Steve Braband is a stranger in a strange land -- a self-described "representative of the black and gold in New England Patriot territory," as he puts it.

Braband, who grew up in Cranberry, has also become a familiar face to ESPN viewers. The 25-year-old, who works at ESPN as a program coordinator, recently starred in a series of TV spots promoting the new six-hour block of live morning "SportsCenter" programming.

Cameras followed Braband over a two-week period -- at work in the ESPN studios, at home in Southington, Conn., and hanging out with friends. During the spots, he wore a large countdown clock marking the days until the launch of the live morning show, which started on Monday.

"It was a blast. It was absolutely amazing," Braband said of the experience.

In addition to his everyday routine, he was filmed on location at Giants training camp and hanging out with ESPN anchors. "It was my daily life, but kicked up a notch."

The spots can also be seen on a promotional Web site, www.steveislive.com. A diary includes tidbits of his Pittsburgh fandom, such as: "My friend and roommate, Kyle, has a dog named Sidney. That's not an accident."

Braband, who went to Seneca Valley High School and is a graduate of Clarion University, worked as a producer on the overnight shift at KDKA-AM before landing the ESPN job a year ago.

He says he had always wanted to work at ESPN but that he still misses Pittsburgh and its sports teams. "I'm a diehard black and gold fan," said Braband, who managed to work a Terrible Towel and references to local teams into the ESPN spots.

The spots were created by Wieden+Kennedy and produced by ESPN. The live daytime "SportsCenter" airs on ESPN weekdays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

-- Adrian McCoy, Post-Gazette multimedia writer