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Sports Media Weekly No. 177- 2013 Year in Review

Welcome to the final edition of Sports Media Weekly, not only for 2013 but for the foreseeable future.

Ken Fang of Fang’s Bites and I use this final program to look back at some of the notable sports media stories for 2013 and what we can expect for 2014.

Among the items up for discussion:

The launch of Fox Sports 1;
Rights fees for the U.S. Open and Canadian NHL changing hands;
The return of Keith Olbermann to ESPN;
NCAA Basketball coverage changes coming in 2014;
Ratings, ratings, ratings;
The passing of Pat Summerall and Ken Venturi and the retirement of Tim McCarver and Dan Dierdorf;
Looking ahead to 2014 with the Winter Olympics and the World Cup.

For the second portion of the show Ken pulled a fast one on me as he spoke with members of the media on what was supposed to be their look back at the year, but instead they directed their remarks elsewhere:

Richard DeitschSports Illustrated
Steve LaporeAwful Announcing
Dan LevyThe Bleacher Report
Paulsen, Sports Media Watch
Neil Best, Newsday
Joe Flint, LA Times
John Ourand, Sports Business Journal
Ian Eagle, CBS Sports
John Daly, The Daly Planet
Matt Yoder, Awful Announcing
Michelle Beadle, NBC

I want to thank everyone on that list for their kind remarks.  It means a lot.

I also want to thank all of you who have made Sports Media Weekly a successful four-plus year endeavor.  It is what I will miss the most as I suspend Sports Media Journal.

Have a great 2014.  All the best!

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Sports Media Weekly No. 176- Ed Sherman, The Sherman Report

Only two editions of Sports Media Weekly remain and this week Ken Fang of Fang’s Bites and I are joined by Ed Sherman of The Sherman Report.

We begin the program looking at news that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) may be taking a look at relaxing the blackout rules sports leagues impose on local television coverage of sports if the local’s team’s arenas are not sold out.

We next take a look at the college bowl season which gets underway this week and ESPN’s plans for what it calls a “Megacast” of the BCS Championship Game.

NBC today announced its 1,539+ hours of coverage for the Sochi Winter Olympics which begin in February.  In the news it was announced that all major events will be telecast live and then re-played in prime time–a move the three of us agree will benefit viewers and should not negatively impact NBC’s prime time ratings.

We wrap-up the news segment by looking at how ESPN has won a duPont Award for a segment on Outside the Lines while the show appears to be less of a priority in Bristol.

Ken and I will return on Monday, December 30th for our look back at the top sports media news of 2013 and what we can expect for the new year.

And yes, Ken and I do discuss my announcement of the closing of Sports Media Journal on January 1st.

Sports Media Weekly No. 174- John Ourand, Sports Business Journal

After a week off for the holiday Ken Fang of Fang’s Bites and I are back for another edition of Sports Media Weekly.

Joining Ken and me this week is John Ourand from Sports Business Journal.

We start the show by looking back at the big sports media story from a week ago, the news that Rogers Communications has won the sole national NHL media rights in Canada away from TSN and CBC.  We look at the impact the deal will have in Canada as well as what it may mean for sports rights deals here in the U.S.A.

We move on to the NFL and the news from Fox Sports that it has already sold its entire ad inventory for February’s Super Bowl XLVIII.  The news proves once again that football is king on TV and with sponsors.

We look back at the spectacular weekend of college football and, in particular, CBS’ coverage of the Alabama/Auburn Iron Bowl.  We all give kudos to CBS for its coverage of the game and striking the right tone both in pictures and in words from Verne Lundquist, Gary Danielson, and Tracey Wolfson.

As ESPN prepares for coverage of its final World Cup for a while we discuss the potential U.S. rights fee battle for the UEFA Champions League matches.  Fox Sports currently holds the rights, but ESPN and NBC are looking to snatch the package away.

We wrap the show by discussing Deadspin’s purchase of a baseball Hall of Fame vote and how that may shake out.

