The story of sports, especially television broadcasting, can’t be told without mentioning Bob Costas.
For an entire generation, tuning into just about any sporting event on NBC meant seeing Costas’ youthful mug, guiding viewers through not only the nuisances of the games, but occasionally chiming in with clear-headed commentary
A jack-of-all-trades, to say the least.
Need a hosting gig? Dial up Costas.
Need a sharp, sometimes critical in-your-face interview with the today’s biggest newsmakers. You’re up Vince McMahon and Jerry Sandusky.
Need someone to guide NBA Finals viewers through the O.J. Simpson slow-speed chase. Check.
Need some levity, Costas has that on his resume too. Or maybe you don’t recall him swilling vodka on air with Mary Carillo after he contracted pink eye at the 2014 Sochi Olympics.
“It was full-blown viral conjunctivitis, not just generic pink eye,” he said in 2016. “It actually affected my eyesight for a few months afterward.”
Costas stepped away as NBC’s prime-time host for the Olympics four years ago, a role he held through 11 Games from 1992 in Barcelona to 2016 in Rio. The Tokyo Olympics are the first Summer Games without Costas in the lead role since 1988, with Mike Tirico taking over for the Pyeongchang Games in 2018.
“I am going to let Mike have his time, He deserves it,” Costas told USA TODAY Sports. “I know they will do a good job under very difficult circumstances. I have many, many friends there at NBC and I wish them…
