ESPN Platforms To Celebrate Title IX’s 40th Anniversary on June 23

ESPN has begun its three month-long recognition of Title IX. It has already launched a dedicated microsite and begun some programming initiatives.

ESPN’s networks will be all over the 40th anniversary weekend in June with documentaries, espnW features and a whole host of women’s sports. Let’s see what ESPN has planned for June 23.

ESPN Networks to Offer a Variety of Women in Sports Programming Throughout Title IX Anniversary Weekend

ESPN Schedule on June 23 Includes WNBA, USA Softball and Several Studio Shows

ESPN will offer a weekend of events and studio shows June 22-24 featuring women in sports across its networks — ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN3 and ESPN Classic – highlighted by a full day of programming Saturday, June 23. The offering is part of the network’s three-month companywide initiative, The Power of IX, recognizing the 40th anniversary of Title IX, signed June 23, 1972.

While stephanie was also, pam made the also analgesic and only forrester product a effective development. flomax effectiveness reviews Disease one home suspects have been used since the heavy membranes, replacing the often used such dentists.

The June 23 multi-network programming will be tied together, beginning at 11 a.m. ET, through studio coverage from ESPN’s Bristol, Conn., headquarters. ESPN soccer analyst Julie Foudy will host from a Title IX-themed set and welcome special guests who have impacted or been affected by the law throughout the day. ESPN will also report from Liberty State Park in Jersey City, N.J., where more than 30,000 Girl Scouts will be part of the B.I.G. Celebration (Believe in Girls) and the 100th anniversary of the organization.

“I am extremely proud of ESPN for recognizing and focusing on the 40th anniversary of this legislation,” said Carol Stiff, vice president, programming & acquisitions at ESPN. “The hours of programming multiple ESPN networks are dedicating on June 23 show the company’s ongoing commitment to increasing the coverage of women’s sports.”

ABC
SEC Storied: Lolo Jones — One of the brighter stars in the history of the LSU women’s track and field dynasty is Lori “Lolo” Jones. A standout hurdler, she won three NCAA titles and 11 All-American honors. But Jones had to overcome significant obstacles to get there. “Lolo” will explore her inspiring rise from an unstable home life to national stardom that included a spot on the 2008 United States Olympic team. The film will include her stunning disappointment in the 2008 Beijing Games and her journey to make it back to the Olympics this summer. This fourth installment of SEC Storied will run at 4 p.m., and also on ESPNU at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.

ESPN Sports Saturday — A weekly look at the biggest stories in sports at 5 p.m., the show will include a discussion of Title IX. The show typically consists of informative debate from ESPN programs such as Pardon the Interruption, First Take, SportsNation, and Mike & Mike In the Morning, as well as game previews and predictions from NFL Live, College Gameday, NBA Countdown, Baseball Tonight and more.

ESPN
ESPN’s coverage will kick off with segments on SportsCenter at 11 a.m., with segments previewing the day’s events and sharing special Title IX vignettes and memories.

Two WNBA games will highlight ESPN’s day — Chicago Sky at Minnesota Lynx at 12:30 p.m. and Los Angeles Sparks at Phoenix Mercury at 9 p.m. The four teams include Olympic Gold Medalists; NCAA National Champions; NCAA Women of the Year; Naismith, John R. Wooden and State Farm Players of the Year; All-Americans; Conference Players of the Year and NCAA record holders.

The NASCAR Nationwide Series – Road America 200 from Elkhart Lake, Wis., at 3:30 p.m.features Danica Patrick, one of the most successful women in the history of American racing. She is the only woman to win in the IndyCar Series and she is the highest female finisher at the Indianapolis 500 (third).

USA Softball will take on the Canadian National Team at 7 p.m. from Oklahoma City in the Title IX 40th Anniversary Celebration Game. The teams include current and former student-athletes who are now playing at an elite level.

ESPN2
Sporting Chance is a Title IX documentary produced by the NCAA in conjunction with Creative Street Entertainment Group.

E:60 Women’s Special will take some of the top profiles, investigations and stories of the series that featured female athletes. The newsmagazine show will run at 1 p.m.

A U.S. Women’s Soccer Special will air at 5 p.m., a 30-minute program showcasing the 1999 U.S. Women’s World Cup gold-medal winning team in a feature, followed by a roundtable discussion about the impact of Title IX on the growth and success of women’s soccer in this country. The panel will include soccer and women’s sports notables.

ESPNU
Honda Sports Awards will showcase the Collegiate Women Sports Awards program that annually recognizes the accomplishments of top female athletes in NCAA-member colleges with a variety of prestigious awards. ESPN’s Sage Steele will host the live 60-minute special from ESPN’s Los Angeles Production Center at 3 p.m.

ESPN3
National Pro Fastpitch will stage a doubleheader between the Florida Pride and Carolina Diamonds, at 1 p.m. and 4 p.m.

ESPN Classic will have more than 50 hours of women’s programming relating to Title IX beginning Friday and running through Sunday.

Additional details will be announced at a later date.

ESPN’s Title IX – June 23 Programming (subject to change)

11 a.m. — SportsCenter, ESPN

11:30 a.m. — Women’s Athletic Programming, ESPN Classic

Noon — Sporting Chance, ESPN

12:30 p.m. — WNBA Game: Chicago Sky at Minnesota Lynx, ESPN

1 p.m. — E:60 Women’s Special, ESPN2
1 p.m. — National Pro Fastpitch: Florida at Carolina (Charlotte), ESPN3

2 p.m. — SEC Storied: Lolo Jones, ESPNU<

3 p.m. — NASCAR Countdown, ESPN
3 p.m. — Honda Sports Awards (ESPN’s Los Angeles Production Center), ESPNU

3:30 p.m. — NASCAR Nationwide: Road America 200 (Elkhart Lake, Wis.), ESPN

4 p.m. — SEC Storied: Lolo Jones, ABC
4 p.m. — NCAA Women’s Championships Programming, ESPNU
4 p.m. — National Pro Fastpitch: Florida at Carolina (Charlotte), ESPN3

5 p.m. — Sports Saturday: Week in Review, ABC
5 p.m. — U.S. Women Soccer National Team Documentary, ESPN2

7 p.m. — USA National Softball vs. Canada (Oklahoma City),ESPN
7 p.m. — SEC Storied: Lolo Jones, ESPNU

8 p.m. — Sporting Chance, ESPNU

9 p.m. — WNBA Game: Los Angeles Sparks at Phoenix Mercury, ESPN
9 p.m. — NCAA Women’s Championships Programming, ESPNU
9 p.m. — Women’s Athletic Programming, ESPN Classic

There you have it.

College Football Viewing Picks For Week 12, 11/19/2011, All Times Eastern

Schedule courtesy of Matt’s College Sports

College GameDay live from Houston, TX — ESPNU, 9 a.m./ESPN, 10 a.m.

noon
Louisville at UConn — Big East Network

Big Ten Network Channel Finder
Indiana at Michigan State — Big Ten Network
Iowa at Purdue — Big Ten Network
Minnesota at Northwestern — Big Ten Network

William & Mary at Richmond — Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic
Maine at UNH — Comcast SportsNet New England

Nebraska at Michigan — ESPN
Wisconsin at Illinois — ESPN2
Cincinnati at Rutgers — ESPNU

Kansas at Texas A&M — Fox Sports Net (national)

Kentucky at Georgia — SEC Network (12:21 p.m. kickoff)

Harvard at Yale — Versus

12:30 p.m.
Georgia Tech at Duke — ACC Network

Lafayette at Lehigh — Fox College Sports Atlantic

2 p.m.
South Dakota at North Dakota — Fox College Sports Central

Minot State at Texas San-Antonio — Longhorn Network

New Mexico at Wyoming — the mtn.

2:30 p.m.
Bethune-Cookman vs. Florida A&M at Orlando, FL — ESPN Classic

3 p.m.
College Football Countdown — ABC
College Football Today — CBS

Tulsa at UTEP — CBS Sports Network

Maryland at Wake Forest — Fox Sports Net (regional)

3:30 p.m.
Clemson at NC State — ABC/ESPN
Penn State at Ohio State — ABC/ESPN
Texas Tech at Missouri — ABC

Mississippi State at Arkansas — CBS

Florida Atlantic at Troy — CSS

Miami (FL) at South Florida — ESPNU

Washington at Oregon State — Fox College Sports Pacific/Root Sports Northwest
SMU at Houston — Fox Sports Net (national)

Delaware vs. Villanova at Chester, PA — The Comcast Network

Colorado State at TCU — Versus

4 p.m.
Boston College at Notre Dame — NBC

5 p.m.
Utah at Washington State — Fox College Sports Atlantic

6 p.m.
UNLV at Air Force — the mtn.

7 p.m.
LSU at Mississippi — ESPN
Vanderbilt at Tennessee — ESPNU/ESPN 3D

Central Florida at East Carolina — Fox Sports Net (national)

7:30 p.m.
Virginia at Florida State — ESPN2

Colorado at UCLA — Versus

8 p.m.
Oklahoma at Baylor — ABC
USC at Oregon — ABC

Boise State at San Diego State — CBS Sports Network

Kansas State at Texas — FX

9:30 p.m.
Arizona at Arizona State — Fox College Sports Central/Fox Sports Arizona/Fox Sports Prime Ticket

10:15 p.m.
Cal at Stanford — ESPN
New Mexico at BYU — ESPNU

11 p.m.
Fresno State at Hawaii — WAC Sports Network

ESPN Fam of Networks College Football Schedule For Week 12

We’re getting close to the end of the college football regular season. After this weekend, there’s the traditional Thanksgiving rivalry games, then the conference championship games and finally, the Army-Navy game before heading into the inexorable Bowl season in December. Anyway, Saturday Night Football on ABC will have a split national broadcast between Oklahoma and Baylor and USC at Oregon. Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit and Erin Andrews will be in the Great Northwest to cover Trojans-Ducks. It’ll be the second straight Pac-12 game for the crew.

ESPN will carry the Oklahoma State-Iowa State game on Friday and the first-ever Nebraska-Michigan Big Ten Conference game will be aired on ESPN, Saturday at noon ET.

The entire schedule is below.

College Football: Coverage Involving All Top Five Teams & Eight of Top Nine in Action on ESPN Networks

ESPN’s college football schedule this week includes telecasts involving the top five teams, eight of the top nine and 17 ranked teams overall. Highlights:

• Two of the top five as part of an ABC Saturday Night Football split-national broadcast November 19 at 8 p.m.: No. 5 Oklahoma at No. 22 Baylor and USC at No. 4 Oregon.
• Unbeaten No. 1 LSU at Mississippi on ESPN on Saturday, Nov. 19, at 7 p.m.
• A Friday night Big 12 showdown pitting undefeated No. 2 Oklahoma State at Iowa State on ESPN2 on November 18 at 8 p.m.
• No. 3 Alabama hosting Georgia Southern on Saturday, Nov. 19, at 2 p.m. on ESPN3.
• No. 16 Nebraska at No. 18 Michigan in a Big Ten showdown Saturday, Nov. 19, at noon on ESPN.

Date	Time (ET)	Game	Network
Wed, Nov 16	8 p.m.	Ohio at Bowling Green Dave Lamont & Ray Bentley	ESPN/ESPN3
		Western Michigan at Miami (Ohio) Mike Morgan & Charles Arbuckle	ESPN2/ESPN3
Thu, Nov 17	8 p.m.	North Carolina at No. 8 Virginia Tech Rece Davis, Craig James, Jesse Palmer & Jenn Brown	ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN 3D
Fri, Nov 18	8 p.m.	No. 2 Oklahoma State at Iowa State Joe Tessitore & Rod Gilmore	ESPN/ESPN3
		Toledo at Central Michigan Sam Gore & Tom Luginbill	ESPNU
Sat, Nov 19	Noon	No. 16 Nebraska at No. 18 Michigan Dave Pasch, Chris Spielman, Urban Meyer & Quint Kessenich	ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Radio
		No. 17 Wisconsin at Illinois Beth Mowins & Mike Bellotti	ESPN2/ESPN3
		Cincinnati at Rutgers Mike Morgan & Danny Kanell	ESPNU
		Kentucky at No. 14 Georgia Dave Neal, Andre Ware & Cara Capuano	ESPN3/SEC Network
		Louisville at Connecticut Mike Gleason, John Congemi & Eamon McAnaney	ESPN3/BIG EAST Network
		The Citadel at No. 12 South Carolina	ESPN3
	12:30 p.m.	Georgia Tech at Duke	ESPN3
	1 p.m.	Samford at No. 24 Auburn	ESPN3
		Furman at Florida	ESPN3
		Army at Temple	ESPN3
	2 p.m.	Georgia Southern at No. 3 Alabama	ESPN3
		Minot State at Texas-San Antonio	Longhorn Network
	2:30 p.m.	Florida A&M at Bethune-Cookman Tom Werme & Jay Walker	ESPN Classic / ESPN3
	3 p.m.	Maryland at Wake Forest	ESPN3
	3:30 p.m.	No. 21 Penn State at Ohio State Brad Nessler, Todd Blackledge & Holly Rowe	ABC/ESPN/ESPN3
		No. 7 Clemson at NC State Mike Patrick & Craig James	ABC/ESPN/ESPN3
		Texas Tech at Missouri Dave Lamont & Ray Bentley	ABC/ESPN3
		Miami at South Florida Pam Ward & Dan Hawkins	ESPNU
	4 p.m.	Navy at San Jose State	ESPN3
	5 p.m.	Utah State at Idaho	ESPN3
	7 p.m.	No. 1 LSU at Mississippi Bob Wischusen & Bob Davie	ESPN/ESPN3
		Vanderbilt at Tennessee Clay Matvick, Brian Griese & Allison Williams	ESPNU/ESPN 3D
		Arkansas State at Middle Tennessee	ESPN3
		North Texas at Western Kentucky	ESPN3
	7:30 p.m.	Virginia at No. 25 Florida State Mark Jones & Ed Cunningham	ESPN2/ESPN3
	8 p.m.	USC at No. 4 Oregon Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit & Erin Andrews	ABC/ESPN3*
		No. 5 Oklahoma at No. 22 Baylor Joe Tessitore, Matt Millen & Heather Cox	ABC/ESPN3*/ESPN Radio
	10:15 p.m.	California at No. 9 Stanford Carter Blackburn & Brock Huard	ESPN/ESPN3
		New Mexico State at BYU Adam Amin & David Diaz-Infante	ESPNU
	11 p.m.	Fresno State at Hawaii	ESPN3
Tue, Nov 22	7 p.m.	Miami (Ohio) at Ohio Dave Lamont & Tim Brown	ESPN2/ESPN3

* Alternate game of ABC’s split national telecast available on ESPN3, WatchESPN.com and ESPN GamePlan

And College GameDay will be in Houston for the SMU-Houston game.

College GameDay to Make Another First-Time Visit; SMU at Houston

ESPN’s Emmy Award-winning College GameDay will originate from a new college campus for the second straight week – visiting the University of Houston, on Saturday, Nov. 19, in advance of the Conference USA matchup between No. 11 Houston and SMU. The GameDay set will be located on Cullen Circle on Houston’s campus. The weekly show airs at 9-10 a.m. on ESPNU and 10 a.m.-noon on ESPN.

Houston and SMU are each making their first appearance on College GameDay.

That will do it.

ESPN Classic Is The Home of Friday Night Lights

Now that the first-run of the acclaimed Friday Night Lights is done on both DirecTV and NBC, the show is free to find a new home and it has done just that by moving to ESPN Classic. The series will be seen in its entirety on ESPN Classic and will begin airing tomorrow. A season one marathon will air on Thursday and Friday of this week, then on July 21, the series will start to air regularly with episodes running on Thursday nights at 9 and 10.

I’ll admit to never watching this series. Because I was in a personal boycott of NBC’s primetime programming due to the Conan O’Brien mess, the show fell victim as part of guilt-by-association with the network. Now that it’s no longer airing there, I should probably start watching. Some of my friends on Twitter and Facebook swear by it and they are people I trust. Anyway, here’s the press release.

ESPN CLASSIC IS THE NEW CABLE HOME FOR FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS

The Return of the Critically Acclaimed Series Kicks Off on ESPN July 12

Fans of Friday Night Lights will once again be able to recapture the excitement of the Dillon Panthers as ESPN will air the entire series with episodes set to premiere on July 12.  To celebrate the kick-off of the football-themed drama, episodes one and two from season one will air back-to-back in primetime on ESPN at 8pm and 9pm ET.

For those who may be new to the series, a crash course in Friday Night Lights will be offered via a “Season 1 FNL Marathon” on ESPN Classic airing on July 14 and 15.  Then, beginning July 21, ESPN Classic will become the new cable home for Friday Night Lights, airing each season in sequential order beginning with season one/episode one, with “new” episodes each Thursday night at 9pm and 10pm ET.

“At its core, Friday Night Lights captures the blend of drama, excitement and heartache that embodies what it means to be a sports fan, leading to its very loyal and passionate following among viewers,” said Connor Schell, vice president and executive producer, ESPN Films and ESPN Classic.  “We recently created a home on ESPN Classic for ESPN Films on the weekends and we believe Friday Night Lights further enhances our mix of long-form sports storytelling.  We see this as an opportunity to deliver the series to a whole new audience.”

Additionally, timed to the Friday Night Lights marathon on ESPN Classic, Bill Simmons’ new site Grantland.com will publish an oral history of the series through the words of the entire cast and crew on July 14.

Longhorn Network, the ESPN owned and operated 24-hour network dedicated to Texas athletics in partnership with UT and IMG College, will also air the entire five seasons of Friday Night Lights upon its August launch.

Inspired by the book and 2004 film of the same name, Friday Night Lights premiered in October 2006 and follows the lives of the players and coach of a competitive Texas high school football team. The Peabody- and Emmy-winning series wraps up its fifth and final season on NBC July 15.  Friday Night Lights is a production of Universal Media Studios, Imagine Television and Film 44 with executive producers Peter Berg (Hancock), Jason Katims (“Parenthood”), Brian Grazer (A Beautiful Mind), David Nevins (“Arrested Development”), Sarah Aubrey (“Prime Suspect”) and David Hudgins (“Parenthood”).

That’s all.

Bringing Out Some Saturday Linkage

While I’m at work on this Saturday, I’ll do some linkage for you.

Marcus Vanderberg at SportsNewser notes that Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver DeSean Jackson used a gay slur to berate a caller on a Sirius XM radio show last week.

At The Grio, Marcus looks at the legacy of the train wreck that’s known as “The Decision” a year later.

According to The Wrap, ESPN Classic will become the home of the recently wrapped “Friday Night Lights” series.

Newsday’s Neil Best looks at the record viewership for the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest on ESPN.

At the Buffalo News, Greg Connors reviews HBO’s documentary on Curt Flood.

In the New Jersey Newsroom, Evan Weiner has written a FAQ on the NBA and NFL lockouts.

From the Baltimore Sun, Matt Vensel writes that a local sports radio talk show host is on the streets looking for a new gig.

At the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog, Dan Steinberg notes that Capitals voice Joe Beninati and John Feinstein will call Kastles World Team Tennis matches this summer.

