Kirk Herbstreit gets called to the carpet by Shannon Sharpe after bizarre rant during Tennessee Vols' loss to Ohio State
ESPN college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit has been on one since the Tennessee Vols' loss to the Ohio State Buckeyes in the first round of the College Football Playoff on Saturday. Herbstreit has drawn a ton of criticism since the game – and rightly so – for ridiculing the selection committee for getting caught up […]
ESPN college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit has been on one since the Tennessee Vols' loss to the Ohio State Buckeyes in the first round of the College Football Playoff on Saturday.
Herbstreit has drawn a ton of criticism since the game – and rightly so – for ridiculing the selection committee for getting caught up in what "social media" and "fringe fans" believe by selecting teams based on (heaven forbid) wins instead of choosing the "best teams".
Putting aside the fact that the ONLY WAY to determine who deserves to be in the playoff is teams actually winning games during the regular season – something that Tennessee and the rest of the teams in the field did that Alabama and the other SEC teams he's apparently stumping for did not – Herbstreit actually said something perhaps even more head scratching during the broadcast of Tennessee-Ohio State.
With the Buckeyes dominating in the final minutes of the game, Herbstreit took shots at some of his ESPN colleagues regarding their prior comments on Ohio State head coach Ryan Day being on the hot seat, particularly those on First Take, including Pro Football Hall of Famer and media veteran Shannon Sharpe. It goes without saying that Sharpe wasn't too happy with Herbstreit's words during the game.
"First Take tried to fire him," Herbstreit said during the broadcast. "So, I'll be excited to see what they talk about on Monday after this performance."
Stephen A. Smith had a relatively measured response to his colleagues Herbstreit and Chris Fowler.
"You know I love you Kirk, but you've got to quote me accurately," Smith said. "I stated, Ryan Day, if you don't win the national—if you ain't right there in that final four competing for the national championship, after that and four straight losses to Michigan we can get somebody at Ohio State to do that. Lose four straight to Michigan? Don't be in the national championship picture? With a $20 million roster and 20 NFL-caliber players returning to the squad? Oh, we can get somebody that can do that."
Sharpe, on the other hand, went on the attack against the broadcast duo.
"Stephen I'm going to let it slide," Sharpe said about Herbstreit's comments on Monday. "I'm going to be a good teammate. I'm going to let it slide. Everybody's at ESPN. Because had you not taken the route you'd taken, I would have lit their ass up. So, I'm going to let it slide. You know what, guys? Congratulations, Ohio State. You won the game. But hey, if we're going to be on the same team? We're going to work for the same network? Don't do that. Kirk, Chris Fowler, I promise you, if you ever mention anything, any platform that I'm on again, and you're talking about 'I wonder what they're going to say in negativity', I promise you, ESPN doesn't have enough bosses to keep me off of you all for what I'm going to say.
"So I'm going to let you all slide today. I'm going to turn it over to (Dan Orlovsky) before I get myself in trouble. But don't play with me."
Message sent. Herbstreit has been chippy even beyond that lately with his colleagues, even awkwardly putting Booger McFarland on blast during a live College Football Playoff selection show broadcast for a comment made on air.
It's just not good practice to attack and anger the people you work with. And it's really not your job as a commentator to ridicule and question the committee on air, particularly when your company is the one broadcasting some of the games.
Herbstreit likely isn't going to change anytime soon. He apparently tends to think he's right and everyone else is wrong for their opinions, and those types of people rarely admit they're wrong.
I just wouldn't want to be him next time the imposing Sharpe is ever in the vicinity in Bristol, Connecticut or elsewhere.
Josh Heupel has two major issues to address that fall squarely on him after Tennessee Vols’ blowout loss to Ohio State
It was more of the same for Tennessee in a couple of areas on Saturday night
