The Big 12 Championship Game was supposed to be all about the No. 15 Arizona State Sun Devils and No. 16 Iowa State Cyclones.
Instead, ESPN announcers Joe Tessitore and Jesse Palmer stole the show.
Tess and Jess, who recently came in at No. 8 in the Awful Announcing 2024 College Football Announcer Rankings, have a knack for shining in games full of exciting plays and finishes. On this Saturday, however, they were overseeing a blowout courtesy of the Sun Devils. So, they made the most of the broadcast by keeping things light and having fun.
We can thank ASU running back Cameron Skattebo for the funniest exchange of the day. Right after Palmer praised him, Skattebo scampered for a huge gain, breaking free of several ISU tacklers on the way. It led to a classic Joe Tess call.
“Here is Skattebo, and this is exactly what he does! HOW DID HE STAY ON BALANCE THERE! LOOK AT HIM GO! SKATTEBO! INSIDE THE 30! A HUMAN WRECKING BALL DOWNFIELD THROUGH IOWA STATE’S DEFENSE!” – Joe Tessitore has the Iowa State-Arizona State Big 12 Championship call for ABC 🏈🎙️ pic.twitter.com/CfPGjoenBU
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) December 7, 2024
You can’t have a player named Skattebo and not expect there to be some booth hijinks around that name. That hijink appeared in the form of Palmer doing a pretty solid Billy Madison impression.
Jesse Palmer says Skattebo in an Adam Sandler/Billy Madison voice and makes Joe Tessitore laugh hard. 🏈🎙️ https://t.co/OLgKYsUOHP pic.twitter.com/VePaZUQfzv
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) December 7, 2024
And just in case you needed another fix of Joe Tessitore screaming “SKATTEBO,” here you go.
“THERE’S MR. CONTACT BALANCE AGAIN! LOOK AT SKATTEBO GO! TRIPPED UP JUST INSIDE THE 20. WHAT AN UNBELIEVABLE FIRST HALF BY SKATTEBO!”
– Joe Tesstitore is having a ball calling the Big 12 Champ Game. https://t.co/OLgKYsUgSh pic.twitter.com/lFwmeILVTN
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) December 7, 2024
At one point, Tess and Palmer discussed how long it’s been since Iowa State won a conference championship (1912). That led to a gem from Jesse about how the two of them would have handled Prohibition.
“You and I would’ve struggled in Prohibition, by the way.” – Jesse Palmer to Joe Tessitore 🏈🎙️ pic.twitter.com/8P03Lzg7Wv
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) December 7, 2024
Tess was such a sucker for Palmer’s running stand-up routine that he was starting to have trouble calling the game in-between laughing fits.
Joe Tessitore is struggling to even do play-by-play because of how hard Jesse Palmer is making him laugh all day. 🏈🎙️🍊 pic.twitter.com/s7iR88rMqw
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) December 7, 2024
Of course, that didn’t stop Tess from going full WWE when needed (even if that ended up being a bit gauche given the outcome).
Arizona State DB Shamari Simmons was ejected for targeting after this massive hit on Iowa State QB Rocco Becht to begin the fourth quarter.
Simmons will have to miss the first half of ASU’s first College Football Playoff game.
Becht has returned to the game. pic.twitter.com/yRGE7q1TVB
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) December 7, 2024
Tess didn’t endear himself to some Big 12 fans thanks to several glowing SEC mentions during the game, but he and Palmer certainly seemed to enjoy their day regardless.
[ESPN]
About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.