Earlier today a couple big Colin Cowherd fans reminded me about the debut of his new show "Sports Nation" on ESPN2.  Although I wasn't able to watch it live at 1:00 P.S.T., I recorded the show and here are a few of my initial impressions:

1) I wish it was possible to buy stock in people because I'd buy 10,000 shares of Michelle Beadle at 9:00 tomorrow morning.  Although I've never seen or heard of her before, I was quite impressed.  A combination of Kate Hudson and a young Cameron Diaz (circa "The Mask"), Beadle exudes a lot of confidence and really seems to know a lot about sports.  Grade: A-

2) Readers of this blog know that I'm not a "Herd Guy", but I have to admit that Colin certainly didn't embarrass himself.  As he has a habit of talking out of his ass (e.g. "Yao Ming is the best block shot guy in the NBA"), the Twitter segment at the end of the show that points out mistakes/inaccuracies is really going to expose this particular foible.  However, with that said, I really thought Cowherd came off pretty well.  Grade: B 

3) Overall, "Sports Nation" is definitely watchable although an hour seems a bit much on a daily basis. Ultimately, ESPN may decide that a thirty minute program is a more viable alternative.  Clearly, a lot of thought went into the production of the first show and I'm sure a lot of the kinks will be worked out over time.  Grade: B