He told New York Times reporter Chris Vannini in 2024 that he was out to dinner with his wife, recounting a Boston Globe story about a Major League Baseball ownership situation, when a man at the next table tapped him on the shoulder to get in on the discussion.
Tiring of private law practice, he joined ESPN in 1984, rising to an assistant general counsel position before moving to the programming department.
Aresco is credited with starting ESPN's Thursday night football broadcasts, though he stated that the idea was not originally his, and also helped to develop the network's comprehensive bowl game coverage before moving to CBS Sports.
In college basketball, he organized the network's coverage of the NCAA Division I men's tournament, setting up the schedule and time slots for each game.
Aresco also negotiated CBS' continuing coverage of the Masters Tournament with Augusta National Golf Club each year.