Randall Cobb made an early impact on the football field as a freshman at the University of Kentucky and a rookie with the Green Bay Packers. He is off to another fast start.
Cobb is in his first season at the SEC Network as a studio analyst.
Cobb cohosts Out of Pocket alongside Alyssa Lang and appears on SEC Now. He starred in the conference as a quarterback and wide receiver for the Wildcats, earning first-team All-American honors twice before his 13-year NFL career. We recently caught up with Cobb to ask him about his transition from player to broadcaster.
Note: This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.
Awful Announcing: How did this opportunity come about?
Randall Cobb: “I’ve always been interested in broadcasting. As I was playing, I’ve always done some interviews and some things in the offseason. In the spring after the Super Bowl, I met with a few people, just getting an idea of the difference between in-studio and game day. I did a trial run in Charlotte at ESPN, and it kind of just worked out. They were looking for more players to add to their roster since the league was expanding to 16 teams. They needed more voices. It matched up perfectly with the timing.”
What has been the hardest thing to learn?
“I think just understanding how to be concise with your words. It takes a lot of preparation, putting together all the information, and making sure that you’re straight to the point.
“In this day and age, there’s just so much movement with NIL. You also have a lot of coaches who have moved around and been at different places throughout the SEC. I’m just playing catch up, getting to know everyone and trying to get an understanding of the teams and players and systems they run.”
.@OU_Football‘s Kip Lewis & Samuel Omosigho have a love/hate relationship 😅@AlyssaLang | @rcobb18 pic.twitter.com/tk2mOeN5vT
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) October 3, 2024
Who has been a big help to you?
“I’ve been very fortunate to have producers Brad Buchanan and Jonathan McDonald. They have been so great at giving me feedback and teaching me along the way how I can be better. It’s important to have coaches like those two. But as far as guys who have done it, Roman Harper has helped. Booger McFarland and Kirk Herbstreit have reached out and given me pointers The biggest thing is just understanding the preparation that goes into it. It’s no different than what I was doing on the field when I was preparing to play another opponent. It’s just instead of covering one opponent, I’m covering 16 each week.”
Is broadcasting harder than playing football or just different?
“It’s different. There’s so much physical exertion and activity, whether it be working out, preparing, practicing, or playing games. There’s just a different component when it comes to the preparation of putting the information together, which I would do a lot. But in the NFL and college, it’s mostly handed to you. A team of analytics or the coaching staff has already put it together. What a team does on third down and what to expect with coverages in the red zone. Now, it’s just being able to dive into the film and figure that out for myself.”
Has anyone been mad at something you’ve said on the air?
“I did a top-five quarterbacks here (on Tuesday). I’ve already been told that (Vanderbilt quarterback Diego) Pavia wasn’t too happy that I had left him off his list. I understand it as a player. That was one of the things I never liked about hearing people broadcast, put you in these boxes, and tell you who you were or you weren’t. That’s what made the games fun. You got to go out there, and you get to prove it week in and week out.
“I said something last week about the 12th man in Kyle Field not being a factor in the LSU game. And they surely were. That’s fine. When people say things and get reactions, good and bad, that’s part of what we do as broadcasters.”
What has been the most surprising thing about this SEC season?
“That there’s much more of an even playing field. You look at what Kentucky did versus Georgia, but also they lost big to South Carolina, who goes and competes with Alabama. But then South Carolina loses to LSU close at home.
“You always think you’re going to have teams that are frontrunners. Then, they don’t prove to be the team that you thought they were. There’s been so much fluidity. Some teams have been a little disappointing. Georgia, I didn’t think that they played well earlier in the season, but they’re still a one-loss team. They’re still fighting for a position in the playoffs.”
Who is the best player in the conference?
“The best player right now in the SEC? I would take (Alabama wide receiver) Ryan Williams. He has been electric. What he’s done as a 17-year-old in this league, I think is unheard of. He would be one of those guys who is a first-round top-15 (NFL draft) pick if he continues at this trajectory. (Ole Miss wide receiver) Tre Harris has been unbelievable. I look for him to be one of those top picks as well.”
“He got me out of my chair.”@rcobb18 giving @AlabamaFTBL‘s Ryan Williams his flowers 💐 pic.twitter.com/PVf3xcGBaF
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) October 3, 2024
What game are you looking forward to this weekend?
“I would say Texas A&M and South Carolina. We didn’t know coming into it with Mike Elko if he was going to be able to have that team ready to have the success that they’ve had with their quarterback situation. They’ve been playing really good defense. I don’t think anyone saw them being in this position. Then you go to the other side. South Carolina’s defense has been lights out. Just their ability to get home to the quarterback, the pressure they put on teams, and force quarterbacks into making critical mistakes. If they can find a way to take care of the ball offensively, they’ll have a great opportunity to take this game late into the fourth quarter at home.”
Is it fair to call you a retired football player?
“Yeah, that’s fair to say. I haven’t officially retired, but I’m not playing right now, and I’m not searching out to play. I have a little bit of a hard time saying that I’m retired.”
Do you miss playing football?
“I love football. I’m enjoying what I’m doing right now. It’s been a lot of fun. It’s been a different challenge for me. But I think I’ll always miss playing the game. It’s just a part of who I am. As a player, you always say you don’t want to make that your (entire) identity. But it has been a big part of my identity, not only my professional career but college and high school as well.”
