Colin Cowherd: The Incredible Career, Hot Takes and Rants of America’s Most Honest Sportscaster

Colin Cowherd

Colin Cowherd is one of America’s most popular and well known sports media personalities. He is well known for being one of the most “honest people in sports media”. As a result of that, a lot of his comments have landed him in controversy. It even led to him being fired from ESPN. However, for someone like Colin Cowherd, it wasn’t really tough to find a landing spot on Fox sports 1. Colin Cowherd kicked off his broadcasting career in Las Vegas. He worked as the sports director at KVBC, a Las Vegas television station. He went on to work as a sports anchor on many networks before landing a major role on ESPN in 2003. With ESPN, he hosted a radio show on the ESPN Radio network and also became one of the original hosts of ESPN’s television program SportsNation, as well as Colin’s New Football Show. Cowherd is the host of The Herd with Colin Cowherd on Fox Sports Radio and Fox Sports 1. The Herd is FS1’s top-rated studio program. He was also a host of Speak For Yourself on FS1 alongside Jason Whitlock. He was eventually replaced by Marcellus Wiley so he could concentrate fully on The Herd.

After Cowherd made a controversial statement about Dominican Republic baseball players, it was announced in July 2015 that Cowherd would leave ESPN following the end of his contract with them. Within a month, it was announced that Fox Sports 1 had roped Colin Cowherd’s services. The deal included his radio show moving to Fox Sports Radio and Fox Sports 1. While scheduled to leave at the end of the month, Cowherd was suspended from ESPN on July 24, 2015 after those controversial remarks he made on The Herd the previous day. Let’s find out more about America’s most honest sportscaster.

Colin Cowherd: All You Need to Know

When was Colin Cowherd born?

Colin Cowherd was born in Aberdeen, Washington on January 6th, 1964. His father, Charles, was an optometrist and his British-born mother Patricia was a housewife who immigrated to the United States at age 14. He has an older sister named Marlene. 

Where did Colin Cowherd grow up?

Colin Cowherd grew up in Grayland, Washington, a small fishing village about 130 miles away from Seattle. His parents divorced while he was young, due to his father’s alcoholism, and he and his sister were raised mainly by their mother. Cowherd described himself as a loner during his childhood. He said that a lot of his childhood was spent sitting on the roof and listening to radio broadcasts of baseball games.

Where did Colin Cowherd study?

Colin Cowherd went to Eastern Washington where he was roommates with eventual Central Michigan University Football head coach Jim McElwain.

Colin Cowherd: Broadcasting Career

Beginnings

Cowherd began his career as the play-by-play voice for the San Diego Padres Triple-A affiliate Las Vegas Stars. Colin Cowherd soon ascended to the position of sports director at KVBC in Las Vegas, where he was named Nevada’s Sportscaster of the Year five times. He served as weekend sports anchor at WTVT in Tampa, Florida. In 1996, he moved to Portland, Oregon where he worked as a sports anchorman for KGW-TV. In 2001, The Herd moved from an afternoon time slot on all-sports radio KFXX to the morning drive time.

ESPN

Colin Cowherd jumped on the national airwaves when he was hired by ESPN to replace Tony Kornheiser in 2003 for the late-morning time slot (10 AM – 1 PM ET) on ESPN Radio.

The Herd with Colin Cowherd

Colin Cowherd’s show, The Herd with Colin Cowherd, is a syndicated talk radio show broadcast on Fox Sports Radio. From 2004 to 2015, it was transmitted to ESPN Radio affiliates throughout the United States and online at ESPNRadio.com. In 2008, the Herd added a simulcast on ESPNU. The show features commentary on sports news, perspective on other news stories, and interviews with popular analysts and sports figures. Although a sports broadcast, he often reflects on personal life and business as it relates to the sports world. Regional preferences and demographics tend to be among the more frequently discussed topics on this show. The majority of Colin Cowherd’s conversations primarily center around the National Football League (NFL), college football, and the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Sports Nation

