Mike Golic Jr. on his new TNT sports gig, Notre Dame podcast

It’s Mike Golic Jr.’s favorite time of year. The college football season is underway, and the longtime broadcaster and podcast host has a prominent role as TNT Sports’ lead game analyst for Big 12 football. Golic Jr. and J.B. Long will serve as the network’s top announcing team. They will make their debut when Hawaii faces Arizona on Aug. 30 at 10:30 p.m. ET.

It will be a busy fall for Golic, who also has a new podcast with Jessica Smetana called The Echoes: A Podcast On Notre Dame via AMP Media. That’s not all. He’ll continue his long-running show—Golic & Golic—with his father, Mike Golic, which is now on FanDuel Sports Network.

We recently caught up with Golic to chat about his full schedule.

Note: This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.

Awful Announcing: What does this opportunity mean to you?

Mike Golic Jr.: “For me, it’s a great chance to get back involved in big-time college football in a meaningful way. The Big 12 season is going to have so much interest. I feel like I’ve been talking to people who recognize the depth of awesome talent in this conference. Arizona is kind of a good example of that. Maybe last year things didn’t go the way they wanted, but Noah Fifita, a couple of years ago, was one of the breakout quarterbacks in college football. It’s a chance to kick the season off with them and get things going here. It’s going to be exciting.”

Why should someone tune in to Hawaii vs. Arizona?

“For Noah Fifita, the quarterback, this is a guy that’s trying to rebound after a down 2024 relative to the standard he set in 2023. It’s his first time going back to, like, grade school without playing with Tetairoa McMillan, who was one of his best friends. (McMillan) was a first-round draft pick of the Carolina Panthers. (Fifita has) a new offensive coordinator now and is going up against a Hawaii team that is used to late-night ball games. (Arizona is) a program that’s trying to build itself back to what it used to be.”

What’s it like working with TNT Sports?

“I linked up with J.B. Long for those four (Mountain West games on truTV last season). I really had a blast. I had never worked for TNT before. Getting an inside look at how they did everything, how first-class the operation was. So many of the folks who were a part of the success of Inside the NBA for years. You see why that show has been so successful, because it’s got a lot of special people working in and around it that I was fortunate to work with. They took a chance on me and gave me an opportunity to keep calling games and doing something I love. And now we get to do that again, even bigger and better this year, with a full slate of games.”

Is there something special you bring to broadcasts?

“I want to try to do the best job telling the story of the players, coaches, and fan bases. I’ve been a part of that in every role. I grew up a college football fan. I was fortunate to play college football at Notre Dame, live that player experience, and see what our coaches went through. I want to bring that level of care and respect for the opportunity that we have here. We’re the vessel to tell the stories of all of them. Having been on the other side of that, I take that really seriously.”

What are your thoughts on the Big 12?

“I truly think it’s a conference with enough depth of quality teams where it can absolutely be a two-bit league for the College Football Playoff if things break right. But we know that, like we saw in the back half of last season, where even Colorado has a shot at it. Iowa State has a shot at it. BYU and all these teams are in the mix. And you have ASU kind of surge at the right time, and all this chaos happens. I think that kind of parity and quality around the league makes for an incredibly exciting and meaningful regular season.”

Is there a team that could surprise in the Big 12?

“Cincinnati is an interesting team with Scott Satterfield. Last year, still a solid season, improving off year one. But you miss out on bowl season after the hot start. You bring back Brendan Sorsby. He reminds you a lot of Cameron Rising when you watch him play. Smooth player, the arm strength to get it all over the place, mobile enough to be a plus in their run game and to evade pressure in the pocket. You’re replacing an incredible running back in Corey Kiner. But across the board, there’s always been a good foundation along the lines of scrimmage.”

What’s it like doing the Notre Dame podcast, The Echoes?

“It’s an awesome opportunity. (I) do it with someone who’s become a really good friend of mine over the years in the sports media landscape, Jessica Smetana, who’s also a Notre Dame grad. She was in the same class as my sister in 2016. She comes from a family that loves the school. It’s an easy conversation once a week to have with someone I talk Notre Dame football with regularly.

What are realistic expectations for the Irish?

“At this point, the standard for them is getting to the playoff, winning games, and putting themselves within arm’s reach of the national championship. Brian Kelly, who was the head coach in my last three years in South Bend, had reset that standard at Notre Dame as a double-digit win team. Marcus Freeman came in and has done a good job of adding to that by improving the depth of the roster.”

How gratifying is it to be able to continue the show with your father?

“I think as I’ve gotten older, I turn 36 this fall, I’ve gotten a deeper appreciation for that every year. Life-wise, you grow up. Everyone’s got families, they move, and different jobs come up. It gets harder to stay in touch with friends and family. To have two hours a day where I just get to hang out with my dad and see and talk to him is awesome.”

What’s the biggest pop culture disagreement you have with your dad?

“I don’t think there’s a disagreement necessarily. Interstellar was the movie back in the day. We left the movie theater. We’re driving home. I’m Googling black hole theories and explaining all this stuff to him. My dad wanted no part of that. He is self-described as a mile wide and an inch deep. So when he hears me and other Taylor Swift fans talking about countdown clocks and looking for Easter eggs and stuff, I think his eyes glaze over a little bit. He likes the music, but I think he could do without me droning on about it.”