Joe Tessitore is going to the dark side. One of the iconic voices in college football is moving to Monday Night Football this season.
Reports of Tessitore's jump from college to the NFL surfaced in March and ESPN finally officially confirmed the move this week, saying Tessitore would replace Sean McDonough, who, ironically, is going back to college, as the play-by-play man of Monday Night Football.
From, "No good!" and "This is turning into a disaster for Brotzman" in Reno to "Touchdown, they did it!" in Ames, Tessitore delivered some of the best calls in college football over the last decade.
(Did I miss any? Ping me on Twitter.)
[divider]
LSU vs. Florida
Oct. 9, 2010
LSU squandered a 12-point fourth-quarter lead vs. Florida in 2010 but recovered to remain unbeaten, thanks to a fake field goal (30:05 below) and go-ahead touchdown with six seconds remaining.
[divider]
Boise State vs. Nevada
Nov. 26, 2010
Nevada's stunning upset of Boise State was kind of a coming-out party for Joe Tessitore. The longtime announcer had done boxing matches, basketball and football games and Triple Crown races — and did the thrilling LSU-Florida game earlier in the year — but he wasn't really a household name yet.
The end-of-the-game fireworks begin at the 1:09 mark when Nevada ties the game. Tessitore's calls of Boise State's deep pass at the end of regulation, along with their missed field goals and Nevada's made field goal follow shortly thereafter.
[divider]
TCU vs. Baylor
Sept. 2, 2011
Robert Griffin III's Heisman campaign began with a shootout win over TCU in which he threw for 379 yards and five touchdowns and Joe Tessitore lost his mind at least a dozen times, including on Griffin's fifth touchdown (12:55) and the game-winning interception (20:40).
[divider]
Oklahoma State vs. Iowa State
Nov. 18, 2011
Tessitore unleashed a "Touchdown, they did it!" when Jeff Woody's four-yard touchdown run (1:40) gave Iowa State a double-overtime win over national title contender Oklahoma State in 2011.
[divider]
Oklahoma vs. Baylor
Nov. 19, 2011
One day after calling Iowa State's upset of Oklahoma State in Ames, Tessitore called Baylor's upset of Oklahoma in Waco.
Robert Griffin's touchdown pass to Terrance Williams (33:30) with eight seconds remaining gave Baylor their first-ever win over Oklahoma.
[divider]
Ole Miss vs. Vanderbilt
Aug. 29, 2013
Tessitore really brought the heat in the 2013 opener, calling Ole Miss' four-point win over Vanderbilt that included two touchdowns in the final 90 seconds.
[divider]
Michigan vs. Penn State
Oct. 12, 2013
Tessitore brought the heat all night on Oct. 12, 2013, when Penn State handed Michigan their first loss, a 43-40 win in four overtimes. His "Penn State has done it!" call comes at the 5:09 mark below.
[divider]
LSU vs. Ole Miss
Oct. 19, 2013
Tessitore's unleashed a bevy of spine-tingling calls throughout Ole Miss' upset of LSU in 2013 but it was his non-call on the Rebels' game-winning field goal that was perfect.
Oftentimes, he'll shut up and let the fans enjoy the moment. And it was perfect as Andrew Ritter's 41-yard field cleared the uprights (1:02).
[divider]
South Carolina vs. Missouri
Oct. 26, 2013
The third last-second game for Tessitore in as many weeks, South Carolina ended fifth-ranked Missouri's undefeated season by erasing a 17-point halftime deficit to win, 27-24.
Tessitore's "Oh, no!" reaction to the Tigers' missed field goal in the second overtime comes at the 1:00 mark.
[divider]
Notre Dame vs. Texas
Sept. 4, 2016
Joe Tessitore has since taken heat for his "Texas is back, folks!" proclamation after Texas' double-overtime win over Notre Dame in the 2016 opener but, at the time, it was a great call (2:53) to end one of the most entertaining games of the last decade.
