{"id":582013,"date":"2026-04-13T17:30:09","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T17:30:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/582013\/"},"modified":"2026-04-13T17:30:09","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T17:30:09","slug":"sportscenter-turns-back-the-clock-for-rich-eisens-return","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/582013\/","title":{"rendered":"‘SportsCenter’ turns back the clock for Rich Eisen’s return"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sunday night\u2019s midnight SportsCenter broadcast, running into Monday, April 13, saw\u00a0Rich Eisen return to ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Connecticut,<\/a> his first time\u00a0back on ESPN\u2019s main campus in over two decades.<\/p>\n

The anchor from SportCenter\u2019s glory days spent seven years hosting ESPN\u2019s flagship program,\u00a0primarily alongside Stuart Scott, before departing in 2003 to help launch NFL Network. The next 22 years of Eisen\u2019s career were spent building The Rich Eisen Show into a staple across DirecTV, Fox Sports Radio, Peacock, and The Roku Channel. He returned to the ESPN family last fall, under a licensing deal that centered his show on ESPN Radio\u2019s noon slot and on Disney+ and ESPN DTC.<\/p>\n

Last August, Eisen hosted the 11 p.m. ET edition of\u00a0<\/a>SportsCenter\u00a0<\/a>for the first time since his departure in 2003, in a nostalgic return that was not only well-received but also drew a 67 percent ratings increase from the 11 p.m.\u00a0SportsCenter\u2018s year-to-date average. While he has since returned to the SportCenter studio for periodic special\u00a0<\/a>editions,<\/a> the productions have all been done in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m fired up to return to my old stomping grounds to host an old school SportsCenter\u00a0on such a big sports night just like back in the day,\u201d\u00a0Eisen said in a statement<\/a> ahead of his return to Bristol.<\/p>\n

Sunday\u2019s broadcast saw ESPN follow the blueprint from last August\u2019s successful return and lean into the nostalgia with a fully retrofitted studio.<\/p>\n

SportsCenter studio in Bristol is officially retrofitted.<\/p>\n

Join me, midnight ET pic.twitter.com\/EgDWVjzAZN<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Rich Eisen (@richeisen) April 13, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Eisen opened the show with a throwback intro and trumpeting that \u201cthis show is kind of all about throwbacks\u201d while previewing SportsCenter\u2018s material from a jampacked Sunday that saw Rory McIlroy win his second consecutive green jacket, the NBA regular season end, and even NHL legends Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin face off for what may have been the last time in their storied careers.<\/p>\n

Rich Eisen officially returns to Bristol to host SportsCenter on ESPN, complete with a throwback intro and studio. \ud83d\udcfa\ud83c\udf99\ufe0f https:\/\/t.co\/JgZ0aBiKyb<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/Rohplizl7Q<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) April 13, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cWell, hello there. Who says you can\u2019t go home again?\u201d Eisen quipped as he closed out his open.\u201d 23 years after the last time I was fortunate to say this from ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Connecticut. Welcome to SportsCenter. I am Rich Eisen.\u201d<\/p>\n

SportsCenter and ESPN have undergone drastic changes since Eisen was a regular anchor, but Sunday night was a great callback to the heyday of sports media.<\/a><\/p>\n

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