All that can be said about this move during the Allstate Sugar Bowl is that ESPN got caught doing ESPN things. The college football playoff game between the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Georgia Bulldogs was held in New Orleans, postponed after 14 people were killed in an ISIS-inspired terror attack committed by Shamsud-Din Jabbar, 42, a Texas native, who used a Ford truck to run over pedestrians on a crowded Bourbon Street before opening fire on other bystanders. Police killed him.
The game was supposed to be held on New Year’s Day but postponed until Thursday afternoon. There was a moment of silence held for the victims of this tragedy, along with the national anthem, but ESPN opted not to broadcast (via NY Post):
This was a travesty that @espn skipped one of the most moving and nationally significant moments of the @SugarBowlNola. The anthem and moment of silence at the Dome was beautiful. https://t.co/QYxQXjCRym pic.twitter.com/vgoriBxiLW
— Raymond Arroyo (@RaymondArroyo) January 3, 2025
Wow @espn didn’t air the national anthem or the moment of silence for the New Orleans terror attack victims per @burackbobby_ and they continue to label the terror attack a “truck attack” on screen. https://t.co/QWmOGZbKm3
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) January 3, 2025
It was my distinct honor to have coached in 3 Sugar Bowls during my coaching career. American sports, and especially college football, have always been a patriotic tradition that brings ALL AMERICANS together.
— Coach Tommy Tuberville (@SenTuberville) January 3, 2025
Unfortunately, ESPN (who is owned by Disney) gave in to the woke…
All eyes were on ESPN on Thursday as the Sugar Bowl took place a little more than 24 hours after an ISIS-inspired terrorist created mayhem on Bourbon Street in New Orleans that left 14 people dead and injured dozens more.
But noticeably absent from the pregame broadcast on the main network was the national anthem and the moment of silence held in honor of the tragedy that occurred about 1 mile away from the Caesars Superdome where Notre Dame and Georgia squared off.
The exclusion of both moments from the ESPN telecast angered some football fans and led to criticism of the network on social media.
“SportsCenter,” which had served as the pregame show due to the unusual circumstances, had wrapped on an interview with Tim Tebow and went to a commercial break before the moment of silence and returned in the middle of the anthem, “making it awkward to cut it” at that moment, the source explained.
ESPN did open its broadcast of the Sugar Bowl with a pre-recorded message from President Joe Biden, and play-by-play broadcaster Sean McDonough spoke about the tragedy in his open while a montage of fans, police and the city of New Orleans played on the screen.
“SEC Nation,” which airs on the ESPN-owned SEC Network, was broadcast live from the Superdome and aired the moment of silence and national anthem in their entirety.
Still, not airing the tributes on ESPN following the tragedy stirred a lot of emotions for fans online.
Another unforced error by the network.
Here's the SEC Network's broadcast of the moment:
The pregame ceremony at the Sugar Bowl was beautiful.
— Marty Smith (@MartySmithESPN) January 3, 2025
Roman -- a New Orleans icon -- and I were quite moved. The moment of silence for those lost and hurting. The National Anthem. The cheers for our nation.
You pray for the right words to convey the emotion.
We did our best. pic.twitter.com/PUUaTGmeq8
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