Fang's Bites

Let’s Do The Friday Megalinks

Time for Friday linkage.

The Weekend Viewing Picks have your sports and entertainment suggestions. Let’s get cracking.

National

Michael Hiestand from USA Today looks at TNT’s plans to go mostly split-screen during breaks for Saturday’s NASCAR race.

Tom Perrotta of the Wall Street Journal reports that the one Wimbledon souvenir the players want is the towel.

Alex Sherman at Bloomberg Businessweek talks with NBC Sports Chairman Mark Lazarus about the Olympics.

Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk says enhancing the NFL fan experience might bring more people to games.

Ed Sherman of The Sherman Report is happy to learn that Jeremy Schaap’s ESPN Radio show is now available as a podcast.

Bob Pockrass at The Sporting News says NASCAR hopes that NBC Sports will be a bidder for the sport’s TV rights.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News says ESPN Deportes scored with the EURO 2012 Final last Sunday.

Mike says Golf Channel has selected the venue for the next season of “Big Break”.

Christopher Heine of Adweek says MLB’s allowing Twitter votes for the All-Star Game for the first time may have had a hand in deciding which league hosts the World Series.

Jason Del Ray of Advertising Age says the impending Turner Sports purchase of Bleacher Report makes sense.

Wayne Friedman at MediaPost says the NFL easing requirements on local TV blackouts shows the league wants to reach the casual fan.

Dan Daley at Sports Video Group says ESPN will be utilizing plenty of microphones at the MLB Home Run Derby.

Awful Announcing’s Matt Yoder has a screengrab of a Canadian TV station messing up the Steve Nash trade to the Lakers.

And Matt has found an episode of Judge Sapp. Yes, that’s Warren Sapp.

The Big Lead soaked up the latest Twitter battle between ESPN’s Darren Rovell and Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch.

MediaRantz looks at the top 5 ESPN plagiarism scandals.

Nick Bromberg of Yahoo’s From the Marbles blog wonders what is the big deal with the TNT/truTV simulcast of NASCAR’s Sprint Cup race on Saturday.

Joe Favorito likes how MLS has adopted “Food Week” to get fans to explore its markets’ restaurants.

East and Mid-Atlantic

At SB Nation Boston, Bruce Allen says it was time for Erin Andrews to leave the ESPN Mothership.

Jerry Barmsah of Fishbowl NY says CBS Radio’s WFAN could be headed to FM and could take the Yankees with it.

Yes, Phil Mushnick of the New York Post, we know you hate ESPN.

Justin Terranova of the Post has five questions for ESPN tennis analyst Brad Gilbert.

Ken McMillan from the Middletown (NY) Times Herald-Record says the MLB Extra Innings pay per view package will be free next week.

Don Laible of the Utica (NY) Observer-Dispatch talks with the NHL on NBC’s Dave Strader about calling Olympic basketball.

Ken says a local minor league baseball team has found a new radio home.

Dave Sottile of the Harrisburg (PA) Patriot-News says there are no plans to bring Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic to the local area.

Tim Richardson in Press Box looks at the differences between the Washington Nationals and MASN over the team’s TV rights fee.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner talks with MLB Network’s Chris Rose.

South

Kyle Veazey of the Memphis Commercial-Appeal says a popular local sports radio host is changing stations.

At the Houston Chronicle, David Barron writes that the new Comcast SportsNet Houston will air Conference USA football featuring the University of Houston.

Midwest

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says MLB feels it has restored integrity to the All-Star Game. It’s an exhibition game!

Paul M. Banks of the Chicago Sports Media Watch wonders who had the best mock NBA Draft?

Paul Christian at the Rochester (MN) Post-Bulletin says the new TV voice of the Minnesota Wild will have an exciting team to call this season.

Dan Caesar from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch talks about Erin Andrews making her Fox debut next week.

Dan writes that Blues analyst Darren Pang turned down a full-time offer from TSN and will remain in St. Louis.

West

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News has this harsh takedown of Erin Andrews.

Here’s Tom’s column which has a little more on the last post.

Tom also links to reaction to his Erin Andrews column.

Matt Rudnitsky of SportsGrid replies point-by-point to Hoffarth.

John Maffei of the North County Times writes about Erin Andrews joining Fox.

Jim Carlisle of the Ventura County Star talks with Fox’s Joe Buck on the challenges of calling the MLB All-Star Game.

Jim has his Weekend Viewing Picks.

Matthew T. Hall at the San Diego Union-Tribune wonders where’s the fan outrage in the Fox Sports San Diego-Time Warner Cable dispute leaving Padres games off TV.

Jon Wilner of the San Jose Mercury News tries to clear up some confusion over the Pac-12 Network.

And that will conclude our links for today.

Fox Sports Announces 2012-13 College Football Schedule

Over the last hour or so, it’s been all-Pac-12, all the time. Let’s break that up with this post on the complete Fox Sports college football schedule for 2012-13. It will be filled with national matchups featuring the Big 12, Conference USA and Pac-12 including regional games on the Fox Sports Net affiliates from the ACC, Big East, Big Sky, SEC, Southland and WAC. Also, the Fox Sports-run Big Ten Network will air games involving teams from the Big Ten Conference.

Overall, the Fox Sports Media Group will carry 135 games across its various platforms, Fox Sports, FX, Fox Sports Net and the Big Ten Network.

This marks the first year of Fox Sports airing games across the Fox network in primetime on Saturday nights. Most of its schedule will involve the Pac-12. Let’s go to the Fox press release. And there will be a jump break to provide the entire schedule.

FOX SPORTS MEDIA GROUP TO TELEVISE OVER 165 COLLEGE FOOTBALL GAMES IN 2012

Hawai’i at USC Kicks-Off FOX Sports’ Inaugural College Football
Broadcast Schedule on Sept. 1 in Primetime
Pac-12, Big Ten and Cotton Bowl Classic Titles Settled on FOX

New York, NY – FOX Sports Media Group’s college football coverage kicks into high gear with more than 165 games airing nationally across FOX, FX, FOX Sports Networks (FSN), Big Ten Network (BTN) and FOX College Sports. The master schedule features teams from the Pac-12, Big 12,  Conference USA and Big Ten (on BTN), as well as regional match-ups from the ACC, SEC, Big East, Big Sky, WAC and Southland Conferences.

Week 1 action begins Saturday, Sept. 1 with seven exciting match-ups highlighted by the debut of FOX Sports’ first-ever regular-season over-the-air college football package. The schedule culminates with coverage of the Pac-12 Football Championship Game, Big Ten Football Championship Game and Cotton Bowl Classic all airing in primetime on FOX.

All eyes will be on Los Angeles Saturday, Sept. 1 (7:30 PM ET) as FOX Sports kicks off 13 consecutive weeks of regular-season action, including 12 prime time games and seven doubleheaders.  Expected Heisman Trophy candidate Matt Barkley begins his quest to lead potential preseason #1 USC to a national title when the Trojans host Hawai’i in the Coliseum. First-year head coach Jim Mora takes the field Saturday, Sept. 8 (7:30 PM ET) when his UCLA Bruins host top 25 contender Nebraska Cornhuskers from the storied Rose Bowl in Pasadena, CA. Barkley & Co. are back on FOX Week 3 when the Trojans travel to Stanford on Saturday, Sept. 15 (7:30 PM ET) to take on the nationally-ranked Cardinal.

Bob Stoops and his perennial top 10 Oklahoma Sooners are also featured Week 1 when they head to El Paso, TX for a Saturday, Sept. 1 (10:30 PM ET) showdown with UTEP on FSN. Other exciting match-ups include the battle of Colorado when Colorado St. takes on the Buffaloes from Sports Authority Field at Mile High on Saturday, Sept. 1 (4:00 PM ET) and the Wisconsin Badgers look to build on last year’s Rose Bowl season when they travel to Oregon St. on Saturday, Sept. 8 (4:00 PM ET) for a match-up against the Beavers on FX. These games headline doubleheader coverage on FX for the first five weeks of the season.

Coming off its most successful season yet, with record ratings and 16 games featuring a top 25-ranked team, BTN airs 15 Big Ten games during the first three weekends of the 2012 season, including the debut of the Urban Meyer era at Ohio State and the return of defending Big Ten champion Wisconsin Badgers. Overall, BTN televises over 40 football games this fall, again ensuring that all Big Ten home football games are televised nationally.

Additionally, FOX Sports boasts exclusive coverage of college football’s Pac-12 Conference Football Championship Game on Friday, November 30 (8:00 PM ET) followed by the Big Ten Conference Football Championship Game on Saturday, Dec. 1 (8:00 PM ET) from Indianapolis.  FOX Sports wraps up its 2012-13 campaign with an exciting Big 12/SEC match-up in the Cotton Bowl Classic live from Cowboys Stadium on Friday, Jan. 4 (8:00 PM ET).

And after this jump break, the entire Fox Sports Media Group college football schedule. Look out.

