Tony Romo did it by signing a $180 million contract with CBS in 2020, so did Tom Brady with his pending $375 million Fox deal. But Kirk Herbstreit just reset the standard for analysts again with his resident foot rubber at ESPN.
ESPN was in Montana for Saturday’s edition of College GameDay, where temperatures struggled to reach double-digits, making it the coldest broadcast in the show’s history. And while it was cold for everyone working on the College GameDay set ahead of Saturday’s Montana vs Montana State rivalry game, video evidence showed Herbstreit feeling the effects more than most.
Dressed like a cowboy straight out of Yellowstone, Herbstreit needed some help keeping his feet warm. Instead of relying on a heater under the table or wiggling his toes, ESPN provided Herbstreit with a foot rubber. Save your Rex Ryan jokes.
Looks like @KirkHerbstreit’s feet are cold. pic.twitter.com/zqH6Ly22Y0
— Montana Kaimin (@MontanaKaimin) November 19, 2022
Herbstreit’s annual salary for any one of his analyst jobs may not match Tony Romo, Troy Aikman, or what Tom Brady will make if he does end up going to Fox. But Herbie just one-upped all of them, raising the ceiling for analyst contracts by accidentally showing off his foot rubber. Surely, Brady was on the phone with Fox demanding that he has a foot rubber on standby after seeing the viral video of Herbstreit over the weekend.
Images of Herbstreit getting a foot rub during a GameDay commercial break were never meant to go viral. But with Herbstreit sitting in front of thousands of college football fans getting a foot rub, how could he or ESPN expect that it wouldn’t end up plastered all over social media?
Kudos to Herbstreit for being a hard worker with notable analyst jobs on ESPN’s GameDay and Saturday Night Football, in addition to Amazon’s Thursday Night Football. Despite those prominent gigs, it’s the foot rub that may have the most lasting impact on the industry.
[The Montana Kaimin on Twitter]
About Brandon Contes
Brandon Contes is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. He previously helped carve the sports vertical for Mediaite and spent more than three years with Barrett Sports Media. Send tips/comments/complaints to bcontes@thecomeback.com