ESPN announces National Championship MegaCast plans, including ‘Field Pass with The Pat McAfee Show,’ but no Film Room

ESPN announced its MegaCast plans for Monday’s National Championship between Georgia and TCU, and they’re pretty similar to what we saw during the semifinals of the College Football Playoff a week ago.

ESPN once again has the main broadcast, with Chris Fowler and Kirk Herbstreit on the call and Holly Rowe (Georgia) and Molly McGrath (TCU) on the sidelines.

ESPN2 brings back Field Pass with The Pat McAfee Show from the semifinals, featuring McAfee, Darius Butler, Connor Campbell, AJ Hawk, and “a rotation of ESPN analysts, notable personalities, and celebrities.” That last bit gives me flashbacks to the delightful “ESPN Voices” feed during the early days of the Playoff.

The Command Center broadcast, which includes “a multi-angle presentation with player and team statistics” airs on ESPNU, while ESPNEWS has the all-Skycam SkyCast feed. A 4K version of the SkyCast can be watched on Comcast, DirecTV, YouTube TV, and Verizon platforms.

Of course, there is the Spanish language feed on ESPN Deportes, with Eduardo Varela, Pablo Viruega, and Katia Castorena on the call. ESPN Radio’s game broadcast will be called by Sean McDonough and Todd Blackledge, with Ian Fitzsimmons and Kris Budden on the sidelines.

The ESPN app will be the home of the All-22 broadcast, featuring a higher camera angle with the ESPN Radio call. Georgia’s Hometown Radio broadcast is available on both SEC Network and the ESPN app, with Scott Howard, Eric Zeier, and DJ Shockley on the call. TCU’s Hometown Radio broadcast is app-only, featuring Brian Estridge, John Denton, and Landry Burdine. Halftime marching band performances can also be watched via the app.

What sticks out to me most is the lack of a Film Room broadcast, long a fan favorite. Last year’s Film Room featured just Jimbo Fisher and his Texas A&M assistants, while the 2021 Film Room featured Gene Chizik, Dave Clawson, Hugh Freeze, and Sam Washington. It’s disappointing to see it not returning this year.

Game coverage begins at 7:30 PM ET on Monday, January 9th.

[ESPN]