Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

Behind the Mic: Maria Taylor Joins NBC Sports; ESPN Retains Neil Everett

29/07/2021

Behind the Mic: Maria Taylor Joins NBC Sports; ESPN Retains Neil Everett By SVG Staff

Thursday, July 29, 2021 - 7:30 am

Print This Story | Subscribe

Story Highlights

Behind the Mic provides a roundup of recent news regarding on-air talent, including new deals, departures, and assignments compiled from press releases and reports around the industry. In this week's edition, NBC Sports lands the services of Maria Taylor, Neil Everett re-signs with ESPN, and more.

Maria Taylor Joins NBC Sports, Makes Debut at Tokyo Olympics Maria Taylor, whose work has already included many of the biggest events in sports, has joined NBC Sports beginning with the Tokyo Olympics. She comes to NBC Sports after nearly a decade at ABC/ESPN, where she most recently hosted the NBA Finals.

Highlighted by host roles for the Olympics and the NFL - including as a host and contributor for Football Night in America and Super Bowls - Taylor will work across premier NBC Sports properties.

Maria has excelled in a wide range of roles at marquee events, and will be a powerful addition to our team, says Pete Bevacqua, Chairman, NBC Sports. We are always looking to improve, and Maria is going to make us better. We are very excited for her to join us right away in Tokyo.

A graduate of the University of Georgia, Taylor played basketball and was a three-time All-SEC volleyball player. She was also a member of the USA A2 National Volleyball team. Taylor delivered the commencement address at her alma mater in May, marking the 60-year anniversary of the university's integration.

Incredibly excited to have the opportunity to work with Pete, Molly, Sam, Fred, and the entire NBC Sports family, says Taylor. Literally, hosting the Olympics, Football Night in America, and the Super Bowl is what I dreamed of when I started in television - and this would not be possible without standing on the shoulders of all of those who came before me and made this path possible. And I plan to pay it forward. (NBC Sports)

ESPN Re-Signs SportsCenter Anchors Neil Everett, Ashley Brewer to New Contracts Solidifying the lineup at its Los Angeles Production Center (LAPC), ESPN has re-signed SportsCenter anchors Neil Everett and Ashley Brewer to new contracts to remain with the network. As part of her new deal, Brewer will relocate from ESPN's Connecticut headquarters to Los Angeles.

Everett and Brewer join Stan Verrett, who also recently signed a new deal, and Linda Cohn as anchors based at the LAPC. On a rotating basis, the four will host the 1 a.m. ET edition of SportsCenter that originates from Los Angeles and contribute to the 11 p.m. edition that originates from Connecticut. In addition, all will contribute to other digital productions originating from the LAPC, with Cohn continuing her role as host of the nightly (during hockey season) ESPN+ NHL program In the Crease. (ESPN)

SEC Network's Paul Finebaum Signs Multi-Year Contract Extension, Returns to SEC Nation ESPN has reached a multi-year contract extension with SEC Network and ESPN Radio personality Paul Finebaum. Finebaum will continue to contribute across high-profile ESPN and SEC Network programming, including as the host of The Paul Finebaum Show and returning as an analyst on SEC Nation. In addition, The Paul Finebaum Show's popular Finebaum Friday edition will be back on the road this fall.

Complementing his hosting duties on The Paul Finebaum Show and weekly presence on SEC Nation throughout the fall, Finebaum is a valued contributor on a variety of ESPN programming, including Get Up, First Take, SportsCenter, College Football Live and College GameDay. (ESPN)

Fox Sports Adds NFL Quarterback Mark Sanchez to Its Elite NFL Game Talent Roster Fox Sports expands its elite NFL talent roster by signing former NFL quarterback Mark Sanchez as a game analyst. Sanchez will also make appearances across FS1's daily studio shows. The 10-year NFL veteran, who led the New York Jets to consecutive AFC Championship Games in his first two pro seasons, embarks on his first season as an NFL game analyst this fall.

