Melissa Stark could wake up Thursday morning and walk down the stairs of her New Jersey home to an empty house, the quietness consuming her. Life as an “empty nester” has arrived for the mother of four, with all of Stark’s children already at college for the fall.
But mom’s gotta go to work, and the job is the 2025 season opener between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Dallas Cowboys – 25 years to the day from her official NFL sideline reporter debut as a member of the “Monday Night Football” crew that included John Madden at the time.
“For me, it’s perfect timing,” Stark told USA TODAY Sports by phone. “To be an empty nester and to have the quiet around the house doesn’t really sit well with me.”
Assuming Stark spent all of those 25 years between the two dates roaming NFL sidelines and interviewing the most recognizable people in the country would be wrong. After 20 years away from that vantage point, Stark returned as NBC’s No. 1 NFL broadcast team sideline reporter for the 2022 season, with Michelle Tafoya exiting. In between, Stark juggled the ultimate job title – mom – while maintaining a presence in media from being a “TODAY” show correspondent to hosting and reporting duties for NFL Network from 2011-24.
