Comcast SportsNet Chicago’s Jen Lada to join ESPN Radio’s Colin Cowherd

Jen Lada who has been with Comcast SportsNet Chicago for the past two years as an anchor and reporter will join ESPN in August. The kicker is that she’ll join ESPN Radio’s Colin Cowherd show as a contributor. Her role on the show has yet to be defined, but it’s apparent that she’ll do more than just be an update anchor.

Lada will also be featured on ESPN’s studio shows such as SportsCenter, but it appears her main focus will be on Cowherd’s show. She told our Ed Sherman in the Chicago Tribune that she’s ready to start the verbal sparring with Cowherd:

“The great thing about Colin’s shows is that they go beyond the surface level and try to figure out why something is happening,” Lada said. “I’ve met with Colin. He’s great. We get along really well. This is a great opportunity to mix it up a bit.”

Before reporting for Comcast SportsNet in her native Illinois, Lada was also a sports reporter in Milwaukee covering the Green Bay Packers for the local Fox affiliate.

Perhaps the attraction from ESPN is that Lada is not afraid to express an opinion. At the Blogs With Balls 6 conference in Chicago earlier this year, Lada said she didn’t like sites that posted pictures of women just to get traffic, “I have an issue with some of the stuff that’s on (Barstool Sports). I don’t like the WAG of the day…. Can you exist without relying on that kind of clickbait?” It led to her say, “Women like me who want to be respected for their thoughts!”

She’ll get that opportunity when she joins ESPN in August as the on-air partner to Cowherd. Whether they’ll have on-air chemistry and be able to steer his radio show into a new direction remains to be seen.

[Chicago Tribune]