NBC announced that NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock will be replacing Pat Haden in the booth as the color commentator for Notre Dame home games.
The hiring of Mayock, a former standout at Boston College, is sure to draw the ire of some Notre Dame fans because of his alma mater, but this was a great hire by NBC. Mayock is one of the most respected analysts in football and is perhaps the top NFL Draft analyst around.
Back in April, ProFootballTalk reported that Mayock has the most respect all of the draft analysts among NFL front office folks.
“The best guy in the amateur scouting/draftnik business in Mike Mayock,” the source said. “Mike does more film work then any of those other guys put together. He is the only one who has access to the NFL dub center where all the college tapes go before they get distributed to the teams. He watches hours and hours of tape. You might not always agree with his evaluations but he works hard at it and you have to respect that.”
It shouldn’t be surprising then that Mayock has been offered several NFL front office positions in recent months as well.
Mayock told Joe Rose on WQAM Thursday (Via Omar Kelly) that he’s had “three or four offers to join NFL front offices” but that “it wasn’t the right time.”
One of those offers may have come from the Raiders. Mayock was tied to Oakland as a possible successor to Mike Lombardi three years ago, although the team denied the report.
And in case you are wondering, Mayock is one of the draft analysts who felt Jimmy Clausen was one of the top players available in the 2010 draft. Via PFT, Mayock had this to say regarding Clausen’s pro day.
“I saw everything I needed to see,” Mayock said. “He had a strong arm. Good accuracy. I saw what I expected to see.”
Mayock mentioned that Clausen’s mechanics were improved from his junior season, especially with his feet. Clausen said his healed toe has helped him with his weight transfer.
Prior to making a name for himself as the premier draft analyst in the business, Mayock worked for both CBS and Fox Sports Net broadcasting college football games as a in-game analyst and sideline reporter.
As long as you can look past the Boston College pedigree, Mayock is an excellent hire by NBC and should provide some great insight during games. He might not have been the Notre Dame guy mst were hoping for, but he’s a more than solid analyst who should be considered an upgrade over Pat Haden.
Now, if only NBC would have done something about the guy sitting next to Mayock in the booth…
Mayock needs to not talk after every play. Other than that, he’s not bad.
Who cares? There’s a mute button on the remote that’s very useful. After a while all these guys do is blabber on and on.
As for May, he’s not there to be objective. It’s not why ABC/Disney pays him the big bucks. And like him or not, he’s been fairly accurate in his assessments of the Irish over the past several seasons. This year he’s picked the Irish to win ten games when just about everyone else at ESPN other than Bruce Feldman picks them to win between 6 and eight games. This is one case in which I hope May is on the money!
For those of us who live within range, mute the TV broadcast and watch it while listening to Allen Pinkett on the radio. It works pretty well.
Steeler fan and Shazam,
Fisrt off May is an idiot and his anti ND feelings blatant. But Holtz picked the Irish to play in the national title game last year. I love Holtz but that was way over the top. Any time they talk ND on that show it was pointless cause Holtz would say 13-0 and May would say 0-13.
To SteelfanRob’s point about everyone loving or hating ND, I think that is true with fans, but former players and coaches have far less love or angst for schools then we do. True some ex players will still hold grudges agianst thier rivals but I do not think Terry Bradshaw is incapable of giving an objective opinion on the Browns or Dallas. There are a lot of anti ND media guys out there, but I think the ND community is a little over sensitive to it.
Come football Saturday’s I enjoy watching the segments with Lou Holtz. You useally get a few good laughs from old Lou. The down side is Mark May is always around as well.
You take the good with the bad I guess.
As far as ND haters go, I think those numbers are way down. Back in the glory days when ND was beating the crap out of everyone there were way more haters.
Winning will do that.
People used to despise us, curse us, I would wear a ND jersey or hat and people would flip me off.
God I miss those days!
weren’t we supposed to play syracuse in east rutherford in 2016?
Meant to say “rub all the bad in our noses”. Although watching ND football of late has also produced many a runny nose from tearing up in frustration and anger over terrible, gut-wrenching defeats.
Brian,
An objective “homer” (that is, someone who cheers, cheers for ol’ Notre Dame) but is also honest enough to call things like they see it, wouldn’t be too bad in my opinion. It’s certainly better than the ND haters out there who “call them like they see it” (and love to run all the bad in our noses!).
What I find hilarious is the idea that anybody on this board believes one can be “objective” one way or the other about ND. One either loves or hates the Irish. Plain and simple. To believe otherwise (like Brain apparently does) is to might as well believe in the Tooth Fairy or Santa Claus. Give me a pro-Irish (but nonetheless critical) broadcast team over anti-Irish announcers any day! Brian: like I’ve said over and over, however, we need to give Mayock a chance. I happen to agree with you that he’s a keen student of the game.
SFR,
I’m in your corner when it comes Pro Irish announcers and giving Myock a chance.
