Fang's Bites

The Best in Sports Broadcasting in 2011

I’m not going to go too wild on this. Other sites are doing similar posts as well.

I’ll provide what I feel are the best calls in Sports Broadcasting this year. The only way to do this is to post videos and that’s what I’ll do. I know I said Best and Worst earlier, but the search is taking too long. We’ll provide the best calls in 2011.

We’ll go sport-by-sport and you can either agree or disagree.

Baseball

Dan Shulman, ESPN Radio — Game 6, World Series, David Freese Walk-off home run

Gary Thorne, MLB International — Same as above. Two great calls of the same moment.

Boxing

Larry Merchant vs. Floyd Mayweather, HBO Pay Per View — Floyd cursed out Larry and then Larry had the comeback of the year.

College Basketball

Gus Johnson, CBS Sports — Pac-10 Championship, Isiah Thomas hits the game-winning shot. “COLD BLOODED!”

College Football

Joe Tessitore, ESPN — “TOUCHDOWN! THEY DID IT!!” Iowa State upsets Oklahoma State knocking the Cowboys out of the BCS.

Joe Tessitore, ESPN on ABC — “Iowa State, USC and Baylor just made a mess of the BCS.” Baylor upsets Oklahoma less than 24 hours later and Joe Tessitore was there.

Golf

Dan Hicks, Johnny Miller and the Golf Channel on NBC crew — The 72nd hole for Rory McIlroy as he wins the US Open at Congressional. Great job by Dan and Johnny as they describe Rory McIlroy winning his first major championship.

Horse Racing

Larry Collmus, NBC — The 137th Kentucky Derby. It marked Larry’s first race for NBC as he replaced Tom Durkin who left in 2010. And he got a huge upset as Animal Kingdom won the race.

Jack Edwards Calls of the Year

Living in New England and having access to NESN and Jack Edwards is the gift that keeps on giving. He was in rare form in 2011. We begin with Jack mocking Chad LaRose of the Carolina Hurricanes with a “Yapping, yapping, yapping all the way to the box.” Classic Jack.

“GET UP!” In Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals, Roman Hamrlik of the Montreal Canadiens went down and Jack decided to yell at him.

In Game 7, Hamrlik went down again, but the Bruins went on to score and Jack decided to rub it in.

And after the B’s closed out the Habs, Jack decided to make some puzzling final comments about royalty and having fun. Eight months later, I’m still trying to figure them out.

NFL

none

NHL

Mike Emrick, Versus — Tim Thomas makes a tremendous save in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Women’s World Cup

Ian Darke, ESPN — “ABBY WAMBACH HAS SAVED THE USA’S LIFE IN THIS WOMEN’S WORLD CUP!” Ian Darke had a tremendous call of the goal that tied Brazil in extra time in the quarterfinals.

And that will do it for us.

MSG Network Says It Expects To Be Pulled From Time Warner Cable Tonight

New York regional sports network, MSG Network and its overflow channels, MSG Plus are expected to be pulled at midnight from Time Warner Cable systems. This coming directly from MSG which is encouraging viewers to find other providers to continue watching New York Knicks and New York Rangers games.

The two sides have been attempting to negotiate a new carriage agreement, but Time Warner Cable contends that MSG is asking too much while MSG says TWC has rejected every overture. Whatever the beef, the two sides are not close to an agreement and MSG will go dark.

Time Warner says it’s not pulling MSG, the network is choosing to go dark on its systems. The move also effects MSG Buffalo which carries Sabres games in Western New York.

We have the release from MSG Media.

For its part, Time Warner Cable has issued the following statement:

“The decision to remove their programming from our lineup rests entirely with MSG. By making that decision well in advance of the deadline, MSG has again shown that they are more interested in holding New York sports fans hostage than in negotiating a deal. Rather than engage in a war of words, they should come back to the table and get a deal done.”

Nice to end 2011 with a carriage dispute and nice to have 2012 start fresh with a cable fight.

ESPN’s Statement on The Collapse of SkyCam During The Insight Bowl

Last night at the Insight Bowl between Iowa and Oklahoma, the overhead camera known as “SkyCam” or “CableCam” fell to the ground, narrowly missing a Hawkeye player. It also caused a delay. SkyCam has become standard on many football games and other sporting events.

We have the video of the incident as called on ESPN by Sean McDonough and Matt Millen.

ESPN has issued a statement on the incident and says it is is under review.

“We apologize for the accident. The independent company that operates SkyCam for us is in the midst of a thorough review to determine the cause of the problem. We will work with them and bowl officials to determine our future course of action. As always our primary concern will be the safety of fans and those on the field.”

Luckily no one was hurt. There was a similar incident a few years ago during a primetime NFL game that also caused a delay. No one was hurt then either. Networks have to make sure this doesn’t happen again.

Some End of the Year Links

Time to provide you some links to close out 2011. Thanks for visiting the blog this year. I moved from my old Blogger site to a new server, only to get kicked off the new place because it couldn’t handle the traffic from you. But then I was able to find HostMonster in a pinch and they’ve been absolutely wonderful in hosting the site and it’s been smooth sailing ever since. Thanks to you, I keep plugging along at the site and will continue to do so.

Let’s do some linkage on this New Year’s Eve.

If you haven’t seen it yet, check out my Big Dozen Sports Media

We’ll begin with USA Today’s Michael Hiestand who looks at Versus turning into NBC Sports Network on Monday.

Over to Adweek and Anthony Crupi who says the deadline to hash out an agreement between MSG Network and Time Warner Cable is fast approaching.

Mike Reynolds from Multichannel News says Time Warner Cable subscribers in New York may not be seeing Knicks and Rangers games for a while.

Todd Spangler of Multichannel writes that AT&T U-Verse is also fighting with MSG, but at least can provide the network in HD for its subscribers.

Mike talks with ESPN’s Chris Fowler about the bowl system and how it might lead to a “Plus One” playoff.

And Mike writes that CBS Sports Network provides a Tim Tebow programming marathon  starting tonight.

Matt Yoder at Awful Announcing has the site’s Best & Worst in Sports Media for 2011.

My podcast partner, Keith Thibault from Sports Media Journal lists his biggest sports media stories for 2011.

Timothy Burke at Deadspin has the video of ESPN’s SkyCam crashing down to the field at last night’s Insight Bowl causing a short delay. I like one of the bands doing a SportsCenter sting as the camera was being dragged off the field.

And Ben Koo at Awful Announcing even has video of how the SkyCam works and how it could snap as it did last night.

The great Bruce Allen of Boston Sports Media Watch has a Year-in-Review of Boston media at SB Nation.

Max Tedford at WEEI.com has some of the top Boston sports media controversies.

Peter Abraham at the Boston Globe notes that the Red Sox AAA farm team, the Pawtucket Red Sox have found their replacement for announcer Dan Hoard who became the radio voice of the Cincinnati Bengals earlier this year.

At Sports Media Watchdog, the great Mike Silva has his 2011 “Stock Up/Stock Down” for New York sports media personalities.

Newsday’s Neil Best has a quick sports media roundup.

Neil has a few columns mixed into one for his year-end thoughts.

Neil notes how the NHL Winter Classic became exactly that in a short period of time.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union notes that Friend of Fang’s Bites Ian Eagle is a busy man.

Ken McMillan at the Middletown (NY) Times Herald-Record says through radio and TV, local NFL fans will have access to most of the 16 games played on Sunday.

Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun says one of the year’s highlights in local broadcasting was also one of the saddest.

David Zurawik of the Sun talks with Friend of Fang’s Bites Jen Royle about her decision to leave Baltimore and return to her native Boston.

And David has some quotes from CBS’ Dan Fouts who will call Sunday’s Baltimore-Cincinnati game with the aforementioned Ian Eagle.

In Press Box, Dave Hughes from DCRTV.com has his top sports media stories in 2011 for DC-Baltimore.

At the Washington City Paper, Dave McKenna who was embroiled in a legal battle with DC NFL Team owner Dan Snyder is leaving the publication, but not before he fires a few more shots.

Ira Kaufman at the Tampa Tribune gets Jon Gruden to say that he’s not leaving ESPN and will remain with Monday Night Football for the foreseeable future.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle says one of Jim Rome’s long-time radio affiliates has dropped the show in favor of local programming.

