ESPN will once again be launching a MegaCast of the College Football Playoff National Championship, this year with viral sensation Field Pass with the Pat McAfee Show, and approximately 100 cameras, 100 microphones, and industry leading innovation.
What’s Happening:
- For Year 10 of the CFP, ESPN will once again showcase the College Football Playoff National Championship Presented by AT&T using state-of-the-art technology and by deploying the network’s best innovation for the presentation of No. 1 Michigan vs. No. 2 Washington on Monday, Jan. 8, at 7:30 p.m. ET.
- ESPN’s main telecast will headline the signature MegaCast production, as ESPN offers 11 different presentations of the CFP National Championship Game across ESPN platforms. College football’s dramatic finale features a battle of undefeated teams and will be available in more than 160 countries courtesy of ESPN’s linear and digital platforms.
- NRG Stadium will be the hub of ESPN’s innovation on Championship Monday, including approximately 100 cameras providing every angle of college football’s biggest night. State-of-the-art technology includes:
- Eight End Zone Pylon Cams: Cameras inside all eight endzone pylons
- Line-to-Gain Pylon: Wireless pylons on both sidelines at the first down line
- Ref Cams: Camera connected to multiple referees’ hats
- Goal Post Cam: Great looks from the back of the endzone
- Goal Line Robotic Cams: Perfect look down the goal line
- Wireless Handheld Cam: Sony Fx3 on Ronin Gimbal for on-field celebrations following scoring plays
- ESPN’s camera complement will include dedicated cameras on Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh and Washington head coach Kalen DeBoer at all times, as well as unique camera placements providing views of the teams as they enter the field. The Goodyear Blimp will share aerial shots of Houston and NRG Stadium.
- More than 100 microphones will be placed throughout the stadium, capturing the sounds of the game and atmosphere of the crowd, enhancing the game telecast.
- Chris Fowler and Kirk Herbstreit will call their 10th straight CFP National Championship together, concluding their 28th college football season as a commentating team. Reporters Holly Rowe (Michigan) and Molly McGrath (Washington) will provide news and insight from the sidelines, as the duo returns to the ESPN telecast for the third consecutive year. Rowe reported on the ESPN Radio broadcast for the first six years of the championship.
- ESPN rules analyst Bill Lemonnier will also cover Championship Monday. The former Big Ten referee Lemonnier is a veteran of several marquee assignments, including a number of prestigious bowl games.
- Returning in 2024, the fan favorite Field Pass will lead the MegaCast offerings from this year’s National Championship on ESPN2. Field Pass with The Pat McAfee Show will offer entertaining, free-flowing commentary of the CFP National Championship Game, anchored by Pat McAfee, who will roam the sidelines of NRG Stadium. McAfee will call the action from the unique vantage point, joined by AJ Hawk, Darius Butler, Anthony DiGuilio, Connor Campbell and Ty Schmit, as well as a rotation of ESPN analysts, notable personalities, and celebrities throughout the game. Field Pass with The Pat McAfee Show delivered the largest audience for any college football alternate telecast with 1.4 million viewers from the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Rose Bowl Game Presented by Prudential.
- Command Center on ESPNU features a multi-angle presentation with player and team statistics. The telecast will feature four main video feeds including the main telecast from ESPN, Skycam and shots of each head coach throughout the telecast.
- MegaCast mainstay SkyCast returns to ESPNEWS this year, highlighting the popular view from above the action and behind the offense on most plays. This unique angle has long been one of ESPN’s alternate viewing options and is readily available on multiple games every week. Replays will be shown every time the main telecast shows a replay, while never losing the look from Skycam. Additionally, the SkyCam viewing option will also be available in 4K on Comcast, DirecTV, Dish Network, Optimum, Sling TV, Verizon and YouTube TV.
- The Spanish-language telecast (ESPN Deportes) and Hometown Radio (ESPN App) remain staples of the MegaCast, with the All-22 viewing angle also available digitally.
- Hometown Radio (ESPN App): Fans can listen to the local radio broadcast of each national finalist, with their audio feed synced up with ESPN’s presentation. This MegaCast feed is made possible in conjunction with the Wolverines Sports Network Powered by LEARFIELD and the Huskies Sports Network from LEARFIELD.