College Basketball This Week on ESPN

Here is this week’s college basketball schedule, along with announcer assignments, on the networks of ESPN

Thu, Nov 21 10:30 a.m. Puerto Rico Tip-Off: Quarterfinal: Charlotte vs. Kansas State (San Juan)
Alvaro Martin & LaPhonso Ellis
ESPNU
  12:30 p.m. Puerto Rico Tip-Off: Quarterfinal: Northeastern vs. Georgetown (San Juan)
Alvaro Martin & LaPhonso Ellis
ESPNU
  Charleston Classic: Quarterfinal: Nebraska vs. UMass (Charleston, S.C.)
Bob Picozzi & Tim Welsh
ESPN3
  3 p.m. Charleston Classic: Quarterfinal: UAB vs. No. 19 New Mexico (Charleston, S.C.)
Bob Picozzi & Tim Welsh
ESPNU
  5 p.m. Puerto Rico Tip-Off: Quarterfinal: Long Beach State vs. No. 14 Michigan (San Juan)
Dave O’Brien & Dan Dakich
ESPN2
  5 p.m. Charleston Classic: Quarterfinal: Georgia vs. Davidson (Charleston, S.C.)
Rich Hollenberg & Len Elmore
ESPNU
  7 p.m. 2K Sports Classic: Semifinal: No. 18 Connecticut vs. Boston College (New York City)
John Saunders, Fran Fraschilla & Jeff Goodman
ESPN2
  Citadel at Wake Forest
Dave Weekley & Stan Lewter
ESPN3
  UCF at Miami (Fla.) ESPN3
  7:30 p.m. Puerto Rico Tip-Off: Quarterfinal: Florida State vs. No. 10 VCU (San Juan)
Dave O’Brien & Dan Dakich
ESPNU
  8 p.m. Charleston Classic: Quarterfinal: Temple vs. Clemson (Charleston, S.C.)
Rich Hollenberg & Len Elmore
ESPN3
  Bowling Green at No. 12 Wisconsin
BJ Schaben & Rich Zvosec
ESPN3
  Howard at Houston
Brett Dolan & Reid Gettys
ESPN3
  9 p.m. 2K Sports Classic: Semifinal: Indiana vs. Washington (New York City)
John Saunder, Fran Fraschilla & Jeff Goodman
ESPN2
Fri, Nov 22 Noon Puerto Rico Tip-Off: Consolation: TBD (San Juan)
Alvaro Martin & LaPhonso Ellis
ESPNU or ESPN3
  Charleston Classic: Consolation: TBD (Charleston, S.C.)
Bob Picozzi & Tim Welsh
ESPNU or ESPN3
  2:30 p.m. Puerto Rico Tip-Off: Semifinal: TBD (San Juan)
Alvaro Martin & LaPhonso Ellis
ESPN2 or ESPNU
  Charleston Classic: Semifinal: TBD (Charleston, S.C.)
Bob Picozzi & Tim Welsh
ESPN2 or ESPNU
  5 p.m. Puerto Rico Tip-Off: Semifinal: TBD (San Juan)
Dave O’Brien & Dan Dakich
ESPN2 or ESPNU
  2K Sports Classic: 3rd Place: TBD (New York City)
John Saunders & Fran Fraschilla
ESPN2 or ESPNU
  7 p.m. 2K Sports Classic: Championship: TBD (New York City)
John Saunders, Fran Fraschilla & Jeff Goodman
ESPN2
  Charleston Classic: Consolation: TBD (Charleston, S.C.)
Rich Hollenberg & Len Elmore
ESPN3
  Stetson at UCF
Kevin Corke & Mike Wise
ESPN3
  7:30 p.m. Puerto Rico Tip-Off: Consolation: TBD (San Juan)
Dave O’Brien & Dan Dakich
ESPNU
  9 p.m. Santa Clara at Notre Dame
Mike Couzens & Darrin Horn
ESPN3
  9:30 p.m. Charleston Classic: Semifinal: TBD (Charleston, S.C.)
Rich Hollenberg & Len Elmore
ESPNU
Sat, Nov 23 Noon Basketball Hall of Fame Tipoff Classic: Semifinal: No. 24 North Carolina vs. Richmond (Uncasville, Conn.)
Doug Sherman & Malcolm Huckabay
ESPN3
  2 p.m. Basketball Hall of Fame Tipoff Classic: Semifinal: No. 3 Louisville vs. Fairfield (Uncasville, Conn.)
Doug Sherman & Malcolm Huckabay
ESPN3
  William & Mary at Rutgers
Jonathan Yardley & John Celestand
ESPN3
  4 p.m. Liberty at Virginia
Booker Corrigan & Cory Alexander
ESPN3
  7 p.m. Ave Maria at Florida Gulf Coast ESPN3
Sun, Nov 24 11:30 a.m. Puerto Rico Tip-Off: 7th Place: TBD (San Juan)
Alvaro Martin & LaPhonso Ellis
ESPN3
  Noon Charleston Classic: 3rd Place: TBD (Charleston, S.C.)
Bob Picozzi & Tim Welsh
ESPNU
  1 p.m. Basketball Hall of Fame Tipoff Classic: Championship: TBD (Uncasville, Conn.)
Dan Shulman, Dick Vitale & Andy Katz
ESPN
  2 p.m. Puerto Rico Tip-Off: 5th Place: TBD (San Juan)
Alvaro Martin & LaPhonso Ellis
ESPNU
  Army at Notre Dame
Mike Couzens & Sean Harrington
ESPN3
  North Carolina A&T at Georgia Tech ESPN3
  2:30 p.m. Charleston Classic: 7th Place: TBD (Charleston, S.C.)
Bob Picozzi & Tim Welsh
ESPN3
  Arkansas Pine-Bluff at SMU
Brett Dolan & Stephen Howard
ESPN3
  3 p.m. Basketball Hall of Fame Tipoff Classic: 3rdPlace: TBD (Uncasville, Conn.)
Doug Sherman & Malcolm Huckabay
ESPN3
  4:30 p.m. Puerto Rico Tip-Off: 3rd Place: TBD (San Juan)
Dave O’Brien & Dan Dakich
ESPN2
  Harvard at Colorado
Rich Cellini & Miles Simon
ESPNU
  6:30 p.m. Puerto Rico Tip-Off: Championship: TBD (San Juan)
Dave O’Brien & Dan Dakich
ESPN2
  Vermont at No. 6 Duke
Tom Hart & Adrian Branch
ESPNU
  Charleston Classic: 5th Place: TBD (Charleston, S.C.)
Rich Hollenberg & Len Elmore
ESPN3
  9 p.m. Charleston Classic: Championship: TBD (Charleston, S.C.)
Rich Hollenberg & Len Elmore
ESPN2

