ESPN snags BCS, ensuring march to cable continues

BY MEL BRACHT

Published: November 19, 2008

Approximately 16 million television homes that don’t subscribe to cable or satellite services will miss out on college football’s biggest games starting in 2011.

The Bowl Championship Series and ESPN agreed to a four-year, $500 million contract on Tuesday.

While a lot of TV viewers could miss out on the games, BCS member schools, however, will likely benefit from larger bowl payoffs and more promotion as part of the new deal.

The BCS’ move to ESPN in 2011 continues the trend of sporting events moving from over-the-air to cable television, but this will be the first time a major college championship has aired on cable. ESPN recently signed an eight-year agreement with the British Open and the bulk of the NBA playoffs and baseball playoffs air on cable.

BCS coordinator John Swofford, the ACC commissioner, said he was pleased to have ESPN as the BCS’ new home.

"I think that the college football community, people who truly follow college football, are extremely well tuned into ESPN and see ESPN in essence as the television home of college football,” he said.

George Bodenheimer, president of ESPN and ABC Sports, noted that 95 percent of the homes that watched this year’s BCS championship were hooked up to either cable or satellite.

"I believe the shift to ESPN will be good for the growth of the BCS when you look at the sources, time and media that we will put behind the games,” Bodenheimer said. "I would cite as an example what we’re doing with ‘Monday Night Football’ over the last few years in terms of the hours and resources we’re putting into that, and it’s regularly winning the night in all of television.”

Asked if he foresaw the Super Bowl and World Series moving to cable in the near future, Bodenheimer declined to comment.

"I do think that the distinction between broadcast and cable will continue to blur,” he said.

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