Upon announcing his retirement, Sanchez immediately transitioned from the gridiron to one of ABC's prized studio roles alongside Kevin Negandhi and now-Fox NFL analyst Jonathan Vilma. While with ABC/ESPN for two years, Sanchez also contributed to College Football Live, Get Up, and SportsCenter. (Fox Sports)

Former NFL Linebacker and Texas Longhorn Sam Acho Joins ESPN as College Football and NFL Studio Analyst Former University of Texas and NFL linebacker Sam Acho has signed a multi-year deal to join ESPN's comprehensive college football coverage, primarily serving as a lead studio voice on college football Saturdays on ESPN2. Acho will also call select college football matchups this fall.

In addition to his college football duties, which include regular appearances on SportsCenter, Get Up and College Football Live, the Lifetime Longhorn will contribute as an NFL analyst across ESPN studio programming. (ESPN)

SEC Network Hosts Peter Burns, Alyssa Lang & Dari Nowkhah Sign Multi-Year Contract Extensions ESPN has reached multi-year contract extensions with its three SEC Now hosts: Peter Burns, Alyssa Lang and Dari Nowkhah.

Nowkhah and Burns have been anchoring SEC Now since SEC Network's launch in August 2014, with Lang joining the SEC Now desk in fall 2018. The trio hosts the show both in-studio and on-the-road, including several SEC Championships, NCAA Championship events and the conference's annual media days event, SEC Kickoff Presented by Regions. SEC Now is currently on site at this year's event.

Nowkhah joined ESPN in June 2004, hosting SportsCenter, College Football Live and Baseball Tonight before being named a lead host for ESPNU in August 2011. The Tulsa, OK native has been with SEC Network since its launch in August 2014
LINK: https://www.sportsvideo.org/2021/07/29/behind-the-mic-maria-taylor-joi...
See more stories from svg

Most recent headlines

05/01/2027

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be demoed at CES 2026

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...

06/09/2026

Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA World Cup 2026 in Germany with Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos

June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...

04/08/2026

Dalet Announces Commercial Availability of Dalia, Bringing Media-Aware Agentic AI to Enterprise Productions

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...

08/07/2026

Aqueduct Racetrack Goes Silent

The end of the Big A' marks the demise of one more iconic sports venue and its signature sound After 132 years as one of the preeminent horse-racing track...

08/07/2026

Memphis Athletics, Learfield Continue Long-Term Partnership

Memphis Athletics and Learfield have signed a long-term renewal to their 25-year relationship, which sees Learfield's Tiger Sports Properties continue repre...

08/07/2026

T-Mobile Brings ABS Challenge System, 5G Batting Practice Cams to 2026 MLB All-Star Game in Philadelphia

MLB All-Star Week returns to Philadelphia for the first time in 30 years as Amer...

08/07/2026

SVG Enterprise Launches Inaugural Enterprise Video Summit, Oct. 19 in New York

Former Wall Street Video event expanded to include all Enterprise sectors SVG Enterprise has announced the inaugural Enterprise Video Summit, taking place Oct....

08/07/2026

Wrigley Field Revamp: Chicago Cubs Upgrade LED Videoboards To Match New 1080p Control Room

An offseason project enhanced eight video displays around the venue in time for ...

08/07/2026

A Beacon on Biscayne Bay: Miami Heat Reflect on Ambitious Renovation at SVG Venues & Teams Summit

Kaseya Center has a ton of new features that weren't available to the indust...

08/07/2026

FIPRESCI Establishes Jury at Sundance Film Festival

The International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI) and the Sundance Film Festival are pleased to announce the establishment of a FIPRESCI jury beginning wi...

08/07/2026

Universal Audio introduce Black Box HG-2 & elysia karacter

Latest analogue-emulation plug-ins revealed Universal Audio have just added two new analogue-emulation plug-ins to their DSP-powered UAD line-up. Developed ...

