The news of ESPN's hundreds of layoffs this week staggered the sports world. How could the leading media company in all of sports, and maybe even in all of media, cut almost 1/6th of their workforce? How could a company that spends billions of dollars (yes, that's billion with a "B") on rights deals just for the privilege to televise games not have anymore room for a senior staffer in the accounting department? How could one of the laid off employees drive by the new multi-million dollar digital center and not think there was something in this picture not adding up?

Perhaps what isn't adding up is ESPN's longstanding invulnerability over the sports world. ESPN's value has been placed in the tens of billions of dollars. Forbes even remarked, "The reality is that there is not another media property in the world worth as much as ESPN because no media asset delivering content generates close to as much money." And truth be told, as cold-hearted as it seems, the washing out of veteran highly-paid employees with younger (i.e. cheaper) alternatives to maximize profit is nothing new for corporate America. In fact, ESPN posted job listings for many new positions this week, presumably including ones that had just been filled days earlier, and announced a high-profile hiring of southern sports radio personality Paul Finebaum. ESPN isn't hurting for business.

However, one of the reported reasons for ESPN needing to slash dollars from its payroll is the humongous rights fees the network has dished out to the NFL, college football, and other sports in recent years.

During an edition of College Football Live on Wednesday, the topic of discussion was Johnny Manziel (of course), the reigning Heisman Trophy winner. Anchor Joe Tessitore was talking about how people need to focus on Manziel's on-field ability as opposed to "the big event, and celebrity, and VIP-ness."

Say that out loud. VIP-ness isn't a thing. VIPenis...well, that certainly is something. I'm sure that is indeed very important, but I don't know how much of a thing his off the field status really is. I'm thinking MVP-ness would have rolled off the tongue a little better, and I'm stunned we haven't seen this happen before in the era of using non-descriptive superlatives to describe players.

H/T Gamedayr

Say what you want about Hawk Harrelson's homerism with the White Sox, but in some cases, his bluntness is completely justified. That was the case on Friday night in Chicago, when first base umpire Angel Hernandez blew yet another call. This one wasn't nearly as dreadful as his ignorance of the replay rule in Cleveland a couple of weeks ago, but it was pretty awful.

All Times Eastern

Australian Rules Football
St. Kilda Saints vs. Western Bulldogs -- Fox Soccer Plus, 2:30 a.m.

Arena Football
Philadelphia Soul at Tampa Bay Storm -- CBS Sports Network, 7 p.m.

Boxing
World Championship Boxing, London, England
Super Middleweights: Carl Froch vs. Mikkel Kessler -- HBO, 6 p.m.

College Baseball
ACC Tournament, Durham, NC
Pool Play
Florida State vs. Virginia -- Fox Sports Net-regional, 11 a.m.
Miami vs. Clemson -- Fox Sports Net-regional, 3 p.m.
North Carolina vs. North Carolina State -- Fox Sports Net-regional, 7 p.m.

Big Ten Tournament, Minneapolis, MN
Semifinals
Nebraska vs. Ohio State -- Big Ten Network, 4:30 p.m.
Indiana vs. Nebraska/Ohio State winner -- Big Ten Network, 8 p.m.

Big 12 Tournament, Oklahoma City, OK
Pool Play
Baylor vs. Texas Tech -- Fox College Sports Central, 10 a.m.
Oklahoma vs. Kansas State -- Fox College Sports Central, 1:30 p.m.
West Virginia vs. Oklahoma State -- Fox College Sports Central, 5 p.m.
Kansas vs. TCU -- Fox College Sports Central, 8:30 p.m.

Missouri Valley Championship, Normal IL
Illinois State vs. Wichita State -- Fox College Sports Atlantic, 8 p.m.

SEC Tournament, Hoover, AL
Semifinals
LSU vs. Arkansas -- ESPNews, 1 p.m.
Vanderbilt vs. Mississippi State -- ESPNews, 5 p.m.

West Coast Conference Championship, Stockton, CA
San Francisco vs. San Diego -- ESPNU, 10 p.m.

This may come as shock to many of you, but a lot of the sexy mugs you see while watching sports are aided by makeup. For those not fortunate enough to have the luxury of being in studio where there is often help for things like makeup, wardrobe, and coffee preparation, sadly you are left to your own devices.

Below is a video from Today's 6pm ET SportsCenter where  one television personality (unknown at this time) was caught in the background freshening up his face for an upcoming live shot. We'd love to know who this is in the comments and you work in the business, we'd love to know how the knowledge of doing your own makeup is passed on for male personalities. Is it part of training? Do you ask your girlfriend? Youtube? I am told layers is the key.

H/T @jmorris_np

Today was a very busy day in the world of sports media in terms of personalities changing affilations. The most noteworthy of the bunch was CBS college basketball writer Jeff Goodman, who will be heading to ESPN. Goodman leaves CBS for a more enhanced role on television with ESPN. Last year, ESPN shrewdly hired Brett McMurphy away from CBS on the college football front. McMurphy's hiring immediately paid dividends with the chaos surrounding realignment and the Big East split.

In other media news, USA Today NFL columnist Mike Garafolo is heading to Fox Sports 1. I'd assume he'd be a part of the Curt Menefee/Jay Glazer Fox Football Daily program, but his hiring is another coup for Fox, who is clearly going all-in and attempting to knock ESPN from their pedestal. 

Today the Indy Lights series (IndyCar's developmental series) held their biggest race of the year at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway with the Freedom 100 on NBC Sports Network.  The series has only been racing at the speedway since 2003 and today produced the closest, most incredible finish in Indy's storied history.  Watch as Peter Dempsey goes 4 wide down the final straightaway, passes 3 drivers, and wins by just .0026 seconds in a finish that no Hollywood movie could ever dream of staging.

Buffalo Bills running back CJ Spiller was being interviewed by WGRZ in Buffalo and offered some deep, personal thoughts on a topic surely on the minds of all Bills fans.

SpongeBob SquarePants.

Spiller compliments SpongeBob as a hard worker and a team player while decrying Mr. Krabs stealing people's money.  He also asks the tough questions, like how Patrick sleeps under a rock without suffocating himself?  These are the existential philosophical dilemmas that concern all mammal and amphibian life, and I suppose professional athletes who still watch cartoons...

ESPN aired this graphic yesterday on the 49ers receivers with Michael Crabtree suffering an achilles injury in OTAs.  It's an interesting display on the youth and experience of the 49ers receiving corps.  And what experience they have!  What with Anquan Boldin playing 50 years in the league and catching passes from John Brodie back in the day.  Michael Crabtree and Mario Manningham are very experienced too, spending a mere 16 and 12 years in the league respectively.

Of course, the top header is supposed to be "Catches" and not "Games" but it's worth pondering how effective a 69 year old Anquan Boldin would be in the league.

H/T Ross Jacobson

One of the indellible and iconic elements of 30 for 30 are the commercials with the piano music and "What if I told you..." introduction.  I'm pretty sure anything set to a fake 30 for 30 introduction would be classified as a work of art.  If so, this spoof for Mighty Ducks coach Gordon Bombay is a Rembrandt.  It really makes you think the original Mighty Ducks movie could have been shot as an emotional documentary instead of a hockey movie for kids.  I smell a D4 on its way...

[H/T Puck Drunk Love]