Michael Darrow Greenberg (born August 6, 1967) is an American television anchor, television show host, radio show host for
ESPN
ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...
and
ABC, and novelist. At ESPN, he hosted the weekday evening, most often Monday, ''
SportsCenter
''SportsCenter'' (SC) is an American television sports news broadcasting show broadcast by ESPN. Originally anchored by Chris Berman, George Grande, Greg Gumbel, Lee Leonard, Bob Ley, Sal Marchiano and Lou Palmer, it premiered on Septem ...
'' and previously
ESPN Radio
ESPN Radio, which is alternatively branded platform-agnostically as ESPN Audio, is an American sports radio network and extension of the ESPN television network. It was launched on January 1, 1992, under the banner "SportsRadio ESPN". The netw ...
's ''
Mike & Mike
''Mike & Mike'' (formerly ''Mike & Mike in the Morning'') was an American sports-talk radio show that was hosted by Mike Greenberg and Mike Golic on ESPN networks from 2000 to 2017. The show aired on ESPN Radio, and was simulcast on televisio ...
'' show with
Mike Golic. At sister network
ABC, he was the host of ''
Duel
A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people with matched weapons.
During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the rapier and later the small sword), but beginning in ...
'', which aired from 2007 to 2008, and co-hosted ''
Battle of the Network Stars'' with
Joe Tessitore. He has anchored ESPN's morning show ''
Get Up'' since 2018, and has also anchored NBA coverage on ''
NBA Countdown'', along with NFL coverage on ''
Sunday NFL Countdown''.
As of 2024, Greeny hosts his own radio show called #Greeny.
Early life and career
Mike was born to a
Jewish
Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
[Dresner, Stacey (March 28, MikGreenberg). jewishledger.com.] family in
New York,
New York, and graduated from
Stuyvesant High School
Stuyvesant High School ( ) is a co-ed, State school, public, college-preparatory, Specialized high schools in New York City, specialized high school in Manhattan, New York City. The school, commonly called "Stuy" ( ) by its students, faculty, a ...
in 1985. In 1989, Greenberg graduated from
Northwestern University
Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...
,
[Mike Greenberg Bio – Host of Duel – Sportscaster Mike Greenberg](_blank)
. Gameshows.about.com. where he joined the
Theta Chi fraternity, and started work as a sports anchor and reporter at
WMAQ-AM in Chicago. He left WMAQ in 1992 to work for
WSCR
WSCR (670 AM radio, AM) – branded 670 The Score – is a Commercial radio, commercial sports radio station, licensed to Chicago, Illinois, which serves the Chicago metropolitan area. Owned by Audacy, Inc., WSCR is a clear-channel station wit ...
-Radio as a reporter (covering events such as the
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
and the
Super Bowl
The Super Bowl is the annual History of the NFL championship, league championship game of the National Football League (NFL) of the United States. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966 NFL season, 1966 (with the excep ...
) and talk show host. From 1993 to 1995, he also wrote a weekly syndicated column for the California-based
Copley News Service. In 1994, he added reporting for SportsChannel Chicago to his résumé. In 1995, he left SportsChannel Chicago to work at
CLTV, becoming an anchor, reporter, and host of a live call-in show. He left Chicago in September 1996 for ESPN, where he became one of the first hosts
of
ESPNEWS
ESPNews (pronounced "ESPN News," stylized ESPNEWS) is an American multinational digital cable and satellite television network owned by ESPN Inc., a joint venture between The Walt Disney Company (which owns a controlling 80% stake) and Hear ...
when it began broadcasting in November of that year.
ESPN career (1996–present)
In 1999, with
ESPN Radio
ESPN Radio, which is alternatively branded platform-agnostically as ESPN Audio, is an American sports radio network and extension of the ESPN television network. It was launched on January 1, 1992, under the banner "SportsRadio ESPN". The netw ...
airing in just four markets, Mike Greenberg was approached about returning to radio to be a part of a morning drive-time show with
Mike Golic as co-host. Greenberg agreed, with the understanding that he would continue anchoring ''
SportsCenter
''SportsCenter'' (SC) is an American television sports news broadcasting show broadcast by ESPN. Originally anchored by Chris Berman, George Grande, Greg Gumbel, Lee Leonard, Bob Ley, Sal Marchiano and Lou Palmer, it premiered on Septem ...
'' on a regular basis. On April 26, 2004, the show started a regular simulcast on ESPNEWS.
[Mike & Mike in The Morning](_blank)
1450amespn.com Because of their continued success, the duo moved to
ESPN2
ESPN2 is an American multinational pay television network owned by ESPN Inc., a joint venture between the Walt Disney Company (which owns a controlling 80% stake) and Hearst Communications (which owns the remaining 20%).
ESPN2 was initially ...
in January 2005.
One of the most popular segments of the entire year on ''
Mike & Mike
''Mike & Mike'' (formerly ''Mike & Mike in the Morning'') was an American sports-talk radio show that was hosted by Mike Greenberg and Mike Golic on ESPN networks from 2000 to 2017. The show aired on ESPN Radio, and was simulcast on televisio ...
