Chris Berman Christopher James " Chris " Berman ( born May 10 , 1955 ) , also known by the nickname Boomer , is an American sportscaster . He anchors " SportsCenter " , " Monday Night Countdown " , " Sunday NFL Countdown " , U . S . Open golf , the Stanley Cup Finals , and other programming on ESPN and ABC Sports . Berman calls select MLB games for ESPN . In 2012 , he called play - by - play for the Monday Night Football game between the San Diego Chargers and Oakland Raiders with color commentator Trent Dilfer and sideline reporter Rachel Nichols . This was his first time calling an NFL game . Early life and education . Berman was born in Greenwich , Connecticut and raised in Irvington , New York . He is Jewish on his father ' s side . During his childhood he went to Camp Winnebago in Fayette , Maine . In 1970 , he attended the Hackley School and Brown University from which he graduated in 1977 with a degree in history . Career . Berman ' s sportscasting career began at Hartford ' s WVIT - TV as a weekend sports anchor . He joined ESPN in 1979 , a month after its founding , and has been with the network ever since . Along with Bob Ley , he is one of ESPN ' s longest - tenured employees . He is currently the host of " Monday Night Countdown " . In 1988 and 1989 , he hosted ESPN ' s first game show , " Boardwalk and Baseball ' s Super Bowl of Sports Trivia " . In December 2008 , the Associated Press ran a long retrospective on Berman ' s 30 year career with ESPN . " He is our most important person , " said Norby Williamson , ESPN ' s vice president of production . " He is the face of ESPN , " he added . Berman noted that his contract with ESPN expires on his 55th birthday , and that he does not see himself broadcasting into his 60s . In April 2010 , however , ESPN extended Berman ' s contract for an undisclosed period of time , only noting that it was a multi - year deal . Berman was a season ticket holder for the Hartford Whalers and was a strong supporter of the team staying in Connecticut . He occasionally makes reference to the team , sometimes even by humming the team ' s theme song , " Brass Bonanza " . Berman has become a strong backer of the Buffalo Bills in recent years . In an interview with Buffalo Bills reporter and play - by - play voice John Murphy on July 26 , 2012 , Berman acknowledged that you could call him a " Bills Booster " . This sentiment is also echoed in Berman ' s on - air phrase , " No one circles the wagons like the Buffalo Bills . " Berman also has a series of candid moments caught on - air while on the set of " Monday Night Football " that were filmed either before production or on commercial breaks that feature the host swearing multiple times , hitting on a co - worker , and perhaps the most famous clip ; a 1 : 30 rant on the unprofessional - ism of the studio crew . Style . He is well known for his various catch - phrases and player nicknames . His rendition of " He could . . . go . . . all . . . the . . . way ! " is adopted from Howard Cosell , while another of his famous calls , " Back - back - back - back " comes from Red Barber . This strategic and often complicated call is usually screamed by Berman when a baseball is hit a very long way , and is followed by " Gone ! " when the ball leaves the field of play . Another of his catchphrases " Whoop ! " is uttered during highlights when a player makes a quick move or causes someone to miss or make a mistake . He is most known for the use of puns to make nicknames for certain players ( e . g . calling former Minnesota Twins starting pitcher Bert Blyleven Bert " " Be Home " " Blyleven , a pun on the phrase " " be home by eleven " " ) . Berman also goes by his alter ego , " The Swami , " when making predictions on " Sunday NFL Countdown " . In other media . Berman appeared in Adam Sandler ' s 1998 comedy " The Waterboy " as well as Sandler ' s " The Longest Yard " in 2005 where he played himself as the play - by - play announcer of the prison football game . Berman also appeared as himself in " Necessary Roughness " in 1991 , " Little Big League " in 1994 , as well as " Eddie " and " Kingpin " in 1996 . He made a cameo appearance in the 1995 Hootie and the Blowfish video for the single , " Only Wanna Be With You . " Berman appears in Nutrisystem commercials with Don Shula , Dan Marino , Terry Bradshaw , and Mike Golic , using some of his trademark phrases and nicknames to show how much weight they lost . Berman has also recently starred in Applebee ' s commercials as an annoying announcer whom the chefs question as to how he got in the kitchen in the first place .