“America’s Team” has a new cornerback. And Elizabeth Esty has a new nickname.
The second-term congresswoman from Connecticut’s 5th District was referred to as Elizabeth “ESPY” — a play on the name of the annual ESPN awards show — by Chris “Boomer” Berman during Thursday night’s telecast of the the 2015 NFL Draft.
Berman gave the Democrat a shout-out after the Dallas Cowboys selected University of Connecticut cornerback Byron Jones with the 27th pick in the first round — tied for the highest a Husky has ever been taken in the draft.
Jones, 22, interned in Esty’s office during the off-season, which Berman highlighted during the prime-time broadcast. The New Britain native and team captain improved his draft stock dramatically with his performance at the NFL Combine in February, where he shattered the record in the broad jump.
Berman’s idiosyncratic nicknames for athletes are the stuff of legend. Here are some of our favorites from over the years:
Bert “Be Home” Blyleven
Octavio “Shhh” Dotel
Andre “Bad Moon” Rison
Eric “Sleeping With” Bieniemy
Scott “Supercalifragilisticexpiala” Brosius
Moises “Skip to My” Alou
Joseph “Live and Let” Addai
Jake “Daylight Come and You Gotta” Delhomme
Fred “The Crime Dog” McGriff
Mike “You’re in Good Hands With” Alstott
Ricky “Running” Watters