Gary Danielson dropped a bombshell this past week, shaking up the sports media landscape with his retirement announcement.
While CBS’s top college football analyst for the past two decades won’t retire until after the 2025 season, the announcement itself has already had a ripple effect.
CBS wasted no time in announcing Charles Davis as Danielson’s successor in the booth alongside Brad Nessler. Now, Davis will be in limbo for one season as CBS immediately moved J.J. Watt from the studio to the booth to serve as Ian Eagle’s new broadcast partner.
Danielson’s 36th and final season will bring his legendary career full circle. Reflecting on his decision, Danielson admitted to Puck’s John Ourand on The Varsity podcast that he was surprised by the reception of his retirement announcement.
“I was a little surprised, too,” Danielson told Ourand. “I’ve been doing it for so long. It seems like I’ve worked with everybody, under everybody. And in the two leagues – I did the SEC and the Big Ten — they’re usually at odds. So, you can get a lot of the fans going at whoever’s doing the game. [There’s] so many great people in the business, and I’ve got to meet so many of them.
“It was nice. I didn’t know how this thing was going to end. And I’ve been talking to [former CBS chairman] Sean McManus and [current CBS chairman] David Berson for a while now… And it all fit together perfectly. You know this doesn’t usually happen.”
But it happened to Danielson.
“We left the SEC for the Big Ten. Remember, we had that couple-year period where we were a lame duck,” says Danielson. “That was kind of a queasy time for us. The fans were like, ‘Let’s get on to it.’ You know, Texas and Oklahoma were coming to the league; they were ready for the changeover. And when you do the key game in the SEC, the main game in the SEC — for 20 years — they were kind of like, ‘Alright, let’s see something else.’ No. 1, I wanted to see that through. And then, I really was hoping that I could do the transition into the Big Ten. I knew we had the Big Ten Championship game.
“And you know what? I think there was talk with Sean and David about would they go with a whole new look? Because Brad and I and Verne [Lundquist] and CBS was so connected, our faces with the SEC. I didn’t even know if that was gonna happen. And then that worked, and I did the year. Then, I kept thinking 20 would be perfect for me. I’ve done pretty well. I mean, playing 13 years of NFL football and 36 years of doing this. And I thought 20 at CBS sounded right.”
According to Danielson, Berson was instrumental in helping him navigate this moment.
“He said, ‘Let us think about it. We might have to do some shuffling in other areas,'” Danielson recalled. “And then he called a couple of months ago and said, ‘No, you’re going to do your 20th year; we’re proud to have you. And then it was a mattering of timing of how they wanted to release it. And I was fine with how they wanted to do that.”
Danielson’s decision was a long time coming. As he explained in his statement accompanying the announcement, he had been weighing his options for several years, hoping to leave at the right moment after a rewarding, three-decades-long career.
“I think so,” Danielson said regarding still being at the top of his game. “I’ve been nominated for Emmys six times — and never won, but that’s still an honor for a college announcer to get that. So, it’s been seamless to the Big Ten; the Big Ten treated us royally. It was fantastic. When I was playing, I missed a lot of what my kids were doing. When I was working at ESPN and ABC, I missed every one of my son’s football games in high school, most of my daughter’s volleyball games back at that time. And now my grandkids were starting into high school; they’re all here locally.
“And I go, ‘This might be the perfect time.’ I really felt that I would rather leave a couple years early than one year late, where people are starting to say ‘He doesn’t have it. He should’ve retired.’ And I have the ability to do that, to walk away. Everything seems fine. Thrilled with Charles Davis sitting in that seat. Honestly, there might’ve been some people that I would’ve been queasy about, but not Charles. It just seemed right. It really did — two years with the Big Ten. I didn’t want a going away year. I’m not in the Verne category or the Al Michaels category, where you’re going to leave, and everybody’s talking about how great you’re.
Danielson just wanted to leave on his terms.
“I think that was the most important thing, that I could walk away when I wanted to walk away,” Danielson adds.
After 36 seasons in the booth, Danielson will be leaving on his own terms. He will step away while still at the top of his game, with his legacy firmly intact.