Al Michaels is staying with Monday Night

Football when it moves from ABC to ESPN for the 2006 NFL

season, parting with John Madden after four seasons in the

booth together.

 

Michaels has been the play-by-play man on Monday Night

Football since 1986, the last three with Madden as analyst.

After this season, Madden is moving to NBC, which is taking

over the Sunday night time slot in 2006 for what the NFL

considers its main prime-time package.

 

??I feel like I'm a creature of Monday night. I'm home and

I'm staying home,'' said Michaels, who had been heavily

pursued by NBC, but said he wanted to stay where he has

worked for 29 years ? ABC and ESPN are both owned by the

Disney Co.

 

??The three words 'Monday Night Football' resonate like no

other,'' he said during a news conference Tuesday to announce

the lineup.

 

Michaels will be joined in the booth by Joe Theismann, who

had teamed with play-by-play man Mike Patrick and Paul

Maguire on ABC's Sunday night games.

 

Michelle Tafoya and Suzy Kolber will be the sideline

reporters.

 

ESPN vice president Mark Shapiro said Maguire and Patrick

are both expected to stay with ESPN. He said Maguire will be

part of a two-hour Monday night pregame show to be hosted by

Chris Berman, who has hosted the network's Sunday night ??NFL

Primetime.''

 

NBC, which had been without NFL football since losing its

contract to CBS in 1997, announced Tuesday that Bob Costas

will host its Sunday night pregame show.

 

Source: AP

Michaels will be joined in the booth by Joe Theismann

 

 

 

:plain