ESPN stars are slated to get some face time on ABC’s Good Morning America this summer.
An ESPN spokesperson confirmed to Front Office Sports that Malika Andrews will be a guest cohost on the morning talk show this Saturday and Sunday, and on the GMA3 digital program next Monday. Joe Buck will also fill in on GMA from July 23–25.
Sources indicated Elle Duncan and Laura Rutledge have also had discussions to potentially set up dates for later this summer.
ABC is the sister station of ESPN, with both operating under the Disney umbrella.
Andrews, Duncan, and Rutledge are star anchors for ESPN, while Buck is the play-by-play broadcaster for Monday Night Football.
The guest-host spots are part of an ongoing trend of legacy morning news and entertainment programs growing more comfortable using talent from the sports side. One industry source noted sports broadcasters are garnering more respect for their abilities due to their reps of handling live events on the fly.
GMA cohosts Michael Strahan and Robin Roberts both came from sports. Mike Tirico guest-cohosted NBC’s Today show for a week earlier this year, and Dwyane Wade guest-hosted the show’s 3rd Hour on Monday. Kaylee Hartung straddles between NFL on Amazon’s Prime Video and daytime talk on NBC.
