College Bowl Games on ESPN, with Announcer Assignments

The college football bowl season begins this weekend and ESPN will televise 34 games this year, including the BCS bowl games and the National Championship.

Here is the schedule of bowl games, beginning with the BCS schedule, and the announcers calling each game on TV and radio:

Bowl Championship Series

Wed, Jan 1	5 p.m.	Rose Bowl Game Presented by VIZIO: No. 5 Stanford vs. No. 4 Michigan State TV: Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit & Heather Cox Radio: Bill Rosinkski, David Norrie & Joe Schad	ESPN, ESPN Radio & ESPN Deportes
	8:30 p.m.	Tostitos Fiesta Bowl: No. 15 UCF vs. No. 6 Baylor TV: Sean McDonough, Chris Spielman & Shannon Spake Radio: Bob Wischusen, Rod Gilmore & Quint Kessenich	ESPN, ESPN Radio & ESPN Deportes
Thu, Jan 2	8:30 p.m.	Allstate Sugar Bowl: No. 11 Oklahoma vs. No. 3 Alabama TV: Brad Nessler, Todd Blackledge & Holly Rowe Radio: Bill Rosinkski, David Norrie & Joe Schad	ESPN, ESPN Radio & ESPN Deportes
Fri, Jan 3	8:30 p.m.	Discover Orange Bowl: No. 12 Clemson vs. No. 7 Ohio State TV: Joe Tessitore, Matt Millen & Maria Taylor Radio: Sean McDonough, Chris Spielman & Shannon Spake	ESPN, ESPN Radio & ESPN Deportes+
Mon, Jan 6	8:30 p.m.	VIZIO BCS National Championship: No. 1 Florida State vs. No. 2 Auburn TV: Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit, Heather Cox & Tom Rinaldi Radio: Mike Tirico, Todd Blackledge, Holly Rowe & Joe Schad	ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNEWS, ESPN Classic, ESPN Radio, ESPN3, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Goal Line

 

