Come this fall, @ESPN_ReceDavis will replace @cbfowler on @CollegeGameDay @espn #CollegeGameday
— James Andrew Miller (@JimMiller) February 5, 2015
Though not the original host of college football’s premier pre-game show - that honor goes to Tim Brando - Fowler is the only host host the vast majority of GameDay‘s audience knows. For 25 full seasons, Fowler was the guy we woke up to on Saturday mornings for three months a year.
Fowler held other gigs throughout the years, formerly as the play-by-play man on ESPN’s Thursday Night package and considerable tennis duties during the off-season, but the 2014 season was his first pulling double-duty as GameDay host by morning and ABC’s Saturday Night Football play-by-play man by night. All told, Fowler put in seven-hour on-air days in two high-pressure, highly-visible gigs.
So perhaps ESPN is lessening the load here. Or perhaps Davis is using the same leverage Fowler used to oust the top play-by-play seat away from Brent Musberger into a promotion of his own.Remember, @cbfowler still has plenty of big assignments w/ @KirkHerbstreit @ESPNCFB Tennis majors, etc. @espn couldn’t lose @ESPN_ReceDavis
— James Andrew Miller (@JimMiller) February 6, 2015
Davis recently completed his 20th year with the network and hosts ESPN’s basketball sibling of GameDay throughout the winter.
The question, once the move becomes official, will be whether Davis keeps his Thursday Night play-by-play duties alongside Jesse Palmer and David Pollack and who replaces him in ESPN’s Bristol studio as the straight man between Lou Holtz and Mark May.
10:21 p.m. ET Update: The move is now official.
Yes, @ESPN_ReceDavis Signs Multi-Year Agreement with ESPN; Named new host of @CollegeGameDay : http://t.co/OMf2o4eVv5
— Keri Potts (@MsPotts_ESPN) February 6, 2015
Davis is also out on Thursday nights.
Rece Davis will no longer call Thursday Night Football so a big opening there for someone.
— Richard Deitsch (@richarddeitsch) February 6, 2015