John Carzano of The Oregonian doesn’t like how ESPN covers the Rose Bowl.

The Canadian Sports Media Blog notes that the World Junior Hockey Championships are doing well on TSN.

In his sports business blog, Joe Favorito provides some thoughts for 2012.

Sports Media Watch reviews its predictions for 2011.

The Business Insider Sports Page provides its Winners and Losers in Sports for 2011.

Steve Lepore at Puck The Media has some ratings numbers from Versus’ various programming.

Dave Kohl of The Broadcast Booth has his last review of the week in sports media for 2011.

And that will end our linkage for 2011. I know I haven’t been providing as many links lately due to my personal schedules. I hope to do better in 2012. Again, thanks for visiting. I have a couple of more features to provide before 2011 is out. Keep your feeds updated.

The Big Dozen Sports Media Stories of 2011

Time for the Fang’s Bites Sports Media Year in Review. The year isn’t big enough for a Top Ten, but it is big enough for a Big Dozen. Let’s get to the list and we’ll count down from 12 and also have some Honorable Mentions.

12. ESPN The Book

One of the most anticipated books of the year for the sports media was “Those Guys Have All the Fun: Inside the World of ESPN” co-authored by Tom Shales and James Andrew Miller. Some of the more salacious and sensational stories were leaked and released before its publication. But when all was said and done, the tome was more of a detailed history lesson of how ESPN was created and rose to become the biggest content provider in sports media. The book became a New York Times best seller and is being made into a major motion picture by 20th Century Fox.

11. ESPN vs. NBC

The battle lines have already been drawn between the two networks, but with owner, Comcast, merging its cable sports properties of Versus, Golf Channel and the Comcast SportsNet regional affiliates under the NBC Sports Group, the Peacock is positioning itself to become a major competitor to ESPN. NBC Sports has already obtained Major League Soccer and horse racing, increased NHL content, announced an Olympic presence and will create a Sunday NFL pregame show for Versus which will be rebranded this weekend.

ESPN is not sitting back aggressively expanding its college sports portfolio and keeping Monday Night Football.

With MLB, NASCAR and the BCS up for bid in 2012, NBC Sports could be strengthened with more content for its cable properties or ESPN could continue its monolithic path to World Domination.

10. UFC Signs With Fox

Mixed Martial Arts went mainstream with the Ultimate Fighting Championships signing an 8 year, multi-million dollar contract with Fox. The first UFC bout on Fox in November didn’t last very long, but it did do well in the key male demographics. Starting in January, UFC programming will be seen on various Fox platforms including FX and Fuel. Both sides expect to reap huge benefits and I would not doubt to see UFC get big bids for its second network contract in eight years.

9. Long-time Executives Leave Their Respective Networks

Just before NBC Sports was about to present its bid for the Olympics, Emperor Dick Ebersol resigned over a contract dispute. While observers thought it would leave NBC Sports vulnerable, it still won the rights for four Olympiads and kept Sunday Night Football. While he may have clashed with the new Comcast administration, Ebersol’s legacy on the network over two decades cannot be diminished. He is still working for NBC as a consultant on Sunday Night Football and will assist on the 2012 London Olympics.

HBO Sports President Ross Greenburg resigned in July after being with the network for 33 years. Under his tenure, Greenburg increased HBO’s commitment to documentaries and created the successful 24/7 reality series, not just focusing on the network’s signature sport of boxing, but reaching out to NASCAR and the NHL. Greenburg is now producing content for both NBC Sports and the NHL.

And George Bodenheimer announced late this year that he would leave as President and become Chairman of the Alleged Worldwide Leader. He’ll be succeeded by Vice President of Content John Skipper. Bodenheimer steered ESPN into high definition and helped to create ESPN 3D. Plus, he was able to make Monday Night Football into a cable series after 35 years as a network TV mainstay. Bodenheimer, who I’ve jokingly labeled the ESPN Dictator will no longer be in a day-to-day role with ESPN.

8. NBA/NFL Lockout Coverage

Two sports leagues stressed out their fans by making them wait out negotiations over collective bargaining agreements with their players. Instead of anticipating the draft or schedule releases, coverage over labor talks dominated sports media. As negotiations dragged on, reporters were camped out waiting for the latest news which came out as quickly as toothpaste being pushed out of a tube.

NFL Network and ESPN went wall-to-wall with non-stop coverage as a deal neared. The same for NBA TV.

Both leagues finally hashed out agreements and brought labor peace. Eventually, the NFL only lost a preseason game after a ten year CBA with its union. The NBA wasn’t as lucky as almost two months of its schedule was lost and it had to proceed with a reduced 66 game schedule.

7. ESPN/Univision Lose the World Cup to Fox/Telemundo

Honestly, who saw this coming? ESPN’s signature global sports event has been the World Cup. It’s been carrying the event since 1994. Univision’s history with the World Cup dates back to 1978. Both networks have been known for carrying the World’s biggest soccer games. However, that will change in 2015 when Fox and Telemundo take over the English and Spanish language US rights respectively  for two Men’s and Women’s World Cups through 2022.

ESPN and Univision were simply outbid by Fox and NBC, the owner of Telemundo. One could argue that the World Cup whose ratings have been steadily going up became a desired property thanks to ESPN’s and Univision’s coverage.

ESPN and Univision get one more World Cup to bid farewell to FIFA and that will be in Rio in 2014.

6. NBC Sports Group Keeps The NHL

Fending off a spirited bid by ESPN, NBC signed a 10 year deal to keep the NHL in the fold in a combined network and cable bid. After pledging to increase games on cable and also give fans national access to all postseason games on its platforms, NBC Sports Group was able to keep the NHL rights. Now the NHL has a permanent place to call its home and NBC has firmly committed to hockey which pleases the sport’s fans to no end.

And please, let’s not mention that ESPN would be better for the NHL.

5. ESPN’s Influence on College Sports including The Longhorn Network

It’s amazing to see how much inventory ESPN has collected in college sports. Not only has it signed the ACC, Big Ten, Pac-12, SEC, several non-BCS conferences and a few individual schools to long-term contracts, it also has created the Longhorn Network for the University of Texas. The whole concept of the Longhorn Network has led to massive upheaval among the BCS conferences with Texas A&M leaving the Big 12 and heading to the SEC, the Big East’s Pittsburgh and Syracuse leaving for the ACC and other schools wanting to leave their leagues for bigger exposure and more ESPN cash.

And not only does ESPN have a hand in these chess games (despite massive denials), it has to cover all of this leading to conflicts of interest. And while ESPN pays megabucks for the NFL, its roots are firmly entrenched in college sports as we have seen with its new contract with the NCAA to air several championships.

ESPN also owns a whole host of bowl games and college basketball tournaments all of which are needed inventory for programming. By owning the games, ESPN doesn’t have to pay a rights fee. Crowds aren’t needed because ESPN makes money once the ads are sold and fees are paid by the cable and satellite providers.

ESPN’s influence in college sports will be a story that will followed for several years to come.

4. #freebruce

This story became a story thanks to SportsbyBrooks and social networking. Without these two combinations, an ESPN internal suspension might not have been noticed, reported and scrutinized. This all began with then-ESPN.com college football writer Bruce Feldman co-authored a book with former Texas Tech football coach Mike Leach. In the book, Leach alleged that then-ESPN college football analyst Craig James had a hand in his firing from the school over treatment of James’ son.

Feldman says he informed his bosses that he was writing a book with Leach and got their blessing. When the book was released, ESPN suspended Feldman. It was there that blogs and social networking got involved. SportsbyBrooks reported that Feldman was suspended. ESPN denied it. Other college football writers who follow Feldman on Twitter noticed he wasn’t tweeting. The story boomeranged on ESPN. It didn’t end until Feldman left ESPN for CBS Sports.

But this whole story made observers wonder why ESPN chose to hang its hat with James.

3. CBS, ESPN, Fox and NBC Renew the NFL at a Hefty Price

Starting in 2014, the NFL will receive an estimated $5 billion in rights fees from its TV partners. That’s a huge increase from the current amount from the four networks. In addition, all of the current packages will remain with the current networks so there will be no upheaval as in the past three NFL TV contracts.

