Who Is Matt Barrie? 12 Things You Didn't Know About The ESPN Broadcaster

Matt Barrie is an American broadcaster who may already be familiar to fans of other sports as a result of his previous work with ESPN. In 2025, he will be a part of the broadcast team for the inaugural season of TGL. Get to know him better via these facts regarding his life and career so far.

MATT BARRIE FACTS

1. Barrie was born in Scottsdale, Arizona.

2. Barrie attended Arizona State University from 1997-2001, where he earned a degree at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism. In 2020, he was inducted into the school's Hall of Fame.

3. His TV career began at NBC affiliate station, WJFW-TV in Wausau, Wisconsin between 2001-02. There, Barrie was the station’s primary Green Bay Packers and Wisconsin Badgers reporter.

4. Before joining ESPN, Barrie held several different positions in multiple states, including sports host and reporter at WLTX-TV in Columbia, South Carolina, co-host of a radio show called 'The Team', and anchor/reporter at KXAS, NBC5 in Dallas, Texas. While there, Barrie also anchored live coverage of the Dallas Cowboys (NFL), Texas Rangers (MLB) and Dallas Mavericks (NBA).

5. Barrie joined ESPN in March 2013 as a part of its iconic 'SportsCenter' production.

6. In 2018, he made his debut as host of the Scripps National Spelling Bee.

7. Barrie's work with ESPN - which sees him co-anchor the 2pm ET weekday edition of SportsCenter - mainly includes covering college football. In 2019, his role included becoming the studio host for college football Saturdays, while he also serves as the play-by-play voice of ESPN’s Thursday night college football.

8. Away from TV, Barrie has hosted College GameDay on ESPN Radio and contributed to ESPN’s XFL coverage as a play-by-play commentator.

9. During his career, Barrie has received 11 Emmy awards and three Edward R. Murrow journalism awards.

10. Outside of American football, Barrie covers golf for ESPN and has reported on both The Masters and PGA Championship for over a decade, either as host of SportsCenter or as a commentator - calling featured group or featured hole coverage at both.

11. In 2024, Barrie was confirmed as part of the TGL's broadcast team as a play-by-play announcer for the inaugural season in 2025 alongside Scott Van Pelt and Marty Smith.

12. Barrie's wife is called Ashley, and they got married on June 26, 2010.