Additional Postseason Games

Date	Time (ET)	Game	Network
Sat, Dec 21	2 p.m.	Gildan New Mexico Bowl: Washington State vs. Colorado State TV: Mark Jones, Brock Huard & Jessica Mendoza Radio: John Sadak, Tom Ramsey & Niki Noto	ESPN & ESPN Radio
	3:30 p.m.	Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl: No. 20 Fresno State vs. No. 25 USC Rece Davis, Jesse Palmer, David Pollack & Samantha Ponder	ABC
	5:30 p.m.	Famous Idaho Potato Bowl: Buffalo vs. San Diego State TV: Clay Matvick, Matt Stinchcomb & Dawn Davenport Radio: Marc Kestescher, Dan Hawkins & Marty Cesario	ESPN & ESPN Radio
	9 p.m.	R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl: Tulane vs. Louisiana-Lafayette TV: Mike Patrick, Ed Cunningham & Jeannine Edwards Radio: Bill Rosinkski, David Norrie & Joe Schad	ESPN & ESPN Radio
Mon, Dec 23	2 p.m.	Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl St. Petersburg: Ohio vs. East Carolina ESPN: Beth Mowins, Joey Galloway & Paul Carcaterra Radio: Eamon McAnaney, Anthony Becht & Ian Fitzsimmons	ESPN & ESPN Radio
Tue, Dec 24	8 p.m.	Sheraton Hawaii Bowl: Boise State vs. Oregon State ESPN: Steve Levy, Lou Holtz, Mark May & Maria Taylor Radio: Kevin Winter & Trevor Matich	ESPN & ESPN Radio
Thu, Dec 26	6 p.m.	Little Caesars Bowl: Pittsburgh vs. Bowling Green Dave Lamont, Ray Bentley & Niki Noto	ESPN
	9:30 p.m.	San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl: Utah State vs. No. 23 Northern Illinois TV: Joe Davis, Mike Bellotti & Cara Capuano Radio: Bill Rosinkski, David Norrie & Joe Schad	ESPN & ESPN Radio
Fri, Dec 27	2:30 p.m.	Military Bowl Presented by Northrop Grumman: Marshall vs. Maryland Mike Patrick, Ed Cunningham & Jeannine Edwards	ESPN
	6 p.m.	Texas Bowl: Syracuse vs. Minnesota TV: Mark Jones, Brock Huard & Kaylee Hartung Radio: Dave Neal, Andre Ware & Brooke Weisbrod	ESPN & ESPN Radio
	9:30 p.m.	Fight Hunger Bowl: BYU vs. Washington TV: Dave Pasch, Brian Griese & Tom Luginbill Radio: Dave Flemming, Mike Bellotti & Shelley Smith	ESPN & ESPN Radio
Sat, Dec 28	Noon	New Era Pinstripe Bowl: Rutgers vs. Notre Dame TV: Chris Fowler, Jesse Palmer & Paul Carcaterra Radio: Connell McShane, Jack Ford & C.J. Papa	ESPN & ESPN Radio
	3:20 p.m.	Belk Bowl: Cincinnati vs. North Carolina TV: Carter Blackburn, Danny Kanell & Allison Williams Radio: Tom Hart, David Diaz-Infante & Cara Capuano	ESPN & ESPN Radio
	6:45 p.m.	Russell Athletic Bowl: Miami (Fla.) vs. No. 18 Louisville TV: Bob Wischusen, Rod Gilmore & Quint Kessenich Radio: Dave Lamont, Anthony Becht & Brooke Weisbrod	ESPN & ESPN Radio
	10:15 p.m.	Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl: Michigan vs. Kansas State TV: Sean McDonough, Chris Spielman & Shannon Spake Radio: Bill Rosinkski, David Norrie & Joe Schad	ESPN & ESPN Radio
Mon, Dec 30	11:45 a.m.	Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl: Middle Tennessee vs. Navy TV: Beth Mowins, Joey Galloway & Paul Carcaterra Radio: Mark Neely, Tom Ramsey & Lewis Johnson	ESPN & ESPN Radio
	3:15 p.m.	Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl: Ole Miss vs. Georgia Tech Mark Jones, Brock Huard & Jessica Mendoza	ESPN
	6:45 p.m.	Valero Alamo Bowl: No. 10 Oregon vs. Texas TV: Brad Nessler, Todd Blackledge & Holly Rowe Radio: Marc Kestescher, Kelly Stouffer & Kaylee Hartung	ESPN & ESPN Radio
	10:15 p.m.	National University Holiday Bowl: No. 14 Arizona State vs. Texas Tech TV: Joe Tessitore, Matt Millen & Maria Taylor Radio: Bill Rosinkski, David Norrie & Joe Schad	ESPN & ESPN Radio
Tue, Dec 31	12:30 p.m.	AdvoCare V100 Bowl: Arizona vs. Boston College Tom Hart, John Congemi & Niki Noto	ESPN
	4 p.m.	AutoZone Liberty Bowl: Rice vs. Mississippi State TV: Bob Wischusen, Rod Gilmore & Quint Kessenich Radio: Beth Mowins, Joey Galloway & Paul Carcaterra	ESPN & ESPN Radio
	8 p.m.	Chick-fil-A Bowl: No. 24 Duke vs. No. 21 Texas A&M TV: Rece Davis, Jesse Palmer, David Pollack & Samantha Ponder Radio: Dave Neal, Andre Ware & Cara Capuano	ESPN & ESPN Radio
Wed, Jan 1	Noon	TaxSlayer.com Gator Bowl: Nebraska vs. No. 22 Georgia Mike Patrick, Ed Cunningham & Jeannine Edwards	ESPN2
		Heart of Dallas Bowl Presented by PlainsCapital Bank: UNLV vs. North Texas Clay Matvick, Matt Stinchcomb & Dawn Davenport	ESPNU
	1 p.m.	Capital One Bowl: No. 19 Wisconsin vs. No. 9 South Carolina TV: Dave Pasch, Brian Griese & Tom Luginbill Radio: Dave Lamont, Ray Bentley & Ian Fitzsimmons	ABC & ESPN Radio
		Outback Bowl: Iowa vs. No. 16 LSU TV: Mike Tirico, Jon Gruden & Lisa Salters Radio: Carter Blackburn, Danny Kanell & Allison Williams	ESPN & ESPN Radio
Fri, Jan 3	7:30 p.m.	AT&T Cotton Bowl: No. 13 Oklahoma State vs. No. 8 Missouri Brad Sham, Ed Cunningham & Ian Fitzsimmons	ESPN Radio
Sat, Jan 4	1 p.m.	BBVA Compass Bowl: Vanderbilt vs. Houston TV: Dave Neal, Andre Ware & Dawn Davenport Radio: Adam Amin, Rene Ingoglia & TBD	ESPN & ESPN Radio
Sun, Jan 5	9 p.m.	GoDaddy Bowl: Arkansas State vs. Ball State Carter Blackburn, Danny Kanell & Allison Williams	ESPN