(continue reading…)

College Basketball Viewing Picks for 03/10 & 03/11/12, All Times Eastern

Men’s schedule courtesy of Matt’s College Sports

Saturday, March 10

College GameDay — ESPN, noon

Men’s

ACC Tournament, Atlanta, GA
Semifinals
North Carolina State vs. North Carolina — ACC Network/ESPN, 1 p.m.
Florida State vs. Duke — ACC Network/ESPN, 3:30 p.m.

America East Championship, Stony Brook, NY
Vermont at Stony Brook — ESPN, 11 a.m.

Atlantic 10 Tournament, Atlantic City, NJ
Semifinals
UMass vs. St. Bonaventure — CBS Sports Network, 1 p.m.
Dayton vs. St. Louis — CBS Sports Network, 3:30 p.m.

Big East Championship, New York, NY
Cincinnati vs. Louisville — ESPN/ESPN 3D, 9 p.m.

Big Ten Tournament, Indianapolis, IN
Semifinals
Michigan State vs. Wisconsin — CBS, 1 p.m.
Michigan vs. Ohio State — CBS, 3:30 p.m.

Big 12 Championship, Kansas City, MO
Baylor vs. Missouri — ESPN, 6 p.m.

Big West Championship, Anaheim, CA
Long Beach State vs. UC-Santa Barbara — ESPN2, 10 p.m.

Conference USA Championship, Memphis, TN
Marshall vs. Memphis — CBS, 11:30 a.m.

MAC Championship, Cleveland, OH
Akron vs. Ohio — ESPN2, 8 p.m.

MEAC Championship, Winston-Salem, NC
Bethune-Cookman vs. Norfolk State — ESPN2, 1 p.m.

Mountain West Championship, Las Vegas, NV
San Diego State vs. New Mexico — NBC Sports Network, 7 p.m.

Pac-12 Championship, Los Angeles, CA
Arizona vs. Colorado — CBS, 6 p.m.

SEC Tournament, New Orleans, LA
Semifinals
Kentucky vs. Florida — ABC, 1 p.m.
Vanderbilt vs. Mississippi — ABC, 3:30 p.m.

Southland Championship, Katy, TX
Lamar vs. McNeese State — ESPN2, 3 p.m.

SWAC Championship, Garland, TX
Mississippi Valley State vs. Texas Southern — ESPNU, 8 p.m.

WAC Championship, Las Vegas, NV
New Mexico State vs. Louisiana Tech — ESPN2, midnight

Women’s

Big South Tournament, High Point, NC
Liberty vs. Charleston Southern — SportSouth, 1:30 p.m.
High Point vs. Radford — SportSouth, 4 p.m.

Big 12 Championship, Kansas City, MO
Baylor vs. Texas A&M — Fox Sports Net, noon

CAA Tournament, Upper Marlboro, MD
Semifinals
Delaware vs. UNC-Wilmington — Comcast SportsNet (Mid-Atlantic Plus/New England), CSS, The Comcast Network, noon
James Madison vs. Drexel — Comcast SportsNet (Mid-Atlantic Plus/New England), CSS, The Comcast Network, 2:30 p.m.

Conference USA Championship, Memphis, TN
UTEP vs. Tulane — CBS Sports Network, 8 p.m.

MAC Championship, Cleveland, OH
Central Michigan vs Eastern Michigan — STO, 1 p.m.

MEAC Championship, Winston-Salem, NC
Howard vs. Hampton — ESPNU, 4 p.m.

Missouri Valley Tournament, St. Charles, MO
Semifinals
Missouri State vs. Creighton — Comcast SportsNet Chicago/Fox Sports Midwest, 2:30 p.m.
Drake vs. Wichita State — Comcast SportsNet Chicago/Fox Sports Midwest, 5 p.m.

Mountain West Championship, Las Vegas, NV
San Diego State vs. New Mexico — NBC Sports Network, 4 p.m.

Pac-12 Championship, Los Angeles, CA
Stanford vs. Cal — Fox Sports Net, 2:30 p.m.

WAC Championship, Las Vegas, NV
Louisiana Tech vs. Fresno State WAC Sports Network, 6 p.m.

Sunday, March 11

Men’s

College GameDay — ESPN2, 11 a.m./ESPN, noon
Bracketology — ESPN, 3 p.m.

ACC Championship, Atlanta, GA
North Carolina vs. Florida State — ACC Network/ESPN, 1 p.m.

Atlantic 10 Championship, Atlantic City, NJ
St. Bonaventure vs. Xavier — CBS, 1 p.m.

Big Ten Championship, Indianapolis, IN
Michigan State vs. Ohio State — CBS, 3:30 p.m.

SEC Championship, New Orleans, LA
Kentucky vs. Vanderbilt — ABC, 1 p.m.

NCAA Basketball Championship Selection Show — CBS, 6 p.m.
Bracketology — ESPN, 7 p.m.
NCAA Hardcore Brackets — truTV, 7 p.m.
Bracket Breakdown — CBS Sports Network, 8 p.m.
Crunch Time — ESPNU, 8 p.m.
Duke ’91 & ’92: Back to Back — truTV, 8 p.m.
Bracketology — ESPN2, 9 p.m.
NIT Selection Show — ESPNU, 9 p.m.
Tournament Countdown: The Experts — ESPNU, 9:30 p.m.

Women’s

Big South Championship, High Point, NC
Liberty vs. High Point — SportSouth, 4 p.m.

CAA Championship, Upper Marlboro, MD
Delaware vs. Drexel — Comcast SportsNet (Mid-Atlantic/New England/Philadelphia)/CSS, 12:30 p.m.

Horizon League Championship
Green Bay vs. Detroit — ESPNU, 1 p.m.

Missouri Valley Championship, St. Charles, MO
Creighton vs. Drake — Comcast SportsNet Chicago/Fox Sports Midwest, 3 p.m.

Northeast Championship, Fairfield, CT
Monmouth at Sacred Heart — ESPNU, 3 p.m.

Championship Week Conference Tournament TV Schedules

Ok, let’s provide the college basketball tournament conference tournament schedules plus TV networks that will air the games.

You’ll see each of the games included in the Primetime & Late Night Viewing Picks, but this is also a one stop shopping post for you as well.

Bookmark this and I’ll also update this as the days progress. All times are Eastern.

ACC TOURNAMENT, PHILIPS ARENA, ATLANTA, GA

First Round — Thursday, March 8

#8 Maryland vs. #9 Wake Forest– ACC Network/ESPNU, noon
#5 North Carolina State vs. #12 Boston College — ACC Network/ESPNU, 2:30 p.m.
#7 Clemson vs. #10 Virginia Tech — ACC Network/ESPNU, 7 p.m.
#6 Miami (FL) vs. #11 Georgia Tech — ACC Network/ESPNU, 9:30 p.m.

Quarterfinals — Friday, March 9

#1 North Carolina vs. #8 Maryland — ACC Network/ESPN2, noon
#4 Virginia vs. #5 North Carolina State — ACC Network/ESPN2, 2:30 p.m.
#2 Duke vs. # 10 Virginia Tech — ACC Network/ESPN2, 7 p.m.
#3 Florida State vs. #6 Miami (FL) — ACC Network/ESPN2, 9:30 p.m.

Semifinals — Saturday, March 10

#1 North Carolina vs. #5 North Carolina State — ACC Network/ESPN, 1 p.m.
#2 Duke vs #3 Florida State — ACC Network/ESPN, 3:30 p.m.

Championship — Sunday, March 11

#1 North Carolina vs. #3 Florida State — ACC Network/ESPN, 1 p.m.

AMERICA EAST CHAMPIONSHIP, STONY BROOK ARENA, STONY BROOK, NY

Championship — Saturday, March 10

#2 Vermont at #1 Stony Brook — ESPN2, 11 a.m.

ATLANTIC 10 TOURNAMENT, BOARDWALK HALL, ATLANTIC CITY, NJ

First Round — Tuesday, March 6

#9 Duquense at #8 UMass– Atlantic10.com, 7 p.m.
#12 Charlotte at #5 St. Joseph’s — Atlantic10.com, 7 p.m.
#10 Richmond at #7 LaSalle — Atlantic10.com, 7 p.m.
#11 George Washington at #6 Dayton — Atlantic10.com, 7 p.m.

Quarterfinals — Friday, March 9

#1 Temple vs. #8 UMass — A10 Network, noon
#4 St. Bonaventure vs. #5 St. Joseph’s– A10 Network, 2:30 p.m.
#2 St. Louis vs. #7 LaSalle — A10 Network, 6:30 p.m.
#3 Xavier vs. #6 Dayton — A10 Network, 9 p.m.

Semifinals — Saturday, March 10

#8 UMass vs. #4 St. Bonaventure — CBS Sports Network, 1 p.m.
#2 St. Louis vs. #3 Dayton — CBS Sports Network, 3:30 p.m.

Championship — Sunday, March 11

#3 Xavier vs. #4 St. Bonaventure — CBS, 1 p.m.

BIG EAST TOURNAMENT, MADISON SQUARE GARDEN, NEW YORK, NY

First Round — Tuesday, March 6

#16 DePaul vs. #9 UConn — ESPN2, noon
#13 Pittsburgh vs. #12 St. John — ESPN2, 2:30 p.m.
#15 Providence vs. #10 Seton Hall — ESPNU, 7 p.m.
#14 Villanova vs. #11 Rutgers — ESPNU, 9:30 p.m.

