Last week, ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit made his opposition to allowing men to compete in women’s sports well-known, and since then, Herbstreit says no one has spoken to him about it.
“This will be my 29th year [at ESPN]. I can say with 1000-percent certainty I have never in my life had a producer tell me what I need to say or ‘we like the SEC, you need to fake’ — never in my life,” Herbstreit said Thursday on the SI Media with Jimmy Traina podcast.
Herbstreit added, “…Never happened. Now, 29 years later, I’ve never had anybody say to me, ‘Be careful’ or ‘You better not say that,’ ever. Maybe other people that’s happened with. I’ve never experienced that in my entire career.”
This probably has something to do with Herbstreit being one of the most popular personalities at ESPN. College football is a major ratings draw for the network, and Herbstreit’s analysis is a big reason why people watch.
Traina asked Herbstreit if ESPN controls what he posts on social media.
“There is this theory out there because obviously, last week Sam Ponder and Robert Griffin III were let go, people are trying to say ESPN is anti-religious or anti-people speaking out,” Traina explained.
Ponder and Robert Griffin III were fired by ESPN in what the network described as a financial decision. However, speculation grew rampant that Ponder had been dismissed because of her comments critical of trans athletes in women’s sports.
“The stuff that happened last week, I got kind of caught up [when] I was talking with Dan [Dakich],” Herbstreit said, referring to his interview with Outkick’s Dan Dakich, in which he strongly opposed allowing trans athletes to compete against women. “I am an introverted guy, but when you push my buttons, you can light a fuse and kind of get me excited about the things I’m passionate about.
“I think the reason I said I don’t give a s–t is just, I get so frustrated with the country and being so divided and not liking each other — and people just not getting along and people are lashing out. And in the college football community, people creating conspiracy theories that aren’t true or people attacking me.”
Herbstreit had begun speaking out on the issue the week before when a commenter on X challenged him on it. Ponder replied with approval of his answer.
👏🏼👏🏼
— Samantha Steele Ponder (@samponder) August 6, 2024
During the appearance with Dakich, Herbstreit indicated that he was tired of caring about the social media attacks he received for his response.
“I didn’t give a shit, though. I don’t really give a shit at all. Like, I’m done giving any shits at all about any of it,” Herbstreit said.
“It’s almost like there are two different sets of rules, and if you have a view that’s a little bit more traditional — I’m a Christian guy — it’s like there’s a different set of rules for that viewpoint, and it’s hard to just turn the other cheek time after time after time. I didn’t really care,” he continued.
Ponder was fired ten days after replying to Herbstreit’s post. However, Robert Griffin III was also fired that same day, and RGIII has spoken far more favorably of trans athletes in women’s sports. So, the firings could just be what ESPN said they were: cost-cutting moves.
In any event, it appears that at least one person at ESPN can disagree with the company’s policy without repercussion.
