ABC college football theme song, explained: History behind classic ESPN tune, and why it was revived for 2024 season

ABC and ESPN are bringing back a classic for the 2024 college football season.

The SEC no longer will be found on CBS. The network elected not to renew a contract with the powerhouse football conference a few years ago, and now, there is a new home for the SEC. The conference, featuring massive programs such as Alabama, Georgia, Florida, LSU and Auburn, now will find itself on ABC for its primetime matchups.

When you think of sports on television, every network has a tune to go with it. TV platforms have created iconic songs that have become synonymous with their product, and now, that applies once again to college football on ABC.

This year, ESPN elected to revitalize its classic college football theme song from the late 1990s and early 2000s, ushering in a new era of college football on ABC. The tune will debut on Saturday, Aug. 31 during the Miami vs. Florida and Notre Dame vs. Texas A&M games.

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Here is more to know about ABC and ESPN's new college football theme song.

ABC college football theme song, explained

Ahead of the 2024 NCAA football season, ESPN announced that the network was revamping its college football theme song from nearly 30 years ago to be used with the launch of SEC on ABC.

In its press release , ESPN said that "the dynamic musical composition will bring the nostalgia, pageantry and passion of the early years of SEC on ESPN to a new generation of college football fans and ABC viewers."

"Music is a crucial element in shaping the storytelling of any broadcast," Burke Magnus said, ESPN's president of content. "The opportunity to resurrect a theme song that means so much to college football fans, and so many of us at ESPN, was important as we start this new chapter in our relationship with the SEC."

The revitalized theme "represents a collaboration between the SEC, ESPN Music, ESPN’s college football production team and composer Bob Christianson, who also created the renowned NHL on ESPN theme."

"By reaching into the past and connecting with the present, ESPN is bringing a touch of tradition to a new era of televised SEC sports," SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said. "This re-orchestrated composition will enhance the presentation of SEC football on ABC by bringing a bit of nostalgia to the SEC’s new Saturday television experience."

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You can take a listen to the new theme below.

Fans from the early 2000s will recognize elements of the new tune from the theme music used when ESPN presented SEC football during primetime hours on Saturdays. In addition, the song was used in EA Sports NCAA 14, which was the last edition of the college football video game before  EA Sports College Football 25 was released earlier this year.

Here is what the old ESPN college football theme song sounded like.

ESPN previously secured a new 10-year media rights agreement with the SEC, which makes ABC and the ESPN platforms the exclusive home for SEC football.