Second Round — Wednesday, March 7

#8 West Virginia vs. #9 UConn — ESPN, noon
#5 Georgetown vs. #13 Pittsburgh — ESPN, 2:30 p.m.
#7 Louisville vs. #10 Seton Hall — ESPN, 7 p.m.
#6 South Florida vs. #14 Villanova — ESPN, 9:30 p.m.

Quarterfinals — Thursday, March 8

#1 Syracuse vs. #9 UConn — ESPN, noon
#4 Cincinnati vs. #5 Georgetown — ESPN, 2:30 p.m.
#2 Marquette vs. #7 Louisville — ESPN, 7 p.m.
#3 Notre Dame vs. #6 South Florida — ESPN, 9:30 p.m.

Semifinals — Friday, March 9

#1 Syracuse vs. #4 Cincinnati — ESPN, 7 p.m.
#7 Louisville vs. #3 Notre Dame — ESPN, 9:30 p.m.

Championship, Saturday, March 10

#4 Cincinnati vs. #7 Louisville — ESPN, 9 p.m.

BIG SKY TOURNAMENT, DAHLBERG ARENA, MISSOULA, MONTANA

Semifinals — Tuesday, March 6

#2 Weber State vs. #3 Portland State — Altitude, 7:30 p.m.
#1 Montana vs. #4 Eastern Washington — Altitude, 10 p.m.

Championship — Wednesday, March 7

#2 Weber State vs. #1 Montana — ESPN2, 9 p.m.

BIG TEN TOURNAMENT, BANKERS LIFE FIELDHOUSE, INDIANAPOLIS, IN

First Round — Thursday, March 8

#8 Iowa vs. #9 Illinois — Big Ten Network, 11:30 a.m.
#5 Indiana vs. #12 Penn State — Big Ten Network, 2 p.m.
#7 Northwestern vs. #10 Minnesota — ESPN2, 7 p.m.
#6 Purdue vs. #11 Nebraska — ESPN2, 9:30 p.m.

Quarterfinals — Friday, March 9

#1 Michigan State vs. #8 Iowa — ESPN, noon
#4 Wisconsin vs. #5 Indiana — ESPN, 2:30 p.m.
#2 Michigan vs. #10 Minnesota — Big Ten Network, 7 p.m.
#3 Ohio State vs. #6 Purdue — Big Ten Network, 9:30 p.m.

Semifinals — Saturday, March 10

#1Michigan State vs. #4 Wisconsin — CBS, 1:30 p.m.
#2 Michigan vs. #3 Ohio State — CBS, 4 p.m.

Championship — Sunday, March 11

#1 Michigan State vs. #3 Ohio State — CBS, 3:30 p.m.

BIG 12 TOURNAMENT, SPRINT CENTER, KANSAS CITY, MO

First Round — Wednesday, March 7

#8 Oklahoma vs. #9 Texas A&M — Big 12 Network, 7 p.m.
#7 Oklahoma State vs. #10 Texas Tech — Big 12 Network, 9:30 p.m.

Quarterfinals — Thursday, March 8

#4 Baylor vs. #5 Kansas State — ESPN2, 12:30 p.m.
#1 Kansas vs. #9 Texas A&M — ESPN2, 3 p.m.
#2 Missouri vs. #7 Oklahoma State– Big 12 Network, 7 p.m.
#3 Iowa State vs. #6 Texas — Big 12 Network, 9:30 p.m.

Semifinals — Friday, March 9

#4 Baylor vs. #1 Kansas — Big 12 Network/ESPNU, 7:30 p.m.
#2 Missouri vs. #6 Texas — Big 12 Network/ESPNU, 10 p.m.

Championship, Saturday, March 10

#4 Baylor vs. #2 Missouri — ESPN, 6 p.m.

BIG WEST TOURNAMENT, HONDA CENTER, ANAHEIM, CA

Quarterfinals — Thursday, March 8

#3 UC-Santa Barbara vs. #6 Pacific — Big West.TV, 3 p.m.
#2 Cal State Fullerton vs. #7 UC-Irvine — Big West.TV, 5:30 p.m.
#1 Long Beach State vs. #8 UC-Davis — Big West.TV, 9 p.m.
#4 Cal Poly vs. No. 5 UC-Riverside — Big West.TV, 11:30 p.m.

Semifinals — Friday, March 9

#1 Long Beach State vs. #7 UC-Irvine — ESPN3.com, 9:30 p.m.
#3 UC-Santa Barbara vs. #4 Cal Poly — ESPNU, midnight

Championship — Saturday, March 10

#1 Long Beach State vs. #3 UC-Santa Barbara — ESPN2, 10 p.m.

COLONIAL ATHLETIC CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP, RICHMOND COLISEUM, RICHMOND, VA

Championship — Monday, March 5

Drexel vs. VCU — ESPN, 7 p.m.

CONFERENCE USA TOURNAMENT, FEDEX FORUM, MEMPHIS, TN

First Round — Wednesday, March 7

#7 Rice vs. #10 East Carolina — CSS, 1 p.m.
#6 Marshall vs. #11 SMU — CSS, 3:30 p.m.
#8 UTEP vs. #9 Houston — CSS, 7:30 p.m.
#5 UAB vs. #12 Tulane – CSS, 10 p.m.

Quarterfinals — Thursday, March 8

#2 Southern Mississippi vs. #10 East Carolina — CBS Sports Network, 1 p.m.
#3 Tulsa vs. #6 Marshall– CBS Sports Network, 3:30 p.m.
#1 Memphis vs. #8 UTEP– CBS Sports Network, 7:30 p.m.
#4 Central Florida vs. #5 UAB– CBS Sports Network, 10 p.m.

Semifinals — Friday, March 9

#2 Southern Mississippi vs. #6 Marshall — CBS Sports Network, 4 p.m.
#1 Memphis vs. #4 Central Florida — CBS Sports Network, 6:30 p.m.

Championship — Saturday, March 10

#6 Marshall vs. #1 Memphis — CBS, 11:30 a.m.

HORIZON LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP, ATHLETICS-RECREATION CENTER, VALPARAISO, IN

Championship — Tuesday, March 6

Detroit at Valparaiso — ESPN, 9 p.m.

METRO ATLANTIC ATHLETIC CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP, MASSMUTUAL CENTER, SPRINGFIELD, MA

Championship — Monday, March 5

#2 Fairfield vs. #4 Loyola (MD) — ESPN2, 7 p.m.

MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT, QUICKEN LOANS ARENA, CLEVELAND, OH

Second Round — Wednesday, March 7

#12 Northern Illinois vs. #8 Western Michigan — STO, 7 p.m.
#11 Central Michigan vs. #7 Toledo — STO, 9:30 p.m.

Quarterfinals — Thursday, March 8

#4 Kent State vs. #8 Western Michigan — STO, 7 p.m.
#3 Ohio vs. #11 Central Michigan — STO, 9:30 p.m.

Semifinals — Friday, March 9

#1 Akron vs. #4 Kent State — STO, 7 p.m.
#2 Buffalo vs. #3 Ohio — STO, 9:30 p.m.

Championship — Saturday, March 10

#1 Akron vs. #3 Ohio — ESPN2, 8 p.m.

MID-EASTERN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP, JOEL COLISEUM, WINSTON-SALEM, NC

Championship — Saturday, March 10

#4 Bethune-Cookman vs. #2 Norfolk State — ESPNU, 1 p.m.

MOUNTAIN WEST CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT, THOMAS & MACK CENTER, LAS VEGAS, NV

Quarterfinals — Thursday, March 8

#1 San Diego State vs. Boise State — the mtn., 3 p.m.
#4 Colorado State vs. #5 TCU — the mtn., 5:30 p.m.
#2 New Mexico vs. #7 Air Force — the mtn., 9 p.m.
#3 UNLV vs. #6 Wyoming — the mtn., 11:30 p.m.

Semifinals — Friday, March 9

#1 San Diego State vs. #4 Colorado State — CBS Sports Network, 9 p.m.
#2 New Mexico vs. #3 UNLV — CBS Sports Network, 11:30 p.m.

Championship — Saturday, March 10

#1 San Diego State vs. #2 New Mexico — NBC Sports Network, 7 p.m.

NORTHEAST CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP, WELLNESS CENTER, BROOKLYN, NY

Championship — Wednesday, March 7

#3 Robert Morris vs. #1 LIU — ESPN2, 7 p.m.

PAC-12 TOURNAMENT, STAPLES CENTER, LOS ANGELES, CA

First Round — Wednesday, March 7

#8 Washington State vs. #9 Oregon State — Fox Sports Net, 3 p.m.
#5 UCLA vs. #12 USC — Fox Sports Net, 5:30 p.m.
#7 Stanford vs. #10 Arizona State — Fox Sports Net, 9 p.m.
#6 Colorado vs. #11 Utah — Fox Sports Net, 11:30 p.m.

