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Andrew Siciliano

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Andrew Siciliano
Picture of Siciliano in 2016
Siciliano in 2016.
Born (1974-08-28) August 28, 1974 (age 49)
Alma materSyracuse University
OccupationSportscaster
Employer(s)National Football League
NBC Sports

Andrew David Siciliano (born August 28, 1974, in Reston, Virginia, U.S.) is an American sports television anchor, reporter and radio broadcaster. He is the play-by-play announcer for the National Football League's Los Angeles Rams on pre-season games. He was the sole host of NFL Sunday Ticket Red Zone, airing on DirecTV. During the week, he served as a host for NFL Total Access on the NFL Network until he was released by NFL Network in April 2024. He has also hosted coverage of the Olympic Games in 2014 and 2016 for NBC Sports's coverage, mainly for the online-only events network "Gold Zone", which features a format which is equivalent to that of Red Zone.

Education and early career

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Siciliano was born in Reston, Virginia to a Jewish mother, and an Italian father who was an attorney at the Federal Reserve.[1] He attended South Lakes High School.[2]

He attended Syracuse University's S. I. Newhouse School of Public Communications from 1992 to 1996. At Syracuse, he served as Assistant Sports Director at WAER, a student-run radio network. He also worked at the commercial WSYR (AM), covering fires and City Hall.[3] He was a regular columnist for the Daily Orange, Syracuse University's independent student newspaper, and split play-by-play duties for WAER-FM during the 1996 Final Four March Madness game between Syracuse vs Mississippi State. Siciliano graduated in 1996 with a BA in broadcast journalism.[3][4]

Professional career

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Following his academic career, Siciliano accepted a dual anchor/reporter role at WMAQ-670 AM in Chicago, Illinois.[1] By 1999, he was hosting the Chicago Bears's postgame talk show for the now-defunct WMAQ. During his tenure at WMAQ, he was honored with multiple awards, including two AIR awards for Best Sports Reporter and Best Anchor.[4]

In 2000, Siciliano moved to Los Angeles to join Fox Sports Radio. He served as co-host of The Tony Bruno Morning Extravaganza, along with various fill-in anchor roles. He later moved to hosting the weeknight program Game Time Live, with Krystal Fernandez.[5] While with FSR, he served as the lead play by play announcer for the Las Vegas Gladiators of the Arena Football League. In 2006, Siciliano moved from the Gladiators to the Los Angeles Avengers in order to work closer to home. In January 2011, Siciliano was replaced by Max Kellerman at ESPN affiliate 710 AM (KSPN), where he had been hosting LA Sports Live with co-host Mychal Thompson.[6]

Siciliano did St. Louis Rams preseason games as a play-by-play announcer, along with former Rams Pro Bowler Torry Holt and Hall of Famer Marshall Faulk locally in St. Louis on KTVI-TV Fox 2.[7] Holt and Faulk served as color commentators for the broadcasts, and the two were joined by Siciliano, who handled the play-by-play duties.

From its inception in 2005 to 2023, he was the sole host of NFL Sunday Ticket Red Zone, airing on DirecTV's Red Zone Channel. He also served as a host for NFL Total Access on the NFL Network.[1][8]On April 4, 2024 it was announced that NFL Network were making staff cuts and Siciliano along with three other NFL Network employees were being laid off from their jobs with the channel.[9]

Personal life

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Siciliano is an avid Cleveland Guardians and Cleveland Browns fan, whose ultimate goal was to serve as an NFL play by play announcer.[10] He maintains a love for radio despite his television career.[1][4]

In 2023, Siciliano filled in for Jim Donovan as radio play-by-play announcer of the Browns, when Donovan underwent treatment for leukemia.

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Corcoran, Tully (September 5, 2014). "Meet the Caffeine-Fueled Moderator of DirecTV's Red Zone Channel". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
  2. ^ Blezow, Dave (16 December 2017). "Behind the scenes of channel that's changing how you watch NFL Sundays". New York Post. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
  3. ^ a b Boccacino, John (10 February 2022). "'I'm Forever Grateful.' NFL Network's Andrew Siciliano '96 Talks Super Bowl, Discovering His Broadcasting Style and the University's Impact". Syracuse University News. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
  4. ^ a b c "Website Watchdog". Fantasy Tailgate. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
  5. ^ "SMJ Sports Radio Madness- Tim Brando (13) vs. Andrew Siciliano (20)". Sports Medial Journal. 6 March 2008. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
  6. ^ Vanderberg, Marcus. "Andrew Siciliano out, Max Kellerman In On 710 ESPN". TVNewser. mediabistro.com. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
  7. ^ "Rams, CBS2 Announce Broadcast Team For 2016 Season". KCBS-TV. Studio City, California. August 10, 2016. Retrieved August 17, 2019 – via losangeles.cbslocal.com.
  8. ^ Kaplan, Emily (November 30, 2016). "An NFL Sunday with the Red Zone Channel". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
  9. ^ Bumbaca, Chris (April 4, 2024). "Melissa Stark, Andrew Siciliano among NFL Network's latest staff cuts". USA Today. Retrieved April 4, 2024.
  10. ^ "Chat with Andrew Siciliano". ESPN. Archived from the original on November 25, 2010. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
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