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Ryan Leaf named USA Network's lead TV analyst for Pac-12 football, basketball games

Byington mugby: Alex Byington5 hours ago_AlexByington

Former Washington State quarterback Ryan Leaf as been named as the new face of USA Network’s Pac-12 football coverage, the network announced Thursday morning. Leaf will serve as USA Network’s lead Pac-12 college football analyst and will also cover a select number of Pac-12 basketball games, according to The Athletic‘s Andrew Marchand.

The USA Network will carry Pac-12 coverage for the first time beginning in the Fall, with the network set to televise 22 football games for the rebuilt Pac-12 during the upcoming 2026 season. Oregon State, one of just two holdovers from the league’s former makeup, will lead the way with six games on the USA Network, per Marchand.

Following a Hall of Fame career at Washington State, Leaf was infamously the No. 2 overall pick by the San Diego Chargers in the 1998 NFL Draft behind the Indianapolis Colts’ selection of Peyton Manning. Unfortunately for Leaf, that’s where their career connection ended as Manning went on to establish himself as one of the NFL’s all-time greats, while Leaf’s football career came to an end in 2021 after appearing in just 25 games across four seasons due to poor play and repeated injuries.

After football, Leaf’s life spiraled as he battled drug addiction and other legal issues. Of course, the 50-year-old Leaf has managed to get clean and put himself on a better life path over the past decade-plus.

That included radio and TV work, including most recently working as CW Sports’ lead college football analyst covering Pac-12 games in 2024-25. He also hosts a SiriusXM radio show on NFL Radio for Westwood One Sports. Leaf previously worked for ESPN as a college football analyst during the 2019-20 season.

That said, Leaf has had run-ins with various sports media personalities over the years, including as recently as last season’s Super Bowl week.

Ryan Leaf reportedly confronts former NFL doctor David Chao on Super Bowl LX radio row

Ex-NFL quarterback Ryan Leaf and former NFL doctor David Chao have a long and contentious history stemming from their days together with the now-former San Diego Chargers. Apparently that history came to a head Feb. 4 on Super Bowl LX Radio Row when Leaf reportedly verbally accosted Chao in front of longtime San Diego media personality Scott Kaplan.

Kaplan revealed the early-morning confrontation between Chao and Leaf during his Kaplan and Crew podcast Wednesday from Radio Row in Santa Clara ahead of Sunday’s Super Bowl LX between the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks.

“Ryan Leaf has a bone to pick with everybody, and he goes on Twitter and just tries to rattle cages,” Kaplan began. “And he comes over and before you know it he’s in Dr. Chao’s face — in his face!”

Chao later made an appearance on Kaplan’s show and discussed the interaction with Leaf.

“Look, I didn’t feel threatened, let’s not make a bigger deal than it was,” Chao told Kaplan later, declining to delve too deep into the encounter while wishing Leaf well. “As my seventh-grade son says: ‘Snitches get stiches.’ I am not gonna report Ryan to anyone. It didn’t get physical, it was words. Was it inappropriate? You judge.”