Sean McDonough becomes play-by-play announcer for ‘Monday Night Football’

The Rams open the season against the San Francisco 49ers on “Monday Night Football,” and a new play-by-play announcer will be in place on the long-running broadcast.

ESPN announced Monday that Sean McDonough will replace Mike Tirico, who is joining NBC.

McDonough, 53, will be only the fifth person to handle play-by-play in the 46-year history of “Monday Night Football,” following Keith Jackson, Frank Gifford, Al Michaels and Tirico, who did the job the last 10 years.

“It really is the dream of a lifetime, especially growing up in my house,” McDonough, the son of the late print and television reporter Will McDonough, said during a teleconference.

McDonough has worked the World Series, the Olympics and the NCAA Final Four. He has also called college football and has worked NFL games for ESPN Radio since 2013.

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“When it became apparent that Mike [Tirico] would leave, we had a very, very short list and Sean was absolutely at the top of that list,” said John Wildhack, executive vice president of programming and production for ESPN.

McDonough will work alongside Jon Gruden and Lisa Salters.

“I have met Sean and I am excited about the opportunity to work with him,” Gruden said in a statement. “Like me, he comes from a family of three boys. Passion for sports has been a way of life for him and his brothers. He’s a seasoned pro, who’s called some of the biggest sporting events, including lots of football. I’m looking forward to getting started.”

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