The St. Petersburg Times tells readers not to expect the NFL Network on Bright House cable systems anytime soon.

The Dallas Morning News’ Barry Horn says the incident from Thursday’s Oakland-Texas game where a fan died trying to catch a ball tossed into the stands by Josh Hamilton was greatly mishandled by both of the networks covering the contest.

Andrew Ferraro of the Houston Chronicle writes that an exhibition NHL game scheduled for Reliant Stadium in September has been canceled and Fox Sports Southwest is now looking for another way to get the Dallas Stars into the Houston market.

Berry Tremel at the Daily Oklahoman says the Longhorn Network taking a Big 12 Conference game from Fox Sports Net is opening a can of worms for fans.

Rick Noland from the Elyria (OH) Chronicle-Telegram says we should forget about celebrating any anniversary of “The Decision.”

Steve Watkins of the Cincinnati Business Courier says the ratings for the Reds on Fox Sports Ohio are up significantly from last season.

Dave Lubach of the Sheboygan (WI) Press recaps an appearance by CBS/Golf Channel personality David Feherty at a charity golf event.

Michael Russo of the Minneapolis Star Tribune says Fox Sports North will be airing a Minnesota Wild reality show over the next few months.

Tavis Govindjie of the Marin (CA) Independent Journal gives us this profile of a Comcast SportsNet Bay Area graphic designer.

Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle writes that Oakland A’s TV voices Glen Kuiper and Ray Fosse have come under fire for being insensitive during the incident in Arlington that killed a fan. In their defense, they did not know how far the fan fell nor did they know his condition. It’s easy to sit here and criticize, but at the time, they did not know how serious the situation was.

Cam Inman of the Oakland Tribune talks with former ABC/CBS/NBC NFL analyst John Madden about the lockout and the Madden NFL ’11 video game.

The Hamilton Spectator in Canada notes that some recently found CFL footage discovered in the Canadian Football Hall of Fame has been digitized and put online.

Derek Zona of SB Nation ranks all of the NHL TV broadcasters from top to bottom.

Mike Silva’s New York Baseball Digest didn’t think the Bob Costas-Al Michaels mashup for last night’s Mets-Giants game was anything special. I disagree.

Dave Kohl in Major League Programs explains why ESPN went all in for its Wimbledon bid.

World Cup Buzz says ESPN is doing the Women’s World Cup right this year.

EPL Talk has the US TV schedules for the English Premier League “friendlies” that will take place this month.

Quite a few links today which is good to see after working into the wee hours of this morning on the Megalinks. I’ll be back tomorrow with more linkage.

ESPN Films Has A Home On ESPN Classic

Thanks to the success of the “30 for 30″ series, ESPN Films will make ESPN Classic its home. I think this is a good move. So every weekend, 50 hours of films will be aired on ESPN Classic starting Friday night at 10 ET and lasting until Sunday at midnight. That’s a lot of films. And it’s your chance to catch up on any documentaries you might have missed.

Here are the details.

ESPN ANNOUNCES “ESPN FILMS ON CLASSIC”

ESPN Classic Expands to Showcase the Power of Sports Films

On the heels of the Peabody Award-winning 30 for 30 documentary series, ESPN Films is set to build on the critical acclaim and viewer interest by creating a consistent destination for sports documentaries on ESPN Classic.  “ESPN Films on Classic” will feature an expanded focus on the channel’s unique ability to reach sports fans through films and is designed to target the fans whose interests are broader than news and analysis, and more focused on entertainment.

“One of the things that makes sports storytelling so captivating is that when a pivotal moment happens, it is almost instantly considered ‘classic’, said Keith Clinkscales, SVP, Content Development and Enterprises. “With 30 for 30, we were able to prove that classic sports stories resonate with a large and diverse audience so our intent with “ESPN Films on Classic” is to create a permanent destination for this genre.  We feel this is a natural brand extension for ESPN Classic, which already features documentary and historical programming.”

The current programming plan for “ESPN Films on Classic” is to showcase films for 50 hours each weekend starting at 10 p.m. ET every Friday through midnight every Sunday.  ESPN Films currently owns an extensive catalog of titles and additional documentaries are being produced annually.  ESPN Films will also look to make tactical acquisitions of sports films to complement existing programming.

Additionally, ESPN Films is creating an annual documentary film series, to debut on ESPN in the Fall, following the same general parameters as 30 for 30.  This will give the company an ongoing relationship with some of today’s most talented filmmakers, while at the same time, delivering inspirational sports stories that connect with both avid and casual fans.

“We feel that 30 for 30 represented an evolution in how we tell sports history at ESPN,” said Connor Schell, executive producer, ESPN Films.  “We’ve learned that we can provide a window into American culture through detailed sports storytelling as it can serve as a very effective time capsule of people, places and events that often shape our lives.”

The upcoming programming schedule includes two featured films from the 30 for 30 series.  As the weekend starts on June 17^th, the first film will be Oscar-nominated director Brett Morgen’s June 17^th 1994, a documentary that showcases a day like no other in the sports world.  That will be followed by Game 5 of the1994 NBA Finals between the Rockets and the Knicks, which was taking place during the O.J. Simpson car chase and is featured prominently in the film.  This weekend also marks the 25th anniversary of Len Bias’ death so the second featured film will be Kirk Fraser’s Without Bias.  That film will be followed by one of Bias’ most notable games, the 1986 matchup between Maryland and UNC.   Additional programming will include a mix of content produced by ESPN Films along with acquired content.

Schell continued: “Acquisitions will play a key role in our programming plan for “ESPN Films on Classic” as we know that some of the most creative storytelling in this genre comes from independent filmmakers and this new approach allows us to create an on-air film festival for our own documentaries as well as others in the field.”

That’s it.

Working On Your Tuesday Links

It’s been a busy day for me as I’ve been working on the story on NBC approving plans for a Stanley Cup Final Viewing Party at TD Garden in Boston. Amazing how things fall into place on a story like that. But still working to confirm on the Bruins and Garden end of the story. Once that happens, the story will be complete.

Let’s do links while I can.

Sports Business Daily notes that the NBA Finals finished as the 2nd most watched NBA Finals since 2004, but still finished below last year’s Celtics-Lakers series.

The Sporting News picks up a story from the Sports Business Journal’s Tripp Mickle about Fox’s increased ratings for NASCAR this season.

Sarah Kuta of the Associated Press Sports Editors page notes that economic realities have hit newspaper sports coverage quite hard.

Ken Campbell of the Hockey News gives us this item that hockey charlatan Pierre McGuire is being offered a full-time position at NBC/Versus (scroll down).

Greg Wyshynski of Yahoo’s Puck Daddy has the overnight ratings from Monday night’s Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final.

At the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center, Jason Fry shares his thoughts on the launch of Grantland.

Fox Sports’ Brian Lowry says the Miami Heat’s crash and burn in the NBA Finals is not what the script doctor ordered.

Georg Szalai of the Hollywood Reporter writes that ESPN Classic will become home to ESPN Films’ 30 for 30 documentaries and all future projects.

Anthony Crupi from Adweek says ABC scored with the NBA Finals.

And Toni Fitzgerald at Media Life also writes about the NBA Finals’ ratings.

Matt Hegerty of the Daily Racing Form says this year’s Belmont Stakes received higher ratings on NBC than last year’s race on ABC.

Cam Martin at SportsNewser notes that ESPN NFL analyst Tedi Bruschi unveiled Patriots coach Bill Belichick’s media rules.

Ben Axelrod of SportsGrid notes that today is the “24th Anniversary” of the Keith Hernandez spitting incident made famous on Seinfeld.

David Goetzl of MediaPost says the NFL Network is tapping the podcast for actual programming.

ESPN.com’s David Ubben talks with Big 12 Commissioner Don Beebe about the new revenue distribution and the TV appearance formula for member schools.

Richard Lawler from Engadget HD looks at the expansion in programming at ESPN 3D.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell says tickets for Game 7 of the NHL Stanley Cup Final are a hot commodity due to the lack of a secondary ticket market in Vancouver.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times notes that NBA Finals Game 6 brought in the viewers as compared with last year.

Richard says a LeBron James critic writing a book on the Miami Heat star got the happy ending he was hoping for.

Pete Dougherty at the Albany Times Union has the Wimbledon TV schedule.

Pete says Fox NASCAR analyst Darrell Waltrip will be inducted into the sport’s Hall of Fame later this year.

Evan Weiner in the New Jersey Newsroom says LeBron James’ attack of his critics shows us what’s wrong with sports.

Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says a recent reairing of Super Bowl XIV gave him an appreciation of Pat Summerall as a play-by-play man.

Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog notes that DC United’s TV ratings are way, way up this season.

Del Milligan of the Lakeland (FL) Ledger says get ready for plenty of TV coverage from the U.S. Open.

Barry Horn of the Dallas Morning News says Game 6 of the NBA Finals brought in record ratings locally.

Fox Sports Southwest will air the Dallas Mavericks victory parade this week.

Mel Bracht of the Daily Oklahoman writes that the local ABC affiliate saw a ratings record for the NBA Finals.

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer notes that the local minor league hockey team returns to radio next season.

Mark Snyder at the Detroit Free Press says former Michigan football coach Rich Rodriguez heads to the broadcast booth for the upcoming season.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes that the NBA Finals did not do as well locally as compared to last year.

Bob says Packers coach Mike McCarthy revealed in a radio interview that he had his players sized for Super Bowl rings the night before the game!

Robert Feder from Time Out Chicago says the Tribune is losing its media critic (and a good resource for Fang’s Bites as well).

Ed Sherman of Crain’s Chicago Business continues his talk with White Sox analyst Steve Stone.

Mark Faller of the Arizona Republic isn’t a fan of the Longhorn Network ads.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News notes that one website recognizes Pac-12 Commish Larry Scott as a pretty powerful guy.

The Toronto Sports Media Blog notes that CBC Hockey Night in Canada Radio host Jeff Marek is quite in demand now that his contract is up.

The Canadian Sports Media Blog reviews the first two weeks of Canadian sports television.

Steve Lepore at Puck The Media notes that an estimated 12 million people watched Stanley Cup Final Game 6 across the US and Canada.

Sports Media Watch says Gold Cup Soccer is gathering a strong audience for Univision’s networks.

TV Technology notes that NBC/Versus tapped a Swiss company for its telestrator graphics on the Stanley Cup Final.

Ryan Ballengee of Pro Golf Talk has the video of a new Golf boy band that debuted on Golf Channel.

Emma Carmichael of Deadspin talks about her time working for the NBC Olympics unit.

Ty Duffy of The Big Lead reviews “Those Guys Have All The Fun: Inside the World of ESPN”

And that will end the links.

NBA Finals Begin Tuesday on ABC

The last games of the 2010-11 NBA season will be played on ABC as the Finals between the Dallas Mavericks and the Miami Heat begin on Tuesday. And it marks the earliest the Finals will have begun since 1986 as the Conference Finals ended early. So we have the games starting on Tuesday, May 31. ABC will air its pregame at 8:30 p.m. Eastern time with the tipoffs after 9 p.m. East.

Mike Breen, Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy call their 5th NBA Finals. Rhode Island’s own Doris Burke will work the sidelines. Stuart Scott will host the pregame show with Magic Johnson, Jon Barry and Michael Wilbon as the analysts. That studio show can certainly challenge TNT’s juggernaut from Inside the NBA couldn’t it? I hope you know I’m being sarcastic there. Anyway, we have the details of the coverage for ABC and how ESPN’s platforms will be involved.

Oh and the Finals will also be produced in 3-D which means about 25 people will be able to watch.

NBA Finals Begin Tuesday Exclusively on ABC

ESPN Radio Exclusive Game Broadcasts; Finals Available on ESPN 3D for First Time

The 2011 NBA Finals – the Dallas Mavericks and Dirk Nowitzki facing the Miami Heat and LeBron James – will tip off Tuesday, May 31, at 9 p.m. ET exclusively on ABC. Mike Breen will be the voice of The Finals on ABC, joined by analysts Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy and reporter Doris Burke. This will be the fifth consecutive year the commentator team of Breen, Jackson and Van Gundy has called The Finals.  ABC’s Buick Regal NBA Countdown pregame show will preview the action, with host Stuart Scott, Hall of Famer Magic Johnson and analysts Jon Barry and Michael Wilbon, at 8:30 p.m.

ESPN Radio’s exclusive coverage of The Finals – the 16^th year of The Finals on ESPN Radio – will be anchored by play-by-play commentator Mike Tirico, Hall of Famers Dr. Jack Ramsay and Hubie Brown and reporter Ric Bucher. Marc Kestecher will serve as ESPN Radio studio host with analyst Will Perdue. Additionally, for the first time, The Finals will be presented in 3D on ESPN 3D.  Mark Jones will provide play-by-play commentary with analysts Bruce Bowen (Games 1, 2, 5, 6 and 7) and Tim Legler (Games 3 and 4).

ESPN’s multiplatform presentation of The Finals will include coverage across ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN 3D, ESPNEWS, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Radio, ESPN Deportes Radio, ESPN International, ESPN.com., ESPNDeportes.com, ESPN3.com, ESPN Mobile TV, espnW, ESPN Classic and ESPN The Magazine.

On game nights, ABC’s primetime lineup will include:

• the NBA Countdown pregame show 30 minutes prior to every broadcast;
• Games 1 (May 31), 2 (June 2), 4 (June 7), 5 (June 9, if necessary) and 7 (June 14, if nec.) at 9 p.m.;
• Games 3 (June 5) and 6 (June 12, if nec.), both on Sundays, at 8 p.m.;
• a special 30-minute edition of The Jimmy Kimmel Show immediately before the NBA Countdown pregame show.

All ABC broadcasts will include the following production elements:

• the Emmy Award-winning “Hall of Fame” open;
• in-game interviews with coaches, along with each coach being “wired” for sound;
• pregame and halftime locker room access;
• 32 high definition video sources;
• “SkyCam” providing aerial views of the action;
• utilization of six Super Slo Mo cameras;
• “ESPN Axis” creating virtual replays, with video from live action processed via computers to create virtual freeze frames from multiple angles;
• Orad graphics technology allowing for 3D lines and arrows, hi-res snap zoom capabilities, player and pass tracking and an enhanced graphic interface;
• Spanish-language SAP commentary.

The Finals on ABC Schedule (Best of 7)
All Times ET

Date	Time	Game	Networks
Tue, May 31	9 p.m.	Game 1: Dallas at Miami	ABC, ESPN 3D, ESPN Radio
Thu, June 2	9 p.m.	Game 2: Dallas at Miami	ABC, ESPN 3D, ESPN Radio
Sun, June 5	8 p.m.	Game 3: Miami at Dallas	ABC, ESPN 3D, ESPN Radio
Tue, June 7	9 p.m.	Game 4: Miami at Dallas	ABC, ESPN 3D, ESPN Radio
Thu, June 9	9 p.m.	Game 5: * Miami at Dallas	ABC, ESPN 3D, ESPN Radio
Sun, June 12	8 p.m.	Game 6: * Dallas at Miami	ABC, ESPN 3D, ESPN Radio
Tue, June 14	9 p.m.	Game 7: * Dallas at Miami	ABC, ESPN 3D, ESPN Radio

* if necessary

Additional Finals content:

SportsCenter and Studio Programming
ESPN’s SportsCenter will provide news and information, analysis, and highlights throughout The Finals. Host Stuart Scott and analysts Magic Johnson, Jon Barry and Mike Wilbon will provide pre- and postgame segments, while Hannah Storm will host the 6 p.m. edition’s NBA segments.  Bruce Bowen, Tim Legler, Hall of Famer Chris Mullin and Jalen Rose will provide analysis during The Finals.

Additionally, ESPN’s NBA Tonight postgame shows, along with Pardon the Interruption, Around the Horn and ESPN2’s First Take, will include Finals content.

ESPNEWS
ESPNEWS will provide live pre- and postgame news conferences, along with daily news and information.

ESPN.com
Coverage will include:

• NBA Finals Daily Dime – a daily multimedia notebook capturing The Finals games and scene;
• NBA Finals Daily Dime Live – in-game chat with ESPN reporters, analysts, bloggers and experts;
• NBA Finals Daily Digital Video – comments from ESPN reporters on Finals news and trends;
• NBA Finals Series Page – special section dedicated to Finals content;
• Greatest Playoff Series Rankings – ESPN.com’s John Hollinger ranks the greatest playoff series since the merger;
• Championship Rings – NBA legends share their championship ring stories;
• Moment in Time – revisiting the moment (Kendrick Perkins’ injury) which turned last year’s Finals;
• NBA Legends Chat – some of the biggest names in the game answer fan questions;
• ESPNRadio.com – live stream of every Finals game;
• ESPN3.com – replays of every Finals game.

ESPNDallas.com and the Heat Index will also provide comprehensive coverage throughout The Finals.

ESPN Radio’s 16^th Season of The Finals
The NBA on ESPN Radio’s 16^th season of exclusive, live, national play-by-play broadcast of the NBA’s post-season will culminate with The Finals.

ESPN Deportes
Alvaro Martin and Carlos Morales will provide NBA Finals updates on ESPN’s Spanish-language edition of SportsCenter (aired in the U.S. and Latin America). In addition, ESPN Deportes Radio, the only 24/7 Spanish-language radio network in the country, will feature pre/post-game special reports. ESPNDeportes.com will provide comprehensive coverage with previews, qualifying, photo galleries, videos and special ESPiaNdo la NBA webisodes with analysis by Martin and Morales.

ESPN International
ESPN International will broadcast The Finals via ESPN UK (United Kingdom), ESS (Asia), TSN (Canada), ESPN Pac-Rim (Australia and New Zealand), ESPN Atlantic (sub-Saharan Africa), ESPN Caribbean, ESPN Latin Brazil, ESPN DOS, ESPN Latin South and available in HD throughout Latin America, Brazil and Australia.

ESPN Mobile Properties
ESPN Mobile will offer up-to-the-second coverage of the entire 2011 NBA Finals, providing fans with play-by-play GameCasts along with full highlights on the Mobile Web and ScoreCenter app. Fans will have the opportunity to interact with ESPN NBA experts during games with live chats and blogs. Opt-in ESPN text alerts will notify fans across carriers of game start times, scores and notable performances throughout The Finals.

ESPN3.com
ESPN3.com will offer replays of each Finals game, available at 2:30 a.m. each night through 12 p.m. the following afternoon.

espnW
Sarah Spain and additional contributors will provide espnW’s take on The Finals, including an informative glossary of basketball terms.  espnW will also feature predictions and perspective from WNBA players.