Colin Cowherd, Michelle Beadle, and later Charissa Thompson co-hosted the TV show SportsNation on ESPN2 from 2009 to 2012; the show debuted on July 6, 2009. SportsNation was designed to take “the pulse” of the nation. The chemistry of Colin Cowherd and Michelle Beadle was really appreciated by viewers and Sports Nation became one of the most popular sports shows on television. Cowherd and Thompson were given two choices to select from and they attempted to determine which choice was the audience’s favorite (e.g., Who is more likely to haunt someone when they die, Kobe Bryant or Joe Paterno?). Colin Cowherd announced his departure from the show in September 2012. He filmed his last episode as host in December 2012. He was replaced by former NFL Pro Bowl Defensive End in January 2013. In fall 2013, Cowherd began hosting the ESPN Sunday morning pro and college football talk show Colin’s New Football Show. During an episode on The Herd on Fox Sports 1, Michelle Beadle called Colin Cowherd on his show when he was discussing about why she didn’t invite him to her birthday party:

Fox Sports

On July 1, 2015, it was announced that Cowherd would leave ESPN. Network president John Skipper stated that Cowherd’s presence had been “mutually beneficial”, going on to say that “he came to national prominence on ESPN with his unique perspective on sports and society. Endings also bring new beginnings, for ESPN and Colin, and we thank him and wish him the best.” Multiple sources reported that Cowherd was in talks with Fox Sports; Jamie Horowitz, a Fox Sports executive, previously worked for ESPN as a producer for Cowherd. Cowherd’s final broadcast aired on July 24, 2015. Although his contract was originally scheduled to end a week later on July 31, Cowherd was released earlier following controversial remarks he made regarding Dominican baseball players during the previous day’s edition of The Herd.

On August 12, 2015, it was officially announced that Cowherd would join Fox Sports with a four-year deal. The Herd moved to Premiere Networks and Fox Sports Radio on September 8, 2015, and its TV simulcast moved to Fox Sports 1. Kristine Leahy was the co-host and newswoman. Kristine Leahy departed for her own show Fair Game in 2018. She was replaced by Joy Taylor, the former hostess of Skip and Shannon: Undisputed. For some time, Colin Cowherd was also the co-host on daily sports talk show Speak for Yourself with Cowherd & Whitlock on Fox Sports 1 with Jason Whitlock.

Colin Cowherd: Writing Career

In 2013, Cowherd’s first book, You Herd Me! I’ll Say It If Nobody Else Will, was published. Cowherd has said on his radio show that he had been writing the book on-and-off for a few years. In 2015, Cowherd released his second book, Raw: My 100%, Grade-A, Unfiltered, Inside Look at Sports.

What are some controversies that Colin Cowherd has been involved in?

Well, when you carry the moniker of the “most honest man in sports”, it’s only natural that you are going to end up saying things that will end up offending some people and put you in hot water. Here are some of the controversies that been stoked by COlin Cowherd’s words:

Pro wrestling 

In November 2005, ESPN apologized following a number of complaints about comments made by Cowherd on the death of professional wrestler Eddie Guerrero on the November 13, 2005 edition of The Herd. Cowherd had reportedly made a very distatestful “who cares that he died” comment and described Guerrero’s death as “not newsworthy” before speculating on the cause of death. He was later reprimanded by ESPN Radio general manager Bruce Gilbert over his remarks. Cowherd again drew criticism in April 2014 with remarks on the death of The Ultimate Warrior. In March 2018, Cowherd – who had previously referred to professional wrestling fans as “lonely, pathetic Booger Eaters” – attended the taping of an episode of WWE SmackDown. Though how much of that move was of his own wish and how much was forced by network executives, no one really knows.

The Big Lead

On the April 5, 2007, edition of The Herd, Colin Cowherd directed his listeners to “blow up” the sports blog The Big Lead by simultaneously visiting its home page. The site was unable to handle the influx in traffic, and the site was knocked offline for approximately 96 hours. ESPN’s new Ombudsman, LeAnne Schreiber, wrote an article sharing her negative opinion of Cowherd’s actions. Schreiber contacted Traug Keller, a Senior Vice President at ESPN Radio, and Keller indicated that Cowherd would face no disciplinary action for the stunt, because there had been no policy against such a tactic at the time. To prevent this from happening again, Keller instituted a zero tolerance policy of such activities in the future.

Sean Taylor remarks

Cowherd was criticized for comments he made regarding the circumstances surrounding the death of Sean Taylor. On November 28, 2007, one day after Taylor’s home invasion murder, Cowherd claimed that Taylor’s past had brought this on him and that Redskins fans who mourned him were not “grown-ups”. He stated about Taylor’s turnaround: “Well yeah, just because you clean the rug doesn’t mean you got everything out. Sometimes you’ve got stains, stuff so deep it never ever leaves.” Taylor’s death was later found to be the result of a botched robbery and the robbers hadn’t known Taylor was home when they entered.