- Michigan: Doug Karsch, Jon Jansen and Jason Avant
- Washington: Tony Castricone, Cameron Cleeland, Elise Woodward
- All-22 (ESPN App): Watch the game the same way players and coaches study film, with a vantage point high above the field of play. The angle allows for the 22 players on the field to be seen at all times, providing the ability to distinguish how plays develop while listening to the ESPN Radio call.
- Virtual Reality (ESPN YouTube): Highlights from the CFP National Championship will also be available in virtual reality, powered by AT&T 5G. Highlights will be published to ESPN’s YouTube and viewable within virtual reality headsets, as well as on desktop & mobile devices.
- Sean McDonough announces his eighth CFP National Championship on ESPN Radio, joining analyst Greg McElroy, who will call his first CFP National Championship after serving as a studio analyst at the event for several years. Lead ESPN Radio reporter Ian Fitzsimmons and ABC/ESPN reporter Kris Budden will serve as sideline reporters once again, with ESPN officiating analyst and former longtime SEC referee Matt Austin contributing to the commentary. The radio broadcast is available throughout the country on more than 400 ESPN Radio stations, the ESPN App, ESPNRadio.com, SiriusXM, Apple Music, iHeartRadio and TuneIn.
- The Spanish-language call of the game will be available on ESPN Deportes, with Eduardo Varela, Pablo Viruega, Katia Castorena and Sebastian M. Christensen announcing the action.
- Returning for the 2024 edition, the pregame and halftime marching band performances at the College Football Playoff National Championship will be available on the ESPN App. The sights and sounds of the Michigan Marching Band and Washington’s Husky Marching Band will be streaming live via the All-22 view.
- This postseason, fans can catch the College Football Playoff National Championship Presented by AT&T at select U.S. theatres thanks to ESPN and Theatre Sports Network.
- To help hype up fans for the College Football Playoff, ESPN+ will exclusively stream four episodes of Inside the College Football Playoff, featuring an inside look at the battle for a national title.
- The full schedule is below:
- Episode 1 – December 22: Look back at each team’s incredible journey to reach this year’s College Football Playoff.
- Episode 2 – December 29: Go behind-the-scenes as Alabama, Texas, Washington, and Michigan prepare for the 2024 CFP semifinals.
- Episode 3 – January 5: Michigan takes on Alabama in the Rose Bowl before Washington and Texas battle in the Sugar Bowl on New Year’s Day.
- Episode 4 – January 12: The National Championship gets underway as Michigan and Washington fight for an undefeated season and a chance at football immortality.
- ESPN Activates Around the CFP…and the World:
- NASA x ESPN Instagram Live
Playing off the Houston theme, ESPN Social is co-producing an Instagram Live from space that incorporates the @ESPN, @ISS and @NASA accounts, with Jen Lada joining from ESPN as host ahead of the National Championship Game. The live will feature two astronauts from inside the International Space Station, Loral O’Hara and Jasmin Moghbeli. They’ll join Lada to talk college football, give fans a look inside their daily lives, how they train like athletes, and how they keep up with things like sports from space. Join in on the Instagram live on Championship Monday, Jan. 8 at 11:30 a.m. ET. - CFP Snapchat AR Lens Creative
- As a part of this year’s CFP support, ESPN Marketing, Social and Media teams have partnered with Snapchat to create a custom AR Lens. This includes a face lens and a first-to-U.S. market AR Sky Takeover made available within the Snapchat app. Currently live throughout the Playoff, Snapchat users will be prompted to “look at the sky” to activate the lens. As fans scan the sky, a unique AR experience will unfold that promotes the teams and National Championship.
- NASA x ESPN Instagram Live
- ESPN released its College Football Playoff National Championship promotional creative featuring world renowned superstar – and Houston native – Beyoncé and her newly-released track, ‘MY HOUSE.’ The spots debuted Wednesday and run up until kickoff on Championship Monday.
- ESPN and Marvel are continuing their decade-long collaboration by teaming up to create one-of-a-kind College Football Playoff National Championship artwork that pays homage to classic Marvel comics. In Year 10 of the CFP, the Michigan wolverine and Washington husky mascots will be “Marvelized” as part of a special ESPN Marketing activation at Playoff Fan Central (Jan. 5-7) in Houston. Seven thousand posters featuring the 2024 National Championship matchup and other past CFP games will be distributed to fans. A Wall of CFP Champions area will also give fans the opportunity to pose for photos with the “Marvelized” mascots of past champions. National Championship Marvel artwork will be incorporated into ESPN’s on-site productions and social posts.
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