As ESPN’s lead college football team of Chris Fowler and Kirk Herbstreit continues to answer questions about calling NFL games, one seems more interested than the other.
ESPN college football lead voice Chris Fowler told The Athletic in a piece published Monday that while he is intrigued by the idea of calling NFL games, he is happy in his current role and “not looking to change.” Fowler: “I don’t consider it a promotion to go from what I do now to Monday Night Football.”
Fowler and partner Kirk Herbstreit called ESPN’s NFL season opener this year and nearly got a second assignment when ESPN was briefly awarded a postponed Broncos-Patriots game in Week 5 (that was then postponed again).
Fowler characterized his NFL work as “really rewarding and fun” and stressed that he would “never close [himself] to any opportunity.” It is widely believed that he and Herbstreit would be contenders for an NFL role on ESPN if the company is successful in acquiring a second package. Even so, he made clear that he would be fine if he never gets that opportunity: “[I]f I did 10 more years of college football and never did an NFL game, I would be thrilled.”
For his part, Herbstreit told Sports Illustrated last week that he is “now much more open to the idea of doing the NFL” and “would love the challenge of trying to do both” college and pro football games in the same year. Herbstreit previously said as much to The Big Lead.
ESPN seriously explored the possibility of moving Fowler and Herbstreit to MNF this year if the college football season was canceled or postponed, but eventually went with Steve Levy, Louis Riddick and Brian Griese.
Fowler and Herbstreit have been ESPN’s lead college football team since 2014.
