When Greg McElroy served as a guest analyst for ESPN during coverage of the 2011 BCS National Championship Game, he wasn’t just good by guest analyst standards. He was one of the best on set for ESPN. It’s not hyperbole to say that McElroy could have moved directly from Alabama to College GameDay and GameDay would have been the bigger winner. McElroy was that good on TV in his brief cameo.
It was very clear the former Alabama QB showed he had a very television bright future if and when his NFL career came to an end.
That time has now come.
At the age of 25, McElroy retired from the NFL in an announcement on his Twitter page Friday. Just a couple days later, his hiring was announced by ESPN for the new SEC Network.
It’s a perfect fit for both parties. The SEC Network adds another former player who was a star in the conference not too long ago and will be very familiar to viewers. McElroy gets to begin his full-time television career at a regional network and should be given the chance to grow into a role that he seems destined to fulfill.
It’ll be interesting to see if former star college football players enter the television world at such a young age becomes a trend. Tim Tebow (26) and Greg McElroy (25) will be two of the youngest analysts working in television. After their NFL careers stalled, they decided to move to ESPN instead of holding a clipboard or playing in Canada. A TV job is becoming an increasingly viable option for former players if the pros don’t work out. As television opportunities become more lucrative and more numerous, we may see others do the same.
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