All of the networks except for ESPN have signed on for 9 years. ESPN reupped for 8. ESPN looks like it will enter the postseason with a Wild Card Playoff game. NBC gains a Thanksgiving Night game, a Divisional Playoff game and more flex scheduling. CBS and Fox also get some flex scheduling to boost their ratings.

And with CBS, Fox and NBC paying on the average of $1 billion each, the NFL has fattened its war chest. Expect another partner for a Thursday Night Football package to be announced sometime in 2012.

The NFL is the ratings king and the money is proof.

2. NBC Keeps the Olympics at a Hefty Price

There were indications before the bidding for the 2014/16 Olympics that NBC was vulnerable (see #9 above). Long-time NBC Sports Emperor Dick Ebersol had left. ESPN and Fox showed indications that they wanted to take the Games away from NBC which had been broadcasting the Olympics since 1988. It looked like the International Olympic Committee was poised go with another TV partner. But when all was said and done, NBC had ponied up $4.38 billion for four Olympiads from 2014 through 2020 and the Olympics were firmly under the NBCUniversal umbrella.

What happened? ESPN bid for only one set of Olympics, 2014/16 and Fox made two separate bids and came close at $3.4 billion. However, when it came time to step up, NBC did and kept the Games in a very spirited bid to the IOC.

After losing money on the 2010 Winter Olympics, NBC’s parent company, Comcast claims it will be profitable on the four set of Games. That remains to be seen.

1. Penn State/Syracuse Media Coverage

Scandal once again dominated the sports media. However, in the case of Penn State, it wasn’t sports writers who uncovered the alleged molestation of young boys by former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky. Taking the lead in the coverage was the Harrisburg Patriot-News and in particular, crime reporter Sarah Ganim. Also, Penn State’s student newspaper, the Daily Collegian didn’t sit tight either reporting the story. The national media finally caught up and Bob Costas’ interview of Sandusky on NBC’s Rock Center raised eyebrows. And while ESPN tried its best to report the story, it was way behind. The Sandusky scandal will continue as it goes to trial and it won’t be going away any time soon.

As for the Syracuse story on the alleged molestations by former Syracuse assistant coach Bernie Fine, ESPN had a tape of Fine’s wife, Laurie, talking to one of the accusers. The problem was, it was 8 years old and ESPN gave the appearance that it sat on the story. While network bosses tried to explain their decision, some accused ESPN of not giving what they had to the police. No matter of the explanations, ESPN’s role in this story will be debated and whatever it says won’t be enough for some critics.

There were lessons learned in the reporting of both scandals. We learned that local reporters on the ground will always have an advantage over national correspondents. And we learned that while ESPN has a good stable of reporters, it can’t be everywhere.

Honorable mentions:

• ESPN Fires Ron Franklin
• CBS/Turner 1st Partnership on the NCAA Tournament is Successful
• NFL Films Founder Ed Sabol Inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
• ESPN Nabs Wimbledon from NBC
• Los Angeles Lakers Sign Long-Term Deal to Create a Regional Sports Network With Time Warner Cable
• Los Angeles Dodgers Fight with Fox Over Media Rights
• Gus Johnson Leaves CBS for Fox
• Women’s World Cup Scores For ESPN
• Hank Williams, Jr. Pulled From Monday Night Football
• Matthew Barnaby Loses ESPN Gig

Coming up before the year is over, Best and Worsts in Sports Broadcasting in 2011 and Predictions for 2012.

NHL Moves Winter Classic Alumni Game Two Hours Later on Saturday

Announced today by the National Hockey League, the Winter Classic Alumni Game featuring former New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers will be moved from its original 1 p.m. ET start time to 3 p.m. Saturday. Weather concerns were the main reason.

That means TV partners CBC/Versus and Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia will adjust their schedules and air the game at the new time.

Let’s take a look at the press release received from Versus. One of the last times I’ll get to say that. Probably the last time.

NEW TIME- NHL WINTER CLASSIC ALUMNI GAME TELECAST TOMORROW ON VERSUS MOVED TO 3 P.M. ET

Fifth NHL Winter Classic Presented Live on NBC on January 2 at 1 p.m. ET

NEW YORK – December 30, 2011 – The 2012 NHL Winter Classic Alumni Game featuring former Philadelphia Flyers against former New York Rangers in a New Year’s Eve showdown on Dec. 31, which was scheduled to air at 1 p.m. ET, will now air live at 3 p.m. ET on VERSUS. The delayed start time decision by the NHL was based on tomorrow’s weather forecast and should make for optimal game conditions for players and fans.

The Alumni Game will showcase six members of the Hockey Hall of Fame, recent retirees and Stanley Cup winners, including Mark Messier, Brian Leetch, Eric Lindros and NBC Sports’ Jeremy Roenick. NBC Sports Network guest analyst and former Rangers coach Mike Keenan, who won the Stanley Cup in 1994 while coaching the team, will lead the Rangers alumni team.

NBC’s coverage of the 2012 NHL Winter Classic begins at 1 p.m. ET on January 2. Immediately following the game at 4 p.m. ET, the NBC Sports Network (currently VERSUS) will be launched with a special NHL Live post-game show hosted by Bob Costas from Philadelphia.

This year’s Winter Classic features an intense rivalry between the top two teams in the Atlantic Division as the Philadelphia Flyers and New York Rangers battle outdoors at Citizen’s Bank Park in Philadelphia, home of the Phillies. This is the fifth iteration of the NHL Winter Classic, an event created by both NBC Sports and the NHL.

NBC’s coverage of the Winter Classic will be hosted by Costas, a 22-time Emmy Award-winner. He will be joined by NBC Sports Group studio analysts Mike Milbury and Jeremy Roenick for coverage on NBC and post-game coverage on NBC Sports Network. NBC’s game coverage will be led by Emmy Award-winner Mike “Doc” Emrick (play-by-play) Eddie Olczyk (analyst), and Pierre McGuire (inside-the-glass reporter).

Last year’s Winter Classic was the most-watched NHL regular-season game in 36 years. Played between the Washington Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins from Heinz Field in Pittsburgh and broadcast on New Year’s Day in primetime due to a weather delay, the game was watched by 4.5 million viewers.

That does it.

Weekend Viewing Picks

Saturday, December 31, 2011

College Basketball Viewing Picks

College Football
Texas Bowl, Houston, TX
Texas A&M vs. Northwestern — ESPN, noon

Sun Bowl, El Paso, TX
Georgia Tech vs. Utah — CBS, 2 p.m.

Liberty Bowl, Memphis, TN
Cincinnati vs. Vanderbilt — ABC, 3:30 p.m.

Kraft Fights Hunger Bowl, San Francisco, CA
UCLA vs. Illinois — ESPN, 3;30 p.m.

Chick-Fil-A Bowl, Atlanta, GA
Virginia vs. Auburn — ESPN/ESPN 3D, 7:30 p.m.

College Hockey
Boston University at Notre Dame — Versus, 7 p.m.
Harvard at North Dakota — Fox College Sports Central, 8 p.m.

English Premier League
Manchester United vs. Blackburn — ESPN2, 7:30 a.m.
Arsenal vs. Queens Park Rangers — Fox Soccer Plus, 9:53 a.m.
Chelsea vs. Aston Villa — Fox Soccer, 10 a.m.
Swansea vs. Tottenham Hotspur — Fox Soccer, noon (same day coverage)
Norwich City vs. Fulham — Fox Soccer, 2 p.m. (same day coverage)

IIHF World Junior Championships
Czech Republic vs. Finland — TSN, 4 p.m.
Canada vs. USA — TSN/NHL Network (US), 8 p.m.

NBA
Utah at San Antonio — NBA TV, 8:30 p.m.
Chicago at Los Angeles Clippers — NBA TV/WGN America, 10:30 p.m.

