They say in the SEC “It just means more”, and that seemingly carries over to the SEC Network studios today during one of the early SEC football games of Week 12.
During halftime of the Florida-Vanderbilt game, the SEC Network studio crew — consisting of Peter Burns, Chris Doering, Takeo Spikes, and Ben Watson — were having a light-hearted moment in which Burns pointed out how Watson’s suit was a different shade than the rest of the cast.
From that point on, bedlam ensued, and it wasn’t happening in Oklahoma.
Watson laughingly commented that he got left out of the conversation but didn’t care as long as he got the standard text from his wife telling him that he looked good. More laughter. More boisterous noise and laughter from the cast.
Then, Peter Burns dropped the bomb as the clips sending the crew to commercial break began to run.
“That’s not the one she sent me”, Burns quipped, followed by the explosion of oooohs from the rest of the cast, and a beckoning to go to commercial break.
Following the break, only Spikes and Doering were in the studio along with the empty chairs that Watson and Burns had occupied. It was clear all wasn’t well, and Doering tried to keep the mood light by asking Watson if he’d “have him keep your wife’s name out of his mouth”.
Watson simply grunted, sat down abruptly and stared angrily at Doering and the camera.
It seemed like you could cut the tension with a knife, but was it a bit? It was really hard to tell if it was or if Watson was genuinely upset by the remark.
The message seems to be clear either way. Don’t joke about a colleague’s wife, even if it’s all in good spirits. You never know how it might be taken.
Hopefully, this was all just a lark and everything is cool between Burns and Watson.