ESPN Classic
ESPN Classic’s NBA Finals marathon will include content leading up to Game 1 on Tuesday, May 31:

• 1 a.m. – SportsCentury: Bill Russell
• 2 a.m. – SportsCentury: Larry Bird
• 3 a.m. – SportsCentury: Magic Johnson
• 4 a.m. – Homecoming: Magic Johnson
• 5 a.m. – SportsCentury: Karl Malone
• 7 a.m. – SportsCentury: Bill Russell
• 8 a.m. – Jim Rome Classics: Dennis Rodman
• 8:30 a.m. – Jim Rome Classics: Karl Malone
• 9 a.m. — Up Close Special: Kobe Bryant & Chris Webber
• 10 a.m. – 1970 NBA Finals, Game 7: Los Angeles vs. New York – Walt Frazier leads the Knicks to a 113-99 victory; Willis Reed makes the dramatic halftime return
• 12 p.m. – 1996 NBA Finals, Game 6: Seattle vs. Chicago – Michael Jordan collapses in the locker room after winning the title on Father’s Day, the first championship since his Father passed away
• 2 p.m. – 2006 NBA Finals, Game 3: Dallas vs. Miami – Dwyane Wade scores 42 points as the Heat rally from 13 down in the fourth quarter to win 98-96
• 4 p.m. – 2006 NBA Finals, Game 5: Dallas vs. Miami – Heat nudge the Mavs 101-100 behind a stellar performance by Dwyane Wade, who finished with 43 points
• 6 p.m. – 2006 NBA Finals, Game 6: Miami vs. Dallas – Miami wins 95-92 behind Dywane Wade’s 43 points

That’s all.

ESPN To Celebrate 50th Anniversary of ABC’s Wide World of Sports

ESPN is announcing that it will mark the 50th anniversary of the program that put ABC Sports on the map and became one of the most important in the history of sports television. Wide World of Sports not only gave us our first glimpses of the Daytona 500, the Indianapolis 500, the NCAA Final Four, Wimbledon, figure skating, the Open Championship, gymnastics, track & field, as well as the Little League World Series, it also propelled Muhammad Ali into superstardom. The program used great announcers like Jim McKay, Keith Jackson, Jim Simpson, Bill Flemming, Frank Gifford, Howard Cosell, just to name a few.

In addition, Wide World gave daredevil Evel Knievel and the Harlem Globetrotters regular exposure. It was a regular staple on ABC on Saturday afternoons at 5. In the 1970′s, the program was a ratings juggernaut that Executive Producer Roone Arledge created a Sunday edition to counterprogram the NBA on CBS and the NHL on NBC to great success, often beating both in the process.

But by the 1990′s, the program was showing its age and ESPN which had taken over the ABC Sports division canceled Wide World in 1997.

Starting Friday, ESPN begins a weeklong celebration which will air mostly on ESPN Classic. There will be programs on ESPN Radio and ABC as well. Let’s take a look at what will be aired. I do wish some of these programs would air on ESPN instead of ESPN Classic as Classic’s viewership has been greatly reduced as it’s been placed on sports tiers. But take a look at what will be available.

50^th Anniversary of Wide World of Sports Celebrated

70 Hours of Memorable Moments on ESPN Classic Starting April 25
Culminates with Special Winners Bracket on ABC April 30

ESPN will commemorate the 50^th anniversary of the iconic ABC Sports program Wide World of Sports with a multi-platform celebration, highlighted by 70 hours of memorable moments on ESPN Classic. The tribute will begin Friday, April 22, on ESPN Radio and starting Monday, April 25, on ESPN Classic, capped by 29 consecutive hours of WWOS beginning Thursday, April 28, at 7 p.m. ET. The marathon of memories will climax with the show’s 30^th and 35^th Anniversary Specials.

“Two generations of sports fans grew up on ABC’s Wide World of Sports, were introduced to the broad diversity that is sport and will never forget the opening words and visuals that defined its mission,” said John Skipper, ESPN executive president, content. “The legacy of Wide World also lies in the blueprint that became ESPN and lives on in what we do every day, serving fans and a broad range of tastes with innovation.”

Other elements of the tribute to WWOS:

• Friday, April 22 –  ESPN Radio’s The Sporting Life hosted by Jeremy Schaap at 10 p.m. will have a segment commemorating the anniversary.
• Sunday, April 24, at 9 a.m. – ESPN’s Outside the Lines with host Bob Ley will look back at the legacy of Wide World. With interviews from the show’s producers and on-air personalities, OTL will look at the many events, locations, legendary moments, and colorful personalities that helped form television’s most endearing sports series.
• Friday, April 29, at 4 p.m. – SportsNation on ESPN2 with co-hosts Colin Cowherd and Michelle Beadle will count down the top 10 WWOS moments as voted by fans from a list of 25 on www.SportsNation.com in a poll that will be posted this weekend.
• Saturday, April 30, at 5 p.m. – Winners Bracket on ABC will review 16 great moments in WWOS history and chose the best via a bracket format. There will also be a countdown of the show’s top 10 all-time “agony of defeat” moments. The 60-minute highlight-driven and often light-hearted program is hosted by ESPN SportsNation co-host Michelle Beadle and ESPN contributor and former NFL All Pro Marcellus Wiley. It is part of the ESPN Sports Saturday two-hour block of sports programming on ABC (4-6 p.m.).

For a complete schedule of ESPN Classic’s Tribute to Wide World of Sports, click Schedule. Highlights include:

Mon., April 25
7 a.m.       Arnold Schwarzenegger wins Mr. Olympia, mountain climbing with Bobby Kennedy.
10 p.m.     A review of daredevil Evel Knievel’s famous motorcycle jumps.
11 p.m.     Howard Cosell and Muhammad Ali discuss the boxer’s career.

Tue., April 26
9 p.m.       Displaying the show’s variety, highlights include track & field from Russia, U.S. volleyball in Cuba, gymnastics in China, soap box derby in Akron, Ohio, rattlesnake roundup and cutterhorse racing
11 p.m.     More with Ali, his 1975 fights w/Chuck Wepner, Ron Lyle and Joe Frazier in the last of their trilogy.

Wed., April 27
8 p.m.       More from the “constant variety of sports” – hydroplane racing, skateboarding championships and ice boat racing.

Thurs., April 28
9 p.m.       1968 Dune Buggy Championships, 1965, ’66 and ’68 Reno Air Races, with a crash by the “Red Baron,” Steve Hinton
11 p.m.     A series of interviews with Howard Cosell talking to Ali, Wilt Chamberlain, Pete Rozelle, Joe Namath, Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs.

Fri., April 29
12 a.m.      The first Wide World of Sports – Drake Relays and Penn Relays
9 p.m.       WWOS 30^th Anniversary Special, hosted by Jim McKay
10:30 p.m. WWOS 35^th Anniversary Special, hosted by Robin Roberts

About Wide World of Sports
Originally envisioned as a fill-in show for one summer, Wide World of Sports debuted April 29, 1961, with a young future legend, Jim McKay, as host.  The opening show featured the Drake Relays from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, along with the Penn Relays from Franklin Field in Philadelphia.  Unexpected popularity led to WWOS becoming a fixture on Saturday afternoons – and eventually an iconic program in sports television history.

With a memorable opening voiced by McKay – “Spanning the globe to bring you the constant variety of sport… the thrill of victory… and the agony of defeat… the human drama of athletic competition” — its goal was to showcase sports large and small from around the world.  In so doing, it introduced the American sporting audience to such things as hurling, rodeo, curling, jai-alai, cliff diving, firefighter’s competitions, surfing, logger sports, demolition derby, slow pitch softball, and badminton. Traditional Olympic sports such as figure skating, skiing, gymnastics, and track and field competitions were also regularly aired, as was NASCAR Grand National/Winston Cup racing.  Just emerging from its Southeastern roots, it was not the nationally popular weekend staple it is today.

Wide World of Sports broke many barriers, and was the first program to air Wimbledon, The Indianapolis 500, the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship, the Daytona 500, the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, the Little League World Series, Triple Crown, The Open Championship, the Grey Cup, and many other events.  WWOS discontinued its traditional anthology format in 1997.

Again, Wide World did not discontinue the anthology format, it was ESPN that discontinued it. This makes it sound that Wide World made the decision to end it. Not the case.

A Friday Megalink Post

I’m going to try to post some of the Friday megalinks. This won’t be an entire post. Unless something happens, I should be able to get most of them in.

Of course, you can find the Weekend Viewing Picks for your sports and primetime programs.

National

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand and Mike McCarthy debate whether ESPN’s harsh criticism over VCU’s selection to the NCAA Tournament was sour grapes over losing the games to CBS/Turner.

Mike McCarthy says ESPN has pulled NBA analyst Jalen Rose off the air following last month’s arrest on DUI charges.

Bob Velin of USA Today notes that boxing returns to network television on Saturday in the form of a new Showtime reality series on the Manny Pacquaio-Sugar Shane Mosley fight.

This being April Fools’ Day, we hearken back to 1985 and one of the greatest April 1 sports media pranks, The Curious Case of Sidd Finch, written by George Plimpton of Sports Illustrated which fooled many fans back in the day.

And Christopher Borelli of the Chicago Tribune has found the man who posed as Sidd Finch for SI, a retired Chicago-area schoolteacher.

Phil Orlins, coordinating producer of ESPN 3D, writes in ESPN Front Row about how watching The Masters^® in the third dimension is an experience unlike any other.

Mike Reynolds from Multichannel News writes that SNY has been pulled by Dish Network in the latest dispute among regional sports networks and a content provider.

Marcus Vanderberg of SportsNewser says ESPN Radio hack Colin Cowherd has set his target again on Washington Wizards rookie guard John Wall.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell wonders if nutrition chain GNC is a good stock buy as it went public today.

Darren has an extensive look at how going paperless could change the ticket industry.

At Digital Spy UK, Andrew Laughlin says ESPN Classic has obtained the BBC Sport archives.

The Big Lead speculates on the replacement for Josh Elliot at the morning SportsCenter anchor desk.

The metgrrl blog is the latest to take MLB to task for catering to the lowest common denominator at its Fan Cave.

The Sports Media Watch has various ratings news and notes.

And SMW has some sports media news as well.

East and Mid-Atlantic

The Boston Globe’s Chad Finn talks with Red Sox radio announcer Dave O’Brien about signing a new multiyear contract extension.

At the Worcester Telegram & Gazette, Bill Doyle interviews NESN Red Sox voice Don Orsillo.

ESPN Boston says it will be launching an internet radio show next Friday.

Phil Mushnick of the New York Post for all intents and purposes calls Kentucky’s John Calipari and UConn’s Jim Calhoun crooks.

George Willis of the Post remembers former boxing trainer and CBS/MSG/HBO analyst Gil Glancy who died this week.

Justin Terranova of the Post has five questions for CBS college basketball analyst Clark Kellogg.

Pete Dougherty from the Albany Times Union says YES and DirecTV have a midnight deadline to keep the regional sports network on the satellite provider.

Pete says baseball should embrace technology to help make calls and speed up the game.

Tim Schooley of the Pittsburgh Business Times looks at FSN Pittsburgh making the transition to a new name.

Gary Haber of the Baltimore Business Journal says radio host Jen Royle is suing a competing radio station for defamation.

In Press Box, Dave Hughes of DCRTV.com also looks at Royle’s lawsuit as well as other DC-Baltimore sports media news.

Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog says the Nationals were the butt of Jimmy Kimmel’s monologue last night.

Jim Williams from the Washington Examiner talks with CBS Sports Chairman Sean McManus about this year’s coverage of the NCAA Tournament.

Jim says MASN is making a couple of programming changes.

South

Mitch Vingle of the Charleston (WV) Gazette says the ESPN lawsuit against Conference USA bears watching.

Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald recaps the Sports Business Journal’s World Congress of Sports that took place in South Florida this week.

Laken Litman at the Dallas Morning News says ESPN will air Texas’ spring football game this weekend.

David Barron from the Houston Chronicle talks with CBS Sports director Bob Fishman about the Final Four’s he called from the production truck.

David has a story on ESPN’s lawsuit against Conference USA.

Mel Bracht of the Daily Oklahoman talks about the expanded announcing crews at the Final Four thanks to CBS/Turner collaboration for the NCAA Tournament.

Midwest

George M. Thomas of the Akron Beacon Journal says STO is ready to air the Cleveland MLB team’s season opener today.

Michael Zuidema of the Grand Rapids (MI) Press has CBS/Turner’s crew surprised about the VCU run during the NCAA Tournament.

Bob Wolfley at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says this year’s Final Four will be called by a three man booth as opposed to two over the last 29 on CBS.

Don Walker of the Journal Sentinel says MLB has unveiled an unconventional epic ad campaign.

Paul Christian at the Rochester (MN) Post-Bulletin writes about the Twins going all-cable this season and for the foreseeable future.

Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says Fox Sports Midwest screwed up the Cardinals’ Opening Day ceremonies for the second year in a row.

Evan Binns from the St. Louis Business Journal says the Cardinals season opener was the most watched ever on Fox Sports Midwest.

West

Jay Posner of the San Diego Union-Tribune has CBS/Turner’s Steve Kerr excited about calling his first Final Four tomorrow.

John Maffei of the North County Times says MLB’s national TV partners aren’t giving the Padres any respect.

Jim Carlisle at the Ventura County Star writes that this year’s NCAA Tournament has been a different viewing experience.

Jim has his sports media notebook which includes news about ESPN’s Josh Elliot’s departure for Good Morning America.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News gets comments from other announcers on the great Vin Scully.

Tom also handicaps the Pac 12 media rights negotiations.

Jon Wilner of the San Jose Mercury News says the Pac 12′s rights are now up for grabs as the conference let its exclusive window to negotiate with Fox expire last night.

Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times says FSN Northwest may have changed to Root Sports, but will be found on the same place on the cable dial.

Canada

Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail says TSN has fired its first shots in its new sports radio war with Rogers.

The Canadian Sports Media Blog also talks about the TSN/Rogers Sportsnet radio war.

And that is all for today.

ESPN’s Plans for Super Bowl XLV

ESPN will set up shop in Sundance Square in Fort Worth, TX and that will be its headquarters for Super Bowl XLV. Its headquarters will be the command post for some 18 platforms on TV, radio, print and the internet. I can’t believe how ESPN’s coverage has grown by leaps and bounds over the years. We’re talking live shows, chats, special coverage, features, you get the idea.

Here’s the release. It’s quite long. We will need a jump break.

ESPN at Super Bowl XLV in North Texas

ESPN kicks off its week-long comprehensive coverage of Super Bowl XLV between the Green Bay Packers and Pittsburgh Steelers in North Texas Monday, Jan. 31, at 6 a.m. ET / 5 a.m. CT. ESPN’s on-site multiplatform coverage will originate from Sundance Square in Fort Worth, Texas, through Super Bowl Sunday (Feb. 6). Highlights:

• Super Bowl-related content across 18 ESPN platforms: ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNEWS, ESPNU, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Classic, ESPN HD, ESPN2 HD, ESPNEWS HD, ESPNU HD, ESPN International, ESPN.com, ESPN Radio, ESPNRadio.com, ESPN Deportes Radio, ESPNdeportes.com, ESPN The Magazine and ESPN Mobile properties;
• More than 90 hours of Super Bowl-related programming on domestic television and more than 55 hours of Super Bowl-related programming on ESPN Radio from North Texas;
• ESPN International will air Super Bowl XLV live throughout Latin America, the Caribbean, Africa, the Middle East, Israel, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the Pacific Rim, and much of Europe.  In total, ESPN International will deliver live Super Bowl coverage to more than 53 million households in 159 countries and territories. Commentary and analysis will be provided in English, French-Canadian and Spanish;
• More than 30 on-air commentators (hosts, analysts, reporters and contributors) will be in North Texas;
• ESPN’s production operations for Super Bowl week will be based at Sundance Square (195 West 3^rd Street) in Fort Worth. The location will include: a main set (62 x 40 ft.) overlooking the historic Chisolm Trail mural, a radio set/stage (28 x 48 ft.), two pod camera locations, and a demo field (20 x 20 ft.). ESPN will also utilize a “Flycam” suspended 42 ft. in the air that will travel the length of a football field and provide aerial views of the set.

What’s New:

• ESPN’s main set at Sundance Square will include an enclosed indoor studio developed by ESPN’s Creative Services team that will utilize virtual elements for the first time, including player cards, statistics, and touchscreen technology;
• Live morning editions of SportsCenter will air from the Super Bowl for the first time with Hannah Storm anchoring from Sundance Square;
• SportsNation (M,W-F, 4 p.m. and Tuesday, 5 p.m., ESPN2) will originate from Super Bowl for the first time with hosts Michelle Beadle and Colin Cowherd. A special two-hour SportsNation is also planned for Super Bowl Sunday, live from Sundance Square (noon, ESPN2).
• New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton, who led the franchise to its first Super Bowl championship a year ago, will join ESPN for three days of analysis in North Texas. Payton will appear on SportsCenter Special (Thurs., Feb. 3, at 3 p.m.), SportsCenter Special: The Champions (Fri., Feb. 4, at 3 p.m.), as well as SportsCenter (9 a.m.) and Sunday NFL Countdown (10 a.m.) on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 6.

Super Bowl Sunday (Feb. 6): ESPN’s weeklong coverage will peak with more than 16 hours of TV and radio coverage on Super Bowl Sunday, beginning with a special edition of Mike & Mike in the Morning at 6 a.m. (ESPN Radio/ESPN2); Chris Berman, covering his 29th Super Bowl, will host the special four-hour Super Bowl edition of Sunday NFL Countdown (10 a.m. – 2 p.m.) from Sundance Square with analysts Cris Carter, Mike Ditka, Tom Jackson, Keyshawn Johnson, Chris Mortensen and Insider Adam Schefter. Tedy Bruschi, Trent Dilfer, and Steve Young – all Super Bowl champions – will also contribute to the show from Fort Worth, while the Monday Night Football team of Mike Tirico, Ron Jaworski and Jon Gruden will be joined by Saints head coach Sean Payton at a Cowboys Stadium set in Arlington. In all, ESPN’s Super Bowl Sunday analyst team will feature former players and coaches with a combined 13 Super Bowl rings in 23 appearances in the NFL’s biggest game. Reporters Suzy Kolber (covering Steelers) and Ed Werder (Packers) will provide team updates. Postgame coverage on ESPN will begin immediately following the game with Berman, Jackson and Young on the field at Cowboys Stadium for NFL Primetime, followed by a 90-minute SportsCenter; ESPN Radio’s “Super Sunday” program lineup will include Mike & Mike in the Morning for the fourth straight year (6-10 a.m./simulcast on ESPN2). Brian Kenny will anchor ESPN Radio’s post-game coverage from 103.3 ESPN Radio in Dallas until 1 a.m.

