College basketball fans will be getting a lot less Ernie this year.
Veteran broadcaster Ernie Johnson of TNT Sports is taking a step back from March Madness coverage this year, CBS announced on Thursday. Johnson will sit out the first few weeks of the NCAA Tournament before returning to the studio for the Final Four.
CBS also announced that Nate Burleson will be stepping in for Johnson during those first few weeks of March Madness. Burleson is set to join Adam Zucker and Adam Lefkoe as studio hosts for the NCAA Tournament.
The 69-year-old Sports Emmy-winning broadcaster Johnson has become an every-year staple of March Madness over the last decade-and-a-half. Ever since 2011, Johnson had served as the lead studio host for TNT (and broadcast partners CBS, TBS, and TruTV) during the NCAA Tournament.
But the last year or so has marked a period of major change for Johnson and the rest of the TNT crew. TNT recently lost the broadcast rights to the NBA, leading to an emotional departure of the popular TV show “Inside the NBA” from TNT over to ESPN (which now licenses the program from TNT).
The reasons for Johnson’s retreat from March Madness coverage this year were not immediately disclosed. But we do know that Johnson had to take a step back from his MLB coverage back in 2024 due to a family matter.
