(L-R) Production spotter Tony Granieri, analyst Jon Gruden and play-by-play commentator Mike Tirico. Said Granieri: “I get paid to watch football. Next to a Super Bowl winning coach. In the MNF booth. In the end, my job is a dream.”
PITTSBURGH – Monday Night Football announcers Mike Tirico and Jon Gruden have a road game every week. Tonight they’ll be working in their seventh booth in as many weeks when they call the Houston Texans at the Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field (8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN). Fortunately, the MNF team has a strong supporting staff that makes every assignment feel more like a “home game.” Recently, Front Row introduced you to longtime MNF statistician Marty Aronoff, who has spent much of his career working alongside Tirico.
This photo gallery will introduce you to a few other team members – and some machinery – essential to the MNF production process. Also, please visit the Front Row Facebook page for more on this team.
James Munn contributed to this post.
Production spotter: Tony Granieri (right) – a former QB at Bryant College – watches the game action carefully, sharing insights with various crew members, including analyst Jon Gruden (left).
Spotter/stage manager: Assisting Mike Tirico throughout the telecast with in-game substitutions, injuries and more is Mike Black, who has worked on ESPN’s NFL and college football crews since 1998. A former placekicker, he played four years at Boise State and 10 years in the Arena Football League.
Makeup station: Nancy Klintworth – ESPN’s first traveling stage manager/makeup artist – has been a member of ESPN’s NFL family since 2002. Rules consultant Gerry Austin – also pictured here – served as an NFL official for 16 years before joining MNF in 2012.
Announcer earpieces: Booth audio assistant Jon Hooper is working on an IFB. This allows an announcer to hear the producer and director as well as everything people watching on TV hear (except his/her own voice).
Booth spotter/stage manager Mike Black and statistician Marty Aronoff communicate with other crew members using these headsets. MNF has 51 private intercom channels set up for each game.
“Robo camera”: MNF utilizes 33 cameras, including this robotic booth camera which faces the field and is used for Mike Tirico and Jon Gruden’s pre-game conversations and stand-ups.
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