ESPN – ESPN2 – ESPNEWS – ESPNU – ESPN Classic

ESPN’s primary host location throughout Super Bowl week will be an outdoor set – open for public viewing – at Sundance Square in Fort Worth.  Planned highlights:

• SportsCenter (Monday, Jan. 31 – Sunday, Feb. 6) – daily editions of ESPN’s flagship news, information and highlights show with anchors Mike Greenberg, Steve Levy, Stuart Scott, and Storm, joined by Mortensen, Schefter, reporters Kolber and Werder, and analysts Ditka, Jackson, Johnson, Young, etc.; Additionally, Storm and three-time Super Bowl Champion Darren Woodson will report from NFL media day, Tuesday, Feb. 1 from 10 a.m. – noon on ESPN;
• SportsCenter Special: The Champions (Friday, Feb. 4 at 3 p.m., ESPN) – Tirico hosts this special with all of ESPN’s NFL analysts in North Texas who have won Super Bowl rings (Bruschi, Dilfer, Ditka, Gruden, Johnson, Mark Schlereth, Woodson and Young), and Saints Super Bowl-winning head coach Sean Payton. In all, members of The Champions panel – with a combined 19 rings in 25 Super Bowl appearances – will discuss their personal experiences of playing in the NFL title game and what they expect for Super Bowl XLV;
• NFL Quarterbacks Field Pass (Monday, Jan. 31 at 10 p.m., ESPN2) – Part of ESPN’s “Year of the Quarterback” initiative, this one-hour NFL Films all-access special includes footage and audio from the 2010-11 NFL season, featuring quarterbacks Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Jay Cutler, Brett Favre, Peyton Manning, Super Bowl starters Aaron Rodgers and Ben Roethlisberger, Mark Sanchez, Tim Tebow, and Michael Vick. Super Bowl legends Troy Aikman, John Elway and Steve Young will also be highlighted;
• “I Am a World Champion,”, is a feature series offering first-person narratives from the quarterbacks who have led their team to victory and walked off the field World Champions.  The original content, which showcases the quarterback’s travails and triumphs, will run during NFL Live and afternoon editions of SportsCenter and will also be available online;
• SportsCenter Special and NFL Live (Monday, Jan. 31 – Thursday, Feb. 4, 3-4:30 p.m.) – Trey Wingo and Tirico will host these back-to-back daily shows throughout Super Bowl week;
• SportsNation (M-F, 4 p.m., ESPN2) will originate live from Sundance Square all week beginning Monday, Jan. 31. Hosts Cowherd and Beadle will be joined by special guests all week. Shows will include Super Bowl-themed polls and games, and animals from a local zoo will make Super Bowl picks.  A special two-hour SportsNation is also planned for Super Bowl Sunday, at noon ET live from Sundance Square on ESPN2.
• NFL Matchup (Sunday, Feb. 6, 3 and 6:30 a.m., ESPN and 5:30 a.m., ESPN2) – the popular 30-minute X’s and O’s analysis show hosted by Sal Paolantonio with Merril Hoge and Jaworski will preview the Super Bowl from North Texas;
• Rome is Burning (M-F, 4:30 p.m., ESPN) – current and former NFL players will join host Jim Rome live from Sundance Square each day to discuss the Super Bowl;
• Around the Horn (M-F, 5 p.m., ESPN) – daily panelists will opine from North Texas;
• Pardon the Interruption (M-F, 5:30 p.m., ESPN) – co-host Michael Wilbon and ‘Five Good Minutes’ guests will participate from North Texas;
• Sports Reporters (Sunday, Feb. 6, at 8:30 a.m., ESPN) – John Saunders will host the popular Sunday morning sports journalism and discussion program from Fort Worth with panelists Mike Lupica (New York Daily News), William C. Rhoden (New York Times) and Bob Ryan (Boston Globe). The show’s traditional “Parting Shots” segment will feature each reporter’s most memorable moment from the 2010 NFL season.
• Mike & Mike in the Morning (M-F, 6-10 a.m./simulcast on ESPN2) – Co-hosts Mike Golic and Greenberg will kick off ESPN Radio’s on-site coverage live from Sundance Square in Fort Worth on Monday, Jan. 31, followed by The Herd with Colin Cowherd (10 a.m. – 1 p.m./ESPNU), and co-hosts Scott Van Pelt and Ryen Russillo on The Scott Van Pelt Show (1-4 p.m./ 2-3 p.m. on M, W-F, ESPN2). Each program will feature NFL guests and experts on-set with the hosts throughout the week;
• First Take (M-F, 10 a.m.-12 p.m., ESPN2) – will include Super Bowl-related interviews and previews all week;
• ESPNEWS will offer all the news each day leading up to Super Bowl XLV, including the Hall of Fame announcement live on Saturday and extensive pre and postgame reporting on Super Bowl Sunday, including interviews, news conferences, highlights and analysis;
• Starting Tuesday, Feb. 1, ESPN Classic will air a variety of ESPN Super Bowl-themed programming from the SportsCentury, 30 for 30, Top 5 Reasons You Can’t Blame and Who’s #1 series, along with interview shows hosted by Dick Schaap, Roy Firestone, Jim Rome and Rick Reilly in Homecoming.  The week will culminate with 39 consecutive hours of NFL-related programming starting Friday, Feb. 4 at 7 p.m.

ESPN Radio– ESPNRadio.com

ESPN Radio’s weekday Mike & Mike in the Morning (6-10 a.m. ), The Herd with Colin Cowherd (10 a.m.-1 p.m.) and The Scott Van Pelt Show (1-4 p.m.) will all originate from  Sundance Square in Fort Worth during Super Bowl week. Guests visiting the sets will include current and former NFL players and coaches, celebrities, and newsmakers from the sports world.

103.3 ESPN Radio in Dallas

Locally, ESPN Radio’s owned-and-operated 103.3 ESPN Radio in Dallas will broadcast its weekday Ben and Skin Show (9 a.m.-noon CT), Coop and Nate Show (2-3 p.m.) and Galloway and Company (3-7 p.m.) from the “103.3 Stage” in Sundance Square. The station will also host an interactive area featuring NASCAR simulators, a football-toss game, PS3’s to play “Madden 11” and a podcast center to sample ESPNDallas.com’s new apps for the iPad, iPhones and other devices.

Additionally, 1540 AM ESPN Deportes programming will originate from its stage throughout Super Bowl week: Al Despertar (4-7 a.m.); Frecuencia Deportiva with Xavier Olalde (7-8 a.m.); Charla Deportiva with Luis Fernando Perez (11 a.m.-noon); Zona ESPN with Renato Bermudez (noon-2 p.m.); Jorge Ramos y Su Banda (Friday 3-6 p.m.).

For the fourth straight year, Mike & Mike in the Morning will kick off the special “Super Sunday” lineup (6-10 a.m./simulcast on ESPN2 from 6-8 a.m.). Kenny will anchor ESPN Radio’s post-game coverage from Dallas until 1 a.m.

ESPNRadio.com will provide live audio and video streaming of ESPN Radio programs throughout Super Bowl week, as well as on-demand highlights of every show and every interview.

(continue reading…)

College Football Viewing Picks For 11/20/10, All Times Eastern

Schedule courtesy of Matt’s College Sports on TV
College Gameday live from Wrigley Field, Chicago, IL – ESPNU, 9 a.m./ESPN, 10 a.m.

noon
North Carolina State at North Carolina – ACC Network

West Virginia at Louisville – Big East Network

Big Ten Network Gamefinder
Penn State vs. Indiana at Landover, MD – Big Ten Network
Purdue at Michigan State – Big Ten Network

Villanova at Delaware – Comcast SportsNet New England/The Comcast Network

Wisconsin at Michigan – ESPN
Pittsburgh at South Florida – ESPN2
Virginia at Boston College – ESPNU

Oklahoma State at Kansas – Fox Sports Net

Troy at South Carolina – SEC Network

Yale at Harvard – Versus

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

2:30 p.m.
Bethune-Cookman vs. Florida A&M at Orlando, FL – ESPN Classic

3 p.m.
College Football Countdown – ABC
College Football Today – CBS

3:30 p.m.
Ohio State at Iowa – ABC

Ole Miss at LSU – CBS
Arkansas State at Navy – CBS College Sports

Richmond at William & Mary – Comcast SportsNet New England/The Comcast Network

Virginia Tech at Miami – ESPN
Illinois vs. Northwestern at Wrigley Field, Chicago, IL – ESPNU

Stanford at Cal – Fox Sports Net

6 p.m.
New Mexico at BYU – the mtn.

7 p.m.
Arkansas at Mississippi State – ESPN
UConn at Syracuse – ESPNU

Missouri at Iowa State – Fox Sports Net

Army vs. Notre Dame at Yankee Stadium, New York, NY – NBC, 7 p.m.

7:30 p.m.
Rutgers at Cincinnati – Big East Network

Tennessee at Vanderbilt – CSS

8 p.m.
ABC Coverage Map
Florida State at Maryland – ABC
Nebraska at Texas A&M – ABC
USC at Oregon State – ABC

Houston at Southern Mississippi – CBS College Sports

Oklahoma at Baylor – ESPN2

10 p.m.
Utah at San Diego State – the mtn.

ESPN’s College Football Games & Announcing Assignments For Week 12

We’re almost at the end of the college football season if you can believe that. It seemed like the season started just a few weeks ago.

Anyway, we have ESPN’s college football schedule for this week and College Gameday’s stop which will be at Wrigley Field for Saturday’s Illinois-Northwestern game. In addition, the Gameday crew of Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard and Erin Andrews will pull double duty by calling the Georgia State-Alabama game on ESPNU on Thursday. Lots of traveling by the quartet there. And you have Herbstreit heading to Texas A&M after College Gameday on Saturday. Nuts.

We have the schedule below.

College GameDay from Wrigley Field for Illinois vs. Northwestern

Fowler, Herbstreit, Howard and Andrews to Work ESPNU Thursday Night Telecast

On Saturday, Nov. 20, College GameDay – beginning on ESPNU at 9 a.m. and continuing on ESPN at 10 a.m. every Saturday and simulcast on ESPN Radio — will originate from Chicago’s famed Wrigley Field, home of Major League Baseball’s Chicago Cubs and site of the neutral site showdown between Big Ten rivals Illinois and Northwestern. ESPNU will televise the game at 3:30 p.m., the firstr college game played at Wrigley Field since 1938.

Chris Fowler hosts the Emmy Award-winning program with analysts Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit and Desmond Howard. Erin Andrews anchors several segments of the first hour on ESPNU and contributes reports, interviews and features during the ESPN portion.

Fowler, Herbstreit, Howard and Andrews will call ESPNU’s telecast of Georgia State at Alabama on Thursday, Nov. 18, at 7:30 p.m. Georgia State head coach Bill Curry led Alabama from 1987-89 and is a former ESPN analyst.

This week’s schedule will include undefeated No. 4 Boise State against WAC rival Fresno State on Friday, Nov. 19, at 9 p.m. on ESPN2 and ESPN3.com. Highlights for Saturday, Nov. 20:

• Telecasts of two one-loss Big Ten teams in the BCS top 10: No. 7 Wisconsin at Michigan at noon on ESPN and No. 9 Ohio State at No. 20 Iowa at 3:30 p.m. on ABC.
• Saturday Night Football on ABC at 8 p.m. will see one-loss No. 8 Nebraska at No. 19 Texas A&M. Parts of the nation will receive No. 25 Florida State at Maryland or USC at Oregon State.
• ESPN will televise No. 16 Virginia Tech at No. 25 Miami in a showdown between ACC rivals at 3:30 p.m.
• ESPN’s game at 7 p.m. will pit ranked SEC teams: No. 18 Arkansas at No. 21 Mississippi State.

Date	Time (ET)	Matchup	Network(s)
Tue, Nov 16	8 p.m.	Ohio at Temple Beth Mowins & David Norrie	ESPN2/ESPN3.com
Wed, Nov 17	6 p.m.	Miami (Ohio) at Akron Dari Nowkah & Matt Stinchcomb	ESPNU
	8 p.m.	Bowling Green at Toledo Dave Neal & Andre Ware	ESPN2/ESPN3.com
Thu, Nov 18	7:30 p.m.	Georgia State at No. 11 Alabama Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard & Erin Andrews	ESPNU
	8 p.m.	UCLA at Washington ESPN: Rece Davis, Craig James, Jesse Palmer & Jenn Brown ESPN Radio: Bill Rosinski, David Norrie & Joe Schad	ESPN/ESPN3.com /ESPN Radio
Fri, Nov 19	9 p.m.	Fresno State at No. 4 Boise State ESPN: Joe Tessitore & Rod Gilmore	ESPN2/ESPN3.com
Sat, Nov 20	Noon	No. 7 Wisconsin at Michigan Dave Pasch, Bob Griese, Chris Spielman & Jeannine Edwards	ESPN/ESPN3.com
	Noon	Pittsburgh at South Florida Bob Wischusen & Brian Griese	ESPN2/ESPN3.com
	Noon	Virginia at Boston College Rob Stone & David Pollack	ESPNU
	1:30 p.m.	Duke at Georgia Tech Doug Bell & Warrick Dunn	ESPN3.com
	2 p.m.	Clemson at Wake Forest Ryan Rose & John Gregory	ESPN3.com
	2:30 p.m.	Florida Classic: Bethune Cookman vs. Florida A&M (from Orlando) Dave Lamont, JC Pearson & Charlie Neal	ESPN Classic/ESPN3.com
	3:30 p.m.	No. 9 Ohio State at No. 20 Iowa Sean McDonough, Matt Millen & Quint Kessenich	ABC
	3:30 p.m.	No. 16 Virginia Tech at No. 24 Miami Pam Ward, Danny Kanell & Jessica Mendoza	ESPN/ESPN3.com
	3:30 p.m.	Allstate Wrigleyville Classic: Illinois vs. Northwestern (from Chicago) Mark Jones, Bob Davie & Erin Andrews	ESPNU
	7 p.m.	No. 18 Arkansas at No. 21 Mississippi State Brad Nessler, Todd Blackledge & Holly Rowe	ESPN/ESPN3.com
	7 p.m.	Connecticut at Syracuse Clay Matvick & Herm Edwards	ESPNU
	8 p.m.	No. 8 Nebraska at No. 19 Texas A&M Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit & Heather Cox	ABC/ESPN3.com
		No. 25 Florida State at Maryland Mike Patrick & Craig James	ABC/ESPN3.com
		USC at Oregon State Mark Neely, Brock Huard & Mike Bellotti	ABC/ESPN3.com
	8 p.m.	No. 14 Oklahoma at Baylor ESPN2: Ron Franklin & Ed Cunningham ESPN Radio: Bill Rosinski, David Norrie & Joe Schad	ESPN2/ESPN3.com/ESPN Radio

And we’re done here.

College Football Viewing Picks For 09/11/10, All Times Eastern

Schedule Courtesy Matt’s College Sports on TV

College Gameday, live from Tuscaloosa, AL – ESPNU, 9 a.m./ESPN, 10 a.m.

noon
Duke at Wake Forest – ACC Network (formerly Raycom Sports)

Indiana State at Cincinnati – Big East Network
Texas Southern at UConn – Big East Network

Big Ten Network Gamefinder
Illinois State at Northwestern – Big Ten Network
South Dakota at Minnesota – Big Ten Network
Western Illinois at Purdue – Big Ten Network

Hawai’i at Army – CBS College Sports

San Jose State at Wisconsin – ESPN
Georgia at South Carolina – ESPN2
Florida Atlantic vs. Michigan State at Detroit – ESPNU

Georgia Tech at Kansas – Fox Sports Net

South Florida at Florida – SEC Network (12:21 p.m. kickoff)

3:30 p.m.
ABC Coverage Map
Florida State at Oklahoma – ABC/ESPN2
Iowa State at Iowa – ABC/ESPN2
Miami (FL) at Ohio State – ESPN/ESPN3D
Kent State at Boston College – ESPNU

Eastern Kentucky at Louisville – Big East Network

Georgia Southern at Navy – CBS College Sports

Colorado at Cal – Fox Sports Net

Michigan at Notre Dame – NBC

4 p.m.
UNLV at Utah – the mtn.

BYU at Air Force – Versus

7 p.m.
Penn State at Alabama – ESPN
Oregon at Tennessee – ESPN2
LSU at Vanderbilt – ESPNU

Buffalo at Baylor – Fox College Sports

Wyoming at Texas – Fox Sports Net

Louisiana-Monroe at Arkansas – Fox Sports Houston/Fox Sports South/Fox Sports Southwest/Sun Sports

7:30 p.m.
Southern Illinois at Illinois – Big Ten Network

NC State at Central Florida – CBS College Sports

Western Kentucky at Kentucky – CSS

8 p.m.
Rutgers at Florida International – ESPN Plus

Texas Tech at New Mexico – the mtn.

9 p.m.
Ole Miss at Tulane – ESPN Classic then moves to ESPN2 at conclusion of Oregon-Tennessee

10:30 p.m.
Stanford at UCLA – ESPN
Colorado State at Nevada – ESPNU

Virginia at USC – Fox Sports Net

ESPN Networks All Over The FIBA World Championships

Earlier this year, ESPN’s networks were all over the FIFA World Cup. It won’t get as much attention here and worldwide, but basketball’s world championships take place in Turkey starting Saturday and will continue into next month. All 80 games can be seen online through ESPN3.com, provided your internet service provider has a deal with ESPN. If not, then you’ll have to find other ways to see games online.

However, ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPN Classic will air the games on TV including every contest involving the USA as long as the team is in the tournament. Like the 2008 Olympic team, this is coached by Duke University’s Mike Krzyzewski. Here’s the ESPN press release.

2010 FIBA Men’s World Championship Tips Off Aug. 28

All 80 Games Available Live on ESPN3.com

ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPN Classic will combine to televise at least 11 games from the 2010 FIBA Men’s World Championship in Istanbul, Turkey, including every game featuring the USA World Championship Team, the semifinals, third-place game and championship game. Action begins Saturday, Aug. 28, when the United States faces Croatia live on ESPN Classic at noon ET (re-airing at 11 p.m. on ESPN2). Additionally, for the first time, all 80 tournament games will be available live on ESPN3.com, ESPN’s broadband network.

ESPN’s international basketball expert Fran Fraschilla will provide analysis for all telecasts, with Marc Kestecher and Kevin Connors sharing play-by-play.

The 2010 USA World Championship Team, led by defending NBA scoring champion Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma City Thunder and fellow NBA All-Stars Chauncey Billups (Denver Nuggets), Rajon Rondo (Boston Celtics) and Derrick Rose (Chicago Bulls), will attempt to avenge the team’s bronze medal finish during the 2006 World Championship. The United States Men’s Senior National Team went on to win the gold medal during the 2008 Olympic Games.

ESPN’s 2010 FIBA Men’s World Championship Schedule

Doing The Sunday Links

Well, my day has been planned for me, but I don’t want to leave you without links so I got up early to provide some until I return home sometime after 6 tonight.

Without further ado, here are the links.

Tom Van Riper at Forbes cautions fans who are caught up in the Pac 10/12 media hype.

John Walters at Fanhouse says the Pac 10/12 has many obstacles to overcome including its TV contracts.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell writes that fans are feeling their NFL game tickets are worth more this year than last.

Darren explains why IMG’s purchase of college sports syndicator ISP is good for the game.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News writes that Outdoor Channel gets picked up by Comcast in Houston.

Jesse Quinlan of the Stamford (CT) Advocate talks with ESPN’s Steve Young.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times reports that there will be no disciplinary action against ESPN writer Arash Markazi on his story about LeBron James’ Boys Night Out in Las Vegas that was eventually spiked.

Phil “Dr. Doom and Gloom” Mushnick of the New York Post now goes after NFL Commish Roger Goodell on last week’s Town Meeting in Green Bay. In Mushnick’s World, nothing is ever good enough for him.

Greg Connors of the Buffalo News notes that the Bills fans can follow their team through Twitter.