College Football This Week on ESPN

Here is this week’s college football schedule, along with announcer assignments, on the networks of ESPN:

ESPN, ABC, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN3, ESPNEWS, Longhorn Network and ESPN Radio Schedule
Date Time (ET) Matchup/Commentator Network
Tue, Nov 19 8 p.m. Kent State at Ohio

Adam Amin & Ray Bentley
ESPN2
Buffalo at Miami (Ohio)

Joe Davis & Robert Smith
ESPNU
Wed, Nov 20 8 p.m. No. 16 Northern Illinois at Toledo

Dave Lamont, Desmond Howard & Quint Kessenich
ESPN2
Thu, Nov 21 7:30 p.m. Rutgers at No. 18 UCF

Rece Davis, Jesse Palmer, David Pollack & Samantha Ponder
ESPN
9:30 p.m. UNLV at Air Force

Mark Neely & Jay Walker
ESPNU
Fri, Nov 22 9:30 p.m. Navy at San Jose State

Carter Blackburn, Danny Kanell & Allison Williams
ESPN2
Sat, Nov 23 11 a.m. Liberty at Charleston Southern ESPN3
Noon No. 13 Michigan State at Northwestern

Bob Wischusen, Rod Gilmore & Quint Kessenich
ESPN
Duke at Wake Forest

Beth Mowins, Joey Galloway & Paul Carcaterra
ESPN2
Virginia at Miami (Fla.)

Tom Hart & John Congemi
ESPNU
Cincinnati at Houston

Adam Amin & Rene Ingoglia
ESPNEWS
Memphis at No. 21 Louisville

Eamon McAnaney, Anthony Becht & Brooke Weisbrod
ESPN3 * & RSN
Old Dominion at North Carolina ESPN3 * & RSN
The Citadel at No. 7 Clemson

Jim Barber, John Bunting & Angela Mallen
ESPN3
12:21 p.m. Mississippi State vs. Arkansas (from Little Rock)

Dave Neal, Andre Ware & Cara Capuano
ESPN3 * & SEC TV
12:30 p.m. Pitt at Syracuse ESPN3 * & ACC Network
East Carolina at NC State ESPN3 * & ACC Network
1 p.m. Massachusetts at Central Michigan