Quarterfinals — Thursday, March 8

#1 Washington vs. #9 Oregon State — Fox Sports Net, 3 p.m.
#4 Arizona vs. #12 UCLA — Fox Sports Net, 5:30 p.m.
#2 Cal vs. #7 Stanford — Fox Sports Net, 9 p.m.
#3 Oregon vs. #6 Colorado — Fox Sports Net, 11:30 p.m.

Semifinals — Friday, March 9

#9 Oregon State vs. #4 Arizona — Fox Sports Net, 9 p.m.
#2 Cal vs. #6 Colorado — Fox Sports Net, 11:30 p.m.

Championship — Saturday, March 10

#4 Arizona vs. #6 Colorado — CBS, 6 p.m.

PATRIOT LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP, SOJKA PAVILION, LEWISBERG, PA

Championship — Wednesday, March 7

#1 Bucknell vs. #2 Lehigh — CBS Sports Network, 7 p.m.

SOUTHEASTERN CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT, NEW ORLEANS ARENA, NEW ORLEANS, LA

First Round — Thursday, March 8

#8 LSU vs. #9 Arkansas — SEC Network, 1 p.m.
#5 Alabama vs. #12 South Carolina — SEC Network, 3:30 p.m.
#7 Mississippi vs. #10 Auburn — SEC Network, 7:30 p.m.
#6 Mississippi State vs. #11 Georgia — SEC Network, 10 p.m.

Quarterfinals — Friday, March 9

#1 Kentucky vs. #8 LSU — SEC Network, 1 p.m.
#4 Florida vs. #5 Alabama — SEC Network, 3:30 p.m.
#2 Tennessee vs. #7 Mississippi — SEC Network, 7:30 p.m.
#3 Vanderbilt vs. #11 Georgia — SEC Network, 10 p.m.

Semifinals — Saturday, March 10

#1 Kentucky vs. #4 Florida — ABC, 1 p.m.
#7 Mississippi vs. #3 Vanderbilt — ABC, 3:30 p.m.

Championship — Sunday, March 11

#1 Kentucky vs. #3 Vanderbilt — ABC, 1 p.m.

SOUTHERN CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP, U.S. CELLULAR CENTER, ASHEVILLE, NC

Championship — Monday, March 5

Davidson vs. Western Carolina — ESPN2, 9 p.m.

SOUTHLAND CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT, LEONARD E. MERRILL CENTER, KATY, TX

Semifinals — Thursday, March 8

#2 Stephen F. Austin vs. #3 Lamar — Southland TV, 7 p.m.
#1 Texas-Arlington vs. #4 McNeese State — Southland TV, 9:30 p.m.

Championship — Saturday, March 10

#3 Lamar vs. #4 McNeese State — ESPN2, 3 p.m.

SOUTHWEST ATHLETIC CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP, THE SPECIAL EVENTS CENTER, GARLAND, TX

Championship — Saturday, March 10

#1 Mississippi Valley State vs. #2 Texas Southern — ESPNU, 8 p.m.

SUMMIT LEAGUE TOURNAMENT, SIOUX FALLS ARENA, SIOUX FALLS, SD

Semifinals — Monday, March 5

#1 Oral Roberts vs. #4 Western Illinois — Fox College Sports Central/Fox Sports Detroit, 7 p.m.
#2 South Dakota State vs. #6 Southern Utah — Fox College Sports Central/Fox Sports Detroit, 9:30 p.m

Championship — Tuesday, March 6

#4 Western Illinois vs. #2 South Dakota State — ESPN2, 9 p.m.

SUN BELT CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT, THE SUMMIT ARENA, HOT SPRINGS, AR

Semifinals — Monday, March 5

#5 North Texas State vs. #9 Arkansas State — CSS/Cox Sports Television, 7 p.m.
#3 Denver vs. #7 Western Kentucky — CSS, 9:30 p.m.

Championship — Tuesday, March 6

#5 North Texas State vs. #7 Western Kentucky — ESPN2, 7 p.m.

WESTERN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT, ORLEANS ARENA, LAS VEGAS, NV

Semifinals — Friday, March 9

#6 Hawaii vs. #2 New Mexico State — WAC Sports Network, 9 p.m.
#1 Nevada vs. #5 Louisiana Tech — WAC Sports Network, 11:30 p.m.

Championship — Saturday, March 10

#2 New Mexico State vs. #5 Louisiana Tech — ESPN2, 11:59 p.m.

WEST COAST CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP, ORLEANS ARENA, LAS VEGAS, NV

Championship — Monday, March 5

#1 St. Mary’s vs. #2 Gonzaga — ESPN, 9 p.m.

College Football Viewing Picks For Week 14, 12/03/11, All Times Eastern

Schedule courtesy of Matt’s College Sports

College GameDay live from the SEC Championship, Atlanta, GA — ESPNU, 9 a.m./ESPN, 10 a.m.

ACC Championship, Charlotte, NC
Virginia Tech vs. Clemson — ESPN/ESPN 3D, 8 p.m.

Big Ten Championship, Indianapolis, IN
Wisconsin vs. Michigan State — Fox, 8 p.m.

Conference USA Championship, Houston, TX
Southern Mississippi at Houston — ABC, noon

SEC Championship, Atlanta, GA
LSU vs. Georgia — CBS, 4 p.m.

noon
UConn at Cincinnati — ESPN
Syracuse at Pittsburgh — ESPN

12:30 p.m.
Iowa State at Kansas State — Fox Sports Net (national)

2 p.m.
Wyoming at Colorado State — the mtn.

2:30 p.m.
UNLV at TCU — Versus

3:30 p.m.
Texas at Baylor — ABC

4 p.m.
Idaho at Nevada — WAC Sports Network

6 p.m.
New Mexico at Boise State — the mtn.

7:30 p.m.
BYU at Hawaii — ESPN2

8 p.m.
Oklahoma at Oklahoma State — ABC

Fresno State at San Diego State — CBS Sports Network

ESPN’s Family of Networks College Football Games For Week 14

This Saturday for all intents and purposes ends college football before we head to the inexorable bowl season leading to the BCS and the debates whether it’s a viable system.

But before we get to all that, there’s the Conference Championship Games. The ESPN Fam will air the MAC, Conference USA and ACC Championships. ABC also airs the annual Bedlam Game between Oklahoma and Oklahoma State that will decide the Big 12 Championship.

In addition, the ESPN3.com will stream the NCAA Division I Football Championship featuring schools in the Football Championship Subdivision. Yes, the NCAA holds a Division I Championship while the BCS schools are mired in the muck and malarkey that’s the bowl system which just provides debate and more questions.

Anyway, here’s the schedule.

Conference Championships, Four Matchups between Ranked Teams & Complete NCAA Division I Second Round Coverage

ESPN’s college football schedule this week includes four conference championships, four games between ranked teams and all eight of the second-round NCAA Division I Football Championship matchups.

ABC and ESPN will each televise a conference title game between ranked teams Saturday, December 3:

• Conference USA Championship at noon on ABC: No. 24 Southern Miss vs. undefeated No. 6 Houston
• ACC Championship Game at 8 p.m. on ESPN and ESPN3: No. 5 Virginia Tech vs. No. 20 Clemson

On Friday, Dec. 2, ESPN2 and ESPN3 will carry the MAC Championship pitting Ohio against Northern Illinois at 7 p.m.  In addition, ESPN Radio will broadcast the inaugural Pac-12 Championship featuring UCLA vs. No. 9 Oregon at 8 p.m.

ABC will broadcast two Big 12 games between ranked teams Saturday, December 3: No. 22 Texas at No. 17 Baylor at 3:30 p.m. followed by No. 10 Oklahoma at No. 3 Oklahoma State at 8 p.m., which will determine the Big 12 champion.

ESPN3 will offer exclusive coverage of the entire second round of the NCAA Division I Football Championship on Saturday, December 3 beginning at 1 p.m.

