Live From CFP National Championship: ESPN Colleagues Celebrate Operations Legend Bob Braunlich, Working His Final CFP Set to retire in April, Braunlich has worked for ESPN and ABC Sports for 38 years By Brandon Costa, Director of Digital
Monday, January 13, 2020 - 2:10 pm
Print This Story
Story Highlights
While the 2020 College Football Playoff National Championship Game will go down as one of the most technologically comprehensive sports-television productions in history, it also marks a bittersweet moment in history for those who work behind the scenes at the game's primary broadcaster, ESPN.
After nearly four decades in sports television, ESPN VP, Remote Production Operations, Bob Braunlich is set to retire in April, making this the final College Football Championship Game he will work full-time for the network. Affectionately referred to as simply BB by his colleagues, Braunlich has long been the cool, calm, and comprehensive tour de force that makes many of the largest and most complex traveling studio operations possible.
Since the days of the Bowl Championship Series, ESPN's Bob Braunlich has worked every single college football championship game.
BB has been a consistent force on our College Football National Championship productions, says Chris Calcinari, SVP, remote operations, ESPN and ABC Sports. He has been a key leader on every CFP Championship and on many BCS Championships before that. I could not be happier for him to be able to move on and enjoy retirement, but his knowledge and experience on this event is going to be missed greatly. We are all very thankful for his incredible contributions over his 38-year career with ESPN and ABC Sports. BB is rightly known outside the ESPN community for his experience and knowledge. Within ESPN, he is also loved for his care, respect, and sincere appreciation for our team members. He has a heart of gold and is literally beloved by all.
Braunlich's 38-year career traces back to the days when ABC Sports defined quality in live sports television. When ABC Sports was fully integrated into ESPN in 2006, he became a dutiful leader for the sports-media behemoth. From traveling the country with, perhaps, the greatest traveling sports show in television history, College GameDay, to being one of only a few ESPNers to work every single college football championship game (dating back to the days of the Bowl Championship Series) since ESPN locked up those rights, Braunlich has been a pillar in the company and has helped turn the championship into not just a game but a weekend-long multi-network celebration.
No one has more passion about what he does than BB. For all of us at ESPN, he is the embodiment of a perfect teammate, says Lee Fitting, VP, production, ESPN, who has worked with Braunlich on countless road productions, including, most notably, College Gameday. While his fingerprints are found across a number of our properties, I know the College Football Playoff coverage and the enormous operation that it has become across our company is special to him. His level of expertise and love for what he does, combined with our trust in him and his entire team, is what makes our vision as a production team possible. Simply said, it has been an honor to work alongside him for many years.
Known as a mentor, Bob Braunlich says that, even after retiring, he will continue to be available to current and future generations of ESPNers.
Says Mike Foss, supervising director, ESPN External Studio Group, He's a legend in our business. When you think about what ABC Sports was 38 years ago and the merger with ESPN, he came over with his experience and his leadership on both sides of the ledger, which was key to that integration. When you look at the properties he oversees, it's no small coincidence that he leads the most important live events that the company has. You don't replace somebody like that. You suck up as much knowledge as you can from them and hope for the best. He's clearly going to be missed.
Though excited about retirement, Braunlich vows to not go very far and to always remain available to current and future generations of ESPNers. His willingness to mentor, in fact, has been a calling card of his career: he has developed a reputation as someone willing to walk anyone through a tough project or the next move in their career. He is also highly engaged and active with TV-production students at his alma mater, Westminster College.
April 17 is a day that I'm not looking forward to, says Operations Producer Andy Davenport, a close colleague. BB has been tremendous. He recruited me into the position that I'm now in. I'll be forever grateful. I have so much respect and admiration for him. It will be a huge loss for our company.
The thing about BB is, he continues, it's not just the immediate crew that he works with all of the time that he touches. He has people in our department who may not have a lot of daily interaction with him who will go to him, and he mentors them. They respect him and what he represents. He truly cares about people, and everyone knows that. That's an aspect in today's business world that just doesn't exist. He touches a lot of lives and is going to be very much missed.
Sitting across from Davenport at breakfast on Sunday morning in New Orleans, Braunlich smiles. If that's my legacy, I'm pretty happy with it, he says. Sure, you put shows on, but, if that's my legacy, I'll take that.
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...
19/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/05/2026
LYNX Technik, provider of modular signal processing solutions for broadcast, post, and professional AV will showcase its latest signal processing solutions at B...
19/05/2026
Media Links, a leading developer and manufacturer of IP media transport solutions, has announced the integration of its Xscend platform with Skyline Communicat...
19/05/2026
Collaboration expands regional partner ecosystem as Media Links showcases IP media transport solutions on stand 4M4-4 and alongside Clearcast Asia on stand
Me...
19/05/2026
Company Highlights Labor-Saving Control and Custom Branding Opportunities Designed to Increase Integrator Profitability
LynTec, a leading manufacturer of ele...
19/05/2026
Mago Studio Moves AI Video Beyond Prompts with New Production-Focused Tools
Brie Clayton May 18, 2026
0 Comments
New Capabilities Bring Controllable, ...