Dan Gutowsky & Bob Chmeil
ESPN3
Bowling Green at Eastern Michigan

Michael Reghi & Dustin Fox
ESPN3
Coastal Carolina at No. 11 South Carolina ESPN3 * & PPV
1:30 p.m. Alabama A&M at Georgia Tech

Shawn Kenney, Stan Lewter & Steffi Sorensen
ESPN3
2 p.m. Florida Classic: Florida A&M vs. Bethune-Cookman (from Orlando)

Mark Neely & Jay Walker
ESPN Classic
Eastern Illinois at Tennessee-Martin ESPN3
UT-Chattanooga at No. 1 Alabama ESPN3 * & PPV
Georgia Southern at Florida ESPN3 * & PPV
South Dakota State at Youngstown State ESPN3 *
3 p.m. Georgia State at Arkansas State

Brock Bowling & Forest Conoly
ESPN3
3:30 p.m. Indiana at No. 3 Ohio State

Dave Flemming, Chris Spielman & Shannon Spake
ABC & ESPN2 **
No. 5 Oregon at Arizona

Mike Patrick, Ed Cunningham & Jeannine Edwards
ABC & ESPN2 ** & ESPN Radio
No. 19 Wisconsin at No. 25 Minnesota

Dave Pasch, Brian Griese & Tom Luginbill
ESPN
Idaho at No. 2 Florida State

Anish Shroff & Kelly Stouffer
ESPNU
Boston College at Maryland ESPN3 * & RSN
4 p.m. New Mexico at No. 15 Fresno State

Joe Davis, David Diaz-Infante & Shelley Smith
ESPNEWS
Cal at No. 9 Stanford

Joe Davis & David Diaz-Infante
ESPN Radio
Sam Houston State at Central Arkansas ESPN3 *
7 p.m. Vanderbilt at Tennessee

Joe Tessitore, Matt Millen & Maria Taylor
ESPN2
Kentucky at Georgia

Clay Matvick, Matt Stinchcomb & Dawn Davenport
ESPNU
Western Kentucky at Texas State

John Sadak & Kevin O’Connell
Longhorn Network
SMU at South Florida

Drew Fellios & Doug Graber
ESPN3
Connecticut at Temple

Dave Weekley & KC Keeler
ESPN3
Louisiana-Monroe at South Alabama ESPN3 *
Nicholls State at Southeastern Louisiana ESPN3 *
McNeese State at Lamar ESPN3 *
7:45 p.m. No. 8 Missouri at No. 24 Ole Miss

Brad Nessler, Todd Blackledge & Holly Rowe
ESPN
8 p.m. No. 4 Baylor at No. 10 Oklahoma State

Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit & Heather Cox
ABC
10:30 p.m. Washington at Oregon State

Mark Jones, Brock Huard & Jessica Mendoza
ESPN2

College Football This Week on ESPN

Here is this week’s college football schedule, along with announcer assignments, on the networks of ESPN:

ESPN, ABC, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN3, ESPNEWS and ESPN Radio Schedule
Date Time (ET) Matchup/Commentator Network
Tue, Nov 12 7:30 p.m. Buffalo at Toledo

Adam Amin & Kelly Stouffer
ESPNU
Ohio at Bowling Green

Michael Reghi & Rocky Boiman
ESPN3
Wed, Nov 13 8 p.m. Ball State at No. 15 Northern Illinois

Bob Wischusen, Desmond Howard & Quint Kessenich
ESPN2
Miami (Ohio) at Kent State

Tom Hart & John Congemi
ESPNU
Thu, Nov 14 7:30 p.m. Georgia Tech at No. 8 Clemson

Rece Davis, Jesse Palmer, David Pollack & Samantha Ponder
ESPN
Morgan State at South Carolina State

Mark Neely & Jay Walker
ESPNU
Fri, Nov 15 9 p.m. Washington at No. 13 UCLA

Carter Blackburn, Danny Kanell & Allison Williams
ESPN2
Sat, Nov 16 Noon No. 3 Ohio State at Illinois

