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When Big Ten champion Wisconsin meet Pac-12 champ Stanford in Pasadena on New Year's Day, fans watching on ESPN will hear some old and familiar voices. Brent Musburger and Kirk Herbstreit have pulled the assignment for the seventh straight season, with Heather Cox and Tom Rinaldi set to do sideline work.
Musburger is one of the most celebrated TV commentators and has been doing national telecasts since 1973. While primarily doing play-by-play for football, Musburger has also covered the World Series, the Indy 500 and a slew of basketball games at the college and NBA level. He replaced college football broadcasting legend Keith Jackson, who retired from broadcasting after the 2006 Rose Bowl.
Herbstreit joined the Rose Bowl team the same year as his current partner, and has served as one of ESPN's main college football analysts. Along with Chris Fowler, Lee Corso and Desmond Howard, "Herbie" can be found weekly on ESPN's College GameDay. Despite never playing in a Rose Bowl, Herbstreit's four years as a quarterback for Ohio State provide him with the tools to call a Pac-12-Big Ten game.