Jason Kelce will try his hand at late-night television early next year. Kelce announced during an appearance on ABC's “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” on Thursday night that he will host “They Call It Late Night with Jason Kelce,” on ESPN. The one-hour show will tape on five straight Friday nights beginning Jan.
3. That coincides with the last week of the NFL's regular season and the playoffs. The show will originate in front of a live audience from Union Transfer in Philadelphia.
The first four episodes will air at 1 a.m. EST starting on Jan.
4 with the final episode coming on at 1:30 a.m. EST on Feb.
1. “I loved late-night shows, I’ve always loved them. I remember sleepovers watching Conan O’Brien with my friends,” Kelce said on Kimmel's show.
“We’re going to have a bunch of guys up there — legends of the game, friends that I played with, coaches, celebrities,” Kelce said. The Philadelphia-based band Snacktime will provide the show's music. The show's title is a homage to “They Call it Pro Football,” which was NFL Films’ first full-length film in 1967.
NFL Films originated in Philadelphia and founders Ed and Steve Sabol are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. It also featured the legendary voice of John Facenda, who did the news on Philadelphia television before becoming better known as the voice of NFL Films. NFL Films will produce the show in conjunction with Kelce’s Wooderboy Productions and Skydance Sports.
Each episode will also be also seen on Replay.