ESPN PR sent out the following press release today announcing the broadcast teams, for ABC and ESPN for this coming XFL season.
SUNDAY TEAM
Tom Hart, Joey Galloway, and Pat McAfee will call Sunday Games on ESPN and ABC
SATURDAY TEAM
Steve Levy, Greg McElroy, Tom Luginbill and Dianna Russini will call the XFL Kickoff, West Final, Championship and Saturday Games on ABC
Two commentator teams comprised of talented and authentic voices from ESPN’s college football and NFL rosters will call ABC and ESPN’s 22-game schedule during the XFL 2020 season.
Play-by-play voice Steve Levy, analyst Greg McElroy, field analyst Tom Luginbill and reporter Dianna Russini will call the highly-anticipated XFL kickoff game – Seattle Dragons vs. DC Defenders (Feb. 8), the West Final (April 19), the XFL Championship (April 26) and weekly Saturday games on ABC in 2020.
A 26-year ESPN veteran, Levy is one of ABC/ESPN’s top college football play-by-play voices. He also called his first Monday Night Football NFL game in September. McElroy, the former national champion quarterback for Alabama, and Luginbill are highly-respected college football voices who already work together on ABC/ESPN games in the fall. Luginbill recently covered the XFL Draft for ESPN, and he was the quarterback coach and director of player personnel for the Los Angeles Xtreme, which won the championship in the original XFL in 2001. Russini is a top NFL insider/reporter and host who worked her first MNF game in September.
Play-by-play voice Tom Hart, analyst Joey Galloway and field analyst Pat McAfee will call weekly Sunday games on ESPN and ABC, beginning with the St. Louis BattleHawks vs. Dallas Renegades (Feb. 9, ESPN).
Hart is the voice of SEC Saturday Night primetime college football games on SEC Network. Galloway, a 16-year NFL player and former first-round pick, is a top college football studio analyst who has also called games. McAfee, a former All-Pro NFL punter, calls Thursday Night college football games for ESPN and is a regular contributor to Get Up. One of the most charismatic personalities in sports media, McAfee also hosts his own podcast and digital show.
“ABC and ESPN’s presentation of the XFL is going to be innovative and entertaining, and we have assembled a group of commentators that will be very familiar to our viewers. By bringing together some of our most accomplished football experts, we look forward to introducing this exciting new league to fans,” said Lee Fitting, ESPN Senior Vice President, Production.
ESPN coordinating producer Bill Bonnell, who produces ABC’s Saturday Night Football and the College Football National Championship, will oversee ABC/ESPN’s overall XFL production. Bonnell was NBC’s senior coordinating producer in charge of production of the original XFL in 2001, which introduced a variety of innovations that were later adopted by other football broadcasts, including the full-time use of Skycam, enhanced audio and cameras on the field. Weekly XFL games will be produced by ESPN producers Josh Hoffman (Saturdays) and Mandy Cohen (Sundays).
Bios:
Levy joined ESPN in 1993 and is one of ESPN’s most-tenured SportsCenter anchors. He has been one of ESPN/ABC’s top play-by-play voices for college football since 2016 and he called his first Monday Night game in 2019. Levy has also called NHL and other hockey events, including the World Cup, throughout his career.
McElroy joined ESPN in 2014 as a college football analyst for SEC Network. He calls college football games on ESPN/ABC and contributes to SEC Network studio shows, including the football-themed Thinking Out Loud which he co-hosts. A four-year Alabama quarterback, McElroy led the Crimson Tide to the 2010 BCS National Championship. He also played three NFL seasons.
Luginbill joined Scouts Inc. in 2002 and was promoted to national recruiting director when the company was purchased by ESPN. In addition to providing in-depth recruiting analysis of top collegiate football prospects, he is a sideline analyst for college football games on ESPN/ABC. Luginbill was the quarterback coach and director of player personnel for the Los Angeles Xtreme, which won the championship in the original XFL’s only season in 2001.
Russini joined ESPN in 2015 and is an NFL Insider/reporter and host. She appears regularly on ESPN’s NFL shows, SportsCenter, Get Up and more. The sideline reporter for ESPN’s Monday Night Football doubleheader game in Oakland in September 2019, Russini also appears on a variety of ESPN digital shows.
Hart joined ESPN/SEC Network in 2017 and is the voice of SEC Saturday Night college football games. He also calls college basketball and college baseball across ESPN networks.
Galloway joined ESPN in 2011 and is a college football analyst. He currently works in-studio and has also called college football games. One of Ohio State’s all-time receiving leaders, Galloway was a first-round pick who played 16 NFL seasons.
McAfee joined ESPN in 2019 as a college football analyst and contributor. He calls ESPN Thursday night college football games and regularly appears on Get Up. A standout college punter/kicker who played eight NFL seasons. McAfee also works for Westwood One and DAZN.
