On ‘Big Noon Kickoff’ Mark Ingram II finally gets to let his showman personality shine through

On ‘Big Noon Kickoff’ Mark Ingram II finally gets to let his showman personality shine through

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The lounge-turned-meeting-room inside Maryland’s SECU Stadium is buzzing on a November Friday morning. The “Big Noon Kickoff” crew is in the middle of a production meeting, and there are many moving parts:

Michigan, the team the Fox pregame show is following, is in the middle of a sign-stealing scandal ahead of the Ohio State game the following week. Analyst and former coach Urban Meyer has just been made aware a fake quote from him about Ohio State coach Ryan Day is circulating. And a rehearsal is coming within the hour.

Mark Ingram II sits inside the circle of on-air talent and producers, a 10-page show rundown in his lap, preparing for a segment he’ll have that Saturday on Michigan running back Blake Corum. The former Heisman Trophy winner at Alabama and 12-year pro is growing more comfortable by the week with his role as a budding on-air personality and emerging college football voice. The Maryland location, among all the college campuses he visits in his first season on the upstart show, is a collision of his worlds.

He’s back in the DMV, where the 34-year-old spent two of his final four NFL seasons with the Baltimore Ravens and still owns a stake in MLS’ D.C. United. Fans around the set want him to sign their Ravens jerseys and shout “Big Truss,” the team’s rallying cry with Ingram.

The former running back rarely showed his personality as a player, at least in the public eye. On TV, it has moved to the forefront. That includes arriving at his first show — at TCU in Fort Worth, Texas — on a horse.

On game day at Maryland, he takes the center seat on the set amid the sign-waving fans and a blaring marching band. Wearing cream from head to toe, Ingram weighs in on how Michigan’s hustle on defense affects running backs downfield.

“Coach, you see all 11 (defenders) running to the ball, you have to keep the ball high and tight,” Ingram tells Meyer. “The people pursuing the ball can knock the ball out. You have to have ball security running down the field — that’s what Michigan is great at.”

By the show’s end, he’s crowd surfing, his new calling card.

At home, Ingram’s family members gather and watch his broadcasts like they would if he were still playing. And his showmanship isn’t a surprise.

“We just started laughing because we’re like, ‘This dude is crazy,’” his mom, Shonda Ingram, said. “That’s so him, you know? As he would say, if you’re gonna do it, you gotta do it right. That’s typical him.”

The second season of his new career starts Saturday ahead of Penn State’s game at West Virginia.

“Just being someone that people can relate to,” Ingram said this week of his new career, “someone that people would say, ‘Man, I’d like to hang out and watch the game with him.’”

Ingram, who majored in communications at Alabama, started seriously considering a future in TV after he signed with the Ravens in 2019, sparked by an unexpected, spontaneous audition.

In the Ravens’ 42-21 victory over the Jets that December at M&T Bank Stadium, Ingram scored three touchdowns, quarterback Lamar Jackson broke Michael Vick’s single-season rushing record for an NFL quarterback, and the Ravens clinched the AFC North title. Fox sideline reporter Erin Andrews was in the middle of interviewing Jackson when she pivoted to Ingram and said, “Someone suggested I hand you the mic.”

“L Freaky, aka Action Jackson, aka Era 8 Apparel,” Ingram began.

Before he could get a question out, he noticed defender Matthew Judon in the background dancing — “Crank, crank, crank!”

A fun exchange between Ingram and Jackson ensued, and Andrews told Ingram to send it back to the studio.

“Aye, ‘Thursday Night Football’ — back to you in the studio. Truzzzzzzzzzzz.”

Ingram was then asked to lead off the postgame news conference.

“And would like to introduce y’all to the man, the myth, the legend, the MVP front-runner,” he said of Jackson. “If anybody else gotta say something different about that, come see me. I’m right here in B-more, outside The Bank.”

Ingram got back to the locker room and checked his phone, which was blowing up.

“It was just one of those authentic, genuine moments the media caught,” he said. “Everyday exchanges, how we are in a locker room or with my friends or with my family. They will tell you that’s me all the time.”