NHL
2012 NHL Winter Classic Alumni Game — CBC/Versus/Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia, 3 p.m./MSG Network, 4 p.m. (delay)

Edmonton at New York Islanders — Rogers Sportsnet West/MSG Network, 1 p.m.
Pittsburgh at New Jersey — Root Sports Pittsburgh/MSG Plus, 3 p.m.
Carolina at Tampa Bay — Fox Sports Carolinas/Sun Sports, 5 p.m.
Phoenix at Minnesota — Fox Sports Arizona Plus/Fox Sports North, 6 p.m.
Montreal at Florida — CBC/Fox Sports Florida, 7 p.m.
Ottawa at Buffalo — CBC/MSG Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Toronto at Winnipeg — CBC, 7 p.m.
St. Louis at Detroit — Fox Sports Midwest/Fox Sports Detroit, 7 p.m.
Washington at Columbus — Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic/Fox Sports Ohio, 7 p.m.
Boston at Dallas — NESN/KTXA, 8 p.m.
Colorado at Anaheim — Altitude/Fox Sports Prime Ticket, 8 p.m.
Vancouver at Los Angeles — CBC/Fox Sports West, 10 p.m.

2012 NHL Winter Classic Alumni Game Recap — NHL Network, 5:30 p.m.
NHL Plays of the Week: NHL Network Plays of the Year Special — NHL Network, 6 p.m.
Hockey Tonight — CBC, 6:30 p.m.
NHL Tonight — NHL Network, 11 p.m.

Entertainment
Giada at Home: Rise and Shine — Food Network, 11:30 a.m.
French Food at Home: French Way with Vegetables — Cooking Channel, noon
The Three Stooges Marathon — IFC, 6 p.m.
New Year’s Rockin’ Eve: The 40th Anniversary Party — ABC, 8 p.m.
Live from Lincoln Center: Bernstein and Gershwin — PBS, 8 p.m.
Lady Gaga Presents The Monster Ball Tour: At Madison Square Garden — HBO2, 9 p.m.
Dick Clark’s Primetime New Year’s Rockin’ Eve — ABC, 10 p.m.
NBC’s New Year’s Eve with Carson Daly — NBC, 10 p.m.
New Year’s Eve Live with Anderson Cooper and Kathy Griffin — CNN, 11 p.m.
Red Bull: New Year. No Limits (The Human Sacrifice) — ESPN, 11 p.m.
NYE in NYC 2012 — MTV, 11 p.m.
Coldplay New Year’s Eve: An Austin City Limits Special — PBS, 11 p.m.
Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve 2012 — ABC, 11:30 p.m.
NBC’s New Year’s Eve with Carson Daly — NBC, 11:30 p.m.
New Year’s Eve Live Coverage — CNN, midnight

Sunday, January 1, 2012
Happy New Year!!!

College Basketball Viewing Picks

English Premier League
West Bromwich Albion vs. Everton — Fox Soccer Plus, 7:23 a.m.
Sunderland vs. Manchester City — Fox Soccer, 10 a.m.

NBA
Boston at Washington — NBA TV, 6 p.m.

NFL Viewing Picks

NHL
Calgary at Nashville — NHL Network (US)/Rogers Sportsnet Calgary/Fox Sports Tennessee, 6 p.m.

2012 NHL Winter Classic Practice Day — NHL Network, 1 p.m.
2012 NHL Winter Classic Practice Day Recap — NHL Network, 5 p.m.
NHL Tonight — NHL Network, 9 p.m.

Entertainment
CBS News Sunday Morning — CBS, 9 a.m.
Shameless Season One Marathon — Showtime, noon-midnight
RV 2012 — HGTV, 3 p.m.
60 Minutes — CBS, approximately 7:15 p.m.
Great Performances: From Vienna: The New Year’s Celebration 2012 — PBS, 7:30 p.m.
The Boondock Saints — IFC, 7:45 p.m.
Cheap Bites — Cooking Channel, 8 p.m.
Extreme Homes Special — HGTV, 8 p.m.
Drugs, Inc.: Crack (season premiere) — National Geographic Channel, 8 p.m.
Dr. G: Inside the Caylee Anthony Case — TLC, 8 p.m.
Drugs, Inc.: Hash — National Geographic Channel, 9 p.m.
Baseball Wives — VH1, 9 p.m.
Angry Boys (series premiere) — HBO, 10 p.m.
Inside Portlandia — IFC, 10 p.m.
Alaska State Troopers: Madman Manhunt — National Geographic Channel, 10 p.m.
Angry Boys — HBO, 10:30 p.m.

NFL Viewing Picks For Week 17, 01/01/12, All Times Eastern

NFL TV Coverage Maps (the506.com)

Blackouts: None

NFL GameDay Morning — NFL Network, 9 a.m.
Fox NFL Sunday — Fox, noon

1 p.m.
CBS
Buffalo at New England — Don Criqui/Randy Cross
Indianapolis at Jacksonville — Spero Dedes/Steve Beuerlein
New York Jets at Miami — Greg Gumbel/Dan Dierdorf
Tennessee at Houston — Bill Macatee/Steve Tasker

FOX
Carolina at New Orleans — Joe Buck/Troy Aikman/Pam Oliver
Chicago at Minnesota — Kenny Albert/Daryl Johnston/Tony Siragusa
Detroit at Green Bay — Thom Brennaman/Brian Billick/Laura Okmin
San Francisco at St. Louis — Chris Myers/Tim Ryan/Jennifer Hale
Washington at Philadelphia — Ron Pitts/Charles Davis/Drea Avent

4:15 p.m.
CBS
Baltimore at Cincinnati — Ian Eagle/Dan Fouts (“The Bird” and “The Beard)
Kansas City at Denver — Jim Nantz/Phil Simms
Pittsburgh at Cleveland — Kevin Harlan/Solomon Wilcots
San Diego at Oakland — Marv Albert/Rich Gannon

FOX
Seattle at Arizona — Sam Rosen/Chad Pennington/Jody Jackson
Tampa Bay at Atlanta — Dick Stockton/John Lynch/Jaime Maggio!!!

7 p.m.
Football Night in America — NBC

7:30 p.m.
NFL GameDay Highlights — NFL Network

8:30 p.m.
NBC — Sunday Night Football
Dallas at New York Giants — Al Michaels/Cris Collinsworth/Michele Tafoya

Midnight
NFL GameDay Final — NFL Network

Westwood One Radio
12:30 p.m.
New York Jets at Miami — Howard David/Tony Boselli

3:45 p.m.
Kansas City at Denver — Kevin Kugler/Mark Malone

7:30 p.m.
Dallas at New York Giants — Dave Sims/James Lofton/Hub Arkush

DirecTV NFL Sunday Ticket Channel Assignments
Sirius XM Week 17 NFL Schedule
NFL RedZone

College Basketball Viewing Picks For 12/31/11 & 01/01/12, All Times Eastern

Schedule courtesy of Matt’s College Sports on TV

Saturday, December 31, 2011

noon
St. John’s at UConn — Big East Network (SNY/MASN)
Louisville at Kentucky — CBS
Virginia Tech at Oklahoma State — ESPN2
Austin Peay at Morehead State — ESPNU
South Carolina Upstate at South Carolina — Fox College Sports Central/SportSouth
Boston University at Quinnipiac — NESN

1 p.m.
Iowa at Wisconsin — Big Ten Network

2 p.m.
Providence at Georgetown — ESPN2
Yale at Florida –ESPNU
Florida International at Western Kentucky — Fox College Sports Atlantic
Samford at Maryland — Fox Sports Net (regional)
Rice at Texas — Longhorn Network

Women’s: Arizona at Arizona State — Fox Sports Net

3 p.m.
Michigan State at Nebraska — Big Ten Network

4 p.m.
Illinois at Purdue — ESPN2
North Dakota at Kansas — ESPNU

5:30 p.m.
Arizona State at Arizona — Fox College Sports Central/Fox Sports Arizona

6 p.m.
San Diego at BYU — BYU TV
Ohio State at Indiana — ESPN2
Creighton at Wichita State — ESPNU
Oregon State at Washington State — Fox College Sports Atlantic/Root Sports Northwest
USC at Stanford — Fox College Sports Pacific (CSS/Comcast SportsNet Bay Area/Fox Sports West)
Saint Louis at New Mexico — the mtn.

