For the first time ever ESPN’s SportsNation will originate at a soccer match. Co-host Michelle Beadle and guest host Taylor Twellman will lead a 4 p.m. ET live broadcast prior to Wednesday night’s men’s match at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia between the United States and Mexico. The match starts at 9 p.m. and marks the debut of new U.S. coach Jurgen Klinsmann, who replaced the recently fired Bob Bradley.

Twellman is a former MLS striker and U.S. National Team player.

Alexi Lalas, who competed against Klinsmann as a player, says fans are eager to see what changes in philosophy he brings to the U.S. team.

“This is the start of a new era. He (Klinsmann) wants to show that he is building on the past and doing new things going forward. There is a lot of curiosity and some mystery surrounding Jurgen Klinsmann with what he is going to do for and with the U.S. national men’s team program.

“Whatever he does, it all kicks off with a match against USA’s biggest rival – Mexico. I want to see how the Klinsmann era starts off on and off the field.”

Former NFL player and NBC Sports broadcaster Akbar Gbaja-Biamila went on the adventure of a lifetime in Morocco.

For five weeks, Gbaja-Biamila along with ex-teammates Robert Ortiz and Ricky Sharpe, teamed up for ABC’s Expedition Impossible.

The brainchild of Mark Burnett, the show is a hybrid of The Amazing Race and Survivor set in the Moroccan desert. Teams are competing for $50,000 and a new Ford Explorer.

SportsNewser chatted with the former linebacker about his time in Morocco and his passionate love for Oprah Winfrey.

SportsNewser: What’s this about being an Oprah Winfrey fan?

Akbar Gbaja-Biamila: I’m a huge Oprah fan.

How did that start? Read more

Viewership was up 32 percent for the first round of the NBA playoffs on TNT, with 4.2 million average viewers versus the 3.1 million on average who watched last year’s first round games. In the numbers released Monday, TNT outlined double-digit growth across several demographics, including

All viewers 18-34 +38%Â   (1,390,000 vs. 1,008,000)

All viewers 18-49 +37%Â   (2,403,000 vs. 1,757,000)

All viewers 25-54 +32%Â   (2,128,000 vs. 1,615,000)

Men 18-34 +36%Â   (982,000 vs. 721,000)

Men 18-49 +38%Â   (1,729,000 vs. 1,252,000)

Men 25-54 +34%Â   (1,517,000 vs. 1,133,000)

TNT’s postseason success follows its most-watched regular season, when the NBA on TNT averaged a 1.6 U.S. household rating, up 45 percent over last year’s coverage.

(Source: Turner Broadcast Sports)

Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp., which has its fingers in just about every sports pie on planet Earth, is looking to expand its reach into new territory: Formula One racing. Murdoch is reportedly in talks with Carlos Slim, the world’s richest man, to make a joint bid for broadcasting control of the sport, according to the Guardian.

“It would also be the first time that the global media group, which currently owns the rights to most live Premier League football, had taken over an entire sport and could be a major blow for the BBC. The BBC counts F1 as the last major sport – unprotected by legislation governing its broadcast – over which it has sole broadcasting rights in the UK.”

“The BBC acquired the rights to air Formula One in the United Kingdom in 2009. However, senior managers have questioned whether the £40m a year cost of the contract is worth it at a time the BBC needs to make savings.”

A spokesperson for News Corp declined to comment on what she described as “rumour and speculation.”

In honor of the first Yankees vs. Red Sox this afternoon, New Era has a great new commercial starring Alec Baldwin and John Krasinski.

The “Rivals are Forever” spot will air on local and cable channels during the series opener today and is the first in a series of commercials looking at baseball’s best rivalries.

[H/T USA Today]

Calling all college football and men’s basketball fans! LostLettermen.com is on the search for a new sports editor to join its New York team.

In this role, you’ll be responsible for writing unique content for the site. You’ll update Lost Lettermen’s highly regarded player database, and promote features through social media platforms and other outlets in order to increase site traffic.

To be considered, you should have at least two years of experience in sports journalism, preferably online. The ideal candidate will possess a strong understanding of digital media and sports blogs, and be extremely self-motivated and hard-working in a small, yet passionate environment. Interested? Apply here.

For more openings and employment news, follow The Job Post on Twitter @MBJobPost.

The 2011 NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship game between Butler and Connecticut averaged a 13.3 overnight rating, down 17 percent from last year’s 16.0 for the Bulldogs vs. Duke.

Even thought the numbers were down from last year, Monday’s game was higher than three-out-of-the-last five NCAA Championship games, including North Carolina vs. Michigan State (11.9) in 2009.

The overall NCAA Tournament average in the metered markets was a 7.2 rating/15 share, up 9 percent from a 6.6/14 for CBS Sports’ 2010 coverage according to Nielsen. It was the best overall tournament average rating since 2005.

The New York Times ran a features on Cris Collinsworth over the weekend. Alan Schwarz‘s story focuses on the announcer’s growing disgust with big hits, but one quote stuck out.

Fred Gaudelli, the producer of Sunday Night Football, discussed how he and his crew have altered their replays because of the focus on big hits.

“We showed the Miller hit, but we weren’t celebrating, ‘Wow, what a great hit by Jameel McClain!’” he said. “We are all sensitized to what is going on now. Five years ago, we’d be saying: ‘What a hit! Wow! Let’s play this from five angles!’ Five years ago you would have had a much different way to characterize it and cover it.”

Would you even need to go back five years ago? Read more

ESPN is single-handedly making sure you despise the Miami Heat this season.

ESPN.com will launch a section on their website called The Heat Index, dedicated just to the Miami Heat.

Mike Wallace and Brian Windhorst, who we mentioned last week being on ESPN.com’s radar, will headline the editorial contributions when the section launches on Oct. 11.

Normally I would just touch on a few of The Heat Index features, but I want to list them all in order to emphasis the overkill coverage:

• breaking news surrounding the Miami Heat;
• coverage of every Heat game and team practice;
• constantly updated aggregation of all ESPN stories regarding the Heat;
• Chase for 72 – an automated, daily forecast of how many games the Heat will win including ESPN.com’s John Hollinger projecting the odds of the Heat matching the Chicago Bulls’ record of 72 wins;
• Tracking the Big 3 – an automated tracking of how James, Wade and Bosh stack up against the best trios in NBA history; Read more