Van Pelt took over as host of “Monday Night Countdown” this year. getty images
Despite Scott Van Pelt believing that he’s “undoubtedly on the back nine” of his career, that doesn’t mean the longtime ESPN stalwart is anywhere near the 18th hole.
That’s great news for ESPN, which in addition to benefiting from Van Pelt’s reliable “SportsCenter” ratings — his midnight shows have seen year-over-year gains — was also able to tap into his desire to do more by making him the new host of “Monday Night Countdown.” The result was a surge in popularity and responsibility for the 22-year ESPN veteran, who has been named SBJ’s Best Media Talent of 2023.
“I told somebody comfort and complacent are not too far apart in the dictionary,” Van Pelt, 57, said. “I didn’t want my comfort to leak into being complacent and have my work become less than it had been. This to me represented a huge challenge. To do something totally different and to be a part of the biggest property that we have.”\
9%
increase in viewership year-over-year for Van Pelt's midnight ET “SportsCenter”
Van Pelt noted that the decision naming him host came in the eleventh hour, so there was an early sense of mapping things “on the fly,” but so far, the results are speaking for themselves.
Norby Williamson, ESPN executive editor and head of event and studio production, said the change has been a big win overall as “SportsCenter” is seeing a 6% increase in viewership year-over-year (9% alone for SVP's midnight show) and the show is driving demos in both the 18-49 group and the finer 18 to 34 age range.
But Williamson is not just a numbers guy and understands that appearance and credibility matter to an audience. When Van Pelt was tasked with anchoring “SportsCenter” following the cardiac arrest of Bills safety Damar Hamlin in early January, Williamson believes the audience saw a different side to Van Pelt.
“The work he did integrating with the announcers and navigating the viewer through a very difficult situation ... I think it showed Scott in a different light,” Williamson said. “His ability to handle a really unprecedented news event, I think that gave us a lot of benefits.”
Van Pelt is constantly looking to enhance the show and create room for more secondary conversations. “The best moments happen when we plan to talk about a topic and you say something in that topic which leads me to another door and I want to open that,” he said. “I’m hoping to create a show where it’s a less-is-more feeling.”
Van Pelt’s schedule is expected to remain the same in 2024; calling a steady dose of major championship golf and hosting “SportsCenter” from various marquee events and the studio. Van Pelt said he remains interested, competitive and hungry to tackle more challenges through the final holes of his career: “However long I have on the back nine, if I can continue to try and play at a level that would make me feel proud of what I do, I’m gonna do it.”
EDITOR'S NOTE: This story has been updated from the print edition.