Dominican Republic baseball remarks

On July 23, 2015, Cowherd made remarks connecting the number of baseball players from the Dominican Republic to the game’s alleged simplicity. The observation that the Dominican Republic “has not been known in my lifetime as having world class academic abilities”, because “a lot of those kids come from rough backgrounds and have not had opportunities academically that other kids from other countries have.”

The remarks drew the ire of some Dominican players, such as José Bautista, and of the MLB Players Association; later that day, USA Today reported that the MLBPA was considering the possibility of “withholding cooperation” with ESPN and Fox over their lack of reaction to the remarks. Major League Baseball also condemned Cowherd for making remarks they felt were “inappropriate, offensive and completely inconsistent with the values of our game.”

The following day, ESPN announced that it would immediately cut ties with Cowherd in response to the remarks. During the final episode of The Herd, Cowherd presented statistics from several studies regarding the current state of education in the Dominican Republic. He went on to say that “I could’ve said a third of baseball’s talent is being furnished from countries with economic hardships, therefore educational hurdles. For the record, I used the Dominican Republic because they’ve furnished baseball with so many great players.” Cowherd apologized, though the apology was not well received.

Aaron Rodgers

He also recently said this about Green Bay Packers fans and Aaron Rodgers. 

“Whoever criticizes Aaron Rodgers, that’s who the Packer fans attack,” Cowherd said on The Herd with Colin Cowherd. “His brother criticized Aaron Rodgers, ‘Hey, he’s a loser.’ His dad criticized him, ‘he’s sponging off him.’ … It’s always blame the messenger … Why doesn’t this criticism happen to other quarterbacks? Why? Are we just picking on Aaron? Russell Wilson had one article written about him, that’s it. Everybody else likes him. Everybody likes Tom [Brady], everybody likes Matt Ryan, everybody likes [Drew] Brees.”

Why was Colin Cowherd fired from ESPN?

After a slew of remarks that created controversies, the comment on the Dominican baseball players turned out to be the last straw for Colin Cowherd’s career on ESPN and he was fired from the network. 

Former ESPN president John Skipper said in a statement, “We’ve enjoyed a mutually beneficial run with Colin for over a decade. He came to national prominence on ESPN with his unique perspective on sports and society. Endings also bring new beginnings, for ESPN and Colin, and we thank him and wish him the best.” 

Where did Colin Cowherd go after ESPN?

Even though many people believe that Colin Cowherd was fired but he maintained that he was going to quit anyway since he wanted to move to a better city with his family. He interviewed with a few networks, including iHeartRadio and Fox Sports and eventually decided to join the Los Angeles based Fox Sports 1. He tweaked the format of The Herd and decided to add a “News” segment instead of plain commercials. The new anchor’s spot was given to NBC’s American Ninja Warrior broadcaster Kristine Leahy.

What is Colin Cowherd’s net worth?

Аѕ оf Ѕерtеmbеr 2020, Соlіn Соwhеrd hаѕ аn еѕtіmаtеd nеt wоrth оf $16 Міllіоn. Не has made the most of hіѕ fоrtunе frоm hіѕ саrееr аѕ а ѕроrtѕ mеdіа реrѕоnаlіtу. After starting his career as a sports director on a Las vegas network, Colin Cowherd went on to work for several networks before joining ESPN and rising to nationwide fame. He hоѕted thе ѕуndісаtеd ѕhоw еntіtlеd Тhе Неrd wіth Соlіn Соwhеrd. The show aired оn ЕЅРN Rаdіо аѕ wеll аѕ ЕЅРNU. Colin Cowherd also hosted the show Sports Nation alongside Michelle Beadle and later Charissa Thompson. After leaving ESPN, Colin Cowherd took The Herd to Fox Sports 1 and has been there since. He was joined by Kristine Leahy at the start and she was replaced by Joy Taylor eventually.

Оthеr thаn thаt, іn thе уеаr 2013, Colin Cowherd has also earned a significant chunk of money through his books as well. His book, Yоu Неrd Ме! І’ll Ѕау Іt Іf Nоbоdу Еlѕе Wіll, sold very well. The same year, he also launched a college football talk show named Colin’s New Football Show Іn thе ѕаmе уеаr, hе аlѕо trаnѕfоrmеd аѕ hоѕt оf thе ЕЅРN Ѕundау mоrnіng рrо аѕ wеll аѕ а соllеgе fооtbаll tаlk ѕhоw nаmеd Соlіn’ѕ Nеw Fооtbаll Ѕhоw.

