ESPN might finally have a plan to replace ‘Around the Horn’

It has been more than five months since ESPN took “Around the Horn” off the air, and the network may finally have a long-term plan for the time slot that was occupied by the long-running show. That plan involves Scott Van Pelt.

Andrew Marchand of The Athletic reported on Tuesday that Van Pelt has emerged as a “strong possibility” to occupy the 5 p.m. ET time slot that ESPN views as one of its most valuable commodities. Van Pelt currently hosts the late-night edition of “SportsCenter” in addition to “Monday Night Countdown.”

ESPN president of content Burke Magnus confirmed that Van Pelt moving from his late-night role to the 5 p.m. slot is a possibility. Magnus said he wanted to lure Ryen Russillo back to ESPN to reunite with Van Pelt, but Russillo recently joined Barstool Sports.

ESPN currently has an episode of “SportsCenter” airing at 5 p.m. between “NFL Live” and “Pardon the Interruption.” The network has explored a number of different ideas for a permanent plan for the time slot, and having Van Pelt host “SportsCenter” at that time is one of them.

Magnus said the current iteration of “SportsCenter” at 5 p.m. has been drawing better ratings than “PTI” did, which is one of the reasons ESPN is “taking all the time we need to get it right.”

Marchand notes that Van Pelt would likely continue with some late-night hosting roles even if he were to move to 5 p.m., especially after major sporting events like “Monday Night Football.”

Van Pelt’ is one of ESPN’s most recognizable on-air personalities. He has been the solo anchor of the late-night edition of “SportsCenter” since 2015, and that program features segments that are popular among fans. It is easy to see why ESPN might want to move SVP to their primetime evening slot.