Joe Tessitore: Boxing, Wife, Son, ESPN & Net Worth

Joe Tessitore is the most versatile broadcaster in ESPN known for his hard-hit boxing broadcasting.

Throughout his broadcasting career, Tessitore has become a fan favorite with his distinct style and is even nicknamed “the Tess effect.” 

He has become a sports fan favorite with his witty yet fast-thinking commentary in Monday Night Football with Jason Witten, Booger McFarland, and Lisa Salters. 

With his career in sports and witty commentary, people can not help but rave about him, and we are all down for it.

Hence, we have prepared all the information on Joe Tessitore from his family to career, marriage, and all.

Joe Tessitore: Quick Facts

Early Life and Education- Where Did Joe Tessitore Go To College?

The witty commentator and a force of nature on screen, Joe Tessitore, or should we say, Joseph William Tessitore, was born in the city of Schenectady, New York, the United States of America.

Likewise, Joe is an American who belongs to white ethnic background.

The famous sportscaster grew up in an upper-middle-class family with his parents and two sisters, named Dana Tessitore and Lea Tessitore. 

Sadly, there is no information on his parents, including their names and current whereabouts. But is said they were highly educated and thoughtful persons.

As for his education, the star broadcaster went to Christian Brothers Academy in Albany, New York, and enrolled in the Carroll School of Management at Boston College. There she graduated with a degree in Marketing back in 1993.

Age and Height- How Old Is Joe Tessitore?

The ESPN and ABC broadcaster, Joe Tessitore, was born in 1971, which makes him 50 years old as of now.

According to some sources, the American-born Joe has not publicly mentioned his date of birth, but his birthday falls on the first of January.

It makes his zodiac sign a Capricorn, the sign known for being competent, smart, and outgoing.

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Likewise, Tessitore stands tall at the height of 5 feet 9 inches (175 cm), while his other body measurements are unknown.

But he has a reasonably average built, and he probably maintains them with proper diet and exercises.

On top of that, he has got short brown hair and brown eyes that match his fair skin complexion.

Is Joe Tessitore Married?- Family, Wife, and Son

Sports fan lovers might not be the only ones in love with talented Joe; the 50 years old is, in fact, happily married to his wife for decades now.

He is married to his love of life, Rebecca Tessitore, who also was his long-term girlfriend.

Apart from his career, Joe is pretty specific about exposing his personal life in public. The broadcaster has not revealed their wedding’s exact date and much about his family, for starters.

Likewise, it is mentioned Joe and Rebecca dated for a long time before tying the knot. And like everything, their marriage also took place in an intimate ceremony surrounded by their loved ones only.

As of now, the happy couple is blessed with two children named John Tessitore and Nicolina Tessitore. And as expected, their date of birth and their currents statute are excluded from public information.

However, it came to light that his son, John, is currently a kicker at Boston College. It seems the love for sports really runs in the family.

The family of four is spending their time in their beautiful home located in Connecticut. Not to mention, the Tessitore family also seems happy with their marriage.

The couple has never been in rumors and has yet to file for divorce or anything remotely close to that.

Professional Career and ESPN- Who Is Commentating MNF?

Talking about his career, Joe started his broadcasting career at the KXAS-TV, an NBC affiliate in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex.

Then in 1994, Tessitore joined WRGB in Albany, New York, before joining WFSB in Harford, Connecticut, the year later.

Likewise, he worked relentlessly there before taking over the primary anchor sports role in 1997. But many will admit that working at ESPN is what brought Joe enormous exposure and fame.

Since February 2002, Tessitore began commenting on ESPN boxing as a part of Tuesday Night Fights and Friday Night Fights. Soon, the newbie appeared on ESPN College Football and college basketball broadcasts.

Because of his wide range of coverage of sporting events, Joe is featured as the contributor for ESPN.com. Not to mention, he is highly praised for his broadcasting style.