Dave Pasch, Brian Griese & Tom Luginbill
ESPN
Indiana at No. 22 Wisconsin

Bob Wischusen, Rod Gilmore & Quint Kessenich
ESPN2
Troy at Ole Miss

Tom Hart & John Congemi
ESPNU
Cincinnati at Rutgers

Beth Mowins, Joey Galloway & Paul Carcaterra
ESPNEWS
No. 17 UCF at Temple

Eamon McAnaney, Anthony Becht & Brooke Weisbrod
ESPN3 * & RSN
Central Michigan at Western Michigan

Michael Reghi & Doug Graber
ESPN3 * & RSN
Wagner at Saint Francis ESPN3
12:21 p.m. Kentucky at Vanderbilt

Dave Neal, Andre Ware & Cara Capuano
ESPN3 * & SEC TV
12:30 p.m. North Carolina at Pitt ESPN3 * & ACC Network
Maryland at Virginia Tech ESPN3 * & ACC Network
NC State at Boston College ESPN3 * & RSN
1 p.m. Akron at Massachusetts

Bob Picozzi & KC Keeler
ESPN3
Yale at Princeton

Dave Popkin & Pete Najarian
ESPN3
Jacksonville State at Eastern Illinois ESPN3
Presbyterian at Coastal Carolina ESPN3
2 p.m. Louisiana-Lafayette at Georgia State

Ryan Rose & Warrick Dunn
ESPN3
North Dakota State at Youngstown State ESPN3
Northern Iowa at Missouri State ESPN3
3 p.m. Connecticut at SMU

Trey Bender & Kevin O’Connell
ESPN3
Tennessee-Chattanooga at Samford ESPN3
3:30 p.m. No. 16 Michigan State at Nebraska

Sean McDonough, Chris Spielman & Shannon Spake
ABC & ESPN2 **
Syracuse at No. 2 Florida State

Mike Patrick, Ed Cunningham & Jeannine Edwards
ABC & ESPN2 **
No. 23 Miami (Fla.) at Duke

Anish Shroff & Kelly Stouffer
ESPNU
7 p.m. Florida at No. 10 South Carolina

Joe Tessitore, Matt Millen & Maria Taylor
ESPN2
Houston at No. 20 Louisville

Clay Matvick, Matt Stinchcomb & Dawn Davenport
ESPNU
Memphis at South Florida

Shawn Kenney, Al Groh & Steffi Sorensen
ESPN3
7:30 p.m. Texas State at Arkansas State ESPN3
7:45 p.m. No. 1 Alabama at Mississippi State

Brad Nessler, Todd Blackledge & Holly Rowe
ESPN & ESPN Radio
8 p.m. No. 4 Stanford at USC

Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit & Heather Cox
ABC & ESPN Radio
Northwestern State at McNeese State ESPN3
10:15 p.m. Wyoming at Boise State

Mark Jones, Brock Huard & Jessica Mendoza
ESPN2
10:30 p.m. San Jose State at Nevada

Joe Davis & David Diaz-Infante
ESPNU

ESPN at the World Series

Even though ESPN does not have the television rights to the World Series, it will have a strong presence at this year’s Fall Classic.

Baseball Tonight will report on the road for the World Series, beginning on Tuesday, Oct. 22, with a World Series preview show at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2. Baseball Tonight will air before and after most World Series games (generally at 7 p.m. and midnight) with Karl Ravech, Baseball Hall of Famer Barry Larkin, John Kruk, Curt Schilling, Buster Olney and Tim Kurkjian providing analysis and commentary.

In addition, Chris Berman, Jon Sciambi, Adnan Virk and Ravech will anchor daily, on-site SportsCenter coverage from the Baseball Tonight set with Orel Hershiser, Aaron Boone, Rick Sutcliffe, Chris Singleton, Larkin, Kruk, Schilling, Olney and Kurkjian making appearances. Updates will begin at 9 a.m. and continue throughout the day.

ESPN Radio does have the radio broadcast rights to the World Series.  Dan Shulman and Orel Hershiser will call each game of the series.

