Rich Eisen Tells Cool Story Behind Classic ‘This Is SportsCenter’ Ad

In Tuesday’s Hot Clicks: Rich Eisen goes behind the scenes of a memorable ESPN commercial, the Marlins’ coronavirus puts MLB on edge and more.

Rich Eisen didn’t appreciate being “sent to the minors”

There’s a reason why ESPN’s “This Is SportsCenter” ads have endured for 25 years. The clever spots’ wry sense of humor is timeless. Any sports fan of a certain age could tell you their favorite—and then add five more to the list. 

The commercials were just as meaningful for the SportsCenter anchors who starred in them. In a series of tweets on Monday night, former ESPN anchor Rich Eisen described the “in-house competition” centered on the beloved ads. 

Eisen specifically mentioned a spot called “Sent to the Minors,” in which he gets demoted to reading announcements for a high school. 

@RichEisen You handled this demotion like a pro. pic.twitter.com/8bgOPABwr0

— Funhouse (@BackAftaThis) July 28, 2020

Eisen, who was still a relative newcomer at ESPN, took offense to being the one picked to play the demoted anchor and went to veteran Dan Patrick to complain. 

I’ll just embed Eisen’s whole Twitter thread here, because there are too many interesting asides to just summarize the whole thing. 

Back in the day, other than which SportsCenter show you were assigned and with whom, the biggest sense of in-house competition involved which #ThisIsSportsCenter spot you were assigned, if you were lucky to be assigned one at all.

— Rich Eisen (@richeisen) July 28, 2020

...my colleagues were folks like @KeithOlbermann @dpshow Chris Berman @RobinRoberts @BobLeyESPN Craig Kilborn @miketirico and so on. I was tossed into a deep-ended pool and felt a bit of pressure to say the least. And when it was time to shoot spots, I remember the @ESPN staff...

— Rich Eisen (@richeisen) July 28, 2020

...notes on who was in what spot. At any rate, I got my first spot in my first year, carrying Kerry Strug in a newsroom and others followed, including a great spot called “Cornerman” with the brilliant and profane Lou Duva. To be totally honest...https://t.co/ITtqqqzPsK

— Rich Eisen (@richeisen) July 28, 2020

...as for the spot in question: Sent Down To The Minors. I had been on the air for a couple of years there, eager to be making as big a mark as possible and got the script and my first thought was...WTF. Why in the world were they choosing ME to be sent down to the minors? So...

— Rich Eisen (@richeisen) July 28, 2020

in his chair, with his Dick Trickle racing jacket on the back, and he asked me one question in his uniquely understated patter: Why? I told him how this spot was a bad look when I was trying so hard to be a top player at ESPN. This spot was sending me down to the MINORS. WTF?!

— Rich Eisen (@richeisen) July 28, 2020

...to shoot the spot, I tried to mimic the shocked look I probably had leaving DP’s office. Needless to say, I decided to throw myself completely into the spot which has remarkly and, with amazed relief, thankfully become a classic. Of course, you can guess who never fails...

— Rich Eisen (@richeisen) July 28, 2020

to remind me of who wanted to tap out of that spot and who sagely tough-loved me from tapping out and actually going through with it. Yes, @dpshow, I know you were the one who kick-saved that one into me showing some James K. Polk spirit. /end

— Rich Eisen (@richeisen) July 28, 2020

Eisen’s first job after going to grad school at Northwestern was as a sports anchor for KRCR-TV, Redding, California’s ABC affiliate. Today, that’s the 131st-largest media market in the United States. Two years later, he was at ESPN. So Eisen was right to view himself as an underdog, but at the same time, he was one of the most talented and beloved anchors on the network. Even people who are at the top of their field have serious doubts about their abilities.

The best of SI

MLB should have foreseen a team-wide outbreak like the one the Marlins are grappling with. ... The Marlins’ outbreak should be a warning to every other sport trying to come back in the United States. ... Assuming they still play games, where does Justin Verlander’s absence leave the Astros?

Around the sports world

Megan Rapinoe has a new talk show coming out on HBO. ... A limited-edition baseball card of Dr. Anthony Fauci set a record with more than 50,000 sold. ... Kyrie Irving is donating $1.5 million to support WNBA players who opted out of the season. ... The soundtrack for NBA 2K21 will feature 202 songs. ... A bunch of NBA owners are losing a ton of money, according to Brian Windhorst. 

Laser beam

.@Pete_Alonso20 ain't afraid of no monster. 💪 #LGM pic.twitter.com/yaeJXNFGjk

— New York Mets (@Mets) July 28, 2020

Bol Bol is terrifying

Yes, that's our 7'2" big man running off screens for a three.

No biggie. @BolBol | #MileHighBasketball https://t.co/YxUoCXBf4V

— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) July 28, 2020

This must be the most frustrating kind of goal for a goalie to give up

The CHIP from Douglas Martínez! 👌

Right off the kickoff for his @realsaltlake goal. #RSL pic.twitter.com/U195A4Zki3

— Major League Soccer (@MLS) July 28, 2020

Crazy to see Trout react like this

This is about as upset as you’ll ever see Mike Trout over a strike call. pic.twitter.com/um9N0J9aPV

— Fabian Ardaya (@FabianArdaya) July 27, 2020

I don’t know enough about golf to make heads or tails of swing paths but I still enjoy watching stuff like this

Oddly satisfying

Dew sweeping 😍 pic.twitter.com/xHtSl3Z394

— GOLF.com (@GOLF_com) July 26, 2020

I love a good coincidence

Career homer number 💯 for Alex Bregman. pic.twitter.com/5WoPUawnkb

— MLB (@MLB) July 28, 2020

Alex Bregman's career 100th home run... Exactly 100 MPH. pic.twitter.com/Jr9ONJsoAI

— Daren Willman (@darenw) July 28, 2020

The camera angles in the bubble are crazy

This camera angle of CP3 threading the needle 😯

(via @okcthunder) pic.twitter.com/uXT0pT1hI3

— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) July 24, 2020

I couldn’t believe it when the stack just kept getting higher

as a former gymnast I respect this more than any random upgrade pic.twitter.com/sM7DeGcHRu

— kt (@ktgymnastics) July 27, 2020

Not sports

A new handheld video game console that plays old GameBoy games will be available for preorder next week. ... The new Christopher Nolan movie Tenet, which has changed its release date about a thousand times, has set a new one. ... A rescuer descended 130 feet to save an owl trapped at the bottom of a well at an abandoned castle in Germany.

Money for food? What a concept!

Virginia Chick-fil-A offering free food in exchange for coins amid shortage https://t.co/wZAAzRCc8a pic.twitter.com/JjfriMlVVR

— The Hill (@thehill) July 27, 2020

(It’s actually food and cash in exchange for coins.)

When your house painter went to art school

A good song

I’ll be out the rest of the week. Michael Shapiro and Chris Chavez have you covered. 

Email dan.gartland@si.com with any feedback or follow me on Twitter for approximately one half-decent baseball joke per week. Bookmark this page to see previous editions of Hot Clicks and find the newest edition every day. By popular request I’ve made a Spotify playlist of the music featured here. Visit our Extra Mustard page throughout each day for more offbeat sports stories.