Fans specifically love his distinctive style, commanding voice, and penchant for fist-clenching moments on-air.

Similarly, many media has deemed his style as “the Tess effect.”

Sadly, not all are a fan of him, and it was one of the reasons why Joe was removed from Monday Night Football before the 2020 season.

Many, including The Guardian, pointed out Tessitore as condescending and try-hard. John Teti said,

“Tessitore is a merchant of schmaltz…Cliches are a given in football announcing, but few commentators imbue NFL banalities with the portentous sentimentality that Tessitore brings to bear.”

Nonetheless, the years of working in broadcasting media have helped him make his style. He presented ABC/ESPN Horse Racing, including ‘The Belmont Stakes’ and The Breeders Cup World Championships. 

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Aside from that, Tessitore also produced award-winning ESPN documentaries titled 30 for 30 series. Instantly, he became the executive producer of the ESPN Film Roll Tide War Eagle.

Joe Tessitore- Other Ventures

Aside from working for ESPN, Joe has worked with EA Sports since 2004 and even voiced for the top-selling Fight Night video game.

Joe also appeared in three national Dr. Pepper commercials, which aired through the fall of 2016 and winter of 2017. 

Not to mention, his distinct voice has been the choice for many movies such as Annapolis, The Breakup, and many Television shows. Little different from that, Joe acted in the TV drama The Dead Zone as himself.

Moreover, in 2017, Joe became the co-host of ABC’s Battle of the Network Stars, a reboot of the Howard Cosell, another classic from the 1970s and 80s.

Since the beginning of 2019, the star broadcaster became the head play-by-play commentator for ABC’s Holey Moley.

On the same note, Tessitore happens to be a member of the National Italian American Foundation and is also on the Board of Directors for the Connecticut Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. 

Furthermore, ESPN broadcaster founded the annual Sportscasters’ SuperBall for CF Research.

Awards and Achievements As a Broadcaster

For his outstanding work in the broadcasting world, Tessitore has been honored numerous times on-air. Joe made it twice as a finalist for Sports Media Person of the Year by Sports Illustrated. 

Similarly, on January 18, 2010, Joe accepted an Eclipse Award on behalf of his ESPN production team for their Belmont Stakes.

That same year, he received the prestigious Sam Taub Award for Broadcasting Excellence presented by the Boxing Writers of America. 

Why was Joe Tessitore hospitalized?

As a matter of fact, it is about the incident in 2019 for the match of Bud Crawford-Amir Khan’s fight card on ESPN pay-per-view. Also, that event had nine fights on the Top Rank card to be held at Madison Square Garden.

Meanwhile, the match between Crawford and Khan was for the WBO welterweight title, and thus, it was the main card. Back then, Bernardo Osuna served as the announcer for the undercard on ESPN2.

However, later Joe attended the commentary and explained his absence at the beginning. As per him, he was hospitalized due to a “neurocardiogenic” episode.

To elaborate, Joe had a drop in heart rate and blood pressure, leading to fainting.

Net Worth- Income and Salary

Joe Tessitore has proved himself as a worthy broadcaster despite few setbacks in both ABC and ESPN. With his hard work and skills, Joe not only has fans but garnered enough to earn a handsome salary as well.

As of 2024, his net worth is estimated to be around $2.3 million. And without a doubt, he makes most of his income from his career as a sportscaster.

In fact, Tessitore is one of the popular ESPN sportscasters to date and is also a sports anchorman.

Talking about ESPN, the popular sports network is known for paying a substantial amount to its sportscaster. As a regular ESPN anchor, Joe makes around $100,000 per annum as his salary.

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However, he also brings in extra bucks from his work in other networks. Also, Joe, who is known for his distinctive voice, does voice-over adding more to his account.

Also, we can not forget his guest appearances on radio and television shows.

Social Media Presence

Apparently, Joe Tessitore is not on Facebook. 
Twitter–  15.2k Followers