CFP National Championship 2025: ESPN's MegaCast Menu Highlighted by REMI Production of Field Pass With The Pat McAfee Show Command Center, SkyCast, Spanish-language coverage round out linear options By Brandon Costa, Director of Digital
Monday, January 20, 2025 - 10:01 am
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From the expanded playoff to new-look conferences, NIL, and the transfer portal, a lot was different about this season of college football. However, as the season culminates in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game in Atlanta tonight, an old reliable awaits: ESPN's MegaCast.
Besides the primary game telecast airing on ESPN, the broadcaster will again offer fans a bevy of ways to consume the final of the CFP. The most popular option has become the alternative broadcast Field Pass With The Pat McAfee Show, which will air on ESPN2.
One of ESPN's many MegaCast viewing options, Field Pass With The Pat McAfee Show, broadcast this month from the sidelines of the Cotton Bowl. (Photo: Phil Ellsworth/ESPN Images)
What differentiates Field Pass from other alternative broadcasts is that this one comes straight from the sidelines of the game. Host Pat McAfee and a supporting cast of AJ Hawk, Darius Butler, Connor Campbell, Ty Schmit,and Tone Digs will be joined throughout the game by ESPN talent and other notable personalities and celebrities, offering their commentary and conversation around the action on the field.
MORE FROM THE COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME:
It's All Hands on Deck for ESPN's Massive Production in Atlanta
ESPN To Deliver Main Game Telecast in 4K for the First Time
Van Wagner To Hype Up Buckeyes, Fighting Irish Fans From New IP-Based Control Room
Inside Ohio State Football's Creative Storytelling at Monday's Title Game
According to an ESPN press release, Field Pass With The Pat McAfee Show delivered the largest audience for any ESPN alternative telecast on record, attracting 2.4 million viewers at this year's Rose Bowl Game, one of the two College Football Playoff Semifinals.
Field Pass is a REMI production. Onsite, two RF handheld cameras, two dedicated hard cameras, 10 Blue Steel microphones, 10 IFBs, and a pair of return monitors will capture the action from the sideline. A dedicated mobile unit in the production compound outside Mercedes-Benz Stadium will send the feeds to ESPN headquarters in Bristol, CT, where the final show will be cut and distributed.
Meanwhile, on ESPNU, viewers will be able to watch Command Center, a multi-angle, stats-heavy presentation of the game. At any given time, four windows will be presented on the screen: the main game telecast, a feed from the Skycam, shots from cameras dedicated to covering the head coaches, and/or graphics of game, player, and team statistics. This alternative feed was available on other CFP games, composited through the game truck. However, for the Championship Game, it will be fully produced from Bristol.
Another returning MegaCast offering is SkyCast, which will air on ESPNEWS. It will allow the viewer to watch a majority of the game via one of the two Skycams rigged up in the stadium. The Skycam essentially subs in for the main game camera: viewers will still get the replays shown in the main telecast. The show is managed through the game switcher.
The ESPN App offers other, more personalized options for streamers. Two Hometown Radio feeds enable fans to watch the game with the announcer of either Ohio State or Notre Dame instead of the TV talent. They can also watch the All-22 camera, which provides a complete view of the field and shows all the players in the shot. The ESPN Radio call will be overlaid on this feed. Also, at halftime, ESPN will offer the ability to stream the team bands' performances on the Mercedes-Benz Stadium field. It is produced with a locked-off game camera and shares the natural sound.
Here's the full lineup of viewing options for ESPN's coverage of the College Football Playoff National Championship on Monday evening:
Main Game Telecast: ESPN
Field Pass With The Pat McAfee Show: ESPN2
Command Center: ESPNU
SkyCast: ESPNEWS
Spanish Language: ESPN Deportes
Hometown Radio - Ohio State: ESPN App
Hometown Radio - Notre Dame: ESPN App
All-22: ESPN App
Halftime Bands: ESPN App
4K Main Game Telecast: available on Comcast, DIRECTV, Dish Network, Optimum, Sling TV, Verizon, and YouTube TV
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CFP National Championship 2025: ESPN's MegaCast Menu Highlighted by REMI Production of Field Pass With The Pat McAfee Show Command Center, SkyCast, Spanish-language coverage round out linear options By Brandon Costa, Director of Digital 