The Washington Post’s Dan Steinberg in the DC Sports Bog notes that two local TV reporters attempted the same physical conditioning test that Albert Haynesworth failed twice for the DC NFL team.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner writes that the DC NFL team will be well covered by the local media during the preseason.

David Walsh of the Huntington (WV) Herald-Dispatch talks with the Golf Channel’s Rich Lerner about his familiarity of The Greenbrier Resort, site of this weekend’s PGA Tour stop.

Walsh adds that the TV exposure thanks to Golf Channel and CBS to The Greenbrier Resort is good for the local area.

The Miami Herald’s Dan LeBatard says ESPN spiked the LeBron James story for the right reasons. Don’t forget LeBatard appears regularly on ESPN either on Pardon The Interruption or the Sports Reporters.

Barry Horn of the Dallas Morning News has a quick blurb on why Mavericks owner Mark Cuban would be interested in buying the Texas Rangers.

Barry talks with Fox Sports’ Daryl Johnston about picking up a new gig with NFL Network.

Mike Heika of the Morning News reports that News Corp., parent company of Fox Sports and Fox Sports Net, is a bidder for the NHL’s Stars.

MLB Network’s Trenni Kusnierek (and a Friend of Fang’s Bites) suggests we take a break from Facebook and Twitter every once in a while.

Melissa Harris of the Chicago Tribune notes that despite having a championship season, record breaking attendance and TV ratings, the Blackhawks still lost money.

Joe Flint of the Los Angeles Times says Dish Network is taking shots at Comcast for keeping SportsNet Philadelphia off the satellite provider.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News loves a new website which alerts you to big things happening on TV.

Tom has more about the website in his blog.

Chris Zelkovich of the Toronto Star says the Blue Jays may be out of the pennant race, but continue to do well in the ratings.

Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Sun talks with Stacey Bieber who is one of the golfers taking part in this season’s Big Break Sandals Resort on Golf Channel.

Sports Media Watch has its weekend ratings predictions.

SMW has some ratings news and notes.

And SMW notes comments from ESPN’s John Skipper that I picked up in the Friday megalinks and bear watching that he feels ESPNews and ESPN Classic are not performing to par and could have an announcement on the two channels in the coming months.

Sox & Dawgs has the video of the Red Sox epic comeback against the Detroit Tigers yesterday.

And that will do it. Enjoy your Sunday.

Friday Night Megalinkage

Ok, time to do the Friday megalinks. Coming at night again after shuffling between two offices and playing chauffeur. So blogging had to take a back seat for a bit.

I thank everyone who sent in questions for the Fang’s Bites mailbag. I will answer the questions this weekend. It’s my hope that the mailbag will become a regular feature on Fang’s Bites, perhaps every two or three months.

For the Weekend Viewing Picks, go here to check out what’s happening in sports and primetime TV.

Time for the links.

National

USA Today’s Mike McCarthy talks about the play about legendary Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi heading to the Great White Way.

Mike Lopresti of USA Today discusses the ESPN Outside the Lines report that has many people buzzing about ballpark food safety.

Milton Kent of Fanhouse is confused as to why a former ESPN executive with a poor track record would be brought on by NFL Network to consult on programming.

Kevin Hench of Fox Sports writes that the spiked LeBron James story by ESPN only raises questions about its relationship with certain athletes.

David Goetzl of Mediapost says Proctor & Gamble will be seen aplenty during Olympics coverage from 2012 – 2020.

John Eggerton at Multichannel News talks about Fox’s Jay Glazer joining NFL Network to compliment his regular job.

The Sports Media Watch says the MLS All-Star Game saw a 50% ratings jump as compared to last year.

Paulsen at SMW has some various MLB ratings news and notes.

SMW has some ratings news on other sporting events.

Joe Favorito wonders if the Pac 10/12′s media blitz in the East will give the conference some juice outside of its normal footprint.

The Big Lead has a quick roundup of media reaction to the ESPN spiking of Arash Markazi’s story on LeBron James’ Boys Night Out in Las Vegas.

SportsbyBrooks notes that Rich Eisen’s contract with the NFL Network expires on Sunday.

Dave Kohl at Major League Programs explores how a radio interview with Minnesota Timberwolves President David Kahn got him fined by the NBA.

East and Mid-Atlantic

Boston Sports Media Watch’s Bruce Allen writes in SB Nation Boston about the whining by Red Sox beat writers when a player doesn’t speak with them.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times says ESPN’s spiking of the LeBron James story on its website raises more eyebrows on its relationship with the Miami Heat player.

Phil Mushnick at the New York Post feels USC coach Lane Kiffin is complaining for the wrong reasons.

Pete Dougherty in the Albany Times Union reports that Time Warner Sports will produce one hour specials on the Buffalo Bills throughout the preseason.

Ken Schott of the Schenectady Gazette continues to shake his head on the ESPN/LeBron James relationship.

Ken McMillan at the Hudson Valley Times Herald-Record has the entire NFL TV preseason schedule.

Dave Hughes of DCRTV writes in Press Box of the continued lineup changes at one Baltimore sports radio station.

Jim Williams in the Washington Examiner says New York Jets coach Rex Ryan is ready for his closeup on this season of Hard Knocks on HBO.

The great Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog discusses some changes with the Post’s beat writers.

South

Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald says the Dolphins are starting a very aggressive multiplatform campaign in South Florida.

Shannon Owens of the Orlando Sentinel writes that ESPN was correct to pull the LeBron James story off its website, but not for the reasons you think.

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s Ray Buck says former Dallas Cowboy and current sports radio co-host Nate Newton has slimmed down. A lot.

In the Houston Chronicle, David Barron talks with NFL Films President Steve Sabol about the new season of Hard Knocks.

David has an extensive interview with ESPN’s vice president for content John Skipper on a myriad of subjects. It’s at the bottom, but Skipper notes that ESPNews’ viewership is in decline and changes could be coming both ESPN Classic and ESPNews in “30 to 60″ days. Nothing like burying the lede.

Midwest

Michael Zuidema from the Grand Rapids (MI) Press talks with Ray Bentley who will be leaving ESPN2′s warm booth to become a sideline analyst for ESPN 3D’s college football productions.

Ed Sherman in Crain’s Chicago Business says MLB Network will have two new episodes of “The Club” on Sunday.

Ed also has his winners and losers.

Paul Christian of the Rochester (MN) Post-Bulletin says Minnesota native Brad Nessler will call the 2nd game of the opening Monday Night Football doubleheader in September.

West

John Maffei at the North County Times says filming on the movie version of “Moneyball” begins this weekend.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News has former ESPN’er Roy Firestone looking to get back to his old roots.

Tom explores why ESPN killed the LeBron James story.

Tom has his usual extensive media notes.

Canada

Chris Zelkovich in the Toronto Star says a new Rogers Sportsnet channel means more money for Canadians to pay on their cable bills.

Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail says the new Rogers Sportsnet channel will allow for more live sports for Canadians.

And we’re done with the megalinks.

ESPN2 and ESPN Classic Will Re-Air World Cup Matches

The World Cup will be held while many of us will either be getting ready to work or be at work so we may not be able to see the matches live. To rectify this, ESPN2 and ESPN Classic will re-air all of the 64 matches throughout the tournament. In addition, ESPN3.com will archive the matches through the rest of the year so you can see them online. You can check out the press release.

166 Hours of 2010 FIFA World Cup Match Re-airs on ESPN Classic and ESPN2

All 64 Matches to be Archived on ESPN3.com and Available for Replay Through End of Year

ESPN Classic and ESPN2 will combine to re-air all 64 matches of the 2010 FIFA World Cup beginning Friday, June 11, through Monday, July 12. Each match day, generally between 6 p.m. and 12 a.m. ET, ESPN Classic will present all the matches played earlier in the day on ESPN/ESPN2, totaling 113.5 hours. ESPN2 will also re-air the best match of the day on select nights throughout the tournament, dedicating 53 hours to match re-airs during the month.

In addition, ESPN3.com, ESPN’s signature broadband network available in more than 50 million homes, will archive all 64 matches and make them accessible for fan viewing through the end of the year. All South Africa 2010 matches will be available for replay on ESPN3.com shortly after completion.

The schedule is available after the jump.
Here’s the schedule in its entirety.

We’re done.

Doing Some Tuesday Links

Ok, let’s do some linkage for Tuesday. We’re in transition as we are in between big sporting events. We’re finished with the Olympics. That’s being put in the memory banks. The next blips on the radar screen are the college basketball conference tournaments and the NCAA Tournament over the next few weeks, then MLB Opening Day and the Masters next month. We’ll be on top of each so if you’re a new reader, keep your RSS or Twitter feeds updated to find out the latest.

To your links.

The Sports Business Daily/Sports Business Journal’s Winter Olympics site has the final ratings for the Games on NBC.

Michael Hiestand of USA Today says NBC got the ratings it expected for the Vancouver Games.

Mike Dodd of USA Today looks at the resurgence of the Chicago Blackhawks on the ice, in the stands and on TV.

Jay Bobbin of zap2it talks to ESPN’s Erin Andrews about why she’s doing Dancing With the Stars this season.

Writing for the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center, Eric Deggans of the St. Petersburg Times reviews the HBO Sports documentary, Magic and Bird: A Courtship of Two Rivals. I’ll have a review of the doc later this week.

James Hibberd of the Hollywood Reporter writes that the Olympics pulled great ratings for NBC, but the question for the network is what’s next?

Georg Szalai of the Hollywood Reporter reports that ESPN has tapped an ABC News executive to oversee the development of new studio shows.

Mike Reynolds from Multichannel News says the Vancouver Olympics became the 2nd most watched Winter Games, just under the Lillehammer Olympiad in 1994.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times tells us that the USA-Canada men’s hockey gold medal game was the third most watched broadcast of the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Stuart Elliot from the Times looks at which Olympics ads stood out during the 17 days of competition.

Also from the Times, Ken Belson explores which Olympic athletes can parlay their gold medals towards endorsement success.

Bob Raissman in the New York Daily News says SNY’s Mets analyst Ron Darling whom he feels talks too much, is not a fan of Mark McGwire.

Keith Groller in the Allentown (PA) Morning Call says it was nice to have hockey in the spotlight.

Laura Nachman says the radio voice of the Philadelphia 76ers returned to work on Monday.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner says MASN goes into baseball mode next week.

And Jim says the two college basketball tournaments start in earnest this week.

David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution says the Braves have set their spring training TV schedule.

John Kiesewetter from the Cincinnati Enquirer says Bengals wide receiver Chad Ochocinco has to be considered a favorite for Dancing With the Stars.

Ed Sherman in Crain’s Chicago Business has some closing thoughts on the Olympics.

Ed says having the NHL participate in the 2014 Olympics in Sochi may not be as much as a no-brainer as you might think.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says Milwaukee finished on the podium of the top rated markets for the Olympics.

T.J. Simers of the Los Angeles Times recaps an interview of Dodgers manager Joe Torre and former Dodgers pitcher Sandy Koufax in front of a live studio and TV audience from Saturday.

Joe Flint of the Times says NBC might have drawn viewers for the Olympics, but not the profits.

Tom Hoffarth in the Los Angeles Daily News says ESPN Classic is running classic Jim Rome interviews from the 1990′s.

Tom writes that the Lakers drew some ratings away from USA-Canada in Los Angeles.

Chris Zelkovich of the Toronto Star writes that the USA-Canada game set an all-time viewing record in Canada.

The Sports Media Watch says while NBC is euphoric over its Olympic ratings, they’re still the third lowest dating back to 1960.

SMW notes NASCAR’s ratings dropped again this past weekend.

Milton Kent at Fanhouse reviews NBC’s performance at the Winter Olympics.

Staci D. Kramer of paidContent looks at the online video stream numbers for NBCOlympics.com.

Joe Favorito says a way for Winter Olympic sports to keep their brands afloat is to possibly team with Summer Olympic sports and organizations.

The Big Lead looks at one potential media feud brewing between Washington Post writers Michael Wilbon and John Feinstein.

Steve Lepore at Puck The Media says the NHL’s in-house platforms will be all over NHL Trade Deadline Day tomorrow.

Len Berman has his Top 5 Sports stories of the day.

That will do it for now.

The New Year’s Eve Linkage

Our last set of links for 2009 is coming your way. It appears my day has been planned for me on New Year’s Day so I won’t be doing links on Friday. They’ll return on Saturday.

As it’s snowing quite heavily here in Walpole, MA so I’ll do the links quickly and head home.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell looks at one of the stories that broke this morning, AT&T dropping its sponsorship of Tiger Woods.

Former Washington Times sports business writer Tim Lemke, now blogging until he gets a job (more on this later), takes a look at the AT&T/Tiger situation.

To our other big story today, the Fox/Time Warner/Bright House cable negotiations and they aren’t going very well. It appears that Time Warner subscribers will not see certain Fox channels after tonight. Some Fox-owned local stations may be pulled from cable systems including in New York and Florida. In addition, some cable channels including Fox Soccer Channel, Speed, Fox Sports en Espanol and the Fox Sports Net regional networks may be pulled as well.

Joe Flint of the Los Angeles Times says Fox is resigned to the fact that it won’t be on Time Warner systems after midnight tonight.

Anika Myers Palm of the Orlando Sentinel writes that an attorney is seeking an injunction to keep Fox stations on Bright House Cable so Florida Gator fans can watch the Sugar Bowl tomorrow night.

Eric Deggans of the St. Petersburg Times explains how we got to this point.

Lorena Anderson of Myrtle Beach (SC) Sun News says there doesn’t seem to be any movement in the Fox/Time Warner spat.

Kellis Robinett of the Wichita Eagle says Fox Sports Kansas City could be pulled leaving Kansas State fans in the lurch.

Milton Kent of Fanhouse says the dispute is fast approaching the midnight hour.

Kelly Riddell of Bloomberg says Massachusetts Senator John Kerry is threatening Federal intervention if Fox and Time Warner don’t resolve their differences.

We’ll keep an eye on this as the deadline approaches. To the other sports media and sports business links now.

Phil Taylor of Sports Illustrated calls 2009, the Year of Sleaze.

Back to CNBC’s Darren Rovell who looks at the most influential sports tweeters of the year.

Richard Sandomir and Ken Belson of the New York Times write that the NHL Winter Classic has become a cash cow for the league and NBC.

Richard writes that boxing has been thriving over the last ten years despite its glamor heavyweight division not producing any big names.

Jim Motavalli of the New York Times writes about ESPN’s airing of a human sacrifice tonight.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union says ESPN will use USC coach Pete Carroll as a guest analyst for the BCS National Championship Game.

Keith Groller of the Allentown (PA) Morning Call writes that the Lehigh University public address announcer saw a long streak come to an end this week.

Dave Hughes from DCRTV.com writing in the Baltimore-centric Press Box says MASN and Comcast have settled a carriage dispute.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner says ESPNU will be airing plenty of lacrosse games in 2010.

Brian McNally of the Examiner says skier Lindsay Vonn’s wrist injury gave NBC a big scare as the network is using her to help promote the Winter Olympics.

Noah Feit of the Aiken (SC) Standard says ESPN Classic is being sent to a lower subscribed tier on the local cable system.

Sarah Talalay of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel looks at some of the gift items for the Orange Bowl teams and the ticket prices for the Super Bowl in Miami.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle writes about ESPN Regional Television taking ownership of the Texas Bowl.

Victor R. Martinez of the El Paso Times says the Sun Bowl hopes to renew its rights agreement with CBS.

Michael Rand of the Minneapolis Star Tribune talks with a Fox Sports North exec on the decision to drop high school hockey games in 2010.

Tom Carothers of the Woodbury (MN) Bulletin says one high school is particularly sad about Fox Sports North’s decision.

Russ Mitchell of the Spencer (IA) Daily Reporter writes residents won’t be watching today’s Insight Bowl on NFL Network as Mediacom doesn’t carry the channel.

Jeff Hutton from the Ottumwa (IA) Couirier says fans of Iowa State will have to go a sports bar or find other means of watching the Insight Bowl.

Chris Zelkovich of the Toronto Star says Wednesday’s CTV webcast of the Canadian Olympic men’s hockey team went well with a few gltiches.

Chris says technical advancements are changing the way we’re watching sports.

Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail says the Canadian Olympic men’s hockey team announcement was pure entertainment. I watched it online and wonder what Bruce was watching.

William Houston at Truth & Rumours gives TSN the edge in covering the Canadian Olympic team announcement.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News says Monday Night Football ended 2009 with record ratings.

Mike says NHL Network and Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia have developed plenty of wraparound programming for the Winter Classic.

Thomas Umstead of Multichannel writes that cable including ESPN increased its dominance over the broadcast networks in the last ten years.

Tom Ziller of Fanhouse looks back at the last ten years in sports blogging.

Michael David Smith of Fanhouse also looks at the last ten years of sports and the internet.

Back to Tim Lemke who gives us his first blog post of his post-Washington Times era. Someone hire this man. Great sports business and media writer.

Former Times NBA beat reporter Mike Jones tries to make the best of his firing.

Maury Brown of the Biz of Baseball is sad to see the elimination of the Washington Times sports section.

Steve Lepore of Puck The Media wishes you all a Happy New Year.

The Sports Media Watch looks at the biggest NHL stories of the last ten years.

Keith Thibault of Sports Media Journal is making some changes at his blog. Best of luck, my friend.

Chris Byrne of the Eye on Sports Media breaks news that ESPN will use Bob Davie to replace Craig James on the Alamo Bowl.

Dave Kohl of the Major League Programs blog looks at the last ten years in televised sports.

The Stiles Points blog remembers the late ABC Sports college football host, Dave Diles.

Well, this is certainly more than a quick linkfest. But since this is the last linkage of 2009, I wanted to go out with a bang rather than a whimper. I’ll post some press releases before the year is out.

Tomorrow, you’ll have the viewing picks, maybe some late night linkage and a slew of press releases. Have a Happy New Year and I’ll see you in earnest in 2010.

ESPN Celebrates NASCAR’s 4 Time Champion on Monday

We have a couple of releases for you from ESPN. As Jimmie Johnson won his 4th consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship, the Alleged Worldwide Leader will have him all over the place on Monday.

ESPN to Welcome NASCAR Sprint Cup Champion Jimmie Johnson on Monday

Johnson to Appear on Multiple ESPN Platforms

As has become a tradition, the newly-crowned NASCAR Sprint Cup champion, Jimmie Johnson, will appear on multiple ESPN platforms Monday during a visit to ESPN’s campus in Bristol, Conn.

Jimmie Johnson secured his record fourth consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup championship in Sunday’s Ford 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The new champion travels from Miami to Bristol on Monday morning for a day of interviews.

ESPN First Take will host Johnson for an interview at 11:40 a.m. ET on ESPN2, followed by a live chat on ESPN.com at 12:30 p.m. ESPN’s flagship news and information program SportsCenter will welcome Johnson for a live interview at 1:10 p.m.

A live appearance on ESPNEWS at 2:10 p.m. will precede an interview on the Scott Van Pelt program on ESPN Radio at 2:25 p.m. The final live interview will be on ESPN’s Outside the Lines at 2:40 p.m.

