ESPN Lays off Longtime College Football Reporter After 25 Years

By Brian Jones

Another popular ESPN personality has been laid off. Gene Wojciechowski, a longtime college football writer announced on social media that his no longer with the network. This comes as ESPN has laid off around 20 on-air personalities due to cost cuts. 

"June 30 was my last day at ESPN," Wojciechowski wrote on Twitter. "I'm indebted to every editor, producer, director, crew member, researcher, and colleague during that 25 1/2-year run. Grateful to all those who let us parachute into their lives and trust us with their stories. No Plan B yet. For now, just thanks." Wojciechowski followed up with another tweet that said, "Appreciate those who have reached out--very kind of everyone. For the record, ESPN did right by me during my entire career. No hard feelings. It was an honor to work there."

Wojciechowski joined ESPN in 1992 as a college football reporter and moved to ESPN full-time in November 1997 when he joined ESPN The Magazine. During his time with ESPN, Wojciechowski reported on college football for College GameDay Built by The Home Depot, SportsCenter, SC Featured and more.

Wojciechowski also reported on other sports during his time on ESPN. In 2018 the veteran journalist traveled the Mediterranean Sea and within 80 miles of the Libyan coast with former NBA star Marc Gasol to save immigrants fleeing war, persecution and poverty via the open sea for a SC Featured story. 

"As de facto crew members (the full-time crew on the ship is very small), we were expected to help when needed," Wojciechowski said in an interview with ESPN Front Row. "If that meant cleaning the kitchen area, helping serve meals, etc., we did it. During an actual rescue, we were with Marc on a small speedboat dispatched to the wreckage of a raft used by immigrants. What we found that morning would later become an international incident: two bodies floating amongst the mangled remains of the rubber raft … and, miraculously, also a survivor. And once we returned to the main ship, we were asked to assist in the transfer of bodies to the upper deck. They needed help, so we helped." 

Before joining ESPN.com and ESPN The Magazine, Wojciechowski was the national college football and basketball columnist for the Chicago Tribune (1996-1997). He also reported on the NFL for both the Denver Post (1983 -1984) and the Dallas Morning News (1984 -1986) before switching back to college football and basketball for the Los Angeles Times (1986 -1996).

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