Rush intercepts pigskin politics

Plans for Limbaugh's ESPN appearances include weekly essays spanning 90 seconds to two minutes, and three to four "challenge" segments where he will offer a counterpoint on a specific issue.

"These shows are tremendously competitive, and everyone is trying to be more creative than the next guy," says Neal Pilson, a former CBS Sports executive who now serves as an industry consultant. "Putting Rush on is the right decision. We'll see if he moves the needle."

Fox has the most-watched pregame show, attracting nearly 5 million viewers a week last season, ahead of CBS (3.8 million).

ESPN drew an average audience of 2.1 million, but, as a cable network, it doesn't reach as many households as Fox or CBS. Of all the shows, only ESPN's increased its audience last year. Much of the credit goes to the show's hard-core football focus, a mind-set that could be compromised by Limbaugh's perceived lack of credentials.

Industry experts believe Limbaugh has a better chance for success than Miller. His sports background makes it easier to discern shotgun formation from NRA legislation and, as a radio personality, Limbaugh knows how to blend news and entertainment - the crux of sports coverage.

Attempts to pair atypical broadcasters with big-time sports have been tried off and on during the past 40 years. The ultimate example is Howard Cosell, the verbose and opinionated New York lawyer who morphed into the voice of Monday Night Football during the 1970s.

"Rush has a lot of fans and he is closer to a Howard Cosell-type than Miller," says Larry Gerbrandt, senior analyst at Kagan World Media. "People either loved or hated Cosell. They just hated Miller."

Limbaugh already has aspirations for calling games, not just discussing them on a studio show. He acknowledged the likelihood of "embarrassing times" on ESPN, moments when his comments may make Berman and his cohosts wince.

Rivals, for the moment, aren't rushing to judgment. The nuances of each show help give the networks a distinct football identity.

"This is a different way of dressing it up," said Eric Mann, senior producer of "The NFL Today" on CBS. "All of these shows overlap to some degree."

Boomer Esiason, a former NFL quarterback and co-host of "The NFL Today," knows the sting of broadcast failure.

He spent a season on Monday Night Football before ABC bounced him in favor of the erudite but ineffective Miller.

Even if Limbaugh flops, give him and ESPN credit for trying something new. Despite the scrutiny of millions of football fans and poison-pen critics, Mr. Esiason says swapping John Kerry for Kerry Collins still carries cachet.

"If you love football," Esiason says, "this is a job anyone would love to have."

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