The SWAC should leave ESPN.


PBSwag77

PBSwag77

Well-Known Member
I really want the SWAC to break ties with ESPN and explore other options for a TV deal. I propose a combo deal with BET/TV1. Another option would be the NFL Network which is starting to televise more college football. Or we could do something revolutionary like get a streaming deal with NETFLIX or Amazon. ESPN just doesn't market our brand at all (ex. they rarely televise halftime) and I miss the days of marquee games on BET (even though they were taped lol). Thoughts?
 



PBSwag77 said:
I really want the SWAC to break ties with ESPN and explore other options for a TV deal. I propose a combo deal with BET/TV1. Another option would be the NFL Network which is starting to televise more college football. Or we could do something revolutionary like get a streaming deal with NETFLIX or Amazon. ESPN just doesn't market our brand at all (ex. they rarely televise halftime) and I miss the days of marquee games on BET (even though they were taped lol). Thoughts?
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BET is not doing sports anymore, that pipe dream is over. They are owned by Viacom and basically is a entertainment channel with a Black name but don't really cater to them.
 
ghostwriter said:
No one will never televise full halftime due to having to pay artists premium dollar.

BET is CBS
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Better halftime footage is always available on youtube. It isn't what it used to be anyway. There was more interest to watch televised halftimes back in the day because TV was the only outlet. These days, I'm more interested in HBCUs putting quality, well coached football on TV.
 
Yeah you can give up on that BET pipe dream. Those days are over with

I trust Dr. McClelland will get us the best deal whenever it is time for a new one. He has publicly voiced his displeasure with the current ESPN deal

Let ESPN get the games they want and then let the conference sell the remaining games to whoever they want to.

Plus almost every school needs to step their streaming game up (in Valley's case, we just need more adverts instead of just streaming for the sake of streaming) and get on the same accord.

I'm still not opposed to the SWAC going the Roku route similar to the OVC and keeping the money for themselves with the SDN primarily on there
 
PBSwag77 said:
I really want the SWAC to break ties with ESPN and explore other options for a TV deal. I propose a combo deal with BET/TV1. Another option would be the NFL Network which is starting to televise more college football. Or we could do something revolutionary like get a streaming deal with NETFLIX or Amazon. ESPN just doesn't market our brand at all (ex. they rarely televise halftime) and I miss the days of marquee games on BET (even though they were taped lol). Thoughts?
Click to expand...
Neither BET nor TV1 are better television options for the SWAC. We might as well bring back MBC. Those networks don't have the needed reach required for a Division 1 conference. The SWAC needs to strengthen it's contract with ESPN to allow more games to be shown live on ESPN2, ESPN3, ESPN+, HULU, and give the conference/member institutions back the ability to sign our own regional television deals.

ESPN has the best streaming options available IMO, followed by NBC Sports, YouTube, Stadium TV, and FOX Sports.
 
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Mr. SWAC said:
Neither BET nor TV1 are better television options for the SWAC. We might as well bring back MBC. Those networks don't have the needed reach required for a Division 1 conference. The SWAC needs to strengthen it's contract with ESPN to allow more games to be shown live on ESPN2, ESPN3, ESPN+, HULU, and give the conference/member institutions back the ability to sign our own regional television contracts.

ESPN has the best streaming options available IMO, followed by NBC Sports, YouTube, Stadium TV, and FOX Sports.
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The bolded is where schools need to focus on. You can keep the ad money to yourself without the need of a middle man. We all need to get on the same accord in that regard (at least 1080p while working towards 4k streaming capabilities)
 



Earle said:
NOW, as the fight for Black equality continues, might be the best time for our commissioner to strile a deal for the foremost HBCU athletic conference in the nation.
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Indeed the iron is hot and the time now is to strike. The SWAC can leverage this movement and demand to get some big time deal to get our games on Mainstream. The MEAC is going away and we will be the only D1 hbcu conference left. This can be a big marketing opportunity.
 
In_The_662 said:
Yeah you can give up on that BET pipe dream. Those days are over with

I trust Dr. McClelland will get us the best deal whenever it is time for a new one. He has publicly voiced his displeasure with the current ESPN deal

Let ESPN get the games they want and then let the conference sell the remaining games to whoever they want to.

Plus almost every school needs to step their streaming game up (in Valley's case, we just need more adverts instead of just streaming for the sake of streaming) and get on the same accord.

I'm still not opposed to the SWAC going the Roku route similar to the OVC and keeping the money for themselves with the SDN primarily on there
Click to expand...

Yes, the OVC is available on ROKU but their main contract is with ESPN3/ESPN Plus.
 
PBSwag77 said:
I really want the SWAC to break ties with ESPN and explore other options for a TV deal. I propose a combo deal with BET/TV1. Another option would be the NFL Network which is starting to televise more college football. Or we could do something revolutionary like get a streaming deal with NETFLIX or Amazon. ESPN just doesn't market our brand at all (ex. they rarely televise halftime) and I miss the days of marquee games on BET (even though they were taped lol). Thoughts?
Click to expand...

Dr McClelland has said multiple times that at the moment, the SWAC's best opportunity is with ESPN3/ESPNU mostly because of the streaming capabilities through smart phones and smart devices. He's also said that he would love to get on bigger networks but more work has to be done to compete with the big dawgs for airtime especially in Football. But contract negotiations take time and money.