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Sports Media Weekly No. 173- Brian Berger, Sports Business Radio

It’s been an interesting sports media week and we have it covered on Sports Media Weekly.

Joining Ken Fang of Fang’s Bites and me for the program this week is Brian Berger of Sports Business Radio.

We begin the program looking at the appearance late this afternoon of Alex Rodriguez on the Mike Francesa radio program on WFAN in New York.  Rodriguez sought the sympathetic ear of Francesa after storming out of his hearing today with an arbitrator over his 211 game suspension issued by Major League Baseball earlier this year.  Brian, who also works as a media consultant for athletes, chimes in on whether Rodriguez’ strategy will pay off for him in the court of public opinion.

Over to the the NFL next and Ken’s piece on Awful Announcing on the flex options that await the league’s media partners when the new television contracts take effect next year.

We then move to the news that CBS NFL game analyst Dan Dierdorf will be retiring at the end of the current NFL season after 30 years televising games for CBS and ABC.

College basketball may be seeing quite the change in coverage at the NCAA Final Four beginning next year as Turner Sports takes over televising the national semi-final games.  John Ourand at Sports Business Journal  has the details.

We wrap the news segment by looking at the news by NBC that Bob Costas will be adding late night hosting duties to his primetime gig at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.

Sports Media Digest- October 29, 2013

Once Again SNF Beats World Series in Viewership

For the third time in four years Sunday Night Football (SNF) on NBC won the ratings and viewership war versus the World Series on Fox.

The final ratings numbers from Sunday give SNF and average rating of 9.8 compared to 9,4 for the World Series on Fox.  The Packers and Vikings on NBC averaged 16.9 million viewers while the Red Sox and Cardinals on Fox attracted 16.0 million viewers.

World Series Game Five Results in Slight Viewership Gains for Fox, Beats MNF

Fox Sports continues to see modest gains in viewership for the World Series.

Last night’s Game 5 registered a 8.9 rating with 14.4 million viewers, a 1% over Game 5 of the 2011 series, the last which lasted at least five games.

The World Series topped the ratings for Monday Night Football on ESPN, which registered a 6.7 rating and 10.7 million viewers.

Through five games, the 2013 World Series on Fox is averaging an 8.5/14 and 14.1 million viewers, +12% over last year’s World Series (7.6/12, 12.7 million viewers), and ranks as the highest-rated World Series since the New York Yankees met the Philadelphia Phillies in 2009.

Jon Barry Replaces Jack Ramsey as Lead NBA Game Analyst on ESPN Radio

ESPN announced today that Jon Barry has reached a multi-year agreement to serve as the lead analyst for NBA on ESPN Radio along side play-by-play announcer Kevin Calabro. Barry replaces Dr. Jack Ramsey, who stepped down from the job at the completion of last season.  The new team gets to work tonight as the NBA season opens with the Miami Heat hosting the Chicago Bulls.