7 p.m.
Tulsa at TCU — CBS Sports Network

8 p.m.
Gonzaga at Xavier — ESPN2

10 p.m.
Oregon at Washington — ESPN2

Sunday, January 1, 2012
Happy New Year!!!

noon
Rutgers at South Florida — Big East Network (Altitude/MASN/SNY)

1 p.m.
Villanova at Marquette — ESPNU

3 p.m.
Monmouth at North Carolina — ESPNU
Illinois State at Southern Illinois — Fox College Sports Central (Comcast SportsNet Chicago Plus/Fox Sports Midwest)

4 p.m.
Minnesota at Michigan — Big Ten Network

5 p.m.
Syracuse at DePaul — Big East Network (Altitude/Cox Sports Television/CSS/MASN/SNY)
Penn at Duke — ESPNU

7 p.m.
Cincinnati at Pittsburgh — Big East Network (Altitude 2/CSS/Fox Sports Ohio/MASN/MSG Network/Root Sports Pittsburgh)
Penn State at Northwestern — ESPNU

9 p.m.
Evansville at Northern Iowa — ESPNU

Primetime & Late Night Viewing Picks

College Basketball
Men’s
Western Michigan at Duke — ESPN2, 7 p.m.
Missouri at Old Dominion — ESPNU, 7 p.m.
West Virginia at Seton Hall — ESPN2, 9 p.m.
Southeastern Louisiana at Texas Tech — ESPNU, 9 p.m.

Women’s
Michigan State at Indiana — Big Ten Network, 6 p.m.
Ohio State at Wisconsin — Big Ten Network, 8 p.m.

College Football
Armed Forces Bowl, Dallas, TX
Tulsa vs. BYU — ESPN, noon

Pinstripe Bowl, New York, NY
Iowa State vs. Rutgers — ESPN, 3:30 p.m.

Music City Bowl, Nashville, TN
Mississippi State vs. Wake Forest — ESPN, 6:40 p.m.

Insight Bowl, Tempe, AZ
Oklahoma vs. Iowa — ESPN, 10 p.m.

English Premier League
Liverpool vs. Newcastle — Fox Soccer, 2:30 p.m.

IIHF World Junior Championships
USA vs. Czech Republic — TSN/NHL Network, 3:30 p.m.
Sweden vs. Slovakia — TSN2, 5:30 p.m.
Denmark vs. Finland — TSN2/NHL Network, 8 p.m.

Lingerie Football League
Seattle Mist at Los Angeles Temptation — MTV2, 10 p.m.

Mixed Martial Arts
UFC 141 Prelims — Spike, 9 p.m.
UFC 141: Lesnar vs. Overeem — Pay per view, 10 p.m.

MLB
Clubhouse Confidential — MLB Network, 5:30 p.m.
Hot Stove Live — MLB Network, 6 p.m.

NBA
Phoenix at New Orleans — NBA TV, 8 p.m.
Chicago at Los Angeles Clippers — NBA TV/WGN America, 10:30 p.m.

NHL
Buffalo at Washington — MSG Buffalo/Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic, 7 p.m.
Calgary at Ottawa — TVA/Rogers Sportsnet West/Rogers Sportsnet East, 7:30 p.m.
New York Rangers at Florida — MSG Network/Fox Sports Florida, 7:30 p.m.
Nashville at St. Louis — Fox Sports Tennessee/Fox Sports Midwest, 8 p.m.
Detroit at Chicago — Fox Sports Detroit Plus/Comcast SportsNet Chicago, 8:30 p.m.

NHL Live — NHL Network, 6:30 p.m.
NHL Network at the 2012 Winter Classic — NHL Network, 7 p.m.
NHL Tonight — NHL Network, 11 p.m.

Sports Talk
The Best of the Dan Patrick Show — Audience Network (DirecTV)/Fox Sports Net, 9 a.m.
Tim Brando Show — CBS Sports Network, 10 a.m.
The Scott Van Pelt Show — ESPNews, 1 p.m.
Numbers Never Lie — ESPN2, 3:30 p.m.
NBC Sports Talk — Versus, 6 p.m.
CNBC Sports Biz: Game On! — Versus, 7 p.m.

Entertainment
The Whale That Exploded — National Geographic Channel, 8 p.m.
Gold Rush: Aftershow Special — Discovery, 9 p.m.
America’s Most Wanted — Lifetime (The Network That Hates Men), 9 p.m.
Dateline NBC — NBC, 10 p.m.
Deadly Women: Senseless Slaying — Investigation Discovery, 10 p.m.

ESPN Sends College GameDay, College Football Live & SportsCenter to the BCS

As we approach the beginning of the Bowl Championship Series on Monday, ESPN will have three of its signature studio programs covering the five games. College GameDay, College Football Live and SportsCenter will all have a presence leading up to the BCS National Championship Game on January 9.

The usual studio casts including Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit, Lee Corso, Desmond Howard, Rece Davis, Mark May, Lou Holtz, John Saunders, Jesse Palmer, Erin Andrews, Tom Rinaldi and many others will be part of ESPN’s coverage of the BCS bowls throughout the week from January 2 through January 9.

Auburn coach Gene Chizik, Oregon coach Chip Kelly and USC coach Lane Kiffin will be among the guest analysts throughout the coverage.

Here’s the ESPN press release.

College GameDay, College Football Live & SportsCenter at the BCS

Joined by Special Guest Analysts Gene Chizik, Chip Kelly, Bret Bielema & Lane Kiffin; GameDay to Originate from All Four Locations

In addition to televising all five of the Bowl Championship Series matchups for the second straight year, ESPN will provide extensive on-site studio reports and analysis across multiple shows and platforms for each of the five bowls. Coverage will be highlighted by four special editions of the popular College GameDay: a two-hour show on January 2 at 10 a.m. ET to preview the Rose Bowl and Fiesta Bowl; one-hour shows on January 3 and January 4 at 7 p.m. to preview the Sugar Bowl and Orange Bowl, respectively; and a two-hour preview of the BCS National Championship on January 9 at 6 p.m.

In addition to College GameDay, one-hour editions of ESPN’s weekday College Football Live at the BCS (daily from 3 to 4 p.m.) will air from New Orleans, site of the BCS National Championship, beginning Tuesday, Jan. 3 through Monday, Jan. 9, the day of the title game (No. 1 LSU vs. No. 2 Alabama at 8:30 p.m. on ESPN, ESPN3, ESPN 3D and ESPN Radio).

Chizik and Kelly Join ESPN as Guest Analysts
Auburn coach Gene Chizik and Oregon coach Chip Kelly – the two participants in last year’s BCS National Championship – will join ESPN as on-site studio analysts from New Orleans leading up to and through the BCS National Championship game. They will provide analysis across College GameDay, SportsCenter, ESPNEWS, College Football Live at the BCS, and pre, half-time and post-game coverage.

Special College GameDay from the Rose Bowl
College GameDay will originate from the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. beginning at 10 a.m. ET on ESPNU and continuing at 11 a.m. on ESPN. Commentators include hosts Chris Fowler and Erin Andrews, and analysts Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard and David Pollack.

On-set interviews and guest analysts:

• Wisconsin coach Bret Bielema and Oregon coach Chip Kelly will appear on set together for a live interview as they prepare to lead their teams in the Rose Bowl (Jan. 2 at 5 p.m. on ESPN, ESPN3 and ESPN Radio).
• USC head coach Lane Kiffin will serve as a guest analyst.

Features:

• Big, Bad Badger Offensive Line: Erin Andrews takes a trip to Madison to visit with the Wisconsin players who make up one of the biggest offensive lines in college football history.
• Gruden’s Film Room: ESPN football analyst Jon Gruden breaks down film of the quarterbacks leading their teams in the Outback Bowl (January 2 at 1 p.m. on ABC), Georgia’s Aaron Murray and Michigan State’s Kirk Cousins.
• Andrew Luck Conversation: Tom Rinaldi will sit down with Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck as he prepares for his final game with the Cardinal (against Oklahoma State in the Fiesta Bowl January 2 at 8:30 p.m. on ESPN, ESPN3 and ESPN Radio).
• Images of the Year: A look at the images that made up the 2011 season.