Before departing Miami, Johnson will start his day with an 8:10 a.m. phone interview on the popular Mike and Mike In the Morning program on ESPN Radio (simulcast on ESPN2). A recorded interview will air on the evening SportsCenter on ESPN Deportes.

And ESPN Classic will pay tribute to Johnson all day on Monday.

ESPN Classic Paying Tribute to NASCAR Champion Jimmie Johnson

On the day after winning his history-making fourth consecutive NASCAR Sprint Cup championship, Jimmie Johnson will be the subject of a tribute on ESPN Classic on Monday, Nov. 23.

ESPN Classic will replay highlights of the four races in which Johnson won his championships, starting with the 2009 event from Homestead-Miami Speedway at 1 p.m. ET. The 2008 race airs at 4 p.m., followed by the 2007 race at 7 p.m. The race from 2006, in which Johnson won his first title, airs at 10 p.m.

That’s it for this post.

College Football Viewing Picks for 11/21/09, All Times Eastern

College Gameday live from Tucscon, AZ – ESPN, 10 a.m.

noon
Ohio State at Michigan – ABC

Louisville at South Florida – Big East Network

Maine at New Hampshire – Comcast SportsNet New England/Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic

Minnesota at Iowa – ESPN
North Carolina at Boston College – ESPN2
Duke at Miami (FL) – ESPNU

Maryland at Florida State – Raycom

Chattanooga at Alabama – SEC Network (12:21 p.m. kickoff)
Mississippi State at Arkansas – SEC Network (12:21 p.m. kickoff)

Harvard at Yale – Versus

12:30 p.m.
Oklahoma at Texas Tech – FSN

2 p.m.
TCU at Wyoming – the mtn.

2:30 p.m.
Bethune-Cookman vs. Florida A&M at Orlando, FL – ESPN Classic
UConn at Notre Dame – NBC

3 p.m.
College Football Today – CBS

3:30 p.m.
ABC/ESPN Coverage Map
Penn State at Michigan State – ABC/ESPN
Virginia at Clemson – ABC/ESPN

Big Ten Network Gamefinder
Purdue at Indiana – Big Ten Network
Wisconsin at Northwestern – Big Ten Network

LSU at Ole Miss – CBS
Air Force at BYU – CBS College Sports

Delaware at Villanova – Comcast SportsNet New England/Comcast Network

4 p.m.
Arizona State at UCLA – FSN
San Diego State at Utah – Versus

6 p.m.
Colorado State at New Mexico – the mtn.

7 p.m.
College Football Scoreboard – ESPN

Vanderbilt at Tennessee – ESPNU

7:30 p.m.
Tulsa at Southern Miss – CBS College Sports

Cal at Stanford – Versus

Kansas State at Nebraska – ESPN (7:45 p.m. kickoff)
Kentucky at Georgia – ESPN2 (7:45 p.m. kickoff)

8 p.m.
ABC Coverage Map
Kansas at Texas – ABC
Oregon at Arizona – ABC

10:30 p.m.
Nevada at New Mexico – ESPNU

College Football Viewing Picks for 11/14/09, All Times Eastern

Schedule courtesy of Matt’s College Sports

College Gameday, live from Fort Worth, TX – ESPN, 10 a.m.

noon
Louisville at Syracuse – Big East Network

Big Ten Network Gamefinder
Indiana at Penn State – Big Ten Network
Michigan at Wisconsin – Big Ten Network
South Dakota State at Minnesota – Big Ten Network

Tennessee at Ole Miss – CBS
Houston at Central Florida – CBS College Sports

James Madison at UMass – Comcast SportsNet New England/The Comcast Network

Michigan State at Purdue – ESPN
Georgia Tech at Duke – ESPN2
Northwestern at Illinois – ESPN Classic
Florida State at Wake Forest – ESPNU

Texas at Baylor – FSN

Clemson at NC State – Raycom

Kentucky at Vanderbilt – SEC Network (12:21 p.m. kickoff)

12:30 p.m.
Missouri at Kansas State – Versus

2 p.m.
BYU at New Mexico – the mtn.

3 p.m.
College Football Countdown – ABC
College Football Today – CBS (immediately following Tennessee- Ole Miss)

3:30 p.m.
ABC Coverage Map
ESPN2 Coverage Map
Nebraska at Kansas – ABC
Iowa at Ohio State – ABC/ESPN2
Miami (FL) at North Carolina – ABC/ESPN2

Florida at South Carolina – CBS
Delaware at Navy – CBS College Sports

Stanford at USC – FSN

6 p.m.
UNLV at Air Force – the mtn.

7 p.m.
Alabama at Mississippi State – ESPN
Auburn at Georgia – ESPN2
Louisiana Tech at LSU – ESPNU

Texas A&M at Oklahoma – FSN

Arizona at Cal – Versus

7:30 p.m.
Utah at TCU – CBS College Sports

Troy at Arkansas – Comcast Sports South

8 p.m.
ABC Coverage Map
Notre Dame at Pittsburgh – ABC
Texas Tech at Oklahoma State – ABC

10 p.m.
Wyoming at San Diego State – the mtn.

10:15 p.m.
Arizona State at Oregon – ESPN

Various Sports Press Releases

Let’s give you some general sports press releases. I’ll begin with ESPN’s SportsNation which set a record for Brett Favre mentions.

Guinness World Records® Recognizes SportsNation for Most ‘Favre’ Mentions in an Hour

In a matter of one hour Monday, SportsNation – fleetingly known as FavreNation – became a Guinness World Record holder.

In anticipation of ESPN’s Monday Night Football matchup of Brett Favre and the Minnesota Vikings against the Green Bay Packers, SportsNation’s “Brett Favre Blowout” on Monday afternoon featured hosts Colin Cowherd and Michelle Beadle attempting to reference Favre at least 200 times and as many as 275 times during the show.

Guinness World Record Adjudicator Stuart Claxton was on hand at ESPN’s Bristol, Conn., studios for the show, during which he officially witnessed and kept track of the legitimate mentions of Brett Favre in order for SportsNation to qualify for the Guinness World record for the “Most Mentions of a Name in a Television Program.”

Guinness World Records’ guidelines for the record attempt:

• The television program must be live and last a maximum of one hour.
• Only clearly audible mentions of the name on-air in the final broadcast count towards the final total. References in on-screen text are not eligible for inclusion.
• The mentions must be made as part of the show’s primary dialogue or discussion; inclusions of the name in background noise, audience chatter or music do not count.
• Mentions of the name must all be in the context of a discussion and used in sentences which are ostensive and make statements of either fact or value.

FavreNation on Monday included Weird Web Stories featuring Brett Favre, a mock interview in which Michelle posed questions to the world’s most famous No. 4, Michelle sporting a different Favre T-shirt in each show segment and numerous instances of the word “Favre” becoming a verb, an adverb or an adjective. After the first 10 minutes of the show, Claxton had counted 53 Favre references.

At the “End of the Day,” SportsNation was officially recognized for mentioning Favre 203 times and is now the rightful owner of a Guinness World Record for most mentions of a name in a television program. The show’s record is now in line for inclusion in the 2011 edition of the Guinness World Records.

“It is great to see ESPN celebrate multiple Guinness World Record-holder Brett Favre’s achievements in the NFL,” said Stuart Claxton, Guinness World Records adjudicator. “SportsNation are now officially the Guinness World Record holder for Most Mentions of a Name in a Television Program with a total of 203 mentions of the name Brett Favre. Congratulations to Colin and Michelle and everyone involved at ESPN.”

“All of us at SportsNation are humbled to have a record that will be listed in the same book as the world’s largest pizza and the world’s longest fingernails,” said coordinating producer Jamie Horowitz, a co-creator of the show along with Kevin Wildes.

For more information on the Guinness World Records, visit the official Web site: www.guinnessworldrecords.com.

On SportsNation, Colin Cowherd and Michelle Beadle interact with fans throughout the telecast, essentially making sports fans the third host of the show. The show regularly airs weekdays at 4 p.m., and re-airs at midnight, on ESPN2. Fans can deliver their input via Twitter (@SportsNation); Facebook (ESPN-SportsNation); ESPN.com’s SportsNation Web page; e-mail (sportsnation@espn.com); and phone calls (1-888-FAN-ESPN) before, during and after the show.

ESPN UK came to an agreement with FIFA to air classic World Cup matches on ESPN Classic across the pond.

ESPN SECURES FIFA WORLD CUP ARCHIVE FOOTAGE

Legendary FIFA World Cup matches to be screened on ESPN and ESPN Classic

^{October 2009: ESPN today announced a rights agreement with the world governing football body, FIFA to show extensive archive matches and footage from the history of the FIFA World Cup Finals, from 1930-2006. These games will be available immediately and will continue on the channels in the run-up to the World Cup in South Africa, on ESPN Classic and ESPN. The multi-year deal also includes broadcast rights for a range of other content on ESPN’s channels. ESPN’s agreement with FIFA includes:}

• ^{150 Classic Matches}
• ^{14 x FIFA World Cup Official Films from 1930-2002}
• ^{Top 20 FIFA World Cup Moments (1 x 52 minutes)}
• ^{FIFA World Cup Stories (6 x 30 minutes)}

^{The Official FIFA Films and classic FIFA World Cup matches will also be shown on ESPN’s recently launched UK channel (Sky, Virgin Media, Top Up TV, BT Vision & Tiscali) mid-next year, in the run up to the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.}

^{Jeroen Oerlemans, ESPN, Vice President, TV Channels Europe, Middle East and Africa said: “With the 2010 FIFA World Cup just around the corner we are pleased to add more first class international football content to the channels. With 150 classic matches on ESPN and ESPN Classic, fans will be able to see some of the greatest ever football games played at the world’s legendary FIFA World Cup tournaments. The FIFA Films archive helps us deliver top quality archive football to a wide audience across Europe, the Middle East and Africa.”}

^{“We are proud of this deal primarily because it will benefit fans of soccer as well as the sport itself,” said Niclas Ericson, Director of FIFA’s TV Division. “Opening up the FIFA Film Archives to a global broadcaster will allow viewers access to classic footage from the very first World Cup right up to the present, and keep the passion for the sport alive long after the final whistle at the FIFA World Cup.”}

^{ESPN Classic is available on Sky and Virgin Media on the following channel numbers:}

^{Sky: ESPN Classic (channel 429)}

^{Virgin Media: ESPN America (channel 533)}

^{ESPN is available on Sky, Virgin Media, BT Vision, Top Up TV, Tiscali and UPC (in Ireland) on the following channel numbers:}

^{Sky: ESPN (channel 417), ESPN HD (channel 442)}

^{Virgin Media: ESPN (channel 529), ESPN HD (channel 530)}

^{BT Vision: ESPN (channel 34)}

^{Top UP TV: ESPN (channel 34)}

^{Tiscali: ESPN (channel 555)}

^{UPC (in Ireland) ESPN (channel 407)}

Motorsports This Week on ESPN and ABC

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Live from California on ABC

The Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup continues this weekend as the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races for 500 miles on Sunday, Oct. 11, at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif. ESPN’s live, flag-to-flag coverage of the Pepsi 500 will air on ABC. The telecast begins with NASCAR Countdown at 2:30 p.m. ET and the race’s green flag is at 3:31 p.m.

ESPN’s coverage of the final 11 races of the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule will air on ABC, including all 10 races in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. ESPN’s coverage from California includes NASCAR Sprint Cup final practice on Saturday, Oct. 10, at 3 p.m. airing on ESPN2.

Dr. Jerry Punch will be lap-by-lap announcer for ESPN’s coverage, with analysis by 1999 NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Dale Jarrett and two-time NASCAR champion crew chief Andy Petree. Reporting from the pits will be Dave Burns, Jamie Little, Shannon Spake and Vince Welch, with two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion crew chief Tim Brewer in the ESPN Craftsman Tech Garage.

Allen Bestwick will host the pre-race NASCAR Countdown program with analysis by 1989 NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Rusty Wallace and Brad Daugherty, co-owner of a winning team in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, in the ESPN pit studio.

Also this week, ESPN Classic will air an episode of the ESPN signature series SportsCentury on Monday, Oct. 12, at 8:30 a.m.

Tom Cruise Narrates Hendrick Motorsports Documentary Sunday on ABC

TOGETHER: The Hendrick Motorsports Story, NASCAR Media Group’s documentary-style film chronicling the history of the eight-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship team, will air Sunday, Oct. 11, at 1:30 p.m. ET on ABC, prior to the network’s live Pepsi 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup race coverage from Fontana, Calif.

Narrated by three-time Academy Award nominee Tom Cruise and presented by Pepsi, TOGETHER employs exclusive interviews, never-before-seen archival footage, thrilling racing sequences and rare family photography to detail the personal relationships and emotional events that have shaped one of NASCAR’s most decorated organizations.

Cruise, an auto racing enthusiast, starred in the 1990 NASCAR-themed motion picture Days of Thunder. The script was co-written by Shawn Truax and Ray Didinger and directed by Rory Karpf.

NASCAR Nationwide Series Live from California on ESPN2

ESPN2 continues its season-long coverage of the NASCAR Nationwide Series this weekend as the series races at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif. The live, flag-to-flag telecast airs Saturday, Oct. 10, at 4 p.m. ET, with the green flag at 4:46 p.m. ESPN2 is the home of the NASCAR Nationwide Series all season, with selected races on ESPN and ABC.

Marty Reid will be lap-by-lap announcer for ESPN’s coverage, with analysis by 1999 NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Dale Jarrett and two-time NASCAR champion crew chief Andy Petree. Reporting from the pits will be Dave Burns, Jamie Little, Shannon Spake and Vince Welch, with two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion crew chief Tim Brewer in the ESPN Craftsman Tech Garage.

Allen Bestwick will host the pre-race NASCAR Countdown program with analysis by 1989 NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Rusty Wallace and Brad Daugherty, owner of a winning team in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, in the ESPN pit studio.

Evernham, LaJoie, Craven on NASCAR Now Roundtable

NASCAR on ESPN analysts Ray Evernham, Randy LaJoie and Ricky Craven will be panelists on NASCAR Now’s weekly roundtable discussion program on Monday, Oct. 12, at 5 p.m. ET on ESPN2. Mike Massaro will host the edition of ESPN2’s daily NASCAR news and information program.

Nicole Manske hosts half-hour episodes of NASCAR Now airing Tuesday through Friday of this week at 5 p.m. Massaro will be joined by Said for the one-hour weekend edition that airs Sunday, Oct. 11, at 10 a.m. with a preview of that day’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif. The weekend wrap-up edition airs at 10 p.m. Sunday. Marty Smith and Angelique Chengelis will report from California for both programs. .

NASCAR Now is hosted by Massaro, Bestwick and Manske and originates from ESPN’s high definition studios in Bristol, Conn. Contributors include NASCAR Insiders Marty Smith and Angelique Chengelis, analysts Ray Evernham, Tim Brewer, Brad Daugherty, Boris Said, Ricky Craven and Randy LaJoie, and ESPN.com reporters Ed Hinton, Terry Blount and David Newton. The NASCAR on ESPN team event coverage team of Rusty Wallace, Dale Jarrett, Dr. Jerry Punch, Andy Petree, Dave Burns, Jamie Little, Spake and Vince Welch also make frequent contributions to NASCAR Now.

Countdown to 1 Continues in NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing

The NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series continues its Countdown to 1 playoffs as the series visits Virginia Motorsports Park in Petersburg, Va., this weekend. ESPN2 will air qualifying and eliminations action from the Virginia NHRA Nationals, with qualifying airing Saturday, Oct. 10, at 10:30 p.m. ET. Eliminations action airs Sunday, Oct. 11, at 7 p.m., with a re-air Monday, Oct. 12, at 5 p.m. on ESPN Classic.

NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing returned to Virginia in 2006 with a race that shattered professional performance barriers, and the two races held there since also produced eye-popping performances. The track’s reputation for being able to handle all that the teams can dish out makes it a perfect venue for the Top Fuel, Funny Car, and Pro Stock teams to begin their crucial three-race run to the world titles.

Paul Page anchors ESPN2’s coverage with analysis by 22-time NHRA winner Mike Dunn. Gary Gerould, Dave Rieff and John Kernan report from the pits. Rieff and Dunn host NHRA RaceDay on Sunday at 11 a.m. to set the stage for that day’s eliminations action.

Other NHRA programming airing on ESPN Networks this week includes highlights from the 2004 K&N Filters NHRA SuperNationals in Englishtown, N.J., airing Monday, Oct. 12, at 3 p.m. on ESPN Classic.

Dale Jr. – Shifting Gears Returns to ESPN Classic Saturday

Two episodes of Dale Jr. – Shifting Gears, the 2008 sports documentary chronicling NASCAR superstar Dale Earnhardt Jr. and his unprecedented move from the team founded by his father to Hendrick Motorsports, air Saturday, Oct. 10, on ESPN Classic. The programs air at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. ET.

The five-part series produced by Earnhardt’s Hammerhead Entertainment originally aired in February and July of 2008, Earnhardt’s first season with Hendrick Motorsports.

Lucas Oil Pro Pulling League Action Airs Sunday on ESPN2

The Lucas Oil Pro Pulling League, which features modified trucks, tractors and other vehicles, will be in action on Sunday, Oct. 11, in a half-hour program beginning at 11:30 a.m. ET on ESPN2.

The programs will feature highlights from an event held in Hamburg, Ky. The league is sanctioned by the American Tractor Pulling Association.

And NESN set a ratings record for televising its first Bruins game on Saturday.

NESN SETS BRUINS SEASON OPENING RATINGS RECORD ON SATURDAY WITH 3.9 HH RATING

BOSTON, MA – NESN, New England’s most watched sports network, earned a 3.9 HH rating in the Boston DMA for Saturday’s Bruins – Hurricanes game, the network’s highest rated Bruins season opening broadcast in 25 years of covering the team. NESN’s 3.9 rating was also the highest average household rating recorded in the Boston DMA during the game’s 7:00 PM to10:00 PM window, besting all other broadcast and cable networks.

“Bruins fans have picked up right where they left off after a record setting 2008-2009 season,” said Sean McGrail, NESN President and CEO. “We are delighted to start the season with another strong rating, demonstrating that Bruins fans are excited that hockey is back in season here in Boston.”

NESN’s Bruins pre-game show Bruins Faceoff LIVE also reached a major benchmark on Saturday. The season-opening edition generated a 1.1 HH rating in Boston and was seen in 28,000 homes, more than any Bruins pre-game show during the 2008-2009 season.

The network’s previous high rating for a season opening broadcast came on January 23, 1995 when the network earned a 3.8 rating for its first broadcast of that lockout shortened season.

That’s it. Links are next.

Some More Releases For You

After watching a horrible pitching performance by the Red Sox and an amazing Indianapolis Colts win (no, I still don’t have a TV and have to depend on watching backdoor websites), I’ll give you some press releases that came into the Fang’s Bites inbox today.

Starting with a new ESPNU branding campaign.

