ESPN's Neil Everett signs off after 23 years hosting 'SportsCenter'
Howzit.
After 23 years on the "SportsCenter" desk, Neil Everett signed off Saturday for the last time. He did so alongside longtime co-anchor Stan Verrett, whom he'd shared the late-night desk with since 2009.
Everett, 61, donned a lei for his final show, a nod to his professional roots in Hawaii, where he worked as a local sports anchor prior to joining ESPN in 2000. As Saturday's show concluded, Everett leaned on his ever-present sense of humor before delivering his final on-air message with the network.
"Love is a long road. I'll see you down it."
Neil Everett bids farewell to SportsCenter one last time with longtime partner Stan Verrett pic.twitter.com/BKghg6Vpbl— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 24, 2023
"This is the end of line for me," Everett said. "I'm not on social media, but Stan has told me that some of you have left some favorable tweets. ... The one tweet I remember ... it said 'I've been watching 'SportsCenter' religiously for 20-plus years, and I've never heard of Neil Everett.'
"Love is a long road. I'll see you down it."
Verrett presented Everett with fan art of the two at the desk as he bid farewell. Prior to sign-off, the show aired a montage of Everett's moments over the course of his career alongside other longtime anchors including Linda Cohn, Stuart Scott and Scott Van Pelt. It also featured snippets of interviews Everett conducted with Kobe Bryant, Vin Scully and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
A worthy sendoff for Neil Everett on his final @SportsCenter. pic.twitter.com/nCnYkYJaNz
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) June 24, 2023
Why Everett's no longer with ESPN
Everett leaves ESPN amid cost-cutting at ESPN and parent company Disney. Disney announced in March that it was conducting 7,000 layoffs across the company in an effort to save $5.5 billion.
Everett confirmed to Front Office Sports in early June that he would be leaving the network. FOS reported that he was offered a new contract at a reduced salary before ESPN confirmed that his contract was not renewed.
"ESPN changed my life, but now it’s time for me to change my life," Everett told FOS. "Time to write a new chapter.”
Verrett tweeted out his appreciation for his longtime broadcast partner after the news broke:
I started at espn in 2000, a few months after Neil Everett. We joined up for sportscenter from LA in 2009. For 14 years, he was the best teammate I could imagine. Selfless, caring, generous, and a pro’s pro. He’s moving on now, but we are brothers for life. That’ll never change.
— stan verrett (@stanverrett) June 8, 2023
Everett is the latest in a long line of prominent ESPN departures in recent years including Kenny Mayne, Dan Le Batard and Jemele Hill.
