{"id":666969,"date":"2026-05-26T23:48:12","date_gmt":"2026-05-26T23:48:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/666969\/"},"modified":"2026-05-26T23:48:12","modified_gmt":"2026-05-26T23:48:12","slug":"laura-rutledge-leaving-sec-nation-in-huge-espn-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/666969\/","title":{"rendered":"Laura Rutledge leaving \u2018SEC Nation\u2019 in huge ESPN change"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Laura Rutledge announced Tuesday she is leaving SEC Network\u2019s \u201cSEC Nation\u201d after more than a decade on the show.<\/p>\n<p>The ESPN host and reporter penned a heartfelt goodbye to \u201cSEC Nation,\u201d sharing that \u201cit became one of the most meaningful chapters of my life\u201d in a release on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espnfrontrow.com\/2026\/05\/laura-rutledge-thanks-sec-nation-before-expanding-her-espn-nfl-assignments\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">ESPN Front Row<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Rutledge will continue to expand her NFL assignments with ESPN as the Worldwide Leader is the broadcast home of Super Bowl 2027, said Burke Magnus, ESPN President of Content.  <\/p>\n<p>\u201cTen years ago, I walked onto this set not fully knowing what the journey would become,\u201d Rutledge said.  \u201cToday, I walk away knowing it became one of the most meaningful chapters of my life.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSEC Nation has never just been a show to me. It\u2019s been a family, a front-row seat to the passion of college football and a weekly reminder of what makes the SEC so special. From the roar of packed stadiums on crisp fall mornings to the quiet, behind-the-scenes moments that viewers never see, every second has meant something. Seeing all of you show up for us every Saturday and feeling genuinely honored you wanted to take pictures and chat will always stick with me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rutledge thanked ESPN and SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ll still be involved in college football and the SEC and I\u2019m excited for those opportunities,\u201d she added. <\/p>\n<p><img style=\"aspect-ratio:1.50146628;display:block\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-modal-image=\"39492913\" width=\"886\" height=\"590\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/LR.jpg\" alt=\"Laura Rutledge is seen prior to the game between the Detroit Lions and the Baltimore Ravens at M&amp;T Bank Stadium on September 22, 2025 in Baltimore, Maryland.  \" class=\"wp-image-39492913\"  \/>Laura Rutledge is seen prior to the game between the Detroit Lions and the Baltimore Ravens at M&amp;T Bank Stadium on September 22, 2025 in Baltimore, Maryland.   Getty Images<\/p>\n<p>Rutledge joined ESPN in 2014 as a reporter for SEC Network and ESPN.<\/p>\n<p>While working for SEC Network, Rutledge simultaneously serves as a full-time\u00a0\u201cMonday Night Football\u201d\u00a0sideline reporter, as well as host of \u201cNFL Live,\u201d ESPN\u2019s year-round NFL news and information show.<\/p>\n<p><img style=\"aspect-ratio:0.76953125;display:block\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-modal-image=\"39493081\" width=\"454\" height=\"590\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/laura.jpg\" alt=\"Laura Rutledge is leaving &quot;SEC Nation&quot; after more than a decade on the show.\" class=\"wp-image-39493081\"  \/>Laura Rutledge is leaving \u201cSEC Nation\u201d after more than a decade on the show. Instagram\/Laura Rutledge<\/p>\n<p>ESPN did not share further details about Rutledge\u2019s expanding NFL assignments. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cLaura Rutledge has been a cherished part of the SEC Network since it started and played a key role in making SEC Nation the top pregame show in college football,\u201d Sankey said. \u201cHer work ethic, warmth and deep knowledge of the SEC created a strong bond between fans all over the country, truly capturing what makes our Conference special. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re so thankful for everything she\u2019s done and wish her all the best as she continues her amazing career in broadcasting. We\u2019re looking forward to seeing Laura on the sidelines at SEC football games this fall!\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Laura Rutledge announced Tuesday she is leaving SEC Network\u2019s \u201cSEC Nation\u201d after more than a decade on the&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":666970,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[67],"tags":[1607,352,399,170603,398,396,397,7702,99,1625,3015],"class_list":["post-666969","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ncaa-football","tag-college-football","tag-espn","tag-football","tag-laura-rutledge","tag-ncaa","tag-ncaa-football","tag-ncaafootball","tag-sec","tag-sports","tag-sports-entertainment","tag-sports-media"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/666969","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=666969"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/666969\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/666970"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=666969"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=666969"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=666969"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}