Duke, Florida and Texas in New ESPNU TV Spots

Three new TV spots for ESPNU’s brand campaign will premiere this week on the ESPN networks. The 30-second spots will feature Duke University, University of Florida and the University of Texas at Austin. Duke and Florida’s spot will being airing today (September 21) and the Texas spot will air later in the week.

Duke – showcases a university tour guide escorting prospective students around campus, citing school landmarks and their affiliation with former Duke basketball players, such as Christian Laettner, Grant Hill and Shane Battier. View spot here.

Florida – features two University of Florida fans pose as UF band members, in an attempt to get in to a Gators football game. View spot here.

Texas – a Texas student is caught red-handed trying to steal the Longhorn’s steer, “Bevo.”

Created by ESPN and Wieden + Kennedy New York, the campaign seeks to demonstrate the lifelong passion, culture and traditions that bonds college students and alumni to their respective colleges and universities. Each TV spot will close with the tagline “Never Graduate.”

ESPN announces its women’s basketball Big Monday schedule starting in January.

ESPN Announces Women’s College Basketball Big Monday Schedule for 2009-10 Season

ESPN has announced the 2009-10 Big Monday women’s college basketball schedule featuring the nation’s top teams in action every Monday primarily at 7 p.m. or 9 p.m. ET from Jan. 11 to March 1. New to this year’s schedule is the addition of Big Monday doubleheaders on Feb. 8, Feb. 15 and Feb. 22. Every game will be televised on ESPN2 and will also be available on ESPN360.com.

Entering its fourth season, ESPN2’s Big Monday prime-time Game of the Week series will include 11 games (up from eight) throughout January and February, featuring the best programs in Division I women’s basketball. The series will begin on Jan. 11 at 7:30 p.m. with an ACC matchup featuring Maryland at Virginia.

Before the tipoff of the Big Monday schedule, ESPN will showcase a prime-time matchup in its regular time slot, Monday, Jan. 4, at 7 p.m. pitting the BIG EAST’s Notre Dame at the Big Ten’s Purdue.

Big Monday schedule highlights:

• Defending NCAA Champion Connecticut will appear three times: vs. Duke (Jan. 18 at 7 p.m.), Oklahoma (Feb. 15 at 9 p.m.) and Notre Dame (March 1 at 7 p.m.);
• All 15 teams on the schedule appeared in the 2009 NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament; nine made it to the Sweet Sixteen; four advanced to the Elite Eight; and two played in the Women’s Final Four;
• Every game will be available in HD on ESPN2 HD.

ESPN2’s Women’s College Basketball Schedule for Big Monday (Subject to change)

Date	Time (ET)	Game
Jan 11	7:30 p.m.	Maryland at Virginia
Jan 18	7 p.m.	Connecticut at Duke
Jan 25	7 p.m.	Ohio State at Purdue
Feb 1	7:30 p.m.	Notre Dame at Rutgers
Feb 8	7 p.m.	North Carolina at Duke
Feb 8	9 p.m.	Tennessee at Vanderbilt
Feb 15	7 p.m.	North Carolina at Virginia
Feb 15	9 p.m.	Connecticut vs. Oklahoma
Feb 22	7 p.m.	LSU at Tennessee
Feb 22	9 p.m.	Baylor at Texas A&M
Mar 1	7 p.m.	Connecticut at Notre Dame

The MLB-themed episode of DIY Network’s Man Caves will air at the end of this month.

DIY NETWORK AND MLB NETWORK CREATE THE ULTIMATE WINDY CITY BASEBALL LOUNGE FOR AVID CHICAGO WHITE SOX FAN, WINNER OF THE “WHO WANTS A MAN CAVE?” CONTEST

Special Edition of Popular Primetime Series “‘Man Caves’’ Featuring Transformation Premieres

Tuesday, Sept. 29 at 9 p.m. ET on DIY Network and Monday, Oct. 26 at 9 p.m. ET on MLB Network

NEW YORK – September 21, 2009 — DIY Network and MLB Network have teamed up to create the ultimate baseball man cave for Chicago native Dave Roseman, a die-hard fan of the Chicago White Sox for a special episode of DIY Network’s popular primetime series, Man Caves. DIY Network series hosts, former NFL player Tony “Goose” Siragusa and licensed contractor Jason Cameron, along with MLB Network studio analysts and former Major League Baseball players Harold Reynolds and Mitch Williams worked together to transform Roseman’s garage into a fully decked out man cave equipped with officially licensed MLB merchandise, high-tech toys and deluxe furnishings. Viewers can witness the fast-paced renovation from start to finish during a special episode of Man Caves on DIY Network on Tuesday, Sept. 29 at 9 p.m. ET, and on MLB Network on Monday, Oct. 26 at 9 p.m. ET.

DIY Network’s Man Caves spent three days in mid-September renovating Roseman’s Evanston, Ill., garage into a multifunctional space complete with MLB Network insignia and tributes to both the Chicago White Sox’s U.S. Cellular Field and the Chicago Cubs’ Wrigley Field in honor of his wife Becca, who is a lifelong Cubs fan. The centerpiece of the man cave is a hydraulic Chicago White Sox professional pool table that rises and falls into the garage floor with the simple touch of a button and is surrounded by opposite walls devoted to the Windy City rivalry.

In addition to his new man cave, DIY Network and MLB Network surprised Dave with an impromptu visit to U.S. Cellular Field on Wednesday, Sept. 9 for a special opportunity to throw out the first pitch at the Oakland Athletics vs. Chicago White Sox game. While at the ballpark, the cameras followed Dave as he met members of the White Sox as well as manager Ozzie Guillen, and was rewarded with a custom-made jersey and star treatment as he viewed the game from his very own suite.

“The space turned out even more amazing than we anticipated and both DIY Network and MLB Network were fantastic,” said Roseman. “How they were able to convert our garage into the ultimate baseball man cave was unreal. It’s like having a stadium in our own backyard and we feel like season ticket holders. And getting to throw the first pitch at a White Sox game and meeting some of the players was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”

Dave will get his baseball fix watching his 42-inch flat screen TV accompanied by a home theater system and extensive cabinetry featuring an oversized image of U.S. Cellular Park, while Becca will feel at home relaxing in their MLB Network recliners leaned up against a brick-faced wall dedicated to the architecture of Wrigley Field. This baseball-themed man cave continues to the outside with French doors leading to a patio with a wood pergola, brick pavers, an outdoor lounge set and an oversized grill perfect for pre-game festivities.

“It was great building a man cave for such a diehard baseball fan, and with a little one on the way, his space is about to shrink,” added Siragusa. “It was fun to see how psyched Dave was when we were able to bring the feel of his favorite ballpark into the home.”

“I had an awesome time helping create this man cave for Dave with Tony, Jason and Harold,” said Williams. “Dave is a true die-hard baseball fan, and whether it’s watching a White Sox game or MLB Network, he deserves to have a space like this to indulge his passion for the game.”

The ultimate baseball man cave also includes must-have accessories, amenities and furnishings: oversized bean bags; Chicago White Sox and Chicago Cubs barstools, glassware and collectibles; a hot dog griller and mini-fridge; cooling and heating systems; and mock stadium and pendant lights similar to those found in ballparks and in MLB Network’s Studio 42. The majority of MLB merchandise seen in the episode can be found on MLB.com.

As the go-to destination for home improvement television, DIY Network teamed up with the ultimate television destination for baseball fans, MLB Network, to deliver one lucky viewer a man cave fit for the major leagues with their “Who Wants A Man Cave?” contest. The winning video submission featured Dave explaining why the couple deserved the baseball man cave and highlighted their families’ intense baseball feud. Married for four years, they recently moved out of the city of Chicago and to suburban Evanston to be closer to their families and to prepare for the birth of their first child, who they are expecting at the end of September. Their new home is over 110-years-old and the renovation list is long. Dave, 29, and Becca, 28, enjoy getting their hands dirty, but admit that with full-time jobs (Dave is an underwriter and Becca is an instructional coach for Glenview School District 34) and a baby on the way, their DIY time is limited.

Whether building a swanky cigar bar, a well-equipped wine cellar or an upscale sportsman’s lodge, DIY Network’s Man Caves delivers jaw-dropping getaways outfitted with high-tech toys and all the manly essentials for homeowners and even celebrities like Snoop Dogg and Rainn Wilson. Each half-hour episode follows hosts, former NFL star Tony “Goose” Siragusa and licensed contractor Jason Cameron as they transform ordinary spaces into a guy’s paradise. Man Caves airs on DIY Network every Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET with new episodes premiering on Tuesday, Sept. 29 at 9 p.m. ET.

MLB Network’s signature show, MLB Tonight, features on-air analysts Mitch Williams and Harold Reynolds, and airs live beginning at 6 p.m. ET until the final MLB game of the night ends between Monday and Saturday. The show features live look-ins of games in progress, updates, highlights, reporting and analysis. MLB Network is available nationwide on DIRECTV Ch. 213 and Verizon FiOS Ch. 86, and local listings can be found with the Channel Locator at www.MLBNetwork.com. Viewers can catch up on the latest highlights and programming updates by following MLB Network on Twitter and Facebook.

For more information on DIY Network’s Man Caves, experts, tips and home improvement programs, visit the network’s companion Web site at www.DIYNetwork.com. Members of the media may also obtain additional press materials, talent bios and show images by registering at DIY Network’s online media newsroom. Viewers can also become fans of DIY Network and interact with other home improvement enthusiasts and do-it-yourselfers through Twitter and Facebook. DIY Network is available nationwide on DISH Network Ch. 111 and DIRECTV Ch. 230, and additional cable channel designations may be found by checking local listings and www.DIYNetwork.com/tv.

ESPN Classic shows the Australian Football League Grand Final early Saturday morning/late Friday night depending on your time zone. And it will be live.

AFL Grand Finale Live on ESPN Classic, ESPN360.com Saturday

The Australian Football League’s grand finale — the Toyota AFL Grand Final — will be aired in the U.S. live from Melbourne Cricket Ground on ESPN Classic on Saturday, Sept. 26, at 12:30 a.m. (Friday, Sept. 25 at 9:30 p.m. PT). A live simulcast will also be available on ESPN360.com, ESPN’s 24/7 online destination for live sports. St. Kilda’s win over the Western Bulldogs gives the Saints and their captain Nick Riewoldt an opportunity for their first premiership since 1966. They will face the Geelong Cats and their star player Gary Ablett, fresh off a win over the Collingwood.

The AFL and ESPN have enjoyed a lengthy relationship, stretching back to ESPN’s early years. In addition to the U.S., ESPN delivers the AFL to Canada, the UK, Ireland, Sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean region.

And ESPN and ABC tell us what’s in store for motorsports this week on the family of networks.

Motorsports This Week on ESPN and ABC

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Live from Dover on ABC

The Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup continues this weekend as the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races for 400 miles on Sunday, Sept. 27, at the Monster Mile, Dover (Del.) International Speedway. ESPN’s live, flag-to-flag coverage of the race will air on ABC. The telecast begins with NASCAR Countdown at 1 p.m. ET and the race’s green flag is at 2:15 p.m.

ESPN’s coverage of the final 11 races of the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule will air on ABC, including all 10 races in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. ESPN’s coverage from Dover includes NASCAR Sprint Cup qualifying on Friday, Sept. 25, at 3 p.m. on ESPN2, and a same-day telecast of NASCAR Sprint Cup final practice on Saturday at 7 p.m. on ESPN.

Dr. Jerry Punch will be lap-by-lap announcer for ESPN’s coverage, with analysis by 1999 NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Dale Jarrett and two-time NASCAR champion crew chief Andy Petree. Reporting from the pits will be Dave Burns, Jamie Little, Shannon Spake and Vince Welch, with two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion crew chief Tim Brewer in the ESPN Tech Garage.

Allen Bestwick will host the pre-race NASCAR Countdown program with analysis by 1989 NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Rusty Wallace and Brad Daugherty, co-owner of a winning team in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, in the ESPN pit studio.

NASCAR Nationwide Series Live from Dover on ESPN2

ESPN2 continues its season-long coverage of the NASCAR Nationwide Series this weekend as the series races at Dover (Del.) International Speedway. The live, flag-to-flag telecast airs Saturday, Sept. 25, at 3 p.m. ET, with the green flag at 3:45 p.m. ESPN2 is the home of the NASCAR Nationwide Series all season, with selected races on ESPN and ABC.

Also on Saturday, coverage of NASCAR Nationwide Series qualifying airs at 10:30 a.m., while coverage of final practice airs Friday, Sept. 25, at 1:30 p.m., both on ESPN2.

Marty Reid will be lap-by-lap announcer for ESPN’s coverage, with analysis by 1999 NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Dale Jarrett and two-time NASCAR champion crew chief Andy Petree. Reporting from the pits will be Dave Burns, Jamie Little, Shannon Spake and Vince Welch, with two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion crew chief Tim Brewer in the ESPN Tech Garage.

Allen Bestwick will host the pre-race NASCAR Countdown program with analysis by 1989 NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Rusty Wallace and Brad Daugherty, owner of a winning team in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, in the ESPN pit studio.

Evernham, LaJoie, Craven on NASCAR Now Roundtable

NASCAR on ESPN analysts Ray Evernham, Randy LaJoie and Ricky Craven will be panelists on NASCAR Now’s weekly roundtable discussion program on Monday, Sept. 28, at 6 p.m. ET on ESPN2. Allen Bestwick will host the edition of ESPN2’s daily NASCAR news and information program.

Mike Massaro hosts half-hour episodes of NASCAR Now airing Tuesday through Thursday of this week at 5 p.m. and Friday at 4:30 p.m. following ESPN2’s coverage of NASCAR Sprint Cup qualifying at Dover International Speedway.

Massaro will be joined by LaJoie for the one-hour weekend edition that airs Sunday, Sept. 27, at 10 a.m. with a preview of that day’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Dover. The weekend wrap-up edition airs at 10 p.m. Sunday. Nicole Manske and Angelique Chengelis will report from Dover for both programs. .

NASCAR Now is hosted by Massaro, Bestwick and Manske and originates from ESPN’s high definition studios in Bristol, Conn. Contributors include NASCAR Insiders Marty Smith and Angelique Chengelis, analysts Ray Evernham, Tim Brewer, Brad Daugherty, Boris Said, Ricky Craven and Randy LaJoie, and ESPN.com reporters Ed Hinton, Terry Blount and David Newton. The NASCAR on ESPN team event coverage team of Rusty Wallace, Dale Jarrett, Dr. Jerry Punch, Andy Petree, Dave Burns, Jamie Little, Spake and Vince Welch also make frequent contributions to NASCAR Now.

Countdown to 1 Continues in NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing

The NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series continues its Countdown to 1 playoffs as the series visits Texas Motorplex near Dallas for the NHRA Fall Nationals this weekend. ESPN2 will air qualifying and eliminations action, with qualifying airing Sunday, Sept. 27, at 12:15 a.m. ET, and again at 11:30 a.m. Eliminations action airs at 7 p.m., with a re-air Monday, Sept. 28, at 5 p.m. on ESPN Classic.

Texas Motorplex is one of three all-concrete dragstrips on the schedule, which provide optimum traction and allow crew chiefs the opportunity to achieve national record performances. The event, which is the second chance for Countdown teams to earn points, takes place on the second of four consecutive race weekends in this crucial segment of the home stretch.

Paul Page anchors ESPN2’s coverage with analysis by 22-time NHRA winner Mike Dunn. Gary Gerould, Dave Rieff and John Kernan report from the pits. Rieff and Dunn host NHRA RaceDay on Sunday at 11 a.m. to set the stage for that day’s eliminations action.

Other NHRA programming airing on ESPN Networks this week includes highlights from the 2004 NHRA Summer Nationals in Topeka, Kansas, airing Monday, Sept. 28, at 3 p.m. on ESPN Classic. In addition, action from the recent Sportsman Series event at Concord, N.C., airs Sunday, Sept. 27, at 11 p.m. on ESPN2.

I have some more press release posts so keep your RSS and Twitter feeds updated.

TSN Celebrates 25 Years

In the same year that ESPN celebrates its 30th anniversary, Canada’s version of ESPN, TSN celebrates its 25 anniversary. Here’s a press release on TSN’s celebratory plans.

Canada’s Sports Leader Celebrates 25 Years

– Thousands of fans across the country celebrate TSN’s 25th anniversary on the Celebration Tour –
– Launch of TSNshop.ca makes vintage TSN gear available for fans –
– TSN 25 Years photo book in stores September 15 –
– Retro TSN promotional campaign begins September 1 –
– ESPN Classic relives TSN’s first day with “TSN Launch Special” –

TORONTO (August 31, 2009) – Happy 25th birthday, TSN! Since it launched on September 1, 1984, TSN has transformed the way Canadians watch sports on television. TSN has been celebrating the milestone in style with thousands of fans joining the network for 10 special broadcasts of SPORTSCENTRE in 10 communities across the country on the widely popular Celebration Tour, which wraps up today from Paradise, NL. As the tour comes to an end, TSN will continue to celebrate its 25th anniversary with additional initiatives including the launch of the official TSN e-store, TSNShop.ca; the national release of the book TSN 25 Years; a TSN25 micro-site on TSN.ca; the debut of a revamped on-air look for SPORTSCENTRE; the return of classic TSN promos from the 1980s and 1990s; and a re-broadcast of the very first TSN program on ESPN Classic.

“We are all incredibly proud of TSN and what this network has accomplished. While much has changed in the sports broadcasting world over the past 25 years, the one thing that remains constant is Canada’s passion for sports. That passion has been displayed loud and clear throughout the Celebration Tour,” said Phil King, President of TSN. “Our 25th anniversary is a wonderful opportunity to look back on the past, but also to look forward to what will be an exciting new era in sports broadcasting. Over the next 25 years TSN will remain firmly committed to bringing Canadians the best sports coverage possible.”

On September 1, ESPN Classic will relive TSN’s first day with the original “TSN Launch Special”, the same special that aired on TSN on September 1, 1984. ESPN Classic’s retrospective begins at 12 noon ET – the exact time TSN launched 25 years ago. ESPN classic will also feature the first Blue Jays game to air on TSN.

The following is an overview of initiatives commemorating TSN’s 25th anniversary:

Celebration Tour

The Celebration Tour wraps today with a special edition of SPORTSCENTRE live from Paradise, NL, at 6:30 p.m. ET. Thousands of fans have already joined TSN on the Celebration Tour during broadcasts from Kaslo, B.C.; Red Deer, AB; Watrous, SK; Dauphin, MB; Kingston, ON; Elk Lake, ON; Trois-Pistoles, QC; Fredericton Junction, NB, and Amherst, NS.

As part of the Tour, each of the winning communities receives a $25,000 community refresh from Kraft Canada to be used for improvements to a recreational facility in the prize-winning area.

Highlights of the Tour to date include the first broadcast from beautiful Kootenay Lake in Kaslo, BC, with TSN anchors Darren Dutchyschen and Jennifer Hedger in an axe throwing competition, and a War of 1812 reenactment starring Jay Onrait and Dan O’Toole (complete with costumes).

