Colin Cowherd Almost Gave Up Sports for Politics
Colin Cowherd, the polarizing sports personality best known for his time on ESPN and Fox Sports, nearly took a sharp left turn into the world of political commentary. In a recent conversation on The Ryen Russillo Podcast, Cowherd revealed that he seriously considered leaving the sports world behind to take over Larry King’s coveted timeslot at CNN.
This was just before Cowherd’s last contract at ESPN, right as he was preparing to make the leap to Fox Sports. The network was clearly smitten with Cowherd, as he shared that he had personal conversations with then-president Jeff Zucker about potential content reformatting.
"Larry King had moved off," Cowherd recalled, "and I told Jeff… ‘you can’t do the interview anymore.’ There’s like six people in the country [good enough] for an interview. This was pre-podcasting, but Larry King, how many people can you interview and get a number? I broke down the show; I said I would do 6 minutes sort of Bill Maher, I would do two or three really smart, funny people, and I would end with a couple of pieces of funny video. Forty minutes of content, 20 [of] ads, I’m out."
Cowherd wasn’t shy about admitting that his proposed format was heavily inspired by Real Time with Bill Maher.
"And CNN was apparently not the only network that wanted the longtime host of The Herd," Cowherd added.
“I interviewed with MSNBC … and I was interested,” he said.
Cowherd has always flirted with political commentary, often speaking his mind on current events despite characterizing himself as "anti-politics." It’s as if he recognizes that his political perspectives might be somewhat underdeveloped, yet he’s drawn to the discourse nonetheless.
In his years at ESPN, Cowherd had already dipped his toes into the political pond, notably filling in for Keith Olbermann one evening and interviewing Condoleezza Rice.
Even with these opportunities, Cowherd decided against making a full-fledged transition into political commentary.
“I’ve had two opportunities to go to politics,” Cowherd said. “My takeaway is it is a miserable life and even more repetitive than sports. Every night I get a new game, every night I get a new narrative. A war breaks out, and you are on it for a year and a half.”
Given Cowherd’s penchant for boiling down complex issues into concise, memorable phrases, a move into political punditry wouldn’t have been altogether surprising. Speculation swirls – could this talented broadcaster follow in the footsteps of Will Cain, who made the jump to Fox News, a network held by the same parent company as Fox Sports?
Only time will tell what the future holds for Colin Cowherd, but his fascinating early foray into the world of politics provides a glimpse into the many facets of this complex and multifaceted personality.
