Kenny Mayne last week announced that he was leaving ESPN, which was a massive blow to any kid who grew up watching Sports Center before the days of smart phones and hot takes. When charismatic anchors just gave you the scores and the highlights without the horse shit.

In an interview with Richard Deitsch, at The Athletic, Mayne revealed that he rejected an offer that came with a “significant pay cut” –

“…It was a 14 percent reduction in time worked and a 61 percent reduction in money earned. I thought the variance was too much. I’m not asking anyone to feel sorry for me. It’s my choice to stay or not stay. It was still a good amount of money in the real world. I’m not trying to frame this as woe for me. Nothing like that. I just think I can do better elsewhere. So I told them that I feel like you’ve got a certain over-under on my worth and I’m going to go play the over. They did not seem to care that I made that choice.”

It’s a bummer, but not surprising. This has happened to myriad television talents over the years.

For some more clarity, Mayne penned a first person in the LA Times today, explaining some more about about the negotiations and the decision to walk.

He wrote:

I had no idea the end would play out the way it did. The last month in my contract has been a period during which I’m allowed to negotiate with outside parties while continuing to negotiate with ESPN. But this negotiation was short, almost abrupt: an offer, my rejection of the offer and an exit interview by phone. And that’s OK. Like I say sometimes during a back-‘em-down dunk NBA highlight, “It’s not personal, it’s just business.”

As my exit call was wrapping up, my wife walked into the room and I looked to her and said, “We are out.” She had to leave to pick up my stepdaughter Bryn. When she returned, she was anxious. I told her, “When it’s time to worry, I will tell you it’s time to worry. It’s not time to worry.” I’d done dozens of commercials over the years — beyond the “This is SportsCenter” promos — and that’s where my near-future focus would be.

But it was not so much me, as you, the public, that got her back to a calm place. All that Twitter love, among other things. Not that everything should be measured by Twitter response but it was something. A lot, actually.

It was pretty cool to see all of the replies to the tweet announcing his departure. He really had a lot of supporters. And I know Mayne didn’t do as much TV over the last five years as he did back in the day, but for kids who grew up on Sports Center, Kenny Mayne was one of the big dogs. He was in that group with Stuart Scott, Dan Patrick, Linda Cohn, Rich Eisen, etc. It was must-watch television before we had internet highlights and opinion shows. The halcyon days of ESPN.