Ever since I can remember, ESPN was my source for all things SPORTS. You got the highlights, the stats, and interviews with the athletes. They had the interviews that no one else could get. Sunday Conversations with MJ were my personal favorite. But somewhere along the line ESPN turned to this. All of a sudden these SPORTS “personalities” became the focus of the shows rather than the athletes that were being covered. Rather than hiring SPORTS fans to cover something they loved, SPORTS “experts” were being hired to give their opinion.

Here is a simple question. Who’s opinion would you rather have: this guy’s or this guy’s? Not a question in my book. It seems to me that there are less interviews with people that actually know what the heck is going on and more interviews with jabronies like this.

Lets not forget the reason that ESPN is the powerhouse that it is today…SportsCenter. In the glory days, sports fans were given the green light to call it like they saw it. These were the days when the Stuart Scott/Kenny Mayne combination was in full swing and you could watch 4 straight episodes and laugh every time while receiving all the SPORTS information you could want. I now find myself watching 4 straight episodes on a lazy morning not because of its greatness, but because of its unique quality to produce audio and video for a solid hour without actually relaying anything of value or importance.

It seems to me that the age of ESPN being the mecca that all SPORTS enthusiasts retreated to in hopes of escaping the real world is drawing to a close. If I find myself wanting to know the latest rumors coming out of Valley Ranch, a simple Cowboy’s Blog will provide me with everything I could want to know and more, and in most cases faster than ESPN could. The same could be said for any other team in any other sport, including college.

When it comes down to it, ESPN is the Starbucks of SPORTS. The worldwide leader in providing an average product and spinning it as the best. Of all the avid coffee drinkers I know, most prefer the corner shop across town over the 6 dollar cup down the street. Now that blogs like this and sites like this exist and are growing a larger base, ESPN better recognize that their audience wants content and news, not this guy’s opinion.

This, of course, is just my opinion.