ESPN daily on-site studio coverage:

Date	Time (ET)	Show	Network
Mon, Jan 2	10 a.m. & 11 a.m.	College GameDay (Pasadena) Hosts Chris Fowler and Erin Andrews; analysts Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard, David Pollack and Todd McShay; and reporter Tom Rinaldi Special Guests: Bret Bielema (Wisconsin), Chip Kelly (Oregon) and Lane Kiffin (USC)	ESPNU (10 a.m.) ESPN (11 a.m.)
	Beginning at 5 p.m.	Rose Bowl (Pasadena) Pregame: Chris Fowler, Lee Corso, Desmond Howard & David Pollack Halftime: Chris Fowler, Lee Corso & Desmond Howard Postgame: Chris Fowler, Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit & Desmond Howard	ESPN
		Fiesta Bowl (Glendale) Halftime & postgame: John Saunders & Jesse Palmer	ESPN
Tue, Jan 3	3 p.m.	College Football Live at the BCS (New Orleans) Wendi Nix, David Pollack & Todd McShay	ESPN
	7 p.m.	College GameDay (New Orleans) Host Chris Fowler and analysts Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard and David Pollack	ESPN
		Sugar Bowl Halftime: Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit & Desmond Howard Postgame: Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit & David Pollack	ESPN
	9 a.m. to noon	SportsCenter (morning segments) Wendi Nix, David Pollack & Todd McShay	ESPN
	6 p.m. to 3 a.m.	SportsCenter (evening segments) Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard & David Pollack	ESPN
Wed, Jan 4	3 p.m.	College Football Live at the BCS (Miami & New Orleans) Miami: Rece Davis, Mark May & Lou Holtz New Orleans: John Saunders, Jesse Palmer & Desmond Howard	ESPN
	7 p.m.	College GameDay (Miami and New Orleans) Miami: Rece Davis, Mark May & Lou Holtz New Orleans: Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit & Jesse Palmer	ESPN
		Orange Bowl Halftime & postgame: Rece Davis, Lou Holtz & Mark May	ESPN
	9 a.m. to noon	SportsCenter (morning segments) Wendi Nix, Desmond Howard & Todd McShay	ESPN
	6 p.m. to 3 a.m.	SportsCenter (evening segments) Chris Fowler & Kirk Herbstreit	ESPN
Thu, Jan 5	3 p.m.	College Football Live at the BCS (New Orleans) John Saunders, Desmond Howard & Todd McShay	ESPN
	9 a.m. to noon	SportsCenter (morning segments) Erin Andrews, Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard, Jesse Palmer & David Pollack	ESPN
	6 p.m. to 3 a.m.	SportsCenter (evening segments) Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit & David Pollack	ESPN
Fri, Jan 6	3 p.m.	College Football Live at the BCS (New Orleans) Chris Fowler, Jesse Palmer & Todd McShay	ESPN
	9 a.m. to noon	SportsCenter (morning segments) John Saunders, Desmond Howard, Jesse Palmer, Lou Holtz, Mark May & Todd McShay	ESPN
	6 p.m. to 3 a.m.	SportsCenter (evening segments) Rece Davis, Lee Corso & Kirk Herbstreit	ESPN
Sat, Jan 7	9 a.m. to noon	SportsCenter (morning segments) Multiple hosts, analysts & guests	ESPN
	6 p.m. to 3 a.m.	SportsCenter (evening segments) Multiple hosts, analysts & guests	ESPN
Sun, Jan 8	9 a.m. to noon	SportsCenter (morning segments) Rece Davis, Lou Holtz & Mark May	ESPN
	6 p.m. to 3 a.m.	SportsCenter (evening segments) Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit, Gene Chizik & Chip Kelly	ESPN
Mon, Jan 9	3 p.m.	College Football Live at the BCS (New Orleans) Set 1: Rece Davis, Lou Holtz & May Mark Set 2: John Saunders & Todd McShay	ESPN
	6 p.m.	College GameDay (New Orleans) Set 1: Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit, Gene Chizik & Chip Kelly Set 2: Rece Davis, Lou Holtz & Mark May Field reporters: Erin Andrews, Wendi Nix & Tom Rinaldi Field analysis: David Pollack & Todd McShay	ESPN
	7 p.m.	College GameDay (New Orleans) Set 1: Chris Fowler, Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit & Desmond Howard Set 2: Rece Davis, Lou Holtz, Mark May Gene Chizik & Chip Kelly Field reporters: Erin Andrews, Wendi Nix & Tom Rinaldi Field analysis: David Pollack & Todd McShay	ESPN
	Beginning at 8 p.m.	BCS National Championship Pregame: Chris Fowler, Desmond Howard, Gene Chizik & Chip Kelly Halftime: Chris Fowler, Gene Chizik & Chip Kelly	ESPN
	Conclusion of game	Postgame and SportsCenter Set 1: Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard, Gene Chizik & Chip Kelly Set 2: Rece Davis, Lou Holtz & Mark May On field: Erin Andrews, Wendi Nix & Tom Rinaldi	ESPN
	9 a.m. to noon	SportsCenter (morning segments) Rece Davis, Lou Holtz, Mark May, Jess Palmer, David Pollack & Todd McShay	ESPN
	6 p.m.	SportsCenter (evening segments) Rece Davis, Lou Holtz & Mark May	ESPN

And that’s going to do it.

The BCS Bowl Survival Guide From ESPN

A nice touch by ESPN to send this BCS Bowl Survival Guide to me. It provides you with ways to get caught up on the BCS, to learn the schools involved, how to get your BCS gear, etc., etc., etc.

It’s written with a nice touch of humor. Read on.

ESPN’s BCS Bowl Survival Guide

By January 1, 2012, you will have watched more than two dozen bowl games on ESPN networks, eaten more appetizers, pies and cookies than any reasonable person should, played hooky from work, ignored your household chores, and now, you’re staring down the five biggest bowls of the season: The BCS Bowls on ESPN. Have no fear; ESPN’s BCS Bowl Survival Guide is here, complete with this handy BCS lineup card.

Scenario:  Your pants and shirts are a little too snug for wearing in public, bordering on indecent and your dog no longer recognizes you; it’s time to hit the gym. But wait, won’t that interfere with watching all that great pre-game coverage from your couch?
Solution:  ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU and ESPN Classic  will televise more than 100 hours of BCS Bowl pre-game, game and post-game coverage January 2 thru January 10. In addition, College GameDay or College Football Live will originate from all five BCS Bowls. Whether you’re at home or on the treadmill, elliptical or stationary bike, you won’t miss a beat.

Scenario:  In the holiday gifting aftermath, you discover you’ve got to return four funky fruitcakes, three tacky ties, two French hens and one hideous holiday sweater from Aunt Marge. Many long drives in traffic await you.
Solution: ESPN Radio’s BCS Bowl coverage of all five BCS Bowls will keep you company through the stoplights, rubbernecking and road rage of holiday returns season.

Scenario: Your wife not-so-subtly reminds you to take down the holiday decorations – your very own “festival of lights”- complete with 50 strands of blinking bulbs covering every inch of your roof. Yes, you were king of the neighborhood this year. But now you’re going to miss pre-game coverage for your favorite BCS Bowl game.
Solution: You won’t miss a thing. Grab a sweater, a ladder, some snacks and your cell phone – you’re going to be awhile. With ESPN Mobile, you’ll see clips, highlights and receive scores from GameCast and the WatchESPN app. She’ll never know.

Scenario: To start the new year off right, your company sends you to a full day and night seminar on work-life balance the day of your favorite BCS Bowl. Oh, the irony…
Solution: You’ve got this. Grab a conference-issued folder, insert your tablet, select WatchESPN app. Voila! You’ll see all the coverage on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3 and ESPNU right there (on ESPN3) in that chilly conference room.

Scenario: Once back in the office, your mailbox is so full that you find yourself paralyzed to do anything about it. Instead, you daydream about LSU’s offensive schemes vs. SEC foe Alabama.
Solution: Fire up the office Internet. ESPN.com’s blogs, columns and 360-degree look at the teams and towns of the BCS Bowl games awaits you with an individual page for every bowl.

Scenario: To welcome in 2012, your significant other has “accidentally” given your casual clothes to charity (i.e. the dumpster), even that sweatshirt you love with the talking bears cartoon.
Solution: You’re in luck. The BCS apparel line is online now and available in select stores. You needed that wardrobe overhaul anyhow.

