Notre Dame Football on NBC was born out of Notre Dame’s decision in 1990 to break away from the College Football Association and negotiate its own independent media rights deal. NBC began broadcasting all regular-season Notre Dame home games on September 7, 1991. The original five-year contract was worth $38 million, split evenly between Notre Dame and its opponents. It was a landmark move that changed how college athletic programs approached television rights for decades to come.
The deal has been renewed and expanded multiple times since 1991. A ten-year extension signed in 2013 carried the partnership through the 2025 season. In November 2023, NBC and Notre Dame extended the agreement again through the 2029 season, at approximately $50 million annually.
The core programming of the broadcast delivers complete coverage of all Fighting Irish regular-season home football matchups. For example, each game presentation features detailed play-by-play commentary, field-level reporting, and live replays. Additionally, the network provides extensive pregame and postgame studio shows to frame each contest.
The broadcast team has evolved considerably since 1991. The original team featured play-by-play announcer Dick Enberg alongside analyst Bill Walsh. Tom Hammond later served as the primary play-by-play voice through much of the partnership’s middle era. For the 2020 season, Mike Tirico called play-by-play alongside analyst Tony Dungy, with Kathryn Tappen on the sideline and Notre Dame alum Jac Collinsworth hosting the pregame, halftime, and postgame coverage.
Liam McHugh also served as a studio and on-site host for Notre Dame Football during his time at NBC Sports. When NBC launched its Big Ten Saturday Night package in 2023, it introduced the College Countdown studio show to lead into Notre Dame games, hosted by Maria Taylor alongside analysts Matt Cassel, Joshua Perry, and Michael Robinson. For the 2025 season, Ahmed Fareed took over as studio host of College Countdown. Other key personalities who have covered games for the show include Dan Hicks, Paul Burmeister, Jason Garrett, and Noah Eagle.
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