19/05/2026
It May be Time to Stop and Take an AI Breather
Brie Clayton May 19, 2026
0 Comments
If the rock you stay on starts to roll, jump clean. Or you'll...
18/05/2026
Despite a bumpy start to the year, the provider of event-production support and ...
18/05/2026
Daktronics has partnered with the University of North Carolina to manufacture and install 11 LED displays totaling more than 10,000 square feet and more than 14...
18/05/2026
CBS LA has announced a multi-year partnership with the Los Angeles Rams, covering exclusive local broadcasts of Rams preseason games, weekly year-round programm...
18/05/2026
Skyline Communications has announced an integration between its DataMiner xOps p...
18/05/2026
eCLUTCH, the hybrid esports platform powered by iKOMG, has announced an expansion of its distribution across Europe, MENA, Africa, and Asia, along with new cont...
18/05/2026
Behind The Mic provides a roundup of recent news regarding on-air talent, includ...
18/05/2026
With 22 games this season, the production team looks forward to tweaking and enhancing the coverage
After 8,660 days off the air, the WNBA returned to NBC yest...
18/05/2026
(L-R) Midori Francis and Natalie Erika James attend the Saccharine premiere during the 2026 Sundance Film Festival at The Ray Theatre on January 22, 2026, in ...
18/05/2026
Last night, the Spotify Podcast Awards in Mexico returned to the country's capital. Now in its second year, the evening honors creators whose voices are hel...
18/05/2026
ZEN-Core synth goes mobile
Roland's powerful ZEN-Core software synthesizer has just been introduced to the iPad, offering a convenient entry point into ...
18/05/2026
Versatile new limiter plug-in announced
Based in Sheffield, UK, fedDSP offer a range of plug-ins that span the music production, live sound and high-end med...
18/05/2026
A new use for convolution?
Viiri Audio's debut plug-in aims to do something a little different with convolution processing, allowing users to adjust all...
18/05/2026
Delta Goodrem shines for SBS as more than 3.27 million Australians tune in for E...
18/05/2026
The Australian Defence Force uses L3Harris T4 and T7 robots for explosive ordnan...
18/05/2026
Continued investment across Europe and Germany is expanding local teams and improving access to stock, regional expertise, and specialist broadcast support.
CV...
18/05/2026
Agentic AI inference at one-tenth the cost per token with NVIDIA Vera Rubin NVL7...
18/05/2026
18 May 2026
Dubai and New York, May 18, 2026 - VEON Ltd. (NASDAQ: VEON), a glob...
18/05/2026
Monday 18 May 2026
Sky News offers ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes for just...
18/05/2026
Comscore March 2026 Consumer AI Chatbot Usage Rankings Show Claude Gaining Share OpenAI's ChatGPT maintains lead while Anthropic's Claude continues to c...
17/05/2026
Delta Goodrem's Eurovision Eclipse marks end of a stellar run
17 May, 2026
Media releases
Bulgaria wins Eurovision 2026
Relive every spellbinding mome...
17/05/2026
Back to All News
Oasis Premieres on Netflix June 19
Entertainment
17 May 2026
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard
Summer, sunshine, the beach, parties. T...
16/05/2026
Helps to deliver a clean, balanced midrange
Developed alongside Newfangled Audio, the latest plug-in in Eventide's software collection has been designed...
16/05/2026
Brings onboard stem rendering to RANE System One
Engine DJ have just released Engine DJ 5.0, a free update for their Engine DJ OS embedded hardware and Engi...
16/05/2026
Boris FX Continuum Pairs AI Precision and Advanced Creative Controls
Jessie Electa Petrov May 16, 2026
0 Comments
The 2026.5 release adds automatic de...
16/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
15/05/2026
Seattle Sounders FC and Seattle Reign FC, in partnership with RAVE Foundation an...
15/05/2026
Dan Brumm has served as sound designer on Bluey, the Australian children's t...
15/05/2026
The Professional Audio Manufacturers Alliance (PAMA) and Shure Incorporated are accepting applications for the 6th annual Mark Brunner Professional Audio Schola...
15/05/2026
Netflix has announced an expanded NFL schedule for 2026 and beyond under a four-year partnership extension with the NFL through the 2029-30 season. Each season,...
15/05/2026
Ateme is supporting TVRI (Televisi Republik Indonesia) with a contribution and d...
15/05/2026
Concacaf has announced the launch of a new website and mobile app built on Deltatre's FORGE platform. Concacaf.com and the mobile app, available on iOS and ...
15/05/2026
Eutelsat has announced the launch of QBC Business Economic Channel by Qatar Media Corporation, broadcasting in 4K/UHD via Eutelsat's 7/8 West video neighbo...
Live From CFP National Championship: ESPN Colleagues Celebrate Operations Legend Bob Braunlich, Working His Final CFP Set to retire in April, Braunlich has worked for ESPN and ABC Sports for 38 years By Brandon Costa, Director of Digital 