Scenario: Did we mention he or she also deep-sixed your leisure reading material?
Solution: ESPN The Magazine’s “Take Two” and “Technique” articles break down the BCS National Championship matchup with additional content at ESPN Insider.

Scenario: Your return flight from (insert country) where you (insert activity) and even (insert activity) with (insert name) is delayed two days and you’re going to miss the Allstate BCS National Championship.
Solution: Relax and grab a (insert beverage of country you are visiting), ESPN International has all five BCS Bowls live in more countries than your passport has pages.

Scenario: ¿Qué? ¿Necesitas ver el juego en español con tu familia?
Solution: No problem. For the first time ever, ESPN Deportes will televise the BCS National Championship (U.S. only). Qué comience la acción!

There’s only one person who could get away with this and not have me skewer her and that’s Keri Potts of ESPN Public Relations. Because I like her, I’ll say good job and keep up the good work. Anyone else and I would give him/her a hard time.

NFL Had A Good XMas Weekend; NFL Finished #1 in 29 of 30 Local Markets

We know the NFL is the ratings king. We know that the NFL will top most of the 30 local markets if not all every week.

For Christmas weekend, the NFL was #1 in all but one local market. That was in South Florida. Miami for some reason did not have the NFL on top of its local ratings, but with the Dolphins losing to the Patriots in come-from-behind fashion, perhaps South Florida didn’t want to see the inevitable result.

So we have the ratings for this weekend where the NFL finished first in the local ratings. Milwaukee was on top as Packers Nation continues to watch the Green and Gold march towards the playoffs.

NFL GAMES TOP RATINGS IN 29 MARKETS

Bears-Packers on NBC Sunday Night Football Most-Watched Show of Week

The Bears-Packers Sunday night game on NBC was the most-watched show among all programs last week with 24.0 million viewers.

Locally, NFL games top the ratings in NFL markets 90 percent of the time through 16 weeks.  Following is the list of the 29 NFL markets where football was the top-rated program for the week of Dec. 19-25:

Week of 12/19-12/25			HH	HH	RTG
Market	Game	Date	RTG	SHR	Rank
Milwaukee	Bears at Packers	12/25/11	46.5	73	1
Pittsburgh	Steelers at 49ers*	12/19/11	44.2	67	1
Baltimore	Browns at Ravens	12/24/11	31.9	61	1
Kansas City	Raiders at Chiefs	12/24/11	31.9	60	1
Boston	Dolphins at Patriots	12/24/11	30.3	61	1
Chicago	Bears at Packers	12/25/11	28.7	53	1
San Fran-Oakland	Steelers at 49ers*	12/19/11	28.2	50	1
Atlanta	Falcons at Saints	12/26/11	27.6	44	1
Denver	Broncos at Bills	12/24/11	26.8	59	1
Dallas	Eagles at Cowboys	12/24/11	25.6	52	1
Seattle	49ers at Seahawks	12/24/11	24.6	55	1
Detroit	Chargers at Lions	12/24/11	24.4	52	1
Nashville	Jaguars at Titans	12/24/11	23.5	44	1
New Orleans	Steelers at 49ers	12/19/11	23.3	32	1
Indianapolis	Texans at Colts**	12/22/11	22.9	36	1
Philadelphia	Eagles at Cowboys	12/24/11	22.7	47	1
Houston	Texans at Colts**	12/22/11	22.4	36	1
Minneapolis	Vikings at Redskins	12/24/11	22.4	59	1
San Diego	Chargers at Lions	12/24/11	21.8	44	1
New York	Giants at Jets	12/24/11	21.6	47	1
Charlotte	Buccaneers at Panthers	12/24/11	19.2	41	1
Cleveland	Browns at Ravens	12/24/11	19.0	40	1
Phoenix	Cardinals at Bengals	12/24/11	15.8	35	1
Washington, DC	Vikings at Redskins	12/24/11	15.0	33	1
St. Louis	Rams at Steelers	12/24/11	13.6	29	1
Buffalo	Bears at Packers	12/25/11	13.6	24	1
Jacksonville	Bears at Packers	12/25/11	13.3	23	1
Tampa	Buccaneers at Panthers	12/24/11	13.2	31	1
Cincinnati	Giants at Jets	12/24/11	13.0	28	1

* Local affiliate & ESPN combined
** Local affiliate & NFL Network combined
Source: NFL & The Nielsen Company

That does it.

Time For Some Thursday Links

Let’s give you some linkage on this Thursday.

We begin with Fox NFL rules analyst Mike Pereira who doesn’t mince words on ESPN’s Jon Gruden.

Bob’s Blitz reacts to Pereira’s strong post.

Jill Goldsmith of Variety says the clock is ticking for MSG Network and Time Warner Cable to hash out a new carriage agreement.

Mike Reynolds at Multichannel News writes that ESPN’s Monday Night Football experienced close to a double digit percentage ratings drop this season.

Anthony Crupi of Adweek says nothing delivers the ratings like football whether it be college or the NFL.

At the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center, Ronnie Ramos says coaches and leagues regulating how their players use Twitter is still up for debate.

Dan Fogarty of SportsGrid notes that ABC 20/20 anchor Chris Cuomo is a fan of ESPN Monday Night Countdown’s “C’mon, Man” segment.

Mike Ozanian of Forbes says the Seattle Mariners could see a huge media rights increase in the very near future.

Chad Finn of the Boston Globe talks with the venerable TV play-by-play man of the Boston Celtics, Mike Gorman.

Chad notes that the Boston sports radio wars are getting a bit tighter in the ratings.

Johnny Diaz of the Globe writes that local businesses including Celtics rightsholder Comcast SportsNet New England are glad to have the team back in action.

Richard Huff of the New York Daily News looks at ESPN’s New Year’s Eve programming featuring two daredevil death-defying and record-breaking jump attempts.

Ken Schott from the Schenectady Gazette gives us his top 5 sports media stories of the year.

Pete Dougherty at the Albany Times Union writes about Mike Pereira’s column on Jon Gruden.

John Hopkins of the Towanda (NY) News offers to take a vow of abstinence from ESPN for a year.

Tim Pinaccio of CSNPhilly.com talks with NHL Chief Operating Officer John Collins about HBO’s 24/7 series.

Barry Jackson at the Miami Herald says a local sports radio station is juggling its on-air lineup.

Rachel George of the Orlando Sentinel says CBS Sports Network will be all-Tim Tebow from Saturday night into the wee hours of Sunday morning.

Jay G. Tate of the Montgomery (AL) Advertiser notes that Auburn coach Gene Chizik will be returning to the BCS Championship Game this season, as an ESPN analyst.

At the Detroit News, Angelique S. Chegelis looks at the new partnership between the Big Ten and Pac-12 conferences that would pit the conference’s football teams in interconference matchups in the first three weeks of the season. Games would benefit both conferences’ TV networks.

Tom Couzens at the Sacramento Bee gives a primer to Kings fans looking for the team’s games on satellite providers.

Susan Krashinsky of the Toronto Globe and Mail wonders if CBC can remain in the sports business.

Tommy Craggs of Deadspin looks into the Skip Baylessification of ESPN.

Kevin McCauley of SB Nation says now that charges against him have been dropped, Mike Milbury will return to NBC for the NHL Winter Classic.

Steve Lepore at Puck The Media says Versus will utilize its NHL top analyst Eddie Olcyzk to help call its inaugural college hockey telecast this week.

Sports Media Watch continues its countdown of the Top 20 Sports Media stories of the year. Here are #5 — 2. And you have the #1 story of the year.

And that will conclude the links for now. I figured I would get them done early for a change.

Primetime & Late Night Viewing Picks

Boxing
Best of 2011: Cotto vs. Margarito II — HBO, 11 p.m.