“I am excited to expand my role with ESPN to include games on ESPN Radio.” said Barry. “I know I can’t fill the shoes of Dr. Jack Ramsay, but I will do my best to inform and entertain our listeners.”

“As we enter ESPN Radio’s 19th season as the exclusive national broadcaster of the NBA, adding Jon Barry, with his NBA knowledge and pedigree, only solidifies our commitment to producing the best play- by play-content.” said Tim McCarthy, senior vice president, ESPN Audio play-by-play and talent planning,  “The team of Kevin Calabro and Jon Barry will be very compelling.”

ESPN also announced that Mark Kestecher and P.J. Carlisimo will also work select NBA games for ESPN Radio this season.

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

Sports Media Digest- October 3, 2013

ESPN Drops Commitment to Overseas X Games

ESPN announced today that it will no longer be producing X Games competitions outside of the United States.  Here is their official statement:

“ESPN today announced it will not continue with X Games events in Barcelona, Munich, Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil and Tignes, France.  We are proud to have run world-class competitions for both the athletes and spectators; however the overall economics of these events do not provide a sustainable future path.  The company remains fully committed to the X Games brand and its full-scale competitions in Aspen, Colorado and Austin, Texas – its newest host city – and we will continue to distribute these premier events around the world.”

NFL Flexes One Game For Week Seven

The NFL announced today that the October 20th game between the Houston Texans and Kansas City Chiefs will be moved to 4:25p.m ET from its original 1:00p.m. ET kick-off. The move was made to accommodate regional broadcast patterns.

The game will still be telecast on CBS.

Westwood One to Broadcast a NFL Quadruple Header on Sunday

After the NFL announced the move of the Chargers/Raiders game to 11:35p.m. ET this Sunday, Westwood One saw this as an opportunity to expand its game broadcast offering to four games this Sunday.

Here is the Westwood One schedule this Sunday, with announcer assignments:

12:30pm ET, Seattle Seahawks @ Indianapolis Colts…Dave Sims/Mark Malone
3:45pm ET, Denver Broncos @ Dallas Cowboys… Chuck Cooperstein/Trent Green
7:30pm ET, Houston Texans @ San Francisco 49ers…Kevin Kugler/James Lofton
11:15pm ET, San Diego Chargers @ Oakland Raiders…Tom McCarthy/Rod Woodson

MLB Wild Card Games on TBS See Modest Viewership Games

The two MLD Wild Card games on TBS earned an average audience of 4.7 million viewers, up 2% over 2012. This year’s 3.0 U.S. rating is even with last year.

Both Wild Card telecasts allowed TBS to rank first among all cable networks in primetime both nights.

 

ESPN Radio’s Coverage of the MLB Wild Card and Division Playoffs

ESPN Radio is the radio home for Major League Baseball’s Wild Card and League Division Series.

Here is the schedule of games on ESPN Radio, along with announcer assignments:

ESPN Radio Wild Card Schedule:

Date	Time (ET)	Game/Commentators
Tue, Oct 1	8 p.m.	National League Wild Card: Cincinnati Reds at Pittsburgh Pirates Dan Shulman, Orel Hershiser
Wed, Oct 2	8 p.m.	American League Wild Card: Tampa Bay Rays or Texas Rangers at Cleveland Indians Jon Sciambi, Chris Singleton

 

ESPN Radio NLDS Schedule:

Date	Time (ET)	Game/Commentators
Thu, Oct 3	TBD	National League Wild Card at St. Louis Cardinals – Game 1 Dave Flemming, Rick Sutcliffe
	TBD	Los Angeles Dodgers at Atlanta Braves – Game 1 Shulman, Hershiser
Fri, Oct 4	TBD	NL Wild Card at St. Louis Cardinals – Game 2 Flemming, Sutcliffe
	TBD	Los Angeles Dodgers at Atlanta Braves – Game 2 Shulman, Hershiser
Sun, Oct 6	TBD	St. Louis Cardinals at NL Wild Card – Game 3 Flemming, Sutcliffe
	TBD	Atlanta Braves at Los Angeles Dodgers – Game 3 Shulman, Hershiser
Mon, Oct 7	TBD	St. Louis Cardinals at NL Wild Card – Game 4* Flemming, Sutcliffe
	TBD	Atlanta Braves at Los Angeles Dodgers – Game 4* Shulman, Hershiser
Wed, Oct 9	TBD	NL Wild Card at St. Louis Cardinals – Game 5* Flemming, Sutcliffe
	TBD	Los Angeles Dodgers at Atlanta Braves – Game 5* Shulman, Hershiser