From that point on, he embraced media opportunities, from spot appearances at the NFL Scouting Combine with the NFL Network to the “Up & Adams Show with Kay Adams” on FanDuel TV and co-hosting the “Truss Levelz” podcast with former teammate Cam Jordan for three seasons (2020-2022).

During the 2020 offseason, Ingram did a spot segment with CBS Sports when he met current castmate Brady Quinn, who also made the transition from player to broadcaster.

“He was so genuine and authentic with his excitement for football,” Quinn said. “Sometimes it’s rare to find guys who get outside of playing and can say how they feel. Some guys aren’t necessarily as good at doing it even though they have strong opinions.”

In the summer of 2022, based on a recommendation from Andrews, Fox called Ingram’s agent, Peter Raskin, with an opportunity to join “Big Noon Kickoff.” There was just one problem: Ingram was set to play for the New Orleans Saints, the franchise that drafted him and that he spent 10 seasons with.

“I sat there for like a week like, ‘I don’t know — you guys offered me my dream job if I wasn’t already employed by my dream job,’” Ingram said. “Ultimately, I was pulling my hair out.”

Ingram played the 2022 season and entered 2023 as a free agent. As he trained in hopes of getting a call from a team, Fox reached out once again. This time he couldn’t say no.

“It was like God was validating, ‘Hey, I got this opportunity for you,’” Ingram said. “It was like, ‘Yeah, I can play, but how long am I gonna play?’ Maybe one, two, maybe three (seasons) tops, nothing long term. I intended to play, but ‘Big Noon’ was just too good of a job, too good of a platform to pass up.”


Former Alabama and NFL running back Mark Ingram, left, made his “Big Noon Kickoff” debut last year. (Courtesy of Fox)

Fox Sports coordinating producer Bardia Shah-Rais said one of Ingram’s best qualities as a broadcaster is that he’s “fresh off the field.” And instead of training camp, Ingram prepared for 2023 by attending the NFL broadcasting boot camp.

“It was like I was back in school, really,” Ingram said.

A three-day crash course hosted by the NFL and NFL Network, the camp puts players through every facet of media from play-by-play, color commentary, studio analysis, podcasting and more. Instructors include the likes of Rich Eisen, Michael Robinson and Kurt Warner. One day is strictly for teaching, then the next day players are put through live simulations and receive immediate feedback from producers like Shah-Rais.

Ingram walked away from the 10-minute color commentary segment particularly challenged, he said, but he would like to pursue it in the future. His performance with studio commentary helped pave the way for his role on “Big Noon.”

“He was a guy who was all in,” Shah-Rais said. “He wanted feedback, not just positive but negative, things that he could improve on. … He just stood out just because of his personality, his warmth. He’s got that great smile, and just the fact that he was really eager to be great at this is what stood out.”

In his early moments on “Big Noon Kickoff,” Ingram found himself being quiet and reserved — rare for him — as he settled in among veterans like Meyer, Quinn, Rob Stone and Matt Leinart.

“Professionally and personally, he’s a really good listener,” Quinn said. “He was a little quiet, but as the season wore on, he got more comfortable and had a better understanding of the process and how things work.”

As he watched and learned, Ingram started feeling a familiar competitive drive, wanting to match — and exceed — his castmates’ level.

“I can’t be the one making the show lag,” Ingram said. “That’s why competition breeds excellence; you see people perform at a high level, then you have no choice but to up your game to that or get left behind. But the thing about that is, there’s no animosity. Our main mission is to be the best college football pregame show in the world.”

Despite his progress with the show, Ingram stayed in shape in case an NFL playoff contender called for depth. He trained in the morning for the field and later in the day for broadcasting.

His routine includes downloading the show and watching it on the plane home to South Florida, noting what went well and what didn’t.

Sundays are mostly for his family, including several hours on the field watching his five kids before spending the rest of the day at home watching NFL games. On Mondays, he works for several hours in the film room, watching up to three games for each of the teams in the featured game of the week. Later in the day, the Fox production call outlines the game plan for the upcoming weekend.

