Brad Nessler got his signals crossed during Saturday’s game between Ohio State and Wisconsin.
The veteran play-by-play man Nessler was on the call for CBS Sports during this week’s Big Ten showdown. After the first quarter at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisc., the No. 1-ranked Buckeyes had already jumped out to a 17-0 lead.
While the broadcast was going to commercial, Nessler made a funny mistake on the air.
“Not what the Buckeyes and their fans were hoping for in the first 15 minutes,” he said. “It’s been all Ohio State.”
Here is the video.
Brad Nessler: "Not what the Buckeyes and their fans were hoping for in the first 15 minutes. It's been all Ohio State." #CFB pic.twitter.com/UEi5wOJTc1
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) October 18, 2025
Nessler obviously meant to say the “Badgers” there in reference to Wisconsin. But instead, he said “Buckeyes” and mistakenly produced a hilarious contradiction.
That was more the exception than the rule though for the 69-year-old Nessler, who is known as a pro’s pro in the booth. He has been calling college and pro games for a variety of different networks since the 1980s and returned for his second career stint with CBS in 2016 (after also working for ESPN, NFL Network, and other big names).
But there is just something about calling Ohio State games this season that is tough for announcers. During the Buckeyes’ win over Illinois last weekend, fellow broadcaster Gus Johnson (calling the game for FOX at the time) also drew some criticism over his performance on the air.
