I am a bit concerned about how this will impact basketball broadcasts. Now we see pretty much every single game thanks to Sun Sports. Won't the SEC Network be choosing among a bunch of games broadcast at the same time ?
Sent from my iPad On May 5, 2013, at 9:49 AM, Shane Ford <[email protected]> wrote: > Slive adds SEC Network to extensive legacy > > Southeastern Conference commissioner Mike Slive, second from right, takes the > podium after ESPN President John Skipper during a news conference announcing > the launching of the SEC Network in partnership with ESPN on Thursday in > Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Amis) > > By Pat Dooley > Gainesville SUN Columnist > Published: Thursday, May 2, 2013 at 6:34 p.m. > Last Modified: Thursday, May 2, 2013 at 6:34 p.m. > The unveiling of the SEC Network in Atlanta on Thursday was typical Mike > Slive. It wasn't hurried, it was well thought out and it will be a tremendous > success. > > That's what we have come to expect from the SEC commissioner. > > The SEC Network isn't a knee-jerk reaction. If it was, we'd have had one a > long time ago. The league started seriously talking about it seven years ago, > but there were concerns. > > So the SEC waited for other leagues to try it out. You be our guinea pigs, > Big Ten and Mountain West. We'll see what problems you have and whether we > can solve them. > > And the SEC did by becoming partners with ESPN for the longest rights > agreement ever. Distribution? We've got your distribution. It's called the > Ocho. ESPN has more networks than HBO. > > So here we are, with an SEC Network ready to launch in August of 2014. If > you're like me, you can't wait. > > But the league did. It waited until a digital website could be launched in > 2009. It waited until it could see the numbers from the Big Ten's effort. In > Nashville at the SEC Tournament, Slive told me he was waiting until the hoops > season was over so the announcement wouldn't take away any attention from > March Madness. The league even waited another week to make the announcement > because of the tragedy in Boston. > > While we contemplate how our viewing habits are going to change when there is > an SEC Network, I also wonder this — I've had many conversations with SEC > officials who have expressed a concern over sagging attendance at football > and basketball games. Wouldn't it be counter-productive to show more games on > TV? > > It's just the way of the world today, an almost if-you-can't-beat-them > attitude. They're talking about increasing revenues by $1.5 million per team > per year with this deal. That'll pay for a lot of soccer balls and batting > cages. > > And almost every football and basketball game is on TV now anyway. > > I have high hopes for the SEC Network because I have been waiting for someone > to develop “30 for 30” type of documentaries on things that were important to > me, but may not be a big enough deal to warrant a national piece. > > For example, I'd love to see one on Steve Spurrier. Or Billy Donovan. Or the > Rick Pitino Kentucky years. Or the LSU baseball dominance. Or Florida's > national title run in soccer. > > Believe me, I could give them a list of 100 that I would sit and watch. Maybe > I'm watching too much TV. > > Certainly, the time is right for the SEC to strike with seven straight > national titles in football and 149 in all sports since 1990. The SEC is > white-hot right now even if its basketball image is low. The exposure this > network will give to basketball, with more than 100 games being televised, > has to help. > > I was on Tim Brando's national radio show Thursday, and he said this will be > Slive's legacy. Possibly. The guy has done so much right in the last 11 years > that I think his legacy will be more extensive than simply starting a network. > > But the SEC Network, once referred to as Project X by Slive, is going to be a > big deal in so many ways for the 14 teams that make up the league. > > It was interesting that the announcement came in a city without an SEC team — > Atlanta. But Atlanta may be the biggest SEC city in America. It's a mixture > of alumni from every school in the conference. > > It's an SEC world. The rest of you are just living in it. > > And now you're about to be bombarded by it. > > Contact Pat Dooley at 352-374-5053 or at [email protected]. And follow at > Twitter.com/Pat_Dooley. > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Sent from Shane's iPad > Go Gators! & Skol Vikes! > ALPCA #8756 > Europlate #1045 > -- > -- > GATORS: ONE VOICE ON SATURDAY - NO VOICE ON SUNDAY! > 1996 National Football Champions | 2006 National Basketball Champions > 2006 National Football Champions | 2007 National Basketball Champions > 2008 National Football Champions | > Three Heisman Trophy winners: Steve Spurrier (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1996), > Tim Tebow (2007) - Visit our website at www.gatornet.us > --- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "GatorNews" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out. > > -- -- GATORS: ONE VOICE ON SATURDAY - NO VOICE ON SUNDAY! 1996 National Football Champions | 2006 National Basketball Champions 2006 National Football Champions | 2007 National Basketball Champions 2008 National Football Champions | Three Heisman Trophy winners: Steve Spurrier (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1996), Tim Tebow (2007) - Visit our website at www.gatornet.us --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "GatorTalk" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