ESPN.com will also be on site with contributors including ESPN MLB Insiders Olney, Kurkjian, Jayson Stark, Jerry Crasnick, Jim Caple and Jim Bowden.  It will also create and maintain a dedicated World Series page with extensive game coverage, news, analysis, scouting reports, expert predictions, polls, videos and statistics;

Here is the ESPN schedule for its coverage of the World Series:

Date Time Game / Commentators Networks
Tue, Oct. 22 7 p.m. Baseball Tonight

Karl Ravech, Barry Larkin, John Kruk, Buster Olney, Tim Kurkjian

ESPN2,WatchESPN
Wed, Oct. 23 4 p.m. Baseball Tonight at the World Series ESPN.com
  7 p.m. Baseball Tonight

Ravech, Larkin, Kruk, Curt Schilling, Olney, Kurkjian

ESPN2,WatchESPN
  8 p.m.* World Series Game 1: St. Louis Cardinals at Boston Red Sox

Dan Shulman, Orel Hershiser

ESPN Radio
  12 a.m. Baseball Tonight

Ravech, Larkin, Kruk, Schilling, Olney, Kurkjian

ESPN2,WatchESPN
Thu, Oct. 24 4 p.m. Baseball Tonight at the World Series ESPN.com
  7 p.m. Baseball Tonight

Ravech, Larkin, Kruk, Schilling, Olney, Kurkjian

ESPN2,WatchESPN
  8 p.m.* World Series Game 2: St. Louis Cardinals at Boston Red Sox

Shulman, Hershiser

ESPN Radio
  12 a.m. Baseball Tonight

Ravech, Larkin, Kruk, Schilling, Olney, Kurkjian

ESPN2,WatchESPN
Sat, Oct. 26 4 p.m. Baseball Tonight at the World Series ESPN.com
  8 p.m.* World Series Game 3: Boston Red Sox at St. Louis Cardinals

Shulman, Hershiser

ESPN Radio
Sun, Oct. 27 4 p.m. Baseball Tonight at the World Series ESPN.com
  7 p.m. Baseball Tonight

Ravech, Larkin, Schilling, Olney, Kurkjian

ESPN2,WatchESPN
  8 p.m.* World Series Game 4: Boston Red Sox at St. Louis Cardinals

Shulman, Hershiser

ESPN Radio
  12 a.m. Baseball Tonight

Ravech, Kruk, Schilling, Olney, Kurkjian

ESPN2,WatchESPN
Mon, Oct. 28 4 p.m. Baseball Tonight at the World Series ESPN.com
  7 p.m. Baseball Tonight

Ravech, Larkin, Kruk, Schilling, Olney, Kurkjian

ESPN2,WatchESPN
  8 p.m.* World Series Game 5: Boston Red Sox at St. Louis Cardinals**

Shulman, Hershiser

ESPN Radio
  12 a.m. Baseball Tonight

Ravech, Larkin, Kruk, Schilling, Olney, Kurkjian

ESPN2,WatchESPN
Wed, Oct. 30 4 p.m. Baseball Tonight at the World Series ESPN.com
  7 p.m. Baseball Tonight

Ravech, Larkin, Kruk, Schilling, Olney, Kurkjian

ESPN2,WatchESPN
  8 p.m.* World Series Game 6: St. Louis Cardinals at Boston Red Sox**

Shulman, Hershiser

ESPN Radio
  1 a.m. Baseball Tonight

Ravech, Larkin, Kruk, Schilling, Olney, Kurkjian

ESPN2,WatchESPN
Thu, Oct. 31 4 p.m. Baseball Tonight at the World Series ESPN.com
  7 p.m. Baseball Tonight

Ravech, Larkin, Kruk, Schilling, Olney, Kurkjian

ESPN2,WatchESPN
  8 p.m.* World Series Game 7: St. Louis Cardinals at Boston Red Sox**

Shulman, Hershiser

ESPN Radio
  1:30 a.m. Baseball Tonight

Ravech, Larkin, Kruk, Schilling, Olney, Kurkjian

ESPN2,WatchESPN

*Pregame coverage begins at 7 p.m.

**If necessary

FIFA World Cup Qualifying Matches on ESPN

The ESPN family of networks will air 39 World Cup qualifying matches beginning this Friday through next Tuesday.  Among the matches will be the U.S. men’s team match against Jamaica Friday night on ESPN.

