About four days ago, during the broadcast of the Washington Commanders vs. Denver Broncos game, Cris Collinsworth and Mike Tirico had an odd pattern of mispronouncing quarterback Marcus Mariota’s name. They kept bouncing from “Mah-ree-OH-tah” to “MARY-oh-tah,” leaving almost everyone confused. Similarly, in the Dallas Cowboys vs. Detroit Lions game, fans noticed another pattern from analyst Kirk Herbstreit.

Even before the game ended, people were getting increasingly annoyed with Herbstreit repeatedly calling Brian Schottenheimer “Shotty” throughout the broadcast. What may have been a casual nickname to Herbstreit clearly wasn’t liked by quite a few people watching the game at home.

This name isn’t entirely unfamiliar. The coach is sometimes called “Schotty” by his friends, and perhaps by players and staff too. So the nickname is clearly quite personal to the coach. In fact, the word “Schotty” picked up popularity among fans a while back.

This was when the former Cowboys player Micah Parsons and wide receiver CeeDee Lamb’s interaction with Schottenheimer during their encounter on a golf course gained traction on social media. Schottenheimer held a cup in his hand, and when Parsons asked him what he was drinking, the coach had an amusing response.

He said he was drinking a “Schotty.”

But he never explained what exactly a “Schotty” was. This soon became a joke on social media, with many taking hilarious shots at the coach.

Now, whether Herbstreit should have used the name the way he did during the broadcast can spark plenty of opinions and endless debates. But it was clearly not something the majority of fans enjoyed during an intense battle between the Cowboys and Lions. The tension and stakes were high throughout the game.

Perhaps that’s why Herbstreit used the word, or maybe he was simply hinting at the joke of “Schotty” to amuse the viewers. Regardless of the intention, it backfired, and before Herbstreit knew it, he quickly became the talk of the town.

Fans are frustrated after Herbstreit won’t stop saying “Shotty”

It started with some of the netizens simply voicing their discomfort on social media. Others were quick to dismiss it.

“Sports media, especially Kirk Herbstreit, needs to stop calling Brian Schottenheimer Schotty, because I keep thinking they’re saying ‘shawty’, and it’s simply unacceptable,” one wrote.

The former Ohio State player is a household name in the college football broadcast world. He is an analyst for ESPN’s College GameDay. Back in 2022, he joined Prime Video as a commentator for Thursday Night Football. So, he’s not entirely new to broadcasting at the pro level. However, one netizen was quick to call out the analyst.

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“Herbstreit, referring to Brian Schottenheimer exclusively as “Schotty” is driving me absolutely insane. You’re in the booth calling a game, you’re not sitting in a bar,” the comment read.

Now, Herbstreit knows coach Schottenheimer professionally well due to his job as an analyst. But there’s no record of the two being friends or particularly close. And even if they were close, this habit still might not have been ideal during a live broadcast. One netizen called this out on X.

“I understand Brian Schottenheimer is called Schotty by his friends, but am I the only one who’s getting really annoyed by Kirk Herbstreit calling him Schotty every f–king time on this broadcast?”

And not just Herbstreit, another member of his family was in the spotlight at the game. It was his dog, Peter, who often joined the analyst for a day at work. During halftime, Herbstreit even takes time out to pet him.

Peter quickly became a star in the Lions vs. Cowboys game, meeting players including wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown and children. Meanwhile, social media is split in two, with one side swooning over Peter and the other criticizing Herbstreit.

“Take a shot every time Kirk Herbstreit calls Brian Schottenheimer, “Shotty”,” one chimed in.

Another netizen simply disliked the idea.

“Listening to Kirk Herbstreit repeatedly call Brian Schottenheimer ‘Shotty” is absolutely driving me crazy. It’s irrational, but I hate it.”

It was quite a tough day for Herbsteit and even more for the Cowboys, who took a 44-30 loss to the Lions.