FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, January 27th, 2015

NBC SPORTS PRESENTS SIX HOURS OF SUPER BOWL XLIX PRE-GAME COVERAGE

NBC Super Bowl XLIX Pre-Game Show Begins on NBC at Noon ET on Sunday, Feb. 1

Dan Patrick, Josh Elliott, Tony Dungy, Rodney Harrison, Hines Ward, Mike Florio, Peter King, Bob Costas, Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth and Michele Tafoya Preview Super Bowl XLIX with Analysis and Commentary

Ravens Head Coach John Harbaugh Serves As Guest Analyst

NBC Sports Commentators Have Combined to Win 7 Super Bowls

NBC News’ Savannah Guthrie Interviews President Barack Obama

Josh Elliott Interviews Katy Perry

Johnny Weir and Tara Lipinski To Report From Super Bowl Tailgate Party

PHOENIX, Ariz. – Jan. 27, 2015 – Bob Costas will open NBC Sports’ six-hour Super Bowl XLIX Pre-Game Show with a live report from Arizona at Noon ET on Sunday, Feb. 1, on NBC. In the hours leading up to the game, NBC Sports will surround the Super Bowl with live reports from the team hotels and the stadium, in-depth features and interviews with players and coaches from the Seahawks and Patriots, and X’s and O’s analysis from its roster of expert commentators.

In addition to Costas, NBC Sports’ Football Night in America team of Dan Patrick, Josh Elliott, Tony Dungy, Rodney Harrison, Hines Ward, Mike Florio and Peter King, and NBC Sports’ Sunday Night Football team of Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth and Michele Tafoya, will contribute to the pre-game coverage with interviews, features, and live on-site commentary and analysis. Liam McHugh will serve as an on-site host at the stadium, Carolyn Manno and Randy Moss will report from the team hotels, and Doug Flutie will appear in on-field segments.

Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh will join NBC Sports’ Super Bowl XLIX coverage as a guest analyst. Harbaugh led the Ravens to a win in Super Bowl XLVII in 2013, has reached the postseason in five of his six seasons as Baltimore’s head coach, including twice defeating the Patriots in postseason play.

NBC Sports’ Super Bowl XLIX commentator roster has combined to win seven Super Bowls (Dungy-2, Harbaugh-1, Harrison-2, Ward-2) and one Super Bowl MVP award (Ward, Super Bowl XL).

Coverage will also feature the events surrounding the Super Bowl, including an interview with halftime headliner Katy Perry; live musical performances from the NFL Experience; reports and interviews by NBC Sports’ popular figure skating analysts Johnny Weir and Tara Lipinski with celebrities attending the game; reports from the festive atmosphere at the NFL Experience and Super Bowl XLIX Tailgate Party; and much more.

NBC News’ Savannah Guthrie will interview President Barack Obama as part of the Super Bowl XLIX Pre-Game Show airing late Sunday afternoon.

Following is a summary of NBC Sports’ Super Bowl XLIX pre-game coverage:


THE GAME

Football America: Our Teams: Inspired by the season-long “Together We Make Football” campaign, NBC and NFL Films kick off the NBC Super Bowl XLIX Pre-Game Show with Football America: Our Teams at Noon ET. The film will feature “Together We Make Football” winners Christian Osterhout and the Boron Bobcats High School Football Team, telling their stories of how football has played an integral role in their lives and communities.

Interviews: During the two weeks leading up to the game, NBC Sports conducted extensive interviews with Super Bowl XLIX players and coaches, including:

  • Bob Costas with Patriots QB Tom Brady
  • Dan Patrick with Seahawks QB Russell Wilson
  • Josh Elliott with Seahawks WRs Doug Baldwin and Jermaine Kearse
  • Tony Dungy with Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll, and with Seahawks CB Richard Sherman and FS Earl Thomas
  • Rodney Harrison interviews Patriots TE Rob Gronkowski and DT Vince Wilfork, and conducts an on-field session with Patriots CB Darrelle Revis

 

Hotel & Arrival Reports: Randy Moss will provide updates from the Seahawks’ team hotel, while Carolyn Manno will report from the Patriots’ team hotel. They will also report on their respective teams’ arrivals at the stadium.

On-Field X’s and O’s: Hosted by Liam McHugh, former NFL QB Doug Flutie and Tony Dungy will be on-field at University of Phoenix Stadium to walk through different offensive plays, and demonstrate how those plays are executed.

Hometown Hero: How does a player get to the Super Bowl? NBC Sports will visit the hometowns of six of Sunday’s featured players – Tom Brady, Jamie Collins and Patrick Chung of the Patriots, and Russell Wilson, Earl Thomas and Jon Ryan of the Seahawks. The visits include the people who made an early impact on their lives, including former coaches, teachers and neighborhood friends.

Coach’s Clicker: Throughout the NBC Super Bowl XLIX Pre-Game Show, John Harbaugh will join Tony Dungy, Rodney Harrison and Dan Patrick for Coach’s Clicker segments, breaking down specific elements and schemes from both teams. Segments focus on Marshawn Lynch, and Tom Brady and the Patriots offense. In addition, Harbaugh will illustrate how he would attempt to stop New England as coach of the Seahawks, while Dungy will assume the role of Patriots head coach and discuss how to limit the Seattle offense.

