media, a voluntary organization within the Missionary Society of St Paul (MSSP) and a leading media house dedicated to p...
30/04/2026
New software platform delivers comprehensive timing measurement across production workflows...
30/04/2026
Once again, the UK Pavilion in Hall 5 of BroadcastAsia 2026 will feature the latest and best in technology specifically developed and tailored for modern media ...
30/04/2026
Avid powers faster workflows and next-generation immersive audio with latest Pro...
30/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/04/2026
Scalable broadcast-grade production over public internet, replacing traditional OB workflows...
30/04/2026
Live demonstrations highlight LCEVC ecosystem momentum, AI-powered video pipelines, and expansion across broadcast, streaming, and social media.
DTV (TV 3.0) ...
30/04/2026
Student Spotlight: Matthew Leon The dual major shares his path from community college to Berklee, and how his heritage influences his work.
April 29, 2026
B...
30/04/2026
Berklee Artists to Perform at Major Global Music Festivals As part of the Berklee Popular Music Institute, students will perform at Lollapalooza, Governors Ba...
30/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...