The Pat McAfee Show continues to be the gift that keeps on giving for ESPN.
Once again, McAfee’s program was the place to be on Monday when former New England Patriots head coach and current NFL media multi-hyphenate Bill Belichick publicly discussed his reported ties to the University of North Carolina head coaching job.
“It seems like College Football is more like pro football right now..
I grew up around College Football & I’ve had a chance this year to take a longer look at it..
I’ve had a couple good conversations with Chancellor Roberts & we’ll see how it goes”
Bill Belichick #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/DA40eXqL7i
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) December 9, 2024
McAfee began by asking Belichick, who has been a regular guest on the show throughout the NFL season, a long-winded question regarding college football’s continued shift towards a professional style model. Belichick weighed in.
“It seems like college football is more like pro football,” Belichick began. “I’ve talked to a lot of college coaches about things like the salary cap and putting value on players and negotiating, kind of mixing all that together. So I think there are some similarities from what I’ve heard, I haven’t experienced it firsthand, but feels like that.”
Then McAfee, true to form, was able to get Belichick to comment directly on reports that he’s been interviewing for the UNC job.
“I’ve had a chance this year to take a longer look at college football during the college season as opposed to in the spring from the draft perspective and it’s been interesting. …I’ve had the opportunity to talk with (UNC) Chancellor (Lee Harriss) Roberts and we’ve had a couple of good conversations, so we’ll see how it goes.”
For someone who is not a real journalist, at least as McAfee describes himself, it’s striking the amount of news he’s able to break on his show. From the laundry list of Aaron Rodgers news breaks over the years, to top college football recruits flipping their commitment on his show, the news value of McAfee’s presence on ESPN airwaves is indisputable. Media observers seem to agree.
A lot of people (ridiculously) knocked ESPN for getting in bed with Pat McAfee, but this is just one reason why it’s paid off. Belichick’s first comment ls on UNC job come on McAfee’s show and ESPN. https://t.co/yfxwqGSR07
— Jimmy Traina (@JimmyTraina) December 9, 2024
Perhaps it’s true that McAfee isn’t a “journalist” in the truest sense of the word. He’s definitely shown a propensity to give friendly interviews to just about anyone who appears on his show, while maybe passing on asking some tougher questions. But there’s value in having a space for important figures like Belichick, Rodgers, Nick Saban, etc., to come on a show and feel comfortable. Viewers can decide for themselves whether what’s being discussed has any merit, but the platform itself is important.
So while McAfee won’t be earning the “big-J” journalist label anytime soon, he’s undoubtedly a vital part of the sports media ecosystem as it stands. Anyone getting his level of access is.
