McFun

AS A “DANETTE”—A SUPPORTING MEMBER OF MORNING ESPN radio and TV talkfest The Dan Patrick Show—Perloff never knows what will happen next. He has punched former pro hockey player Jeremy Roenick in the (titanium) jaw. He has re-enacted a Footloose dance scene for Kevin Bacon. Former football star Rodney Harrison once used him as a tackling dummy. “He hit me really, really, really hard,” says Perloff. “Google it. You can see my soul leave my body.”

It’s a personal highlight reel anyone would envy. Better known on air as “McLovin” (after a character from 2007 teen comedy Su- perbad), the Sports Illustrated contributor started off doing guest spots and joined full-time in 2009. Since then he has proved as adept at analyzing NFL drafts as he is the latest Game of Thrones episode. But a running joke is Perloff’s Ivy League degree: “People

love when I get something wrong,” he says.

He’s very aware of the show’s power. Broadcast on 300- plus radio affiliates and three television channels, including NBC Sports, it reaches more than 80 million homes. “When I talk to my parents, all they want to talk about is the show. They don’t even ask about the kids anymore,” says the father of two young daughters. He’s also gotten used to rubbing elbows with famous superfans. At a Super Bowl party, comedian Will Ferrell recognized McLovin and gave him a huge hug. Actor and producer Adam Sandler often features the Danettes as movie extras; Perloff played a White House reporter in last summer’s Pixels.

Raised outside Philadelphia, Perloff spent much of his career as a writer, editor and web producer for outlets such as FoxSports.com. He never expected to step in front of the camera, but now loves every second. “If you’d asked a 12-year- old me to describe the ideal job, I’d describe this,” he says. “I don’t even want to call it a job, it’s so fun.”

“If I get a lot of people yelling at me at the end of a show, then I know I did a good job.”

MCLOVIN’S TOP 5 NFL PLAYER NAMES Former Browns wide receiver Webster Slaughter “Probably more fitting for a linebacker, but he made the Pro Bowl twice” ➻ ➻ Former Seahawks fullback Mack Strong “There was a lot of pressure to live up to the name in the weight room, but he delivered.” Former Colts linebacker Pat Angerer “Blockers who couldn’t handle him had Angerer management issues” Minnesota Vikings cornerback Captain Munnerlyn “Ironically, not a team captain” Houston Texans linebacker Whitney Mercilus “Former Texans first-round pick has no relation to Flash Gordon bad-guy Ming the Merciless” ➻ ➻ ➻