In my view ,Haden got repetitive and stale. He brought little or no excitement to the games. Games that fans from all corners of the country waited all year to watch.
ND football is a product. Not just in terms of merchandise,
But in enrollment, and for NBC, Ratings. We should be trying to promote and sell our product. Like any other Major college University.
Shaz,
Good points! Hadn’t thought about it like that before, but you’re right on.
You know, Shaz, perhaps we should ask Brian if he really believes that being knowledgeable and entertaining is all that is really needed to call an ND game. If so, then Mark May is both knowledgeable and entertaining. Perhaps Brian would also tell us that Mark May is “objective” and would never, ever, under any circumstance, say anything bad about ND football. After all, his track record proves that he’ very “objective” when it comes to ND.
you people are hilarious…Do you want a guy to come in here and hype up ND no matter what? Mayock is a good football guy, I don’t care where he went to college. I never felt that Hayden was “anti-ND” either, most of the teams he saw were bad and he called them out on that. His evaluation of Clausen means nothing either, its comparing apples and oranges. He is getting paid by NBC to do two things give fans insight to what he sees, and be entertaining. He does a good job of that on the NFL network.
Drew and Brandon:
Read carefully. My point is to give Mike Mayock a shot. We may all be very pleasantly surprised that he’s not the second-coming of Pat Hayden. Mayock’s indeed a good analyst. Having said that, it’s incredibly naive to think that there’s no ND bias even among “pros”. Sure, that bias is subtle. But it’s there. It’s just a matter of reading between the lines. Several of us have offered up examples of Hayden’s “subtle bias” against the Irish.
i say give him a chance before we rush to any judgments. he does know football so ill give him that. personally i just dont like his lisp…lol
You people seem to not be able to read. If Mayock were half as anti-ND as you people make it sound – would he have been as high as he was on Clausen? Not a chance. There was plenty to rip Clausen on, just like other analysts did – and he didn’t.
The man is a good analyst, and more importantly, knows football.
Honestly, a biased ND announce team would be hard to listen to.
In other news, ND and Texas are close to agreement on a home/home series. I do not have an article to display this.
I was hoping that Bob Trumpy was going to be the hire. I’ll give Maydock a chance. Hope he doesn’t get all-Mel Kiper during games though
Here is the article:
http://sportscrack.blogspot.com/2010/08/notre-dame-to-play-texas-in-home-and.html
2015 in Notre Dame Stadium
2016 in Austin
Not sure if it is finalized yet
Coming on the heels of Miami getting back on the schedule this is huge. Not only does it add to SOS…it gets us in a major TV game in a major recruiting market….gotta love independence.
Now how bout an Irish guy as the play by play man:::::
No to offset this BC hire can we get at least a decent Play by Play man????
Irish’81 is absolutely right. Anyone who has spent any time with BC alumni and talked football (which I have, lots of times) can expect only the very worst from this hire. The fact that he is a better talent analyst than Haden was – no great achievement, that – means nothing. Expect all kinds of subtle slams from this BC DB, and just hope that we continue what began last year for the next several years. Beating Back-up College, I mean, not the other parts of the season . . . BC fans and players, like Purdue fans and players, are plagued with an ND football penis-envy that makes them irrational when it comes to the Irish. And they should envy us as they do, obviously. But, I epxect nothing positive from this guy.
The best choice would have been legendary Notre Dame football announcer Tony Roberts.
So you saying a former player for the team Boston College)that probably resents Notre Dame the most (other than maybe Michigan) whose father coached under JoPa the team that resents Notre Dame about as much is a good hire.
He is an absolutely terrible hire. Anyone that doesn’t think this guy will not have a anti-ND bias doesn’t know much about BC or Mayock. He and Hammond will continue the NBC tradition of ND football cynicism mixed with a healthy dose of blandness. Only Mayock will be worst than Haden after he’s been around enough to feel he’s comfortable in a charade of appearing objective.
Irish’81:
Let’s give Mayock a chance. Perhaps we’ll be pleasantly surprised. But I tend to agree with you. A BC grad? Are you kidding me?! I for one am sensitive to anti-ND sentiments after years of hearing Hayden secretly enjoying every ND failure (but pretending to be objective, of course).
Boy did you call that one! Kklearly this fool hates Notre Dame.
john,
Been a while since we heard from you. Good to have you back!
Thanks, but I can’t take the credit here. Irish ’81 made the call first.
Let’s hope Irish ’81 is OK and rejoins our discussions soon.
Merry Christmas to you and yours!
please get rid of Tom. he has 0 idea of whats going on and says the most obvious stuff
Frankie,
Kudos on both issues, I definately won’t miss Pat Hayden and his USC back hand comments. And the other guy, well, a clean sweep unfortunately did not seem possible at this time. So, a mediocre upgrade better than none.
Besides, the New BK-Xpress is in town and will render the both of them irrelevant!
Go…………………………………………………………Irish!