Date	Time (ET)	Game/Commentators	Network
Thu, Dec 1	8 p.m.	No. 23 West Virginia at South Florida Rece Davis, Craig James, Jesse Palmer & Jenn Brown	ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN 3D
Fri, Dec 2	7 p.m.	MAC Championship: Ohio vs. Northern Illinois Joe Tessitore, Rod Gilmore & Jeannine Edwards	ESPN2/ESPN3
	8 p.m.	Pac-12 Championship Game: UCLA at No. 9 Oregon Dave Flemming, David Norrie & Ian Fitzsimmons	ESPN Radio
Sat, Dec 3	Noon	Conference USA Championship: No. 24 Southern Miss at No. 6 Houston Mike Patrick, Craig James & Lisa Salters	ABC
		Connecticut at Cincinnati Dave Pasch, Chris Spielman & Quint Kessenich	ESPN/ESPN3
		Syracuse at Pittsburgh Dave Lamont & Mike Bellotti	ESPN2/ESPN3
	1 p.m.	NCAA Division I Football Championship: Old Dominion at No. 3 Georgia Southern Doug Bell & John Bunting	ESPN3*
	2 p.m.	NCAA Division I Football Championship: Maine at Appalachian State John Sadak & Rene Ingoglia	ESPN3*
		NCAA Division I Football Championship: Central Arkansas at No. 4 Montana Ryan Rose & Adam Archuletta	ESPN3*
	3 p.m.	Troy at Arkansas State	ESPN3
		NCAA Division I Football Championship: New Hampshire at Montana State Trey Bender & Jay Taylor	ESPN3*
		NCAA Division I Football Championship: Stony Brook at No. 1 Sam Houston State Dan Gutowsky & Warrick Dunn	ESPN3*
	3:30 p.m.	No. 22 Texas at No. 17 Baylor Sean McDonough, Matt Millen & Samantha Steele	ABC
		Utah State at New Mexico State	ESPN3
		NCAA Division I Football Championship: Lehigh at Towson Bob Picozzi & John Gregory	ESPN3*
	4 p.m.	Idaho at Nevada	ESPN3
		NCAA Division I Football Championship: James Madison at No. 2 North Dakota State Jim Barbar & Jay Walker	ESPN3*
	5 p.m.	NCAA Division I Football Championship: Wofford at No. 5 Northern Iowa Shawn Kenney & Rob Harley	ESPN3*
	7:30 p.m.	BYU at Hawaii Carter Blackburn & Brock Huard	ESPN2/ESPN3
	8 p.m.	No. 10 Oklahoma at No. 3 Oklahoma State Brad Nessler, Todd Blackledge & Holly Rowe	ABC
		ACC Championship Game: No. 5 Virginia Tech vs. No. 20 Clemson ESPN: Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit & Heather Cox ESPN Radio: Bill Rosinski, Danny Kanell & Joe Schad	ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN 3D/ESPN Radio

* ESPN3 exclusive.

And College GameDay will end its travel around the country just as it began, in Atlanta in SEC country this time for the SEC Championship.

College GameDay at SEC Championship in Atlanta

ESPN’s Emmy Award-winning College GameDay will originate from the SEC Championship in Atlanta, on Saturday, Dec. 3, in advance the title game between the Eastern Division champion No. 12 Georgia and the Western Division champ No. 1 LSU. The GameDay set will be in Centennial Olympic Park and will air from 9-10 a.m. on ESPNU and 10 a.m.-noon on ESPN.

GameDay will be visiting the SEC Championship for the fourth time, and the third time in the last four years. Alabama takes part for the third time this season, the second straight week and the 22^nd time overall, while Georgia will be appearing for the 12^th time.

That’s it.

Sirius XM Signs Contracts With 11 College Conferences For Live Sports Action

Through its contracts with IMG College and Learfield Sports, Sirius XM will be able to bring subscribers exclusive game broadcasts featuring some of the nation’s biggest conferences including the ACC, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, Conference USA, SEC, Pac-12 and WAC. The contracts will not only include football and basketball games, but also coaches shows.

In addition, the contracts allow Sirius XM to air the conference postseason games from football as well as basketball tournaments.

In the opening week of the college football season, Sirius XM boasts that it will have games involving all of the AP’s Top 25 teams. That’s interesting. We have the press release from Sirius XM.

SiriusXM Inks Agreement to Continue as Leader in College Sports Audio

Multi-year broadcasting agreement with IMG College and Learfield Sports gives SiriusXM listeners college football, basketball, baseball, hockey and more from 11 conferences
SiriusXM offers more live college play-by-play than any other broadcaster

NEW YORK – August 29, 2011 – Sirius XM Radio (NASDAQ: SIRI), Learfield Sports and IMG College announced today a multi-year broadcasting agreement that will make live play-by-play broadcasts from 11 conferences available to SiriusXM listeners across the country.

Throughout the 2011-12 season and beyond SiriusXM will broadcast live college football and men’s basketball from the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Big East, Pac 12 and Army, as well as men’s basketball from Xavier, Gonzaga and teams from several mid-major conferences.  In addition, SiriusXM will air live select game broadcasts during the athletic season that includes women’s basketball, baseball, hockey and other sports.

SiriusXM listeners will also get access to post-season football and basketball games involving ACC, Big East and Big Ten teams and post-season basketball from the Missouri Valley, Sun Belt and West Coast conferences.

In addition, weekly shows hosted by football and basketball coaches from many programs around the country will air throughout their respective seasons on SiriusXM College Sports Nation, channel 91, SiriusXM’s 24-hour college sports channel.  Subscribers will hear weekly shows hosted by the nation’s top college football coaches including Oklahoma’s Sooner Sports Talk with Bob Stoops, Ducks Tailgate Tuesday with Oregon coach Chip Kelly, Florida State’s Jimbo Fisher Call In Show, Wisconsin’s Badger Sports Talk with Bret Bielema, Nebraska’s Bo Pelini Show, Missouri’s Tiger Talk with Gary Pinkel and many others.  College basketball coaches’ shows, including those from North Carolina, Kansas, Ohio State, Purdue, Pittsburgh, Indiana and others, will begin airing this fall.

On college football’s opening week, Sep. 1-5, SiriusXM will air 59 college football games, featuring every team in the current Associated Press Top 25 poll.  For a schedule of upcoming games on SiriusXM and channel assignments, visit www.siriusxm.com/collegesports.

SiriusXM is the leading broadcaster of live college sporting events. SiriusXM now offers play by play from the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Big East, Pac 12, SEC, Conference USA, Sun Belt, Missouri Valley, and Western Athletic conferences, plus Notre Dame and others.

“IMG College is pleased to bring dozens of our collegiate partners’ games to SiriusXM, which has become a prime destination for college sports fans to get game broadcasts, news, information and coaches’ shows,” said Joe Potter, SVP Media Operations for IMG College. “With 172 million college sports fans coast-to-coast, SiriusXM College Sports Nation is a vital part of the fan experience.

“We’re thrilled to continue our long-standing partnership with SiriusXM,” said Learfield’s Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Andy Rawlings. “This is certainly great news for our school partners, who can extend their brands so that fans everywhere may follow their favorite teams as the game action unfolds.”

“We’re very pleased to work with both Learfield Sports and IMG College and their extensive portfolios of colleges and universities to provide fans with the most comprehensive college sports coverage available,” said Scott Greenstein, SiriusXM’s President and Chief Content Officer. “With our unparalleled schedule of live games all year round, coaches’ shows and the daily talk and analysis on our SiriusXM College Sports Nation channel, college sports fans will have exceptional access to their favorite team from anywhere in the country.”

Access to some play-by-play broadcasts may require a subscription to the Sirius Premier or XM Premier (formerly known as “The Best of XM” and “The Best of Sirius”) programming packages.

And that’s all.

A Wednesday Link Thing

Let’s do some linkage on this Wednesday. Trying to do this early instead of late.

Starting with Michael Hiestand of USA Today who tells us what ESPN has promoted Trent Dilfer among its NFL analysts and dropped Matt Millen although he remains on its college football coverage.

Cam Martin of SportsNewser is as confused as I am as to why and how Time magazine named the Bleacher Report as one of its top 50 websites of the year. This is not just sports, but every single website.

Marcus Vanderberg at Media Bistro speaks with former ESPN’er Josh Elliot about his current gig at Good Morning America.

Timothy Burke of SportsGrid has the video of ESPN’s Erin Andrews playing with puppies while guest-hosting on Regis & Kelly today.

David F. Carr of Information Week explains how Comcast SportsNet uses social media to its advantage.

The Hollywood Reporter notes that ESPN is placing two channels on Hong Kong’s Internet TV provider.

Andrea Morabito of Broadcasting & Cable says Showtime is picking up two more episodes of its MLB reality series, “The Franchise” as the San Francisco Giants’ season is hanging in the balance.

At the Sports PR Blog, Michael Speciale says the Pro Football Hall of Fame induction speeches by Shannon Sharpe, Marshall Faulk and Deion Sanders all had a common thread.

Rip Empson at TechCrunch notes that ESPN has a new company that’s managing its online video streams.

Domenic Poli of the Brattleboro (VT) Reformer says the late Atlanta Braves announcer Ernie Johnson, Sr. never forgot his Vermont roots.

In Press Box, DCRTV’s Dave Hughes writes about Brett Haber leaving WUSA-TV in Washington, DC.

Ileana Limón at the Orlando Sentinel writes that Conference USA and ESPN have settled the network’s lawsuit against the league after it said CUSA had breached its contract by signing a new rights deal with Fox Sports.

Brad Zimanek of the Montgomery (AL) Advertiser says televising the local LPGA event live on Golf Channel this year will add a new element to this year’s tournament.

The Lexington (KY) Herald-Leader says Kentucky will be heavily featured on ESPN’s Super Tuesday SEC basketball schedule.

Kirk Bohls at the Austin American-Statesman says splitting up Texas and Texas A&M would be bad for college football, fans and TV.

John Kiesewetter at the Cincinnati Enquirer notes that the Bengals preseason opener did well in the local ratings.

Steve Walentik of the Columbia (MO) Tribune wants to know why ESPN didn’t see something wrong with the Longhorn Network ahead of time?

Kellis Robinett of the Kansas City Star looks at Kansas State’s plans to start its own online TV network.

Austin Meek of the Topeka (KS) Capital-Journal says the launch of K-StateHD.TV was planned long before the latest Big 12 crisis.

The San Francisco Business Times reports that the America’s Cup has signed a deal with Versus.

Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail takes a shot at crosstown rival the Toronto Star for a misquote in an obituary for Winnipeg Jets center Rick Rypien who died Monday.

Speaking of the Star, Raju Mudhar speaks with the editor of ESPN The Magazine about the reaction to its story on the Toronto Blue Jays allegedly stealing signs.

The Canadian Sports Media Blog has a guest column from Mark Milner of North of the 400 who wonders what’s going on with TSN Radio.

The Brothers Yoder at Awful Announcing go over Yahoo! Sports’ extensive investigation into the University of Miami’s football program that could lead to its very hard downfall.

The Football Girl speaks with ESPN’s new coordinating producer for Sunday NFL Countdown.

Steve Lepore of Puck The Media wonders if the Stanley Cup Final rematch between Boston and Vancouver is going to be a lead-in for NBC’s NFL Wild Card Saturday playoff doubleheader.

And that’s going to do it for today.

Fox Sports Announces 2011-12 College Football Schedule

This has been a rather hellish day as I’ve been to two jobsites and tomorrow will probably be the same so blogging will be sparse. Gah!

Anyway, here’s a press release from Fox Sports announcing its college football schedule on Fox, FX, Fox Sports Net and Fox College Sports. I admit I haven’t proofread this so let’s read this together.

FOX SPORTS MEDIA GROUP ANNOUNCES 2011-2012 COLLEGE FOOTBALL SCHEDULE

More Than 200 Premier Match-Ups Featured Nationally and Regionally Across FX, FOX Sports Networks and FOX College Sports
Coverage Culminates with Pac-12 Championship, Big Ten Championship and Cotton Bowl Classic Airing in Prime-Time on FOX

New York, NY – FOX Sports Media Group (FSMG) announces its 2011-2012 college football schedule featuring more than 200 match-ups with Pac-12, Big 12 and Conference USA teams across FX, FOX Sports Networks (FSN) and FOX College Sports as well as regional match-ups from the ACC, SEC, Big East and Southland Conferences. FSMG’s college football schedule culminates with coverage of the inaugural Pac-12 Championship, Big Ten Championship and Cotton Bowl Classic airing in prime-time on FOX.  The schedule was unveiled today by FSMG Co-President and COO Eric Shanks.

FX, Fox Networks Group’s basic cable network available in more than 99 million homes, kicks-off its inaugural FOX College Football game of the week schedule with the USA Today Coaches’ Poll preseason No. 1 Oklahoma Sooners hosting the Tulsa Golden Hurricane in Norman, OK on Saturday, September 3 at 8:00 PM ET.  The Sooners are also featured on FX’s coverage September 24 against the Missouri Tigers and again on November 26 against the Iowa State Cyclones.  Other FOX College Football games that are scheduled include a September 10 match-up between the Nevada Wolf Pack and Oregon Ducks and a September 17 battle featuring the USC Trojans hosting the Syracuse Orange.

College football coverage on FSN, reaching more than 85 million homes through two dozen owned and affiliated regional sports networks, begins with the Mississippi State Bulldogs traveling to Memphis to take on the Tigers on Thursday, September 1 at 8:00 PM ET. Additional schedule highlights include Missouri hosting Miami (OH) September 3, Iowa State hosting in-state rival Iowa September 10 and Oklahoma State traveling to Tulsa September 17.  On November 26, the annual Missouri-Kansas Border Showdown from Arrowhead Stadium kicks-off at noon ET followed by Texas Tech meeting Baylor at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas at 3:30 PM ET and UCLA taking on rival USC at 10:00 PM ET.

Confirmed games on FOX College Sports include Oklahoma State hosting Louisiana Lafayette on September 3, Kansas hosting Northern Illinois on September 10 and Kansas State at home against Kent State on September 17.

The rest of the schedule will be announced as the season progresses, usually 12 or six days before the game.

Additionally, FOX Sports boasts exclusive coverage of college football’s inaugural Pac-12 Conference Championship Game on Friday, December 2 followed by the inaugural Big Ten Championship Game on Saturday, December 3 from Indianapolis. FOX Sports wraps up its outstanding college football season with coverage of the Cotton Bowl Classic at Cowboys Stadium on Friday, January 6.

Veteran announcer Gus Johnson (play-by-play), former University of Tennessee defensive back Charles Davis (analyst) and former University of Minnesota head coach Tim Brewster (sideline analyst) call the FOX College Football games of the week on FX.

FSN’s announcing teams for Big 12 games in 2011 feature Joel Meyers (play-by-play), former Colorado quarterback Joel Klatt (analyst) and Jim Knox (sideline reporter), as well as Bill Land (play-by-play) teaming with former Cincinnati Bengals offensive lineman Dave Lapham (analyst) and Emily Jones (sideline reporter).

Steve Physioc (play-by-play), former University of Pittsburgh wide receiver Yogi Roth (analyst) and Desmond Purnell (sideline analyst) call games on FOX College Sports.  (See FOX College Football broadcast teams press release at http://tinyurl.com/3wjto9p)

Following is a list of scheduled games on the 2011 FOX Sports Media Group college football schedule:

2011 FOX Sports Media Group College Football Schedule
(All times listed are Eastern)

Thursday, September 1
8:00 PM, Mississippi State at Memphis, C-USA — FSN

Saturday, September 3
12:00 PM, Miami (OH) at Missouri, Big 12 — FSN
3:30 PM, UCLA at Houston, C-USA — FSN
7:00 PM, Louisiana Lafayette at Oklahoma State, Big 12 — FCS
8:00 PM, FX Game of the Week: Tulsa at Oklahoma, Big 12 — FX
10:00 PM, Louisiana Tech at Southern Miss, C-USA — FSN

Sunday, September 4
7:30 PM, SMU at Texas A&M, Big 12 — FSN

Saturday, September 10
12:00 PM, Iowa at Iowa St., Big 12 — FSN
3:30 PM, Virginia Tech at East Carolina, C-USA — FSN
3:30 PM,  FX Game of the Week: Nevada at Oregon, Pac-12 — FX
7:00 PM, UTEP at SMU, C-USA — FSN
7:00 PM, Northern Illinois at Kansas, Big 12 — FCS

Saturday, September 17
1:30 PM, Colorado St. vs. Colorado (from Invesco Field), Pac-12 — FSN
7:00 PM, Kent State at Kansas State, Big 12 — FCS
8:00 PM, FX Game of the Week: Syracuse at USC, Pac-12 — FX
10:00 PM, Oklahoma St. at Tulsa, C-USA — FSN

Saturday, September 24
12:00 PM, SMU at Memphis, C-USA — FSN
3:30 PM, Teams TBA, Pac-12 — FSN
8:00 PM, FX Game of the Week: Missouri at Oklahoma, Big 12 — FX

Saturday, October 1
Big 12 – 2 games*
Pac-12 – 3 games*

3:30 PM, Teams TBA, TBA — FSN
4:00 PM, FX Game of the Week: Teams TBA, TBA — FX
7:00 PM, Teams TBA, TBA — FSN
8:00 PM,  FX Game of the Week: Teams TBA, TBA — FX
10:30 PM, Teams TBA, Pac-12 — FSN

Saturday, October 8
12:00 PM, Mississippi State at UAB, C-USA — FSN
3:30 PM, Teams TBA, Pac-12 — FSN
7:00 PM, Teams TBA, Big 12 — FSN
8:00 PM, FX Game of the Week: Teams TBA, Big 12 — FX
10:30 PM, Teams TBA, Pac-12 –FSN

Saturday, October 15
Big 12 – 2 games*
C-USA – 1 (UCF at SMU)

12:00 PM, Teams TBA, TBA — FSN
3:30 PM or 7:00 PM, Teams TBA, TBA — FSN
8:00 PM, FX Game of the Week: Teams TBA, TBA — FX

Saturday, October 22
Big 12 – 2 games*
C-USA – 1 (Tulsa at Rice)
Pac-12 – 2 games*

12:00 PM, Teams TBA, TBA — FSN
3:30 PM, Teams TBA, TBA — FSN
3:30 PM, FX Game of the Week: Teams TBA, TBA — FX
7:00 PM, Teams TBA, TBA — FSN
10:30 PM, Teams TBA, Pac-12 — FSN

Thursday, October 27
8:00 PM, Rice at Houston, C-USA — FSN

Saturday, October 29
Big 12 – 2 games*
C-USA – 1 (SMU at Tulsa)
Pac-12 – 2 games*

12:00 PM, Teams TBA, Big 12 — FSN
3:30 PM, Teams TBA, TBA — FSN
3:30 PM, FX Game of the Week: Teams TBA, TBA — FX
7:00 PM, Teams TBA, TBA — FSN
10:30 PM, Teams TBA, Pac-12 — FSN

Saturday, November 5
Big 12 – 2 games*
C-USA – 1 (UTEP at Rice)
Pac-12 – 1 game*

12:00 PM, Teams TBA, TBA — FSN
3:30 PM, Teams TBA, TBA — FSN
7:00 PM, Teams TBA, TBA — FSN
8:00 PM, FX Game of the Week: Teams TBA, TBA — FX