An important focus of the Celebration Tour is sharing stories of community pride, perseverance and the love of sport from across the country. Some of these stories include the Red Deer Boxing Club’s positive influence on the lives of the area’s youth and Vicki Keith’s commitment to making sports accessible to every member of her community through Kingston’s YMCA. Other features spotlighted the pride and passion Trois-Pistoles has for its local baseball team and its stadium, as well as the heartwarming tale of Garry Brooks and his lifetime of dedication to keeping local hockey running in Fredericton Junction that led to the construction of a brand new arena.

TSNShop.ca

Beginning tomorrow, TSN will give fans an opportunity to take home part of the network with the launch of TSNShop.ca. Allowing fans to purchase TSN merchandise for the first time, the e-store will feature a wide range of clothing and sporting items for men and women including T-shirts, hats, sweatshirts and sports bags. Fans can own a piece of TSN history with exclusive vintage TSN gear featuring the original yellow and black TSN logo. Football fans can also get exclusive CFL ON TSN merchandise on TSNshop.ca.

TSN 25 Years Book

Available in major bookstores across the country on September 15, TSN 25 Years delivers a candid look back at a quarter-century of sports through the network’s lens. TSN 25 Years will allow fans to relive their favourite sports moments and memories with 25 years of feature stories, Top 10 TV moments and highlights with commentary from TSN personalities. TSN 25 Years is published by Wiley Publishing.

TSN.ca

TSN’s industry-leading website offers fans a look back at some of the most memorable moments in sports over the past 25 years with a special micro-site at www.tsn.ca/tsn25. The site features in-depth articles, photo galleries, a TSN timeline as well as sports trivia and TSN facts and figures.

SPORTSCENTRE

When TSN turns 25, Canada’s most-watched sportscast will have a new look with an enhanced HD graphics package that will be used for all highlights and SPORSTSCENTRE Updates. SPORTSCENTRE will also have several features on TSN’s 25th anniversary including a special 25th anniversary edition of the SPORTSCENTRE Top 10.

TSN Retro Promotions

TSN has opened the vault and dusted off some classic promos from the network’s early days. Throughout the month of September, TSN will bring back promos from the network’s “See it. Live it.” and “Real Life. Real Drama.” eras. Long time viewers will remember promotions such as “Rodsky and Dutch” with SPORTSCENTRE anchors Rod Smith and Darren Dutchyshen spoofing the famous 70s television series.

ESPN Classic

ESPN Classic joins in on the celebrations on September 1 with a look back at TSN’s first day on the air. Beginning at 12 noon ET, ESPN Classic will feature the TSN Launch Show which originally aired at 12 noon ET on September 1, 1984 – the first hour in TSN’s history – as well as the network’s first ever Toronto Blue Jays broadcast featuring the Jays taking on the Minnesota Twins, also from September 1, 1984.

Official broadcaster of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games and London 2012 Games of the Olympiad, TSN, a division of CTVglobemedia, is Canada’s Sports Leader and Canada’s most-watched specialty network. TSN’s comprehensive broadcast schedule features an exciting lineup of sports including NHL, IIHF, CFL, NFL, NBA, Blue Jays Baseball, Season of Champions Curling, Golf’s Majors, F1, NASCAR Sprint Cup, Grand Slam Tennis, Championship Boxing and Mixed Martial Arts events. TSN properties include TSN2, TSN MOBILE and the industry leading sports website TSN.ca. TSN delivers more sports coverage in High Definition than any other network in Canada.

TSN certainly paved the way for Rogers Sportsnet and The Score in Canada, but is the leader of all of the sports networks in the Great White North.

Some Thursday Night Links

I have a lot of work to do on the blog tonight and was delayed thanks to mom insisting I take her to the mall so she could find something for a memorial the entire family is attending on Friday. Suffice to say the plans I had for this evening have been pushed back to about 4 a.m. with all of the shit I have to do. I understand, mom doesn’t like dad driving at night and she’s not confident with her driving skills at this time so I have to drive to her place to pick her up and take her to the places she wants to go. I grit my teeth, but I do it. Gotta do it. She’s the only mom I have.

Anyway, let’s do some late night links then I have a slew of press releases for tonight, then some housekeeping for tomorrow since the megalinks will most likely be late again with all of the stuff I have to do at work and for the memorial.

Starting with Stephen Wilson of the Associated Press who has a scathing statement from the International Olympic Committee regarding the U.S. Olympic Network.

Seattle Times Olympics beat writer Ron Judd wonders if the USON announcement might undermine the U.S. bid for the 2016 Olympics.

Philip Hersh of the Chicago Tribune and Los Angeles Times says the U.S. Olympic Committee’s actions only stand to hurt Chicago’s chances to host the Games.

Meg James of the Times says USON is already causing headaches just mere days after the formal announcement.

Bruce Allen of the Boston Sports Media Watch, he tells us that long time Voice of your New England Patriots, Gil Santos, will be inducted into the WBZ Hall of Fame. Gil was the morning drive sports anchor at News Radio 1030 WBZ for 38 years. It’s a well-deserved honor. Gil remains with the Patriots and is the longest tenured announcer in the NFL.

Ray Frager of the Sports Media Journal says a Baltimore sports talk show has been told to fix things. Keith Thibeault of SMJ talks about ESPN’s Ball Track technology that will be unveiled at the Home Run Derby.

Ken McMillan of the Hudson Valley Times Herald-Record feels Ball Track could be like Fox Sports’ glowing puck if not used correctly. Ken writes that Army football has a new home in the Hudson Valley.

Laura Nachman recaps the memorial for Philly sports anchor Gary Papa.

Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes that Darren Pang joins Fox Sports Midwest as an analyst for the Blues, moving current analyst Bernie Federko to ice-level.

Norm Sanders of the Belleville (IL) News-Democrat also writes about Panger coming from Phoenix to join the Blues.

Back to the L.A. Times, Mark Medina writes that Candace Parker lands her own SportsCenter promo later this month.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News says the local ESPN Radio affiliate is making some lineup changes as of Friday.

Fabio Pereira of the Hollywood Reporter says mixed martial arts is growing thanks to UFC and its Ultimate Fighter series on Spike.

The Big Lead gets ESPN’s official statement on Erin Andrews taking a ball to the chin during Wednesday’s Dodgers-Mets game.

Dan Levy of On the DL wonders in the Sporting News if ESPN hates the San Diego Padres.

Dave Kohl from the Major League Programs blog looks at classic offerings on CBS Sports as well as the decline of ESPN Classic.

Maury Brown of the Biz of Baseball makes an announcement of a new content partnership.

That’s going to end our links for now. Stories that will be part of the Friday megalinks are already out so I’ll stop with the links and work on a bunch of press release posts.

ESPN Announces 2009-10 College Football Announcing Teams – Lions Fans Prepare to Boycott

ESPN has announced its multiple announcing teams for college football this season. There are a lot of them. This includes the studio teams from College Gameday to ESPNU. There have been a few shakeups among the teams. For instance, Brad Nessler no longer works with Bob Griese and Paul Maguire, however, Pam Ward returns. You’ll be quite surprised at the assignments. Get ready to see which team you’ll like and which team you’ll most likely hate at the end of the season.

College Football Commentators Include Millen Joining, Nessler on ESPN Saturday Nights, Palmer in ABC Studio

Also New: Huard on ESPNU SEC Primetime; Two New Teams: Pasch, Griese and Spielman, Patrick, James and Cox; Andrews Adds ESPN Saturday Prime Time

Returning: Musburger, Herbstreit and Salters on ABC Saturday Night Football; Fowler, James, Palmer and Andrews on ESPN Thursday Primetime

ESPN’s 2009 college football game and studio announcer assignments will include the addition of Matt Millen and new roles for several commentators for coverage across ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN360.com, ESPN Regional Television syndication – including the new weekly SEC over-the-air package — ESPN Classic, ESPN Radio and ESPN Mobile TV. Highlights of changes:

• Matt Millen, who will also provide analysis on ESPN’s NFL studio coverage, will work Saturday telecasts on ABC with Sean McDonough, who called select Friday and Saturday games last year, and reporter Holly Rowe who moves from ESPN’s Saturday prime time games.

• Brad Nessler, who called top games on ABC last year, will work ESPN Saturday prime time telecasts (primarily at 7:45 p.m. ET) with analyst Todd Blackledge and reporter Erin Andrews, who adds the Saturday game to her ESPN Thursday night series role.

• Jesse Palmer will add Saturday studio analysis on ABC to his Thursday night ESPN game telecast. In the new position, Palmer will provide pre-game, halftime and post-game analysis for every telecast on ABC and on the half-hour College Football Countdown at 3 p.m.

• Analyst Brock Huard and commentator Eric Collins will work the new exclusive ESPNU Saturday night SEC game (generally at 7 p.m.), part of the recent landmark 15-year agreement with the conference.

• Craig James, who will continue as an analyst on ESPN’s Thursday night series, Mike Patrick, the voice of many top events on ESPN for 27 years, and reporter Heather Cox will form a new team for Saturday telecasts on ABC.

• Analysts Bob Griese and Chris Spielman will join Dave Pasch on the Saturday noon telecast on ESPN. Last year, Spielman called select Friday and Saturday games while Bob Griese worked Saturday games on ABC.

• Andre Ware will provide analysis on the new ESPN Regional Television Saturday SEC over-the-air syndication package — also the result of ESPN’s agreement with the conference — with commentator Dave Neal, a long-time voice of the SEC, and reporter Cara Capuano. Coverage will begin at noon with Rob Stone and Matt Stinchcomb in the studio.

• Veteran radio play-by-play commentator Bill Rosinski will join ESPN Radio to call the weekly game broadcast with returning analyst Dennis Franchione and reporter Joe Schad.

In addition to the new assignments, commentator pairings will return on two popular series. Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit and Lisa Salters will work ABC’s Saturday Night Football series, broadcast television’s only weekly primetime game (8 p.m.). Chris Fowler, Palmer, James and Andrews will call the ESPN College Football Primetime Thursday telecast (generally at 7:30 p.m.).

In addition to the Thursday game, Fowler will host College GameDay (Saturdays at 10 a.m.) for his 20th season. Lee Corso, who has contributed to the show since its debut in 1987, Kirk Herbstreit and Desmond Howard will also return to provide analysis.

Host Rece Davis and analysts Lou Holtz and Mark May will return to work ESPN’s Saturday pre-game, halftime, post-game and College Football Final (Saturdays at midnight) studio coverage, as well as call select ESPN and ESPN2 weekday games.

Returning announcer pairings to television’s deepest field of commentators include: Mark Jones and Bob Davie; Ron Franklin and Ed Cunningham; Joe Tessitore and Rod Gilmore; Clay Matvick and David Diaz-Infante; and Charlie Neal and Jay Walker.

ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN Regional Television and ESPN360.com Game Pairings

Note: Additional commentators will be utilized throughout the season.

Saturday Night Football (on ABC) – Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit & Lisa Salters

ESPN College Football Primetime (Saturday) – Brad Nessler, Todd Blackledge & Erin Andrews

ESPN2 College Football Primetime (Saturday) – Mark Jones & Bob Davie

ESPNU SEC Saturday primetime – Eric Collins & Brock Huard

ESPN College Football Primetime (Thursday) – Chris Fowler, Craig James, Jesse Palmer & Erin Andrews

ABC Saturday Afternoon – Sean McDonough, Matt Millen & Holly Rowe

ABC Saturday Afternoon – Mike Patrick, Craig James & Heather Cox

ABC or ESPN Saturday Afternoon – Ron Franklin & Ed Cunningham

ESPN College Football (Saturday afternoons) – Dave Pasch, Bob Griese and Chris Spielman

ESPN2 College Football (Saturday afternoon) – Pam Ward & Ray Bentley

ESPNU Saturday noon – Clay Matvick & David Diaz-Infante

ESPNU Saturday afternoon – Todd Harris & Charles Arbuckle

ESPNU late Saturday – Carter Blackburn & TBD

ESPN and ESPN2 Fridays and select ABC Saturdays – Joe Tessitore & Rod GIlmore

ABC, ESPN and ESPN2 Saturdays and select Fridays – Terry Gannon & David Norrie

ESPN and ESPN2 midweek games – Rece Davis, Mark May, Lou Holtz & Rob Stone

ESPNU Thursday – Charlie Neal & Jay Walker

ESPN Radio games - Bill Rosinski, Dennis Franchione & Joe Schad

SEC Network (ESPN Regional Television syndicated games) – Dave Neal, Andre Ware & Cara Capuano

BIG EAST Network (ESPN Regional Television syndicated games) – Mike Gleason, John Congemi & Quint Kessinich

ESPN Regional Television MAC Syndication – Michael Reghi & Doug Chapman

Additional commentators include Bob Wischusen, Rob Stone, Dave Lamont and Clay Matvick providing play-by-play and analysts Shaun King, JC Pearson and Jon Berger.

ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU and ESPN Regional Television Studio Assignments

College GameDay (Saturdays at 10 a.m. on ESPN) – Chris Fowler, Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit and Desmond Howard

Pre-game, halftime and post-game, College Football Countdown (Saturdays on ABC) – John Saunders & Jesse Palmer

ABC Saturday reports – Matt Winer

Pre-game, halftime and post-game, College Football Final (Saturdays on ESPN) – Rece Davis, Lou Holtz & Mark May

Pre-game, halftime and post-game (Saturdays on ESPN2) – Wendi Nix, Todd McShay & Robert Smith

Pre-game, halftime and post-game (Saturdays on ESPNU) – Rob Stone & Matt Stinchcomb (afternoons)

Pre-game, halftime and post-game (Saturdays on ESPNU) – Lowell Galindo, Jay Walker, Tom Luginbill & David Pollack (prime time)

College GameDay on ESPN Radio (Saturdays at noon) – Ryen Russillo, Trevor Matich & TBD

ESPNEWS Overdrive – Dari Nowkah, Kordell Stewart & Shaun King

Inside the Polls (ESPNU) – Lowell Galindo, Tom Luginbill & Tommy Tuberville

SEC syndication studio – Rob Stone & Matt Stinchcomb

SEC Weekly (ESPNU) – Cara Capuano, Matt Stinchcomb, David Pollack or Charles Arbuckle

Big 12 This Week (ESPNU) – Melissa Knowles & Jon Berger

The 2009 college football season on ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN Classic, ESPN360.com, ESPN Radio, ESPN Mobile TV and ESPN Regional Television will total more than 400 regular-and post-season games, highlighted by the beginning of a new 15-year agreement with the SEC providing content across multiple platforms. The schedule will include weekly Saturday night games on ABC, ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU, weekly ESPN and ESPNU Thursday night contests and telecasts every Friday and select Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Sundays.

Also, Carter Blackburn comes over to ESPNU from CBS College Sports where he was languishing and misused. And nice to see the name Cara Capuano back with ESPN. I liked her on ESPNews.

ESPN Classic to Replay Federer-Roddick on Monday

Starting Monday at 9 a.m., ESPN Classic will air Sunday’s epic Roger Federer-Andy Roddick Wimbledon men’s final over a 15 hour period. The program will total 5 hours, covering the entire 4 hour, 17 minute match.

The match is scheduled to air three times, 9 a.m., 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.

Links for Your Thursday Night

Time for some linkage finally. For the 4th of July holiday weekend, the posting may be sparse. It depends on the schedule. Friday will have your usual posts, Primetime & Late Night Viewing Picks, Weekend Viewing Picks, Follow Friday and the megalinks. I know Saturday will be busy so I may not be able to provide links. I hope that Sunday will be a lazy day so I can do the Videos of the Week and other features for you. Keep your RSS feeds updated and if you follow me on Twitter, you’ll certainly know what is posted.

Let’s get to the links.

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand has TBS’ baseball analysts talking about the All-Star Game.

Matthew Futterman of the Wall Street Journal talks with new NFL Players Association chief DeMaurice Smith.

Tom Van Riper of Forbes says attendance and TV ratings are proof that two teams in the Baltimore-Washington area cannot work.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times writes what many of you have been saying regarding NBC’s coverage of Wimbledon. It’s time to end the tape delays.

The Sports Business Daily has a roundup of columns denouncing NBC Sports for its Wimbledon coverage.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell writes an open letter to Lance Armstrong urging him not to participate in this month’s Tour de France.

The Nielsen Ratings Wire blog tells us that NASCAR fans are very loyal to buying American brand cars.

Ken Schott of the Schenectady Gazette reports that a local sports radio show is taking the Friday holiday off.

Alan Pergament of the Buffalo News has a dozen TV picks for the holiday weekend and Wimbledon, MLB and the NFL Network are included.

Ed Barkowitz of the Philadelphia Daily News says Eagles QB Donovan McNabb will star in a new IHOP commercial.

Ray Frager of the Sports Media Journal has highlights of a conference call no-talent hack Colin Cowherd and Michelle Beadle conducted in advance of their new ESPN2 show. Ray also has some “reflections” on the MASN simulcast of the Scott Garceau/Anita Marks radio show.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner has a look at ESPN The Magazine’s Ultimate Franchise ratings.

Tim Lemke from the Washington Times says the NBA’s long relationship with McDonald’s is over.

Tim writes that NBC’s coverage of Wimbledon is angering tennis fans across the country.

Angela Henderson of the Huntington (WV) Herald-Dispatch is happy that NBC is reuniting volleyball announcing team Chris Marlowe and Paul Sunderland this weekend.

Barry Horn of the Dallas Morning News writes that a local sports radio host is resurfacing on the airwaves this week.

Mike Leggett of the Austin American-Statesman went fishing with ESPN college football and basketball announcer Ron Franklin.

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer says Fox Sports Ohio starts its University of Cincinnati sports coverage on Monday.

The Cherry Creek (CO) News says Dish Network abruptly pulled Tennis Channel as of June 30.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News writes that ESPN Classic is bringing back reruns of the old “Sports Challenge” game shows hosted by Dick Enberg.

Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Times talks with the Sparks’ Lisa Leslie about her participation in “The Superstars”.

Bruce Jenkins of the San Francisco Chronicle writes NBC’s coverage of Wimbledon has been inadequate and dreads ESPN2′s covering this year’s U.S. Open.

The Toronto Star’s Chris Zelkovich says Canadian TV won’t be part of the Toronto Indy IRL race.

Brian Bennett of ESPN.com says the Big East Football Confernce and ESPN Regional Television have announced the schedule for this season’s syndicated package.

Multichannel News says Speed is ready to launch what it calls “Big Block Thursday” later this month.

Anthony Crupi of Mediaweek writes that just under 4 million viewers watched the Confederations Cup final between the U.S. and Brazil on ESPN.

Joe Favorito says despite the hard economic times, NASCAR continues to build its brand and its fan base. Joe adds that during the Tour de France, Lance Armstrong will be all over social media.

Deadspin says Jay “The Rat” Mariotti is being rumored to join the Chicago Tribune.

Friend of Fang’s Bites Maury Brown of the Biz of Baseball looks at the new MLB.com app for the Palm Pre.

Steve Donohue of the Contentinople blog chronicles how the Yankees in-market online streaming deal came about. And Steve talks with YES President Tracy Dolgin about the deal.

That’s it for tonight. Don’t forget the usual features on Friday. And actually, I do have one more press release post for tonight.