ESPN providing 14 broadcasts of CFB Championship, including with Eli Gold as announcer

ESPN is giving Monday’s College Football National Championship game the “Megacast” treatment, providing fans 14 different ways to enjoy the matchup between the Alabama Crimson Tide and Ohio State Buckeyes.

Of interest to Bama fans, longtime Crimson Tide radio broadcaster Eli Gold will have his call of the game simulcast on SEC Network. He will be joined for the game by John Parker Wilson, Rashad Johnson and Chris Stewart. Their radio feed will be synced with ESPN’s television broadcast.

The main presentation on ESPN itself will again feature announcers Chris Fowler and Kirk Herbstreit, their seventh championship game in a row.

The broadcasts are set to begin on Monday night at 7:00 p.m. CT.

For fans of football’s Xs and Os, ESPNews is providing a “Film Room” broadcast where a crew of current and former college football coaches will be offering their analysis of the game.

Currently scheduled to appear are former Auburn Coach and BCS Champion Gene Chizik, Wake Forest head coach Dave Clawson, Liberty head coach Hugh Freeze and North Carolina A&T’s Sam Washington. ESPN advises the lineup of coaches may change.

ESPN2 will feature a presentation called “CFB Live.” Draft expert Todd McShay will be joined by NFL analysts Laura Rutledge, Marcus Spears, Dan Orlovsky and Mina Kimes for the broadcast, which appears to be designed for those most interested in the professional game who want to get a look at the talent that will soon be playing on Sundays.

Former Tide quarterback Greg McElroy will announce his first national championship game as he joins veteran play-by-play man Sean McDonough for the ESPN Radio presentation of the championship.

ESPNU will have host the “SkyCast,” in which the camera stays above the players and behind the offense for most plays. Jason Fitz and Mike Golic, Jr. will provide commentary “out of commercial breaks before throwing back to the sounds of the game,” per an ESPN release.

An ultra high definition 4K version of the SkyCast called the “Skycam” will be available to DIRECTV, Comcast and Optimum customers.

Six options will be available for those streaming the game via the ESPN app, per an annoucement from the company.

1. 1. Command Center – Multi-angle presentation, which includes up to four different vantage points at any one time, with statistics and real-time drive charts supplementing the game action.
   2. DataCenter – A catch-all viewing option, as ESPN’s main telecast will be surrounded by real-time stats, analytics, social media commentary and player information. ESPN commentators Zubin Mehenti and Brad Edwards will be featured on the feed.
   3. Hometown Radio, Ohio State Version – Fans can listen to the local radio broadcast, hosted by Paul Keels, Jim Lachey, Matt Andrews and Skip Mosic, with their audio feed synced up with ESPN’s presentation.
   4. Refcast – John Parry (former NFL referee) and Matt Austin (former SEC referee) join Arizona State head coach Herm Edwards and ESPN commentator Jason Benetti to break down the game, as Parry and Austin provide reaction and commentary from a referee’s perspective.
   5. All-22 – 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.
   6. High Skycam – showcasing the action from… heights above the field.

Viewers preferring to watch the game in Spanish will have access to that option via ESPN Deportes, whose broadcast will be done by Eduardo Varela and Pablo Viruega.

Anyone who wants to see coverage of the contest before, during and after kickoff can tune to the SEC Network beginning at 7:00 a.m. on Monday for 15 hours of continuous championship game coverage.

Henry Thornton is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can contact him by email: [email protected] or on Twitter @HenryThornton95.