Tuesdays and Wednesdays are more of the same. The crew flies to the location on Thursdays, with the production meeting and rehearsal on Fridays. Saturday is showtime.

His progression into media is in part a personal journey, as he struggled with media relations as a player.

“I didn’t always like the media, didn’t always trust it,” Ingram said. “You kind of have to learn. I’ve had some good interviews but some bad ones, some interviews where somebody may have taken a quote (out of context). You just kind of learn and grow; with experience, you get better with it.

“I think just the personality that people that are close to me see, now other people have been able to see it.”

Now when Ingram conducts interviews, as he has with players such as Corum and Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter, he takes his experiences being in their position into account.

“I try to show love, appreciation and gratefulness,” Ingram said. “I think that it takes down a barrier, opens up a door for more access for more genuine answers. To be able to bridge that gap, stay close to the game and have relationships with the future of football is something I cherish.”

As the weeks went on last season, Ingram blossomed.

He interviewed artist Lil Wayne during Week 3 when Colorado hosted Colorado State — a top moment in Ingram’s young career and a sign of Fox’s growing trust in him.

“That’s something that a seasoned host does,” Shah-Rais said. “We just thought Mark would be really good at it, and he was. He’s just, like, this great, gregarious-time guy.”

Ingram, who is the son of former NFL player Mark Ingram Sr., developed his high energy growing up in Flint, Mich.

“Our family, we’re energetic; we come with a lot of emotion,” Shonda Ingram said. “(Mark) brings emotion because he’s so passionate about everything. Even as a child, on his Little League teams, he’d geek everybody up, giving high-fives, just trying to get everyone pumped up.”

Ingram frequently takes family members on the road during the season. At Maryland, his guest was his son, Mark Ingram III, age 6, better known as “Three.” It was a full weekend for father and son, including a Ravens home game Thursday, a full day on-set Friday with a home Washington Wizards game that night, then a segment together Saturday, which resulted in a father-son crowd-surfing moment.

One of the perks of Ingram’s new job is spending more time with his wife, Chelsea, “Three” and his four daughters: Myla, 9, Mila, 8, Mayla, 4, and Maraya, 2.

“I really just want to be a soccer dad,” Ingram said. “This time, it means everything. I couldn’t take them with me everywhere when I was in the league, so it’s a blessing. Everything I’ve done throughout my career in football and now, it’s for my children.”

Since last season, Ingram has been nominated for the College Football Hall of Fame and has played plenty of golf with his regular partner, Nick Saban, his coach at Alabama who is now starring on ESPN’s “College GameDay,” the show “Big Noon” is trying to compete with. Recently, Ingram, Meyer and Stone started “The Triple Option” podcast. The first guest in the inaugural episode was Saban.

Ingram, known as “King Gump” in Alabama lore for his public loyalty to the university, remains close to the Tide’s football program. He spoke with athletic director Greg Byrne in the hours after Saban’s retirement and was a sounding board as Kalen DeBoer was hired. DeBoer invited Ingram to speak to this year’s team during preseason practice.

“I was thankful for that,” Ingram said. “I loved the energy and atmosphere I felt when I went back to Tuscaloosa.”

As his second season begins with Fox, Ingram hopes his gig with “Big Noon” is “a long-term thing” and opens the door for other broadcast opportunities — such as the NFL. And there surely will be more crowd surfing.

It became his signature move during his first show. While doing a demonstration on the set’s football field, Ingram playfully knocked Stone to the ground. At the end of the segment, Stone playfully pushed Ingram back, but into the crowd. “Get him outta here!” Stone exclaimed, and as Ingram moved closer into the crowd, he felt his feet leave the ground.

“It was really an accident; it just happened genuinely,” Ingram said. “It wasn’t something that I came up with; it was like the fans chose me.”

(Illustration: Dan Goldfarb / The Athletic; photo courtesy of Fox)

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