08/07/2026

Pitch Innovations release Loop2Kit

Turn any audio loop into a playable kit Pitch Innovations have recently introduced an interesting new tool that's capable of creating playable kits from...

08/07/2026

MonkeyC update Rando sampler plug-in

Adds new keyboard-split function MonkeyC have recently launched an update that overhauls their powerful software sampler. Described as the sampler that mad...

08/07/2026

Strymon unveil the TimeLine MX

Four new delay algorithms & dual-engine functionality Strymon have just announced that the much-anticipated MX version of their hugely popular delay pedal i...

08/07/2026

Well over half of Australia have tuned in to watch the FIFA World Cup on SBS

Well over half of Australia have tuned in to watch the FIFA World Cup on SBS 7 July, 2026 Media releases Australia's Round of 32 match against Egypt a...

08/07/2026

SBS and Koorie Heritage Trust announce three-year partnership to celebrate First Nations cultures and communities

SBS and Koorie Heritage Trust announce three-year partnership to celebrate First...

08/07/2026

Rohde & Schwarz and China Mobile Research Institute jointly demonstrate generative AI user experience testing

Rohde & Schwarz and China Mobile Research Institute jointly demonstrate generati...

08/07/2026

Fox TV Stations Bypass Satellite for Live Game Show Run

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

08/07/2026

Fox Television Stations Extreme Reach and LTN Bring Live...

Collaboration demonstrates how managed IP distribution and cloud-based syndication workflows can support live television at national scale Fox Television Stati...

08/07/2026

New ARRI ALEXA 35 Live Xtreme camera seamlessly delivers up to 8x HFR via SDI for live productions

New ARRI ALEXA 35 Live Xtreme camera seamlessly delivers up to 8x HFR via SDI fo...

08/07/2026

Did You Know? Redshift for Cinema 4D: The Power of the Distance Node

Did You Know? Redshift for Cinema 4D: The Power of the Distance Node Marc Potocnik July 8, 2026 0 Comments The Did You Know? Redshift for Cinema 4D ...

08/07/2026

LARA Wizard Touchpanel gets major configuration upgrade

Lightware is introducing the biggest update yet to the LARA Wizard Touchpanel configuration experience, designed to help integrators work faster while deliverin...

08/07/2026

DMC Production Reimagines Live OB with Calrec

DMC Production has turned to Calrec in its quest to redefine outside broadcasting with a flexible approach to live production that reverse engineers the convent...

08/07/2026

FCC Probe of 'The View' Racks Up 77,611 Comments

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

08/07/2026

NAB Releases New Radio and TV Station Self-Inspection Guides

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

08/07/2026

Ross Production Services Standardizes on Clear-Com Intercom Systems

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

08/07/2026

Reel FX Animation Adopts Foundrys Flix on Doctor Dolittle...

Foundry today announced that Reel FX Animation Studios has adopted Flix to standardize their pipeline and streamline processes across departments. Flix is a vis...

08/07/2026

The right team. The right time.' How The Killings at Parrish Station stuck to their creative guns

The right team. The right time.' How The Killings at Parrish Station stuck t...

08/07/2026

Australians in Film and Screen Australia launch FUTURE VISION Forward to elevate Australian television to the global stage

Australians in Film and Screen Australia launch FUTURE VISION Forward to elevate...

08/07/2026

RT to air award-winning documentary TESTIMONY

Film follows the courageous fight for justice by survivors of Ireland's Magdalene Laundries & Mother and Baby Homes TESTIMONY airs Wednesday 22 July at 9...

08/07/2026

NVIDIA Nemotron Achieves Benchmark-Leading Performance With LangChain Deep Agents Harness

NVIDIA Nemotron 3 Ultra is offering leading performance at lower cost than top c...

07/07/2026

Open call: Apply for the Media Innovation Europe Validation Booster

Applications are now open for the Validation Booster, a six-month acceleration programme supporting journalists, media organisations, content creators, media in...

