ESPN Commentator Connections to Super Bowl 50

PHOTOS: ESPN at the Super Bowl

SCHEDULE: Super Bowl-related programming for Feb. 1-7 

ESPN’s commentator team covering Super Bowl 50 in the Bay Area this week includes former NFL players, coaches and team executives with a combined 30 Super Bowl appearances and 17 championship rings. A number of these individuals also have unique connections to the Carolina Panthers, Denver Broncos and the San Francisco area:

• Michelle Beisner: The ESPN Sunday NFL Countdown features reporter was a member of the Broncos Cheerleaders from 1997-2003. She was a captain for four years and served as the Pro Bowl representative in 1999.
• Chris Berman: ESPN’s Sunday NFL Countdown host covered his first Super Bowl in 1982 – the year Joe Montana and the 49ers brought San Francisco its first NFL Championship. He has also been part of many memorable events at historic Candlestick Park: he covered the 1989 San Francisco Earthquake, threw out the first pitch at one of the final Giants games (1999), served as master of ceremonies at Bill Walsh’s public remembrance (2007), and hosted a post-game ceremony following the final 49ers game (2013). This is Berman’s 34th Super Bowl.
• Tedy Bruschi: The three-time Super Bowl Champion (with the New England Patriots) was born in San Francisco and graduated from Roseville High School in Northern California.
• Trent Dilfer: The Super Bowl-winning quarterback (with the Baltimore Ravens) played for the 49ers in 2006 and 2007. He lives in the Bay Area.
• Mike Ditka: The Hall of Famer and three-time Super Bowl winner (as a player, assistant coach and head coach) coached Panthers’ head coach Ron Rivera on his 1985 Championship Chicago Bears team (SB XX).
• Herm Edwards: The former NFL head coach and first graduate of the NFL’s Minority Coaching Fellowship (1987) is from the Monterey Peninsula, as is Rivera. They attended neighboring high schools – Edwards at Monterey High and Rivera at Seaside High.
• Tom Jackson: The three-time Pro Bowler appeared in two Super Bowls with the Broncos and played his entire 14-year NFL career in Denver. He is a member of the Broncos Ring of Fame.
• Keyshawn Johnson: The Super Bowl champion (with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers) and No. 1 overall pick in the 1996 NFL Draft played for the Panthers in 2006.
• Bill Polian: The Hall of Famer and six-time NFL Executive of the Year drafted Peyton Manning as president of the Indianapolis Colts. He also served as general manager of the expansion Panthers from 1994-97.
• Adam Schefter: The ESPN NFL Insider covered the Broncos as a sportswriter for the Denver Post and the Rocky Mountain News. He has written books with former Broncos Mike Shanahan, Terrell Davis and Bill Romanowski.
• Mark Schlereth: The three-time Super Bowl winner won two Championships as a Broncos lineman during his six years in Denver, where he still resides.
• Steve Young: The Hall of Fame quarterback won three Super Bowls with the San Francisco 49ers and was named MVP in Super Bowl XXIX. He makes his home in the Bay Area.

ESPN Super Bowl 50 Programming from San Francisco Bay Area on Monday and Tuesday
Lindsay Czarniak will kick off ESPN’s on-location coverage of Super Bowl 50 in the Bay Area today (Monday, Feb. 1), anchoring a special “On the Road” edition of SportsCenter at 3 p.m. PT (6 p.m. ET) live from the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif. The one-hour program will preview tonight’s Super Bowl Opening Night – the annual Super Bowl Media Day.

On ESPN2 at 5 p.m. PT (8 p.m. ET), Hannah Storm and Steve Levy will host SportsCenter Special: Super Bowl Opening Night, a three-hour, live program from the SAP Center featuring interviews with Super Bowl 50 players, coaches and staff from the Denver Broncos and the Carolina Panthers.

Tuesday, Feb. 2, Storm will host SportsCenter segments from Pier 39 in San Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf (8 a.m. PT) with analysis from Tedy Bruschi and guests. Czarniak will anchor a one-hour SportsCenter from the same location (3 p.m. PT) with ESPN analysts Bruschi and Steve Young. ESPN’s on-location programs will be open for public viewing.

ESPN Super Bowl 50 programming from the Bay Area on Monday and Tuesday:

–All subject to change—
*Segments only; full show originates elsewhere

ESPN’s coverage of Super Bowl 50 includes 45 hours of original content from Marina Green – where all shows are free and open to the public – and an additional 18 hours from Fort Mason. More details.

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