Mel Kiper’s suggestion for Dolphins pick at No. 3. And Chris Fowler on where Canes stand
A six-pack of media notes on a Wednesday:
▪ ESPN’s Mel Kiper doesn’t hesitate when sizing up what the Miami Dolphins should do with the third overall pick in April’s NFL Draft, a selection acquired from the Houston Texans.
“That third pick you go DeVonta Smith,” Kiper said this week of the Alabama receiver and Heisman Trophy winner. “They need a playmaking receiver, big time receiver. He was that type of player at Alabama.
“They have the draft choices to surround Tua Tagovailoa, improve this football team. Move forward with Tua, get the receiver. And next year and the year after you will see a different Tua than we saw this season coming off so quickly a year removed from the [November 2019 hip] injury when he took the field for Miami this year.”
Smith led college football with 105 receptions for 1641 yards and 20 touchdown catches.
Kiper said Miami also must address running back in the draft.
▪ Does ESPN’s Chris Fowler agree with broadcast partner Kirk Herbstreit that the Miami Hurricanes lost the equity they built up with their embarrassing 62-26 loss to North Carolina in the regular season finale?
“The Canes fell flat; it was a terrible performance against North Carolina,” Fowler told me on Wednesday in an ESPN conference call. “One of those things that’s hard to expect. Everything to play for. You didn’t get a sense they were going to play like that. They were overwhelmed and didn’t respond when North Carolina released that offensive onslaught and it was very disappointing.
“Did it destroy all the equity built up all year? That’s in the eye of the beholder. I don’t speak for Miami fans. I’m sure a lot were upset, maybe even disgusted, puzzled. I got a lot of texts during the broadcast because I’ve got a lot of friends who are Canes fans.
“But I’m not here to say they ruined everything they accomplished. I mean they did come out small against Clemson and they came out small in a game [against UNC] where the Orange Bowl was on the line.
“The bowl game [loss to Oklahoma State] didn’t shock me. I was very disappointed to see D’Eriq King go down [with a torn ACL]. I think the foundation is still there for Miami. He’s recruiting well, Manny [Diaz]. And the future is still promising. But it certainly was a thud at the end of the year. I think they thought they had conquered some of their December-slash-January blues but they returned again.”
▪ Two of Sunday’s NFL wild card playoff games will be televised on multiple networks.
ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Plus, Freeform and ESPN Deportes will have different presentations of the Tennessee-Baltimore game at 1 p.m., while CBS and Nickelodeon will present different versions of the Chicago-New Orleans game at 4:30 p.m.
With the late afternoon game, CBS is declining to say whether Tony Romo will call that game after missing last Sunday’s Arizona-Rams game because of COVID-19 protocol. That decision will be announced later this week.
CBS says the Nick broadcast “will feature one-of-a-kind kid-focused content and Nick-themed elements throughout.”
CBS will use Los Angeles Clippers radio announcer Noah Eagle (son of CBS announcer Ian Eagle) and CBS studio analyst Nate Burleson on the call, with Nick star Gabrielle Nevaeh Green also in the booth.
The objective of the Nick broadcast, according to CBS sports chairman Sean McManus, is “to create a unique telecast that will maximize the co-viewing appeal for kids and families, while maintaining the integrity of the game and its traditions.”
As for Baltimore-Tennessee coverage, ESPN will offer a traditional broadcast with its Monday Night Football announcing team (Steve Levy, Louis Riddick, Brian Griese). ABC will simulcast ESPN’s broadcast, which the network says will feature enhanced technological elements.
ESPN2 will deliver a film room type presentation, which it traditionally uses on college football championship games and will again be utilized for Monday’s Alabama-Ohio State game at Hard Rock Stadium.
For the Ravens-Titans game, Tedy Bruschi, Matt Hasselbeck, Rex Ryan, Booger McFarland and Keyshawn Johnson will call the game on ESPN2, emphasizing “telestrator analysis and predictive strategy adjustments.”
Freeform will present the game through “an energetic, younger lens,” featuring ESPN’s Jesse Palmer and Maria Taylor and guests from the television industry, music and sports.
ESPN Plus, the network’s streaming service, will feature analysis, analytics, odds discussion and film breakdown, with the NFL Live cast of Laura Rutledge, Mina Kimes, Dan Orlovsky and Marcus Spears along with Daily Wager personalities Doug Kezirian, Joe Fortenbaugh and Tyler Fulghum.
And ESPN Deportes will offer a Spanish language telecast.
▪ Fowler agrees with the thinking here that it’s not good for college football that the playoffs always involve the same group of teams.
“I’ve said for a long time the top heavy nature of the sport is hurtful,” he said. “It’s hurtful for the popularity, hurtful for the popularity of the playoff because there has been the real perception - and there’s a lot behind that perception - that only six, seven teams can actually win the championship. You’ve got two of them competing for it on Monday night.
“How you solve that I don’t know. You have a top heavy sport and what’s more concerning to me is you have top heavy conferences where the same teams prevail every year. In the ACC, certainly [with Clemson]. Bama owning the SEC for the most part… You see Ohio State in the Big 10 four years running and Oklahoma in the Big 12. The Pac 10.,.... there’s more parity out there… That’s troublesome - top heavy sport, top heavy conferences. I don’t know what you do about it.”
▪ NBC-6, which did not renew the contract of sportscaster/newscaster Keith Jones, this week moved Ruthie Polinsky into the lead role, making her the first woman this century to be the No. 1 sports anchor at a South Florida station.
Polinsky — who joined NBC-6 in March from the CBS affiliate in Providence — is deserving of the gig; she’s personable and polished on air. She’s also consistently prepared; no local TV sportscaster participates in more of the South Florida teams’ Zoom interview sessions, and it’s not close.
NBC-6 is expected to hire a No. 2 sportscaster. Polinsky will anchor Sunday through Thursday.
Meanwhile, Josh Moser completed his first week as retiring Steve Shapiro’s successor as the lead sports anchor at WSVN-Fox 7. Moser hasn’t displayed Shapiro’s wit - which was a hallmark of Sports Xtra - but has a smooth and pleasant delivery. At the very least, he looks like a solid hire.
▪ Quick stuff: Former Marlins broadcast Jon Sciambi is replacing another former Marlins voice, Len Kasper, as the TV voice of the Chicago Cubs. Kasper took a broadcasting job with the White Sox. Sciambi will remain with ESPN ...
The Florida Panthers were given one national telecast this season in a schedule released this week: Sunday night, Feb. 21 against Detroit on NBC-SN. ...
Something unusual: ABC will carry a UFC match at 3 p.m. Jan. 16 between former UFC featherweight champion and No. 1-ranked contender Max Holloway and No. 6-ranked featherweight contender Calvin Kattar.
Here’s my Wednesday piece - with Adam Beasley - on Chan Gailey leaving the Dolphins and potential replacements.
And check back for more later today.
This story was originally published January 6, 2021 at 3:09 PM.