Pat Tillman’s Legacy: NBC Sports presents a feature on the legacy of former Arizona Cardinals S Pat Tillman, who left the Cardinals to join the U.S. Army Rangers, and was killed in Afghanistan in 2004. Josh Elliott sits down with Ed Woodward, a recipient of the Pat Tillman Scholarship who was forced to retire from the Air Force due to a medical condition, but has persevered to live out his twin brother’s dream of becoming a doctor.

Great Super Bowl Moments: NBC Sports reviews some of the most memorable moments in recent Super Bowl history. Flashback segments will include a look back at Super Bowl XL with game MVP Hines Ward, a review of former Giants WR David Tyree’s miraculous catch in Super Bowl XLII with Rodney Harrison, which took place at University of Phoenix Stadium in Arizona, and a conversation with Seahawks LB and Super Bowl XLVIII Malcolm Smith about what it will take to repeat as Super Bowl champions.

Super Bowl Super Fans: NBC Sports’ Jimmy Roberts tells the story of the only three fans in the world known to have attended every Super Bowl to date. Patriots fan Don Crisman, San Francisco 49ers fan Larry Jacobson, and Pittsburgh Steelers fan Tom Henschel sit with Roberts to discuss their favorite Super Bowl memories and devotion to one of sports’ biggest spectacles.

Dude Perfect: NBC Sports Group has teamed with trick-shot experts and comedy stars Dude Perfect to create a trick-shot video that will debut during the pre-game show. Participating in the video will be Giants rookie WR Odell Beckham Jr. and two-time Super Bowl winner, Super Bowl XL MVP, and NBC NFL analyst Hines Ward. The content will be pushed out on NBC Sports’ social media platforms, and the trick-shot video will be available on NBCSports.com/dudeperfect following its release.

Super Bowl Wives: Johnny Weir and Tara Lipinski will spend a day with wives of Patriots and Seahawks players during Super Bowl week to get a glimpse of spouses of Super Bowl players prepare for Super Bowl XLIX.

NASCAR Gridiron Challenge: NBC News anchor and NASCAR enthusiast Brian Williams and Hines Ward take fans behind the wheel by introducing them to a segment of the NASCAR Gridiron Challenge. The event paired NASCAR drivers, including Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards and Matt Kenseth, with former NFL greats, including Ward and Flutie, as they raced around Charlotte Motor Speedway at speeds upwards of 180 mph.


INTERVIEWS

President Barack Obama: NBC News’ Savannah Guthrie will conduct a live interview with President Barack Obama from The White House late in the NBC Super Bowl XLIX Pre-Game Show.

Thomas Bach: Bob Costas sits down for a one-on-one conversation with International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach, about the upcoming 2016 Summer Games in Rio, and Boston’s bid for the 2024 Games.

Katy Perry: Josh Elliott interviews global superstar Katy Perry, who will headline Sunday’s Pepsi Super Bowl XLIX Halftime Show. Perry cemented her status as a best-selling superstar with the global success of three multi-platinum studio albums. She is currently touring the world on the Prismatic World Tour, which continues to be a hugely successful global spectacle, with 17 sold out arenas in the UK, 66 sold out arenas in North America and 25 sold out arenas in Australia/New Zealand during this year. Click here for more information: http://nbcsportsgrouppressbox.com/2015/01/10/katy-perry-invites-lenny-kravitz-to-join-her-during-pepsi-super-bowl-xlix-halftime-show-february-1-on-nbc/

 

ENTERTAINMENT

The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon: Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon will present special Super Bowl editions of his “Superlatives” segment with Patriots and Seahawks players and NBC on-camera personalities, as well as his “Puppy Predictors” segment to predict the winner of Super Bowl XLIX.

Johnny Weir and Tara Lipinski: “Johnny and Tara” will be based at the Super Bowl XLIX Tailgate Party, the official NFL pre-game party for VIP guests. They will be joined by Josh Elliott to interview celebrities who annually attend the NFL’s championship game and will also provide their own Super Bowl observations. Celebrity interviews will include:

  • Elizabeth Banks, who is starring in the upcoming NBCUniversal picture Pitch Perfect 2;
  • Chris Pratt of NBC’s Parks and Recreation, who is starring in the upcoming NBCUniversal film Jurassic World, and;
  • Adriana Lima, internationally recognized model and actress best known for her work with Victoria’s Secret

 

Men In Blazers and Premier League: Michael Davies and Roger Bennett of THE MEN IN BLAZERS SHOW on NBCSN will be featured in a segment of the Super Bowl XLIX Pre-Game Show. In addition, Premier League host Rebecca Lowe will join Dan Patrick and Tony Dungy for a quick recap of scores and highlights from “football across the pond.”


COMCAST SPORTSNET REGIONAL COVERAGE

Comcast SportsNet New England, part of the NBC Sports Group, will bring Patriots fans back home all the excitement of Super Bowl XLIX from Arizona with thirteen (13) of its shows originating from Phoenix beginning Sunday, Jan. 25, including: Sports Sunday, SportsNet Central, Early Edition, Sports Tonight, Felger & Mazz, Quick Slants, Patriots Wednesday Live, New England Tailgate, Patriots Football Weekly, Monday Night Patriots, Pre-Game and Post-Game Live, and signature hockey program Cross-Check with Felger & Milbury.

On-site commentators for Comcast SportsNet will include Ty Law, Troy Brown, Dan Koppen, Michael Felger, Tom E. Curran, Mike Giardi, Kevin Walsh, Kay Adams, Fred Smerlas and Steve DeOssie, who will bring regional viewers all the information in the week leading up to the game.

–SUPER BOWL XLIX–