Соlіn Соwhеrd is one of the most successful and popular sportscasters in America today. Не frequently rеflесtѕ оn реrѕоnаl lіfе аѕ wеll аѕ thе buѕіnеѕѕ аѕ іt соnnесtѕ tо thе ѕроrtѕ wоrld during his takes on The Herd.

Colin Cowherd: Аwаrdѕ & Асhіеvеmеntѕ

Соlіn Соwhеrd wаѕ аwаrdеd Ѕроrtѕ Іlluѕtrаtеd’ѕ 2005 Rаdіо Реrѕоnаlіtу оf thе уеаr. Не hаѕ wоn Nеvаdа’ѕ Ѕроrtѕсаѕtеr оf thе Yеаr fіvе tіmеѕ, аѕ nоmіnаtеd bу thе Nаtіоnаl Ѕроrtѕсаѕtеrѕ аnd Ѕроrtѕwrіtеrѕ Аѕѕосіаtіоn.

Моrеоvеr, hе wаѕ rаnkеd bу РundіtТrасkеr аѕ thе Веѕt Рundіt оf thе уеаr 2012 оn ассоunt оf hіѕ ѕроrtѕ рrеdісtіоnѕ.

Colin Cowherd: Best Quotes

I’m so tired of people who can’t be honest. “Beauty is on the inside” Really?? Then why do rich guys & successful guys always end up with beautiful women but they have lousy personalities?.

Don’t let people with no life ruin yours.

If you resent success, you will never achieve it. Be excited about it, even if the success is not your own. Bitter people are rarely happy or successful.”

Unless you’re with your girlfriend and a huge tragedy in the family strikes, there is no excuse to cry in front of a girl, especially if you are pursuing their affection.
The girl may act compassionate and tell you that she likes that you’re sensitive, but in reality, she’s saying how much of a softy you are and how desperately you need a backbone.

The Cavs are a one-man team. They are completely unspectacular with one spectacular superstar player. Breakfast, lunch, dinner served, Cav fans. Not even you can argue it anymore. … Cav fan, go back to your cave. It’s a one-man team.

Here’s another fact about Canada…a hundred percent of Canadians live within 60 feet of the US border so they can steal our television signals. It’s the real reason we’re changing to analog. Screw those puck-slapping maple suckers.

He spent 34 seconds doing the “Dougie.” That tells me all I need to know about “J-Wow.” Then he opened his mouth later and confirmed it. Not a sharp guy—all about him.

If you know personally several Starbucks employees or your social calendar includes “hanging at Starbucks”…you’re a loser. I mean, get a life. Quit pretending you’re an intellectual because you read books at Starbucks.

Is baseball so sophisticated that only a few Aristotle, Socrates-level geniuses (are) able to really sit in the dugout and make all these calculated moves? … Is baseball so complex that only Stephen Hawking-level geniuses can manage the complexity? … The double switch—good hell that’s complicated!

Two things make smart men stupid, beautiful women and sports

I just don’t think the Bob Costas, Joe Buck – I don’t think that the people that rise to the highest – Jim Nantz, Mike Tirico – need a schtick. I just think Brent Musburger is really good.

I never tell the audience what to think of me. When I talk, how you consume it is up to you.

Colin Cowherd’s “That Guy” rants

Colin Cowherd is very famous for his takes on certain specific types of guys. Colin Cowherd often talks about these people as individuals who try too hard to stray away from the norm. He usually starts his rants about these guys by saying “there’s a new ‘that guy’ in my life”. Some of these guys are “Starbucks Guy”, “Long-Hair Guy”,”Exotic Pet Owner Guy”, “Bodybuilding Guy” and “Pot Dealer Guy”.
And as Cowherd says, they should cut the act. “It’s transparent; you’re a whack.”

Here is his rant about the “Starbucks Guy”

Here’s Colin Cowherd going on about the “Long-Hair Guy” and “Exotic Pet Owner Guy”

Here’s Colin Cowherd talking about the “Bodybuilding Guy”

Here’s Colin Cowherd talking about the “Pot Dealer Guy”

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