ABC's primetime college football crew adds new sideline reporter

Kirk Herbstreit and Chris Fowler will be working with a new sideline reporter this fall. When ABC’s Saturday Night Football opens the season on Sept. 2 in Charlotte for Clemson vs. Georgia, Holly Rowe will be on the sidelines.

ESPN announced the move Monday afternoon. The news comes after Maria Taylor parted with ESPN after the NBA Finals, leaving the network for NBC.

Rowe is entering her 26th season covering college football; this season will mark her first in the primetime slot on ABC.

“Early in my career, I would cover the NCAA Division III National Championship every year and I met a legendary coach named Frosty Westering,” Rowe said in an ESPN release. “His quote for life was ‘make the big time where you are’ so you’re not always chasing the big time. I’ve adopted that as my personal mantra and I’ve tried to make the ‘big time’ where I am, putting my heart and soul into every show and every game.

“It’s really special for that to finally pay off and I’m just grateful, honored, and humbled.”

Rowe joined ESPN full-time in 1998. Along with her role in college football coverage, she has been a lead reporter for the NCAA women’s Final Four, the Women’s College World Series, the WNBA, Big Monday men’s college basketball and college gymnastics.

She will now work with Herbstreit and Fowler, who have been together since 2014. Herbstreit previously worked with Brent Musburger in the primetime slot for eight seasons. ESPN has broadcast rights for the College Football Playoff, too. Herbstreit and Fowler have called each national championship game in the College Football Playoff era.

ESPN and ABC has already identified Notre Dame at Florida State on Sept. 5, Washington at Michigan on Sept. 11 and Auburn at Penn State on Sept. 18 as primetime games.

The full roster of ESPN college football commentators for the 2021 season will be announced in the coming weeks.