'' was the annual "Sheet of Integrity" wager, a bracket wager based on the NCAA men's basketball tournament and the massive ESPN.com bracket contest. The bet originated after Golic told of how he would enter a massive number of sheets into different pools to win the money involved in the pool. Greenberg, believing picks required a sort of integrity, insisted that any such entrant be required to enter only one "Sheet of Integrity". Golic would select one of his (presumably) dozens of sheets against Greenberg, with the loser having to perform a humiliating stunt, usually on the air. The first year, Greenberg won and Golic had to have an eyebrow wax on the air. The next two years, Golic won, and Greenberg had to wear the University of Notre Dame Leprechaun mascot costume on the air, the second time on the Notre Dame campus. In the 2007 competition Greenberg, an admitted die-hard
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...
fan, agreed to wear a
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The Pa ...
jersey to a Jets game and to milk a cow live on-air. Greenberg received advice about milking a cow from ESPN baseball analyst
Buster Olney, who grew up on a dairy farm.
Mike Greenberg's final day as co-host of the ''Mike & Mike'' program was November 17, 2017. Greenberg and Golic were inducted into the National Association of Broadcasters’ Broadcasting Hall of Fame in 2016 and the National Radio Hall of Fame in 2018. On November 27,
Trey Wingo
Hal Chapman "Trey" Wingo III (; born September 19, 1963) is an American former co-host of ESPN '' Golic and Wingo'', '' SportsCenter'', and '' NFL Live''. He has previously served as host of the Women's NCAA basketball tournament.
Early life
W ...
, host of
NFL Live and ESPN's ''SportsCenter'', became Golic's new morning show co-host, and the duo hosted ''Mike & Mikes successor show, ''
Golic and Wingo'' from 2017 to 2020. Greenberg joined a new ESPN morning show, ''
Get Up!'', which premiered April 2, 2018. He also returned to ESPN Radio with a new show, called Greeny.
Other television
Greenberg hosted the
ABC game show
A game show (or gameshow) is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment where contestants compete in a game for rewards. The shows are typically directed by a game show host, host, who explains the rules of the program as well as commentating a ...
''
Duel
A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people with matched weapons.
During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the rapier and later the small sword), but beginning in ...
''. The first season of the show, a week-long six-episode special, premiered on December 17, 2007, and ended on December 23, 2007. The show was renewed, and premiered its second season (consisting of ten episodes) on April 4, 2008; the show's sixteenth and final episode aired on July 30.
On February 20, 2008, Greenberg appeared, along with his radio partner Mike Golic, on the soap opera ''
Guiding Light
''Guiding Light'' (known as ''The Guiding Light'' before 1975) is an American radio and television soap opera. ''Guiding Light'' aired on CBS for 57 years between June 30, 1952, and September 18, 2009, overlapping a 19-year broadcast on radio ...
'' as reported on ESPNradio.com.
On April 18, 2012, Greenberg co-hosted ''
Live! with Kelly
''Live with Kelly and Mark'' (or simply ''Live'') is an American syndicated morning talk show hosted by Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos. Executive produced by Michael Gelman, the ''Live with...'' show formula has aired under various hosts sin ...
''.
Books
On March 7, 2006, Greenberg released his first book entitled ''Why My Wife Thinks I'm An Idiot: The Life and Times of a Sportscaster Dad'', which reached 14th on the
New York Times Bestseller
''The New York Times'' Best Seller list is widely considered the preeminent list of best-selling books in the United States. John Bear, ''The #1 New York Times Best Seller: intriguing facts about the 484 books that have been #1 New York Times ...
list and was nominated in the 2006
Quill Awards for best sports book. In April 2010, Greenberg, along with co-host Mike Golic, released a book entitled ''Mike and Mike's Rules for Sports and Life''. Along with the release, the two Mikes embarked on a 15-city book tour that included stops in
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
,
Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
,
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...
,
Chicago
Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
,
Dallas
Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...
,
Boston
Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
, and
Tampa
Tampa ( ) is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. Tampa's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and t ...
. Greenberg released a novel entitled ''All You Could Ask For'' in 2013. He released the novel ''My Father's Wives'' in January 2015. On April 4, 2023, Mike Greenberg partnered with
Get Up! producer Paul "Hembo" Hembekides to release "Got Your Number" published by Hyperion Avenue.
Controversy
In 2010, Greenberg was embroiled in controversy when returning from a commercial break on his show ''Mike and Mike in the Morning''. He appeared to refer to Martin Luther King Day as "Martin Luther Coon Day". He immediately "corrected" himself, and continued with the show as if nothing happened. He later apologized through an ESPN statement for saying what appeared to be a racial slur.
References
External links
Mike & Mike
{{DEFAULTSORT:Greenberg, Mike
1967 births
20th-century American Jews
American game show hosts
American sports radio personalities
American sports announcers
Jewish American sports announcers
American television sports announcers
Arena football announcers
ESPN people
Radio personalities from Chicago
Living people
NFL announcers
Medill School of Journalism alumni
Stuyvesant High School alumni
ArenaBowl broadcasters
21st-century American Jews