Scrap the Idea about BET ever doing sports. VIACOM (BET's parent company) hasn't shown interest in doing sports in years and it doesn't appear to be happening anytime soon.

IMO, FOX Sports or a revamped contract with ESPN (that provides more live games) will be best. With FOX Sports, you can create regional deals with the various entities like FOX Sports South, FOX Sports New Orleans, etc. Those games can be seen on TV, online and over various devices. I do like the idea of NFL Network as well. They had a contract with Conference USA last season and showed 9-10 games with their conference.

The problem that the conference will face with the negotiations is partial notoriety. Sure, its easy to promote why the Bayou Classic, Florida Classic, Alcorn - Grambling, Alcorn-Southern and Magic City Classic, etc should be televised. But you also have to promote every other game which might not be appealing. For example, when Texas Southern met MVSU in Week 8, both teams had one 1 won between the two teams. Games like that will also need to be vouched for as well if you're going to have a conference wide TV deal.

As far as halftime shows, @Storm96 said it best. You can see better action on a band page through YouTube or on Facebook. With the exception of the Bayou Classic, MEAC/SWAC Challenge & Magic City Classic, halftimes are not a priority to many of the people who broadcast the game mostly because of money. Just about any halftime show that features highlights is sponsored by a big name. One of ESPN's big names last year was MAZDA. So you need another sponsor to offset that sponsor. The Bayou Classic had P&G as a halftime sponsor while Magic City Classic & MEAC/SWAC Challenge had McDonald's (to show part of the show).
 
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In_The_662 said:
Yeah you can give up on that BET pipe dream. Those days are over with

I trust Dr. McClelland will get us the best deal whenever it is time for a new one. He has publicly voiced his displeasure with the current ESPN deal

Let ESPN get the games they want and then let the conference sell the remaining games to whoever they want to.

Plus almost every school needs to step their streaming game up (in Valley's case, we just need more adverts instead of just streaming for the sake of streaming) and get on the same accord.

I'm still not opposed to the SWAC going the Roku route similar to the OVC and keeping the money for themselves with the SDN primarily on there
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I like the ease with which to view Valley's games. The whole conference should follow Valley's lead.
 
J-State2DaPoint said:
Yea until they send SD-cameras to the hbcu games lol Ashy ass definition and bootleg ass angles. Don’t let me get started on the audio
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looks the same to me -its those Thursday night games when no is there that hurts or those stadiums built too low that makes it worse. Some schools you can’t get a high end zone shot
 
TvSportsGuy21 said:
Dr McClelland has said multiple times that at the moment, the SWAC's best opportunity is with ESPN3/ESPNU mostly because of the streaming capabilities through smart phones and smart devices. He's also said that he would love to get on bigger networks but more work has to be done to compete with the big dawgs for airtime especially in Football. But contract negotiations take time and money.

Scrap the Idea about BET ever doing sports. VIACOM (BET's parent company) hasn't shown interest in doing sports in years and it doesn't appear to be happening anytime soon.

IMO, FOX Sports or a revamped contract with ESPN (that provides more live games) will be best. With FOX Sports, you can create regional deals with the various entities like FOX Sports South, FOX Sports New Orleans, etc. Those games can be seen on TV, online and over various devices. I do like the idea of NFL Network as well. They had a contract with Conference USA last season and showed 9-10 games with their conference.

The problem that the conference will face with the negotiations is partial notoriety. Sure, its easy to promote why the Bayou Classic, Florida Classic, Alcorn - Grambling, Alcorn-Southern and Magic City Classic, etc should be televised. But you also have to promote every other game which might not be appealing. For example, when Texas Southern met MVSU in Week 8, both teams had one 1 won between the two teams. Games like that will also need to be vouched for as well if you're going to have a conference wide TV deal.

As far as halftime shows, @Storm96 said it best. You can see better action on a band page through YouTube or on Facebook. With the exception of the Bayou Classic, MEAC/SWAC Challenge & Magic City Classic, halftimes are not a priority to many of the people who broadcast the game mostly because of money. Just about any halftime show that features highlights is sponsored by a big name. One of ESPN's big names last year was MAZDA. So you need another sponsor to offset that sponsor. The Bayou Classic had P&G as a halftime sponsor while Magic City Classic & MEAC/SWAC Challenge had McDonald's (to show part of the show).
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One big thing that could get in the way of the more lucrative deal will be 3rd-party promoters. IMHO, the SWAC needs ALL intraconference classics under the conference/school control to maximize a TV deal. This would include wrangling the TV rights away from the State Fair Classic promoters. All games should be on TV in 2020 and this is the only way to get the money needed for a potential FBS move.

I also believe that the Bayou Classic TV Rights should also be moved under this SWAC TV umbrella. If that means the SWAC gives it's first rights of refusal to NBC/Universal So that Grambling and Southern can keep their fantastic deal.

A TV Package that includes the State Fair Classic, Magic City Classic, Florida Classic, The Soul Bowl, Bayou Classic, Alcorn/Southern, Jukebox Classic, Grambling/Jackson State, FAMU v Southern AND the SCG would be a great sell.
 
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