ESPN has made another change to its college football scorebug, highlighting which commentator is talking, a move that models a change to the network’s UFL scorebug from this spring.
When active, the bug shows the names of the commentators at the bottom, including the sideline reporter and rules analyst. When a person speaks, their name is highlighted in white, and an audio sign is shown next to them. This is exactly how it worked for the UFL.
The addition of the “audio ID,” in addition to the previously reported move to remove the BottomLine, was highlighted by ESPN vice president of communications Bill Hofheimer prior to ESPN’s North Carolina-TCU broadcast from Ireland.
Two production highlights worth noting here for ESPN’s college football coverage this season…
No BottomLine during game action across our networks
The introduction of Audio ID under the score bug to show who is speaking at certain moments pic.twitter.com/pX3gQyztkp
— bill hofheimer (@bhofheimer_espn) August 29, 2026
Here is how it looked in action:
In addition to removing the BottomLine, ESPN now shows on the college football scorebug when a particular announcer or reporter is speaking. https://t.co/y6sKWzKi8ypic.twitter.com/xWy9Os590i
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) August 29, 2026
When this feature first debuted on UFL broadcasts, it was especially useful because those broadcasts usually had two or three color commentators, with at least one on the field. That is not something ESPN will employ for its college football broadcasts.
The new feature debuted to mixed reaction. Some liked the feature because it made it clear who was talking (or putting them to sleep), while others found it unnecessary, especially because its position at the bottom of the screen was previously taken up by ESPN’s BottomLine.
Big fan. Small detail that helps non sickos know who’s talking
— Noah Torr (@noah_torr1) August 29, 2026
Love the consistent reminder that the guy putting me to sleep is Mike Monaco.
— Aubie in Prague (@TheJakeMitchell) August 29, 2026
Dumb…they take away the ticker and want to alert us to who is speaking when 2 of the 4 will only talk 3-4 times a game.
— Darin Didier (@DidierDarin) August 29, 2026
They started this during the UFL season. I really enjoy it, personally.
Helps me put a name to a voice.
— Algernon (@Algernonab) August 29, 2026
If this feature goes over well with fans, it will be interesting to see if ESPN continues to add it to more sports. For sports with more commentators, like golf or tennis, this could be a really great feature. With college football having just one color analyst, along with occasional reports from sideline reporters and rules analysts, it’s not exactly game-changing.
The post ESPN’s college football scorebug now shows which announcer is talking appeared first on Awful Announcing.
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