 

ESPN Radio ALDS Schedule:

Date	Time (ET)	Game/Commentators
Fri, Oct 4	TBD	American League Wild Card at Boston Red Sox – Game 1 Sciambi, Singleton
	TBD	Detroit Tigers at Oakland Athletics – Game 1 Michael Kay, Aaron Boone
Sat, Oct 5	TBD	AL Wild Card at Boston Red Sox – Game 2 Sciambi, Singleton
	TBD	Detroit Tigers at Oakland Athletics – Game 2 Kay, Boone
Mon, Oct 7	TBD	Boston Red Sox at AL Wild Card – Game 3 Sciambi, Singleton
	TBD	Oakland Athletics at Detroit Tigers – Game 3 Kay, Boone
Tue, Oct 8	TBD	Boston Red Sox at AL Wild Card – Game 4* Sciambi, Singleton
	TBD	Oakland Athletics at Detroit Tigers – Game 4* Kay, Boone
Thu, Oct 10	TBD	AL Wild Card at Boston Red Sox – Game 5* Sciambi, Singleton
	TBD	Detroit Tigers at Oakland Athletics – Game 5* Kay, Boone

Sports Media Digest- September 26, 2013

Steve Sabol to be Next Profile on NFLN’s A Football Life

The NFL Network (NFLN) has announced that the next edition of its documentary series A Football Life will profile the life of former NFL Films President Steve Sabol.  Sabol passed away last year after a battle with cancer.

Steve Sabol: A Football Life will feature footage from classic NFL Films movies and interviews, family photos and old films of Steve, and time spent at home and with his family. Additionally, throughout the show, NFL Films employees read thousands of emails which were sent to Steve following his seizure in 2011, and individuals who Steve reached out to and inspired share their memories. It is a film about Steve told by those who knew him best – family, friends, co-workers – and those who didn’t know him at all.

Following the documentary Rich Eisen will narrate A Football Life: Backstory, a 30-minute show that provides a deeper look into the life and story of Steve Sabol.

Steve Sabol: A Football Life debuts Tuesday, October 1st, at 9:00p.m. ET.

NBCSN To Launch New NHL Programs

In preparation for the new NHL season, NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) announced it will launch two new NHL programs. Both will debut on Wednesday, October 9th beginning at 10:30p.m. ET.

NHL Rivals will delve into the history between many of the teams featured on NBCSN’s Wednesday Night Rivalry matchups, as told by current and former players, broadcasters and writers.

NHL Top 10, which will premiere each week following NHL Rivals, will examine some of the most timeless debates hockey fans have discussed for decades. The weekly countdown program will run the gamut of hockey “bests,” including top goal-scorers and U.S.-born players, as well as the toughest places to play in the NHL and top Olympic moments. It will feature commentary and analysis from current and former players, broadcasters and writers.

ESPN Reports Ratings and Viewership Increases for Sunday Night Baseball

The Sunday Night Baseball series on ESPN is over for the season and the network reports a gain in ratings and viewership over 2012.

Sunday Night Baseball on ESPN averaged a 1.3 U.S. household rating, up eight percent from a 1.2 rating in 2012. Additionally, Sunday Night Baseball averaged 1,896,000 viewers, which is up six percent compared to 1,784,000 in 2012.

