ESPN’s plans for the future of the 5:00 pm time slot after sunsetting Around the Horn have come into focus.
Matt Barrie and Christine Williamson will be the primary anchors for a half-hour SportsCenter in that time slot starting Tuesday, an ESPN spokesperson confirmed to Front Office Sports. The duo will also continue to host the 2:00 pm edition of the show.
ESPN canceled Around the Horn after a 23-year run, and the final episode of the show that scores the argument, hosted by Tony Reali since Max Kellerman left in early 2004, aired on Friday.
Barrie has been a versatile anchor at ESPN since 2013. He hosts studio coverage on college football Saturdays and has been involved with The Masters. He’s also the play-by-play broadcaster for the network’s Thursday night college football games and the upstart TGL golf league.
Williamson joined ESPN in 2019, and in addition to SportsCenter, has been active on digital platforms including SC on Snap and Hoop Streams.
Plans are fluid as far as how long SportsCenter will air in the 5:00 time slot, but it will be at least several months before ESPN develops a new concept.
It has been a busy month of news for SportsCenter talent moves. FOS previously reported that Treavor Scales is re-joining ESPN as an anchor, and Stan Verrett will exit the network after 25 years when his contract expires in late summer. ESPN recently migrated the 1:00 am edition from Los Angeles to headquarters in Bristol, Conn.
