Chris Berman Taking A Step Back At ESPN

It looks like time is winding down for one of the early faces at ESPN. Berman will still have a role at the sports media giant, but he will no longer lead their coverage of the NFL Draft and Home Run Derby.

Say what you want about Chris Berman’s schtick, but the impact he had on the sports broadcasting industry has been incredible. He started out in an era where some guy sat in front of a camera and read off the day’s scores like we read a shopping list. Berman changed all that. His excited style and slew of catchphrases made the dissemination of sports information entertaining. It was fun as a kid just getting into football and baseball to hear “AND HE COULD. GO. ALL. THE. WAY.” with that NFL Primetime music in the background, or “BACKBACKBACKBACK…GONE!” during the Home Run Derby. He helped usher in an era that brought personalities like Dan Patrick, Stuart Scott, Scott Van Pelt, and literally hundreds more into our homes on a daily basis. Chris Berman changed the way we follow sports for the better, and for that, we should all be thankful.