Here is the schedule, along with network designation:

Date Time (ET) Match Network(s)
Fri, Oct 11 11 a.m. Armenia vs. Bulgaria ESPN3
  11:30 a.m. Lithuania vs. Latvia ESPN3
  12 p.m. Croatia vs. Belgium ESPN Deportes / WatchESPN / ESPN3
  12 p.m. Azerbaijan vs. Northern Ireland ESPN3
  12 p.m. Moldova vs. San Marino ESPN3
  1:30 p.m. Malta vs. Czech Republic ESPN3
  2 p.m. Bosnia-Herzegovina vs. Liechtenstein ESPN3
  2:30 p.m. Luxembourg vs. Russia ESPN3
  2:30 p.m. Netherlands vs. Hungary ESPN3
  2:30 p.m. Estonia vs. Turkey ESPN3
  2:30 p.m. Albania vs. Switzerland ESPN3
  2:30 p.m. Andorra vs. Romania ESPN3
  2:30 p.m. Germany vs. Ireland ESPN2 / WatchESPN
  2:45 p.m. Greece vs. Slovakia ESPN3
  2:45 p.m. Slovenia vs. Norway ESPN3
  2:45 p.m. Iceland vs. Cyprus ESPN3
  2:55 p.m. France vs. Australia
(Friendly Match)
ESPN3
  3:45 p.m. Portugal vs. Israel ESPN3
  4 p.m. Spain vs. Belarus ESPN Deportes / WatchESPN / ESPN3
  6 p.m. United States vs. Jamaica ESPN / WatchESPN
  9:15 p.m. Mexico vs. Panama ESPNEWS / WatchESPN
Sun, Oct 13 9 p.m. Portland Timbers vs. Seattle Sounders ESPN / ESPN Deportes / WatchESPN
Tue, Oct 15 1 p.m. Israel vs. Northern Ireland ESPN3
  1 p.m. Portugal vs. Luxembourg ESPN Deportes / WatchESPN / ESPN3
  1 p.m. Azerbaijan vs. Russia ESPN3
  1 p.m. Lithuania vs. Bosnia-Herzegovina ESPN3
  1 p.m. Greece vs. Liechtenstein ESPN3
  1:30 p.m. Cyprus vs. Albania ESPN3
  2 p.m. Switzerland vs. Slovenia ESPN3
  2 p.m. Turkey vs. Netherlands ESPN3
  2 p.m. Hungary vs. Andorra ESPN3
  2 p.m. Romania vs. Estonia ESPN3
  2:10 p.m. Latvia vs. Slovakia ESPN3
  2:15 p.m. Bulgaria vs. Czech Republic ESPN3
  2:30 p.m. ESPN FC FIFA World Cup Whiparound ESPN2 / WatchESPN
  2:30 p.m. Serbia vs. Macedonia ESPN3
  3 p.m. San Marino vs. Ukraine ESPN3
  3 p.m. Montenegro vs. Moldova ESPN3
  3 p.m. Scotland vs. Croatia ESPN3
  3 p.m. Belgium vs. Wales ESPN3
  3 p.m. Spain vs. Georgia ESPN Deportes / WatchESPN / ESPN3
  3 p.m. France vs. Finland ESPN3

ESPNU Midnight Madness Schedule

ESPN announced the schedule of telecasts on ESPNU as part of its coverage of college basketball’s Midnight Madness.

Here is the schedule, which begins at 9:00p.m. ET on October 18th:

Basketball Team/ Commentator Event Names Network (Timing ET)
Duke
TBD & Dino Gaudio
Countdown to Craziness ESPNU/
ESPN3 (8 p.m.)
Florida Gulf Coast
LaPhonso Ellis
Dunk City After Dark ESPNU
Kentucky
Jimmy Dykes & Darrin Horn
Big Blue Madness ESPNU/
ESPN3 (7:30 p.m.)
Memphis
Bruce Pearl
Memphis Madness

 

ESPNU
New Mexico
Miles Simon
The Lobo Howl

 

ESPNU
Oklahoma State 
Fran Fraschilla & Sean Farnham
Homecoming & Hoops ESPNU/
ESPN3 (10 p.m.)
Syracuse
Rich Hollenberg & Tim Welsh
Orange Madness ESPNU/
ESPN3 (9 p.m.)
UConn
Rebecca Lobo & Kara Lawson
First Night ESPNU/
ESPN3 (7 p.m.)
Wichita State
Len Elmore
Shocker Madness ESPNU

ESPN3 will carry six Midnight Madness events live in their entirety, beginning tomorrow, Oct. 4, at 7:30 p.m., with Late Night in the Phog featuring the Kansas men’s basketball team.

