chris berman, tom jackson

With Chris Berman reportedly in his final season as host of Monday Night Countdown (6 p.m. ET on ESPN), ESPN has been pairing him with a different big-name guest for each week’s show, with Joe Namath, Mike Ditka and Michael Irvin among those taking a turn.

This week, Berman will be joined by his former sidekick Tom Jackson, who retired in August after 29 years at ESPN. According to a press release, Jackson and Berman will “reunite and reminisce in-studio throughout the two-hour show.”

Jackson and Berman were the faces of ESPN’s NFL coverage for nearly three decades, so their reunion should provoke some nostalgia. And their chemistry and seemingly genuine love for each other was always kind of inspiring. As for whether the two hours they’re together on air will be a worthwhile viewing experience… well, let’s just say their best days are probably behind them.

In honor of Jackson and Berman’s reunion, let’s go down a YouTube rabbit hole and reminisce a little bit.

Here they are looking like babies all the way back in 1987:

Seventeen years later, they were still at it.

“Jacked Up” looks like an awful idea in retrospect, but at the time… ok yeah, it was always a terrible idea.

Here’s the final episode of Primetime in 2006:

In 2010, Berman got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and Jackson was there to recognize him.

And here’s Jackson signing off for a final time, alongside Berman.

About Alex Putterman

Alex is a writer and editor for The Comeback and Awful Announcing. He has written for The Atlantic, VICE Sports, MLB.com, SI.com and more. He is a proud alum of Northwestern University and The Daily Northwestern. You can find him on Twitter @AlexPutterman.

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