07/07/2026

HAND Issues Persistent Digital IDs to 50 Top 2026 MLB Draft Prospects

The Universal Talent Identifier (HAND) has issued HAND IDs to 50 top prospects ahead of the 2026 MLB Draft, including consensus top-ranked players Roch Cholowsk...

07/07/2026

Cisco and McLaren Mastercard Formula 1 Team Extend Technology Partnership

Cisco and the McLaren Mastercard Formula 1 Team have announced an extension of their partnership, expanding the scope from networking and communications to incl...

07/07/2026

LucidLink Announces Enhanced Integration with Adobe Frame.io

LucidLink has announced a workflow integration with Adobe Frame.io that gives production teams unified access to Frame.io projects alongside supporting producti...

07/07/2026

Chyron Appoints Ahmed Magd as Middle East Sales Director

Chyron has announced the appointment of Ahmed Magd as Sales Director for the Middle East. Magd joins from previous senior commercial roles at Riedel Communicati...

07/07/2026

Leader Electronics T&M Equipment Used in Live Broadcast of Pope Leo XIVs Visit to Sagrada Famlia

Leader Electronics of Europe has announced that its PHABRIX Qx rasterizer and Le...

07/07/2026

eCLUTCH Secures EMEA and MENA Broadcast Rights for Esports World Cup 2026

eCLUTCH has announced it has acquired broadcast rights to the Esports World Cup 2026 for EMEA and MENA, covering the Middle East, Africa, the Balkans, Sweden, a...

07/07/2026

Riedel and ARRI Support Cinematic Live Production at Eurovision Song Contest 2026

Riedel Communications and ARRI supported ORF's host broadcast of the Eurovis...

07/07/2026

ARRI Releases ALEXA 35 Live Xtreme With High-Frame-Rate SDI Output for Live Production

ARRI has announced the ALEXA 35 Live Xtreme, a camera that adds high frame rate ...

07/07/2026

IBC 2026: LiveU To Exhibit With LU900Q, Sony Integration, EcoSystem Expansion

LiveU will exhibit at IBC 2026 (Stand 7.C24), showcasing the LU900Q Intelligent Production Unit, expanded Sony collaboration, and additions to its open IP-video...

07/07/2026

Peacock Advances Spanish-Language World Cup Streaming With Visin de Campo, Dolby Vision, Real-Time Highlights

Telemundo's coverage is packaged with Multiview, Catch Up with Key Plays, in...

07/07/2026

Australian Rugby League Commission Secures $5.3 Billion Media Rights Deal with Foxtel, Nine, and Sky NZ

The Australian Rugby League Commission (ARLC) has announced a seven-year media r...

07/07/2026

BYUtv Partners With Big 12 for Football Media Days Production

Produced onsite at The Star in Frisco, TX, live coverage of the two-day event airs on ESPN platforms The season for Football Media Days is here, and the Big ...

07/07/2026

Rogers To Become 100% Owner of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment

Rogers Communications Inc. has announced an agreement to acquire the remaining 25% ownership stake in Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment (MLSE) from Kilmer Spo...

07/07/2026

Mobile TV Groups Nick Garvin on Success of MTVG Production Platform at New Mountain Media Center

End-to-end broadcast solution includes fleet of mobile units, Cloud Control, and...

07/07/2026

SVG Executive Perspectives 2026: Industry Leaders Discuss Biz and Tech Trends for the Year Ahead

Sports-production-tech experts sound off on the state of the industry...

07/07/2026

Mix Buddy instrument mixer from Heritage Audio

New mixer aimed squarely at instrument-level sources Heritage Audio have clearly been busy recently, as alongside their all-new Tubestrip, they've also ...

07/07/2026

Heritage Audio unveil the Tubestrip

New channel strip combines popular hardware designs The latest arrival to the Heritage Audio line-up brings together a selection of their praised hardware d...

07/07/2026

Clear-Com Powers Ross Production Services Mobile Productions

eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......