Saturday, November 12
Big 12 – 1 game*
C-USA – 2 (Marshall at Tulsa, Navy at SMU)
Pac-12 – 1 game*

12:00 PM, Teams TBA, TBA — FSN
3:30 PM, Teams TBA, TBA — FSN
7:00 PM, Teams TBA, TBA — FSN
8:00 PM, FX Game of the Week: Teams TBA, TBA — FX

Thursday, November 17
8:00 PM, Marshall at Memphis, C-USA — FSN

Saturday, November 19
Big 12 – 2 games*
C-USA – 2 (SMU at Houston, UCF at East Carolina)

12:00 PM, Teams TBA, TBA — FSN
3:30 PM, Teams TBA, TBA — FSN
7:00 PM, Teams TBA, TBA — FSN
8:00 PM, FX Game of the Week: Teams TBA, TBA — FX

Friday, November 25
12:00 PM, Houston at Tulsa, C-USA == FSN
3:30 PM, Colorado at Utah, Pac-12 — FSN

Saturday, November 26
12:00 PM, Missouri vs. Kansas (at Arrowhead Stadium), Big 12 — FSN
3:30 PM, Texas Tech vs. Baylor (at Cowboys Stadium), Big 12 — FSN
8:00 PM, FX Game of the Week: Iowa St. at Oklahoma, Big 12 — FX
10:00 PM, UCLA at USC, Pac-12 — FSN
TBA, Rice at SMU, C-USA — FSN

Friday, December 2
8:00 PM, Pac-12 Championship Game, Pac-12 — FOX

Saturday, December 3
12:00 PM, Conference USA Championship Game, C-USA — TBA
12:30 PM, Iowa St. at Kansas St., Big 12 — FSN
8:00 PM, Big Ten Championship Game, Big Ten — FOX

Friday, January 6
8:00 PM, Cotton Bowl Classic (at Cowboys Stadium), Big 12/SEC — FOX

*Teams, networks and times TBD

And we’re done for now.

Back to the Linkage Grind Edition

Ok, now that the Olympics bidding is over until the next round sometime later this decade, I can focus on other sports media stories and there are quite a few of them now.

The Hollywood Reporter notes that embattled cyclist Lance Armstrong has taken down his anti-60 Minutes website stating its report on his alleged PED use has been debunked.

Lindsay Rubino of Broadcasting & Cable notes that Game 4 of the NBA Finals scored a primetime win for ABC on Tuesday.

Mike Reynolds from Multichannel News talks about ESPN signing a new deal with the West Coast Conference for basketball and Olympic sports.

Todd Spangler of Multichannel says ESPN is ready to convert to a full HD format.

Anthony Crupi of Adweek says Captain Blowhard is trying to save the internet from a certain type of advertising. Nice of him to appoint himself as our savoir.

Louisa Ada Seltzer of Media Life says the NBA Finals are on pace to become the most watched in seven years.

Bill Simmons’ Grantland site finally had its official launch yesterday. Already people are assessing it including Nicholas Jackson of Atlantic Monthly.

Ty Duffy of The Big Lead has his first impressions.

Tim Carmody of the Nieman Journalism Lab at Harvard University wonders if Simmons’ mix of sports and pop culture will work.

Tommy Craggs at Deadspin tells us why Grantland Rice for whom Simmons’ site is named, was really overrated.

Deadspin runs an excerpt from former New York Times sportswriter Robert Lipsyte’s new book in which he recalls an encounter with an overtalkative Bob Costas.

At the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center, Eric Deggans of the St. Petersburg Times writes that this week’s successful Olympic bid was key for the new NBC/Comcast.

The Nielsen Wire blog has a look at the top NHL players in name recognition.

Cam Martin at SportsNewser has TNT’s Charles Barkley ripping Miami Heat fans.

Cam says the Denver Post’s Woody Paige has apologized to John Ourand of the Sports Business Journal for lifting quotes from an ESPN story he wrote.

Corey Nachman of the Business Insider Sports Page has his 100 Best Venues in Sports.

Dan Fogarty at SportsGrid has the video of a Brazilian writer typing away on a small laptop while showing a bit more of himself than he realized.

And Dan says Steven A. “A is for Allude” Smith hinted on ESPN Radio that something is up with LeBron James, but won’t say exactly what.

Chris Chase of Yahoo’s Shutdown Corner gives some examples from the ESPN book that he feels evidence how NBC’s Sunday Night Football is superior to Monday Night Football.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell has a strange endorsement story involving the Yankees’ Alex Rodriguez.

ESPN PR pro Bill Hofheimer helps to unveil the new Monday Night Football logo that will be seen when the NFL starts playing again.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times writes that NBC now has to follow through on promises to show the Olympics live.

Brian Stelter of the Times reports that UFC is in talks with Comcast to buy its G4 gaming channel.

Pete Dougherty at the Albany Times Union notes that ESPN has added 7 more Big Ten games to its ESPN/ESPN2/ABC college football schedule.

Ken Schott from the Schenectady Gazette says Time Warner Cable airs some local high school lacrosse finals this weekend.

Dave Hughes of DCRTV.com writes in Press Box that Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic will air 10 WNBA games this season.

In the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog, Dan Steinberg notes that there’s something brewing between writer John Feinstein and ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt.

Iliana Limon at the Orlando Sentinel writes that Central Florida along with Conference USA have announced their TV schedules.

Jon Solomon of the Birmingham (AL) News reports that the SEC and ESPN are ready to re-evaluate their 15 year deal which now looks antiquated when it was signed in 2009.

Mel Bracht of the Daily Oklahoman says the NBA is gaining increased interest in the area thanks to the Thunder.

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer says you can design a special bowtie for Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal that would benefit Dhani Jones’ Bow Tie Cause Initiative.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Sentinel notes that outgoing ESPN NBA analyst Mark Jackson cites Rick Pitino was his best coach.

Yesterday was Tom Hoffarth’s birthday. Happy Belated Birthday, Tom.

Joe Flint at the Los Angeles Times says keeping the Olympics was top priority for NBC and Comcast.

Jon Wilner at the San Jose Mercury Times has some thoughts on ESPN’s new contract with the West Coast Conference.

Lisa K. Anderson in the Sandy (OR) Post writes about a local woman who’s hosting a reality show for Comcast SportsNet Northwest.

Dan Robson of the Toronto Star says CBC has signed a five year deal with the International Skating Union for figure skating, speedskating and other events.

The Canadian Sports Media Blog notes that TSN will air BBC’s coverage of the Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix this weekend.

Joe Caporoso of Gunaxin asks Erin Andrews or Michelle Beadle?

Cosby Sweaters looks at how Olympic viewing will change with Comcast in charge of NBC.

We have a new sports media blog, The Sports Tube, headed by Chris Hadley. He looks at the Olympic bidding.

Sports Media Watch notes the ratings for Games 2 & 3 of the NHL Stanley Cup Final are down from last year.

Joe Favorito wonders if any New York sports teams or events will take advantage of the Congressman Anthony Weiner mess.

That’s going to do it for now.

Bringing Out The Tuesday Linkage

Again, I’ve been all over the place and can’t really blog like I want to, but I do what I can. Some links while I’m free and not committed to anything.

The Pac 12 media deals with ESPN and Fox will be made official later this week, but we do know some details. First, it’s a $3 billion deal over a span of 12 years meaning the Conference will get $250 million a year to distribute to its member schools. Second, both ESPN and Fox will air primetime games on over the air TV. Third, it increases the amount of games shown on television.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times says one part of the new TV world for the conference will be a new Pac 12 Network that will be fully owned and operated by the league.

Jon Wilner of the San Jose Mercury News writes that NBC/Comcast was shut out of obtaining any rights at least on the cable and network deals.

Jon also has some details from the new deal.

Scott D. Pierce of the Salt Lake Tribune says the new TV contract will give the University of Utah much more money than it would have made in the Mountain West Conference.

George Schroeder of the Eugene (OR) Register-Guard writes that Pac 12 schools will start to see a financial windfall thanks to increased revenue from the new TV contract.

Jon Weisman of Variety says the new contract is now the most lucrative in college sports.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell says the Pac 12 contract proves that sports is the engine that drives TV ratings.

To other stories now.

Brian Lowry of Fox Sports says small market teams are doing their best to play with the big boys.

Eriq Gardner from the Hollywood Reporter says Miami Heat star Chris Bosh is suing the mother of his child and the producer of the VH1 reality show, “Basketball Wives” for infringing on his “life rights” and using his “mark” illegally.

Tim Baysinger at Broadcasting & Cable discusses the Sports Emmy Awards which were handed out on Monday.

Tim also looks at Fox Soccer Channel rebranding its MLS coverage.

The Nielsen Wire blog notes that the number of TV’s have dropped since its last survey.

R. Thomas Umstead from Multichannel News says the Manny Pacquaio-Shane Mosley fight will be made available online for the same pay per view TV price.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel writes TNT saw a record audience for the first round of the NBA Playoffs.

Current’s Keith Olbermann writing in his MLB.com blog takes ESPN.com’s Fantasy Baseball to task for not updating its stats quick enough and throws some shots at the Mothership in the process. Thanks to The Big Lead for the link.

