Kirk writes:
The Longhorn Network's hopes of televising live high school football games remain on hold for at least a year, but ESPN still would like to show a second Texas football game besides Rice this season. The network's representatives have approached Texas Tech about the possibility of showing the Red Raiders-Longhorns game this year and, to make it worth Tech's while, discussed showing other Tech games like Nevada and New Mexico over the next four seasons for $5 million, a high-ranking Big 12 school administrator familiar with the negotiations told me. So far Tech has declined. The next probable school ESPN would approach? Oklahoma State, the source said. He also said the broadcast of high school games will happen eventually.
If you remember our post from yesterday, the contract signed by the University of Texas and ESPN specifically stated that both parties had a mutual interest in securing and showing two live varsity football games per year on the network. As of today, the Longhorn Network has only 1 football game for the 2011-2012 season: it's season opener versus Rice.
Why would Texas and ESPN have to make such offers to air a football game versus conference foe Texas Tech on the Longhorn Network?
In addition, the ADs learned and acknowledged that there may be contractual opportunities that allow more than one football game to be broadcast on institutions' branded networks. That game could be a Conference matchup. In these instances both member institutions and the Conference office must agree to the selection. Such games would result in additional financial and exposure opportunities for the rest of the membership.
Well, now we know exactly just what kind of financial and exposure opportunities the Longhorn Network is willing to offer.
But is it not hilarious that the Longhorn Network is offering Texas Tech the opportunity to have their games on the network against Nevada and New Mexico as the ransom? Not only does a Texas Tech game against Texas on the network create a situation for Red Raider fans to subscribe to the network to watch a live football game, but it also builds on that initiative to keep them subscribing to watch their Red Raiders in the following seasons! Brilliant! The University of Texas and ESPN profit yet again at the expense of a member institution!
And how exactly would the Longhorn-Red Raider match-up fall to the third tier Longhorn Network? Is this not a quality matchup ABC/ESPN or FOX would want to pick up? In fact, in past years this very game was moved up to the 3rd week in September as a showcase in the early part of the football season! This game is scheduled to be played on November the 5th down in Austin. By contacting Texas Tech, ESPN is telling the Red Raiders their game will fall past the 1st and 2nd tiers to the 3rd tier already, before the season even starts! What if one team is in the Top 10 of the polls in the middle of October when such decisions regarding Saturday lineups are made? Is that game really a game deserving to be on a 3rd tier platform?
And possibly what is more alarming is that Kirk Bohls specifically stated the Longhorn Network might now move on to negotiations with Oklahoma State. Can anybody with a straight face really say that game involving the Preseason #8 team in the USA Today Coaches Poll is deserving of third tier coverage? That contest could be one of the marquee match-ups the Big XII has in 2011 and no one in the country would be able to see it live, except for the few thousand or so who are Longhorn Network subscribers. Taking away exposure to the Big XII? Hurting conference marketability in the middle of football season? Anyone else seeing a problem with this?
And what's more, how exactly should the situation be handled between conference members that Texas could not appear on a Big XII network, but yet the Longhorn Network is bribing other member institutions with placing their games on their school network? Talk about a double standard.
Congratulations to Texas Tech in stepping up to the plate for the rest of the Big XII, their alumni and their fans in not letting their team appear on the network. No school in the Big XII should have to tell their fans the only way to view one of their football games is to subscribe to a rival conference member's network, putting more money in their pocket. A unified Big XII against the Longhorn Network is the only way to fight back.
Oklahoma State, you're up to the plate.
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