Nicole Auerbach Joining NBC Sports Full-Time, Expanding College Sports Insider Role

Auerbach will be back on Big Ten College Countdown.

Courtesy NBC Sports /

Nicole Auerbach will expand her role at NBC Sports as its lead college football and college basketball insider, the network announced today. Auerbach, who has covered those two sports since 2011, joined NBC Sports in 2023 and served as the lead insider on Big Ten College Countdown. She announced last week that she was leaving The Athletic after a seven-year run.

In addition to her role on Big Ten College Countdown studio show, Auerbach will cover the national college sports landscape in regular columns and in a new podcast for NBC Sports Digital platforms, while continuing her role as a host for SiriusXM.

“It’s a dream come true to work with NBC Sports across all of their college sports platforms,” Auerbach said in a statement. “I’ve always prided myself on my ability to break – and explain – the biggest news while also telling stories about the human side of sports, and NBC Sports is the perfect home for me to do both. I can’t wait to get to work.”

The move reflects an impressive increase of college sports inventory NBC has been able to build up with the help of Peacock and well-timed Big Ten rights moves.