The Big Lead notes that noted FoxSports.com basketball writer Drew Goodman could be headed to CBSSports.com.

Dan Fogarty at SportsGrid says NBA fans get angry when Ernie Johnson, Jr. takes a day off from Inside the NBA.

At ESPN’s Front Row, Sheldon Spencer profiles the network’s Senior Coordinating Producer of the NFL Draft who got his baptism-by-fire this past weekend.

At the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center, Dave Kindred looks at new media and how the rules of covering established events apply to it.

To Pete Dougherty at the Albany Times Union who notes a local reporter gets a minor league baseball announcing gig.

In the New Jersey Newsroom, Evan Weiner notes that sports leagues, sports organizations team owners and athletes don’t have their priorities straight.

Dan Steinberg at the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog notes that a trio of CNN reporters were watching or attending Game 2 of the Tampa Bay Lightning-Capitals series when they were notified to get to work to report on the Osama bin Laden story.

Cindy Boren from the Post’s Early Lead blog says Pittsburgh Steelers running back Rashard Mendenhall tweeted about Osama bin Laden’s death and 9/11.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner says the Capitals are back in action tonight with an early start on Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic.

Iliana Limon of the Orlando Sentinel has Conference USA rejecting ESPN’s argument that it ventured into a media rights agreement.

John Kiesewetter from the Cincinnati Enquirer notes that NBC’s Cris Collinsworth has now won an even dozen Sports Emmy Awards.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says viewership for the NFL Draft was down from last year.

Diane Pucin from the Los Angeles Times talks with ESPN’s Dan Shulman about him addressing the Osama bin Laden story on Sunday Night Baseball.

Sports Media Watch says NASCAR on Fox’s overnight ratings were flat compared to last year.

SMW notes that the opening game of Celtics-Heat scored for ABC on Sunday.

SMW says the series clinching win for the Memphis Grizzlies over the San Antonio Spurs did not resonate with viewers as much as last year’s comparable game.

And SMW writes that the Mavericks-Lakers opener on Monday did very well for TNT.

Ed De Rosa of the Thoroughbred Times says NBC is tapping Sunday Night Football producer Fred Gaudelli for this year’s Kentucky Derby broadcast.

Puck The Media’s Steve Lepore is happy to see Mike Emrick win the Sports Emmy for Outstanding Play-by-Play.

The Canadian Sports Media Blog feels TSN Radio should avoided politics on Election Day.

Cork Gaines at the Business Insider’s Sports Page wonders if sports leagues can survive Detroit’s declining population.

And that will conclude the links for today.

Sounding Off On The Thursday Linkage

Let’s do the linkage on this Thursday morning. Some good stuff is already out.

The Financial Times has a look at how European TV money is now either catching up or surpassing US TV dollars for the bidding for certain global sports events.

Todd Spangler from Multichannel News reports that ESPN has released a new app for the iPhone and iPod Touch which allows Time Warner and Verizon FiOS TV subscribers to watch live TV on their devices.

Mike Reynolds at Multichannel notes that SNY is now taking shots at Dish Network after being dropped by the satellite provider.

Mike says YES Network and DirecTV continue their negotiations as a deadline that was extended to today is staring them in the face.

Lindsay Rubino from Broadcasting & Cable says ESPN’s E:60 is being nominated for an award that honors diversity in communications.

Louisa Ada Seltzer of Media Life writes that Tiger Woods appears to be an afterthought for ESPN’s and CBS’ coverage of The Masters^®.

At the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center, the St. Petersburg Times’ Eric Deggans feels Mark Cuban’s idea to ban all internet writers to improve sports coverage is quite silly.

Ronald Grover, Brian Womack and Andy Fixmer of Bloomberg report that YouTube is in talks with several Hollywood companies to provide original content including sports.

Marcus Vanderberg of SportsNewser says DirecTV is all over The Masters^® this year.

Marcus says since ESPN’s Captain Blowhard promised not to tweet until the Red Sox won, an online betting site is taking wagers on whether he will indeed keep quiet.

Sports Video Group has provided a site that outlines how to produce live golf in the third dimension.

At the Biz of Baseball, Maury Brown says MLB isn’t serving its Extra Innings and MLB.TV subscribers well through its archaic blackout policies.

Dan Frommer of the Business Insider has a look at the new WatchESPN iPhone app.

Pete Dougherty from the Albany Times Union writes that a local sports TV anchor will be part of the online and DirecTV coverage of The Masters^®.

Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette tells us that NFL Films visited the Steelers last week to film several interviews.

CBS Radio Baltimore’s Jen Royle talks with the Baltimore Sun’s Simon Habtemariam.

Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog says former Nationals analyst Rob Dibble has come out stating that it was a letter from the father of pitcher Stephen Strasburg that led to him being fired from MASN last year.

Dan talks to a local man who came close to winning ESPN.com’s NCAA Tournament Bracket Challenge.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner says CBS and Augusta National Country Club have a unique partnership for The Masters^®.

Iliana Limon in the Orlando Sentinel talks with Conference USA Commissioner Britton Banowsky about the future of the league.

Mel Bracht of the Daily Oklahoman discusses online coverage of The Masters^®.

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer has an update on what happened with Fox Sports Ohio’s feed of the Astros-Reds game from earlier in the week.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes that the Bucks will be pushed to another radio station due to conflicts with the Brewers.

Neal Justin of the Minneapolis Star Tribune says four cable and satellite providers are not carrying the full schedule of Twins games from Fox Sports North.

Tim Engstrom in the Albert Lea (MN) Tribune writes that Charter Communications is at an impasse with Fox Sports North over 45 Twins games that Fox Sports North picked up.

Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times says while the Lakers will not bring back TV play-by-play man Joel Myers, they will bring back analyst Stu Lantz.

That’s where I’ll end it for now.

FX To Carry College Football This Fall

This just in from the Fox Networks, FX in particular, the cable home to Fox will carry a 13 game college football schedule starting this fall. The games will consist of Big 12, Conference USA and Pac 12 games. All games will be produced by Fox Sports and announcers will be assigned at a later date. It marks the first time FX has carried any sports since 2006. From 1996-2006, FX carried MLB, NASCAR races, boxing matches and NFL Europe.

Now after establishing FX as an entertainment destination, Fox wants to broaden its scope by bringing sports back and I wholeheartedly applaud this move. The schedule will be announced later. In the meantime, we have the official announcement.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL COMES TO FX IN 2011

FOX Sports Provides FX Full-Season, Game-of-the-Week Slate

New York & Los Angeles – FX, Fox Network Group’s popular general entertainment basic cable network, is teaming with FOX Sports Media Group (FSMG) in 2011 to carry a major college football game-of-the-week, it was announced today by FX President John Landgraf, along with Randy Freer and Eric Shanks, Co-President and COOs of FOX Sports Media Group. FX is one of the most-watched and widely distributed cable networks in the country, now available in more than 99 million U.S. households.

This year, FOX Sports on FX features a minimum 13-game schedule featuring premier conference and non-conference match-ups from the Big 12, Pac-12 and Conference USA, FSMG’s newest collegiate partner, beginning Saturday, Sept. 3, with one game televised weekly. Game times vary to maintain maximum scheduling flexibility. The first three games on the FOX Sports on FX schedule will be announced in June, while remaining games will be selected six to 12 days in advance.

The games on FX are being produced by FOX Sports, and plans for the FX broadcast team and any potential shoulder programs are to be announced.

“Sports programming is a key component that has been missing on FX for a while and we look forward to its return on our schedule,” said Landgraf. “This NCAA football package will feature some of the nation’s marquee schools and matchups, and it will be a great addition to our lineup. It will also provide an excellent promotional platform for our returning hit original series and primetime movies this fall.”

“FX, which already has a history for quality sports programming, is one of cable’s premier networks in overall reach and especially with young men,” said Freer. “FOX Sports looks forward to establishing a home for college football there, and maximizing exposure and value for our college football partners.”

The Big 12, Conference USA and Pac-12 combined to send 17 teams to bowl games last season and feature many of college football’s most renowned programs from around the country.

Additional Big 12, C-USA and Pac-12 games are scheduled for telecast throughout the country on FOX’ owned-and-operated and affiliated sports channels.  In 2011, FOX also features regional SEC and ACC football packages. Either nationally or regionally, FSMG outlets combine to televise close to 200 college football games this coming season. Highlighting the schedule is the C-USA Championship Game as well as the inaugural Big 10 and Pac-12 Championship games.

FX is off to the best start in its history this year, averaging 1.6 million total viewers and 883,000 adults 18-49 marking respective gains of +22% and +19% compared to calendar-year 2010. FX ranks seventh in total viewers and adults 18-49 and fifth in both men 18-34 and men 18-49 out of 89 ad-supported cable networks.

FX, home to the Golden Globe Award-winning drama series Sons of Anarchy, critically acclaimed dramas Rescue Me and Justified, and the hit comedy It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia is no stranger to big time sports. At various times from 1996 to 2006 FX carried MLB, NASCAR, college football, boxing and NFL Europe League action.

More later.