Danny Parkins is the new kid on the block at FS1 this year, and his rise from local Chicago voice to budding national host hit a high note last week when he filled in for Colin Cowherd on The Herd.
After detailing the challenges and thrill of hosting The Herd on his local show Parkins & Spiegel last week, Parkins joined Cowherd on The Colin Cowherd Podcast on Sunday where he gave props to Cowherd for handling the lift of solo radio and television every day.
“I do think that you have the hardest job in sports opinion,” Parkins told Cowherd. “First Take is a debate show. There has to be someone to debate. Get Up is a panel show. Undisputed is a debate show. First Things First is a chemistry show, PTI is a chemistry show. You’re a monologue and take show … three hours of solo TV and radio is no joke.”
.@DannyParkins joins @ColinCowherd and discusses filling in on @TheHerd…
“I do think you have the hardest job in sports opinion.” pic.twitter.com/7r86dw9YUx
— The Volume (@TheVolumeSports) July 15, 2024
For Parkins, the nerves around delivering those takes and monologues also came from the situation at Fox’s studios in Los Angeles. Cowherd notoriously has a cavernous studio and has a show simulcast on FS1 and nationally on iHeartMedia radio stations. And to make matters worse, the first monologue of The Herd each day comes as the cast of Undisputed is still shuffling out of the building.
So Parkins clearly was giving praise to Cowherd in part after appreciating the difficulty of the gig. And Parkins has not done any of those ESPN shows he mentioned.
But when you combine the number of opinions Cowherd tosses out each day with the length of the show and the fact that The Herd is a television product as much as a radio product, it certainly is a unique challenge in sports media.
However, that is all by Cowherd’s choice. If he wanted a traditional cohost rather than an anchor like Jason McIntyre, he could have one. If Cowherd wanted a smaller studio and a more intimate environment, he could make it work, and fans would still likely tune in.
The real test is when hosts who are not Cowherd have to do their best Cowherd impression, at his scale and with his style. Parkins learned that well last week.
About Brendon Kleen
Brendon is a Media Commentary staff writer at Awful Announcing. He has also covered basketball and sports business at Front Office Sports, SB Nation, Uproxx and more.