Larry King, Colin Cowherd, and Jeremy Schapp Tabbed to Fill In for Olbermann

ESPN announced today a slate of guest hosts who will fill-in for Keith Olbermann on his weeknight program on ESPN2 when he takes a leave of absence to work as a studio host for TBS’ coverage of the Major League Baseball post season.

The network announced that former CNN host Larry King will host the show from October 1st through October 3rd. Jeremy Schapp will host from October 8th through October 10th while ESPN Radio host Colin Cowherd will host from October 15th through October 17th.

“Olbermann is designed specifically around Keith’s one-of-a-kind personality so having a guest host like Larry, who can deliver a similar level of editorial expertise and intellectual commentary to entertain sports fans, fits the bill perfectly,” said Norby Williamson, executive vice president, programming and acquisitions.  “Larry is so popular and well-known to television viewers but being able to bring them his unique perspective on sports topics is a new twist and we’re excited to have him.”

“I am a great admirer of Keith Olbermann who I think is the quintessential sports host,” said King.  “Sports have always been my avocation – they’re part of my being.  Having the chance to come back to my hometown of New York and host Keith’s show for several days is a terrific joy for me and a return to my first love.”

“Both Jeremy and Colin have distinctive personalities and points of view that will bring a different perspective to the program while Keith is away,” said Jamie Horowitz, vp of original programming and production.  “While we’ll certainly miss Keith in the coming weeks, we’re also looking forward to producing some fun and entertaining shows for sports fans with our guest hosts.”

Sports Media Weekly No. 165- Barry Horn, Dallas Morning News & Jen Royle, Boston Herald Radio

We broke news on last week’s edition of Sports Media Weekly with the fallout coming today.

Ken Fang of Fangs Bites and I are joined for the opening segment of the show by Barry Horn, sports media columnist from the Dallas Morning News.

NBC’s Michelle Beadle was on the show last week and was concerned that the NBC Sports Network was not doing enough to promote her show, The Crossover.   Michelle’s comments were picked up by a number of media outlets across the country.  Today NBC announced that it is re-vamping the NBC Sports Network late afternoon line-up and Michelle and The Crossover  are no longer part of the network’s plans.  We begin the show discussing the news and what may lie ahead for Michelle.

We move to Barry’s home state of Texas next and discuss the sorry state of the Houston Astros, whose game registered a 0.0 rating on Comcast SportsNet Houston this past Sunday.  Poor performance on the field usually equates to poor performance in the ratings game.

We then talk about the state of sports radio in Dallas, where 1310am The Ticket continues to have amazing success, winning the ratings game and a Marconi Award despite it’s weak over-the-air signal.

We wrap the news segment by looking at the travails of Craig James, former ESPN college football analyst and failed U.S. Senate candidate, who lasted one night as a college football studio analyst with Fox Sports Southwest.

Our second guest this week is Jen Royle, who is one month in to her new gig as co-host of a sports radio program on Boston Herald Radio.  Jen talks with Ken about her new job, as well as her work on SportsReel Boston and other media outlets in Boston.

Sports Media Digest- September 25, 2013

ESPN Continues to Receive Strong Ratings for Monday Night Football

Monday’s Monday Night Football  telecast on ESPN Monday night drew an average rating of 8.9 with an audience of 13.9 million viewers, winning th enight on all of television among the network’s key adult and male demographics (18-34 & 18-49)

Through four games this season, Monday Night Football  is averaging a 8.9 rating and an audience of 14 million viewers, up three percent and five percent respectively over 2012.

NFL Ratings Continue to Top the Charts

Once again NFL action was at the top of the television ratings list.  The top two programs of the week were NFL games; Sunday’s CBS national game (primarily Colts/49’ers) with 26.5 million average viewers and NBC’s  Sunday Night Football (Bears/Steelers) with 20.5 million viewers.