Sports Media Digest- October 2, 2013

NL Wild Card Ratings Up 15% over 2012

Turner Sports reports that last night National League Wild Card game between the Reds and Pirates averaged a 3.0 rating and 4.6 million total viewers, up 15% over last year’s NL Wild Card game between the Cardinals and Braves.

The game also  won the night across all cable networks among total viewers.

ESPN Sees 14% Increase in Ratings for MLB

With the Major League Baseball regular season complete ESPN reports that its ratings numbers for the 2013 season are up 14% over 2012.

ESPN finished with a 0.8 U.S. household rating in 2013, up from a 0.7 in 2012, according to Nielsen.

Avery Johnson Joins ESPN as NBA Analyst

ESPN announced today that former NBA player and coach Avery Johnson has joined the network as a NBA analyst.

Johnson will provide analysis for NBA Coast 2 Coast and NBA Tonight, while also making regular appearances on SportsCenter and additional ESPN news and information programming.  Johnson will make his in-studio debut on Monday, October 21.

“I have a wealth of knowledge that I’ve accumulated in my 23 years in the NBA as a head coach and point guard and I’m excited to share my insights with NBA fans,” said Johnson. “I’m thrilled to re-join ESPN and work with their talented team.”

New Features for NBA League Pass as it Enters its 20th Season

NBA Digital announced today that there will be some added features to its NBA League Pass is this, its 20th season.

The new features will be available on NBA League Pass Broadband, which is available complimentary to NBA League Pass and as a standalone product.  Additional package options include NBA League Pass Mobile and NBA League Pass Choice, allowing fans to choose up to five teams to watch during the regular season.

NFL Action Still Tops In Ratings

For the fourth season NFL games were the top ranked program in television.  Additionally, NFL action was the top ranked program in 28 of the 30 NFL markets:

Week of 9/23–9/29  

 

HH

HH

RTG

Market Game

Date

RTG

SHR

Rank

Denver Raiders at Broncos* 09/23/2013 44.4 65

1

Kansas City Giants at Chiefs 09/29/2013 39.3 72

1

Seattle Seahawks at Texans 09/29/2013 36.1 68

1

Boston Patriots at Falcons 09/29/2013 34.5 56

1

Indianapolis Colts at Jaguars 09/29/2013 34.0 57

1

Buffalo Ravens at Bills 09/29/2013 33.7 64

1

Minneapolis Steelers at Vikings 09/29/2013 33.2 67

1

Detroit Bears at Lions 09/29/2013 32.3 56

1

Pittsburgh Steelers at Vikings 09/29/2013 31.0 59

1

Baltimore Ravens at Bills 09/29/2013 30.5 58

1

Chicago Bears at Lions 09/29/2013 30.4 61

1

Cincinnati Bengals at Browns 09/29/2013 29.2 51

1

Washington, DC Redskins at Raiders 09/29/2013 29.0 51

1

Nashville Jets at Titans 09/29/2013 28.9 44

1

Cleveland Bengals at Browns 09/29/2013 27.6 56

1

San Diego Cowboys at Chargers 09/29/2013 27.5 55

1

Houston Seahawks at Texans 09/29/2013 27.3 55

1

Dallas Cowboys at Chargers 09/29/2013 26.8 48

1

Philadelphia Eagles at Broncos 09/29/2013 26.2 44

1

Atlanta Patriots at Falcons 09/29/2013 25.5 40

1

Tampa Cardinals at Buccaneers 09/29/2013 20.5 40

1

Phoenix Cardinals at Buccaneers 09/29/2013 19.3 40

1

San Fran-Oakland 49ers at Rams** 09/26/2013 18.7 39

1

St. Louis 49ers at Rams** 09/26/2013 16.6 28

1

Jacksonville Colts at Jaguars 09/29/2013 16.4 33

1

New York Giants at Chiefs 09/29/2013 15.2 35

1

Charlotte Patriots at Falcons 09/29/2013 15.0 26

1

Miami Eagles at Broncos 09/29/2013 11.1 21

1

MLB Playoff Preview on Cover of SI

This week’s Sports Illustrated previews the Major League Baseball playoffs.  Here is the cover:

SI 10-7-13