NFL games were also tops in 29 NFL markets:

Week of 9/16 – 9/22			HH	HH	RTG
Market	Game	Date	RTG	SHR	Rank
New Orleans	Cardinals at Saints	09/22/2013	47.8	73	1
Indianapolis	Colts at 49ers	09/22/2013	40.2	64	1
Buffalo	Bills at Jets	09/22/2013	39.7	58	1
Kansas City	Chiefs at Eagles	09/19/2013	39.6	59	1
Pittsburgh	Bears at Steelers	09/22/2013	39.1	56	1
Milwaukee	Packers at Bengals	09/22/2013	38.9	70	1
Seattle	Jaguars at Seahawks	09/22/2013	38.3	68	1
Cincinnati	Steelers at Bengals*	09/16/2013	38.2	54	1
Chicago	Bears at Steelers	09/22/2013	36.1	53	1
Philadelphia	Chiefs at Eagles**	09/19/2013	32.6	51	1
Minneapolis	Browns at Vikings	09/22/2013	30.4	65	1
Boston	Buccaneers at Patriots	09/22/2013	30.3	59	1
Baltimore	Texans at Ravens	09/22/2013	30.2	58	1
Cleveland	Browns at Vikings	09/22/2013	26.8	54	1
Washington, DC	Lions at Redskins	09/22/2013	25.1	50	1
San Diego	Chargers at Titans	09/22/2013	25.0	54	1
Nashville	Chargers at Titans	09/22/2013	24.5	43	1
Detroit	Lions at Redskins	09/22/2013	24.4	48	1
Dallas	Rams at Cowboys	09/22/2013	24.2	48	1
Houston	Texans at Ravens	09/22/2013	23.0	46	1
Charlotte	Giants at Panthers	09/22/2013	21.7	46	1
Jacksonville	Jaguars at Seahawks	09/22/2013	21.5	33	1
Atlanta	Falcons at Dolphins	09/22/2013	21.4	38	1
San Fran-Oakland	Colts at 49ers	09/22/2013	21.3	50	1
Miami	Falcons at Dolphins	09/22/2013	18.7	34	1
Tampa	Buccaneers at Patriots	09/22/2013	18.3	34	1
Denver	Colts at 49ers	09/22/2013	17.0	40	1
Phoenix	Bears at Steelers	09/22/2013	16.7	27	1
St. Louis	Rams at Cowboys	09/22/2013	13.7	30	1

Lofton Joins Crew at SiriusXM Radio

SiriusXM Radio announced today that former NFL Hall of Fame wide receiver James Lofton has joined the network as a host on its NFL channel (channel 88).

Lofton begins his new job Friday and will host The SiriusXM Blitz alongside co-host Bruce Murray every Friday live from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm ET, and will also be heard on various other SiriusXM NFL Radio shows throughout the year.

“I’ve been a regular listener to SiriusXM NFL Radio for some time and it is a tremendous channel for NFL fans of every team, so I’m very pleased to be a part of it,” said Lofton.  “I’ve seen quite a bit from my time in the league as both a player and a coach.  I’m excited both to share what I know and to hear directly from the fans about what’s on their minds.”

“Very few receivers in the history of the league played with the level of production and consistency that James did over his 16 years in the NFL.  His career is extraordinary and we’re excited to have someone with his accomplishments and expertise talking to our listeners every week on SiriusXM NFL Radio,” said Steve Cohen, SiriusXM’s SVP of Sports Programming.  “He’s also an accomplished broadcaster accustomed to working on national NFL game broadcasts.  He’s excellent at communicating the nuances of the game to his audience and I’m thrilled to reunite with him on SiriusXM’s airwaves.”

NBC Creates New Football Program Around Talent from Comcast RSN’s

NBC Sports is creating a new weekly football program which will harness the talent from some of Comcast’s SportsNet’s regional sports networks (RSNs).

3 and Out will debut on Tuesday, October 1 and air each remaining week of the 2013 NFL season across its lineup of Comcast SportsNet RSNs.

The program will feature regular appearances from CSN Houston’s Kelli Johnson, CSN Mid-Atlantic’s Brian Mitchell, CSN New England’s Mike Felger and CSN Bay Area’s Ray Ratto.

“We feel great about the fact that there is nothing like 3 and Out among the many football shows currently available,” said Stathakes. “Our ability to feature multiple perspectives, many of which will be on the ground in the markets where these stories are unfolding, will give our discussion and debate a level of depth and texture that is hard to find. While some think that we only produce great NBA, MLB and NHL live event coverage, fans in our markets know how well we cover the NFL, and 3 and Out is our first move to expand on that area of strength.”

NBC Sports Touts Premier League Numbers

Through five weeks of the Premier League season, NBC Sports reports a total of 10 million viewers have tuned in to view the action on NBC, NBC Sports Network (NBCSN),  CNBC,  and mun2.  The 27 English-language games on NBC, NBCSN and CNBC drew a total of 9.1 million viewers – up 92% from the 4.8 million total for the first five weeks of live action on ESPN and Fox Soccer last year.

Here is a chart, provided by NBC Sports PR, showing the viewership growth of its networks compared with the competition over the same period a year ago:

Average Total Day Viewership Growth:

NETWORK	8/17/2013 to9/22/2013	8/18/2012 to 9/23/2012	%DIFF
NBCSN	77	46	67%
MLB NETWORK	86	66	30%
NBA TV	29	24	21%
FOX SPORTS 1	121	102	19%
NFL NETWORK	302	272	11%
ESPN	1232	1125	10%
ESPNEWS	75	70	7%
GOLF CHANNEL	136	132	3%
ESPN2	353	356	-1%
FOX SPORTS 2	17	19	-11%
ESPNU	83	n/a	n/a

This Week’s Covers of Sports Illustrated

Its NHL preview time in this week’s edition of Sports Illustrated.  The magazine has two regional covers this week:

Sports Media Digest- September 23, 2013

CBS Deal Works Out Deal with Nets and Barclays Center

CBS Radio announced today a deal with the Brooklyn Nets and the Barclays Center that will allow for increased coverage of the Nets locally as well as coverage of select college basketball games and boxing matches held at the arena.

The deal calls for expanded coverage on New York sports radio powerhouse WFAN 660 AM and 101.9FM.

The agreement also  calls for Barclays Center and CBS Radio to develop and jointly program a new concert series and live events hosted at the arena. These events will be promoted using the nationwide scale of CBS Radio’s 126 stations, the majority of which are located in the top 50 radio markets.

“CBS Radio provides a commanding broadcast partner for the Nets and Barclays Center that delivers widespread exposure and promotion for our franchises,” said Nets and Barclays Center CEO Brett Yormark. “We are thrilled to continue airing Nets games on WFAN-AM/FM and expanding team coverage throughout the season, but we are just as excited about the opportunity of broadcasting other prominent events from Barclays Center, including select concerts, major college basketball and big time boxing, which will re-ignite a popular New York pastime.”

“Today’s announcement marks the union of two great companies with expertise in delivering high quality programming, appealing to a broad spectrum of sports and entertainment fans,” said Dan Mason, President and CEO, CBS Radio.  “This partnership presents a unique opportunity to connect our listeners, not only in New York, but across the country, with exceptional brands and an outstanding venue, and provides CBS Radio with content for our on-air and audio digital platforms.”

ESPN Unveils New SportsCenter Commercial

ESPN is using the power of it’s SportsCenter theme as the basis of a new commercial.

the campaign focuses on the iconic sound DaDaDa DaDaDa which fans associate with the show. The 60-second launch spot features a range of athletes – from professionals to little leaguers – who subtly and not-so-subtly call out their “DaDaDa” moments.

“This campaign grew out of research we did in order to better understand the role SportsCenter plays in fans’ lives given all the access points for sports news, information, and highlights provided by new technologies,” said Aaron Taylor, senior vice president of marketing.  “Fans have a strong emotional connection with the show.  And, what we realized is that ‘DaDaDa’ is emotional shorthand for, not only the great moments that happen in sports, but how SportsCenter presents those moments – giving context to them with perspective and personality.”

You can view the commercial here.