College Basketball
Men’s
Florida at Rutgers — ESPN2, 7 p.m.
Elon at North Carolina — ESPNU, 7 p.m.
The Citadel at Tennessee — Fox College Sports Pacific/Fox Sports Arizona/SportSouth, 7 p.m.
Penn State at Michigan — Big Ten Network, 7:30 p.m.
Georgia Tech at Fordham — CBS Sports Network, 8 p.m.
Southern Illinois at Evansville — Fox College Sports Central/Fox Sports Midwest, 8 p.m.
Western Kentucky at Louisiana-Munroe — Fox College Sports Atlantic, 8:30 p.m.
Jacksonville at Alabama — CSS, 9 p.m.
Vanderbilt at Marquette — ESPN2, 9 p.m.
Oklahoma at Cincinnati — ESPNU, 9 p.m.
Oregon State at Washington — Fox College Sports Central/Root Sports Northwest/Root Sports Rocky Mountain, 9 p.m.
BYU at St. Mary’s — ESPN2, 11 p.m.
UCLA at Stanford — Fox Sports Net, 11 p.m. (national)

College Football
Champ Sports Bowl, Orlando, FL
Notre Dame vs. Florida State — ESPN/ESPN 3D, 5:30 p.m.

Alamo Bowl, San Antonio, TX
Washington vs. Baylor — ESPN, 9 p.m.

IIHF World Junior Championships
Denmark vs. Canada — TSN/NHL Network (US), 8 p.m.
Latvia vs. Russia — TSN2, 10 p.m.

MLB
Clubhouse Confidential — MLB Network, 5:30 p.m.
Hot Stove Live — MLB Network, 6 p.m.

NBA
Dallas at Oklahoma City — TNT, 8 p.m.
New York at Los Angeles Lakers — TNT, 10:30 p.m.

Inside the NBA — TNT, 1 a.m.

NHL
Calgary at New York Islanders — Rogers Sportsnet Calgary/MSG Plus, 7 p.m.
Philadelphia at Pittsburgh — Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia/Root Sports Pittsburgh, 7 p.m.
Toronto at Carolina — Leafs TV/Fox Sports Carolinas, 7 p.m.
Montreal at Tampa Bay — RDS/TSN-Habs/Sun Sports, 7:30 p.m.
Edmonton at Minnesota — Rogers Sportsnet West/Fox Sports North, 8 p.m.
Columbus at Dallas — Fox Sports Ohio/Fox Sports Southwest, 8:30 p.m.
Los Angeles at Winnipeg — Fox Sports West/TSN-Jets, 8:30 p.m.
Phoenix at Colorado — Fox Sports Arizona/Altitude, 9 p.m.
Vancouver at Anaheim — Rogers Sportsnet Pacific/KDOC, 10 p.m.

NHL Live — NHL Network, 5 p.m.
NHL Network at the 2012 Winter Classic — NHL Network, 7 p.m.
NHL Tonight — NHL Network, 11 p.m.

Skiing
FIS World Cup, Bormio, Italy
Men’s Downhill — Universal Sports, 11 a.m. (same day coverage)
Women’s Slalom — Universal Sports, 2 p.m. (same day coverage)

Sports Talk
The Best of the Dan Patrick Show — Audience Network (DirecTV)/Fox Sports Net, 9 a.m.
Tim Brando Show — CBS Sports Network, 10 a.m.
The Box Score — Audience Network (DirecTV), noon
The Scott Van Pelt Show — ESPNews , 1 p.m.
Numbers Never Lie — ESPN2, 3:30 p.m.
NBC SportsTalk — Versus, 6 p.m.

Entertainment
Happy New Year, Charlie Brown — ABC, 8 p.m.
Man, Woman, Wild: Bear’s Kitchen — Discovery, 9 p.m.
I (Almost) Got Away With It: Got to Pretend I’m A Priest — Investigation Discovery, 9 p.m.
Beavis and Butt-Head — MTV, 10 p.m.
Beyond Scared Straight: Western Tidewater Regional Jail, VA — A&E, 10 p.m.
Alaska: The Last Frontier — Discovery, 10 p.m.

Inside The NFL Quotage For Week 16/17

We haven’t done Inside the NFL quotage in quite some time. Let’s rectify that right now. Jacksonville Jaguars running back Maurice Jones-Drew was the featured guest for this week. In addition, the crew of James Brown, Phil Simms, Cris Collinsworth and Warren Sapp plus insider Michael Lombardi all discussed the games played in Week 16 and the games upcoming in Week 17.

Let’s see what was said in this week’s edition of Inside the NFL on Showtime as produced by CBS Sports and NFL Films.

THIS WEEK’S INSIDE THE NFL ON SHOWTIME^®

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS’ MAURICE JONES-DREW JOINS VIA SATELLITE TO TALK ABOUT HIS COMMENTS ON PLAYERS HIDING THEIR CONCUSSIONS

NEW YORK (Dec. 28, 2011) – On this week’s edition of INSIDE THE NFL, James Brown, Phil Simms, Cris Collinsworth, and Warren Sapp are joined via satellite by Maurice Jones-Drew, running back for the Jacksonville Jaguars, as he talks about the controversial comments he made in this week’s Associated Press article regarding players hiding their concussions in order to stay in the game.

Plus Michael Lombardi joins INSIDE THE NFL for a special Lombardi Report.

INSIDE THE NFL, now in its 33^rd season, airs every Wednesday night through the NFL season on SHOWTIME for a total of 23 episodes, with multiple replays each week on SHOWTIME and SHOWTIME EXTREME^® and availability on SHOWTIME On Demand.  INSIDE THE NFL is produced by CBS Sports and NFL Films. The executive producers are CBS Sports Chairman Sean McManus and NFL Films President Steve Sabol. Pete Radovich Jr., the Emmy Award-winning Creative Director for CBS Sports, serves as coordinating producer.

Following are excerpts from this week’s episode:

Interview with Maurice Jones-Drew where he expands on his comments made to the Associated Press about playing through a concussion…
JONES-DREW: Long term [effects], I can’t really think about that. All I can really think about is what I can do now for this organization, for my family, whoever I can, to help this team out. That’s just my way of thinking. The other guys think a different way, other guys are looking towards the future but, I figure if I can’t take care of them now there will be no future. So that’s something I continue to work on and try and get better at. Obviously if you do have concussions…they’ve done a lot of protocols to help you get back in and do whatever they can to protect the brain. And I commend the league on doing that but at the same time as a player you have to think about being labeled as a guy who gets concussions and not being able to get a job, or being labeled as an injury-prone type of guy and teams backing away from you. And so at the end of the day this is a multi-billion dollar business and that’s what we’re playing. Let’s be serious. You’re playing this way to be famous and to take care of your families.

COLLINSWORTH: We’ve heard in the past that people fake injuries for a variety of reasons in the NFL. Now you are saying we have to fake health. We basically have to fake the idea that we are OK to go play the game.
JONES-DREW: I don’t see it as faking. In certain situations; an ankle sprain you can play through, a broken leg you can’t. A ding is a ding, a concussion is a concussion. And so there are guys that are going to get dinged up. I play running back. I get hit in the head every play. I think I’ve been face-masked about 100 times this year; I’ve been driven into the ground. And there are all these different things that go on and I don’t have headaches or anything like that, that last a long time. When you get dinged though, off a good hit, it’s a good hit. That’s how I was raised playing the game. There are things that you have to be able to play through in this game and that is why we play football. That’s why we’re called football players.

COLLINSWORTH: The basic premise of what [Jones-Drew] said is true. When you have dings, if you don’t go back out on the field, than you’re not going to play long… It is an interesting dynamic going on here. And that is, the NFL keeps telling everybody how dangerous these concussions are. And I think the players are getting the message and that’s a great thing. One of the problems is a lot of moms are getting this message too. And there are a lot of moms out there that have a lot of influence over whether or not their children are playing football or not. And believe me, there are a lot of people thinking, is this right for my kid?

COLLINSWORTH: You know what’s really interesting is, what Maurice Jones-Drew said, ‘I was raised that way.’ In other words that’s how you play football. If you get dinged you go back in the game. I was raised that way. And it really struck a chord with me. Sometimes it takes the next generation to start playing a different way. He’s right. We were raised to play and throw our bodies around and if you got dinged you went back in the game. That’s how you were a tough guy. But the bottom line of what he said is absolutely true. If you keep taking yourself out of the game, you’re not going to be playing this game for long.

On this upcoming Sunday’s Cowboys vs. Giants game…
COLLINSWORTH: Felix Jones, it is time for him to answer the bell. Here’s a guy that over the years he’s been sort of a, sometimes he’s a factor, sometimes he is not. But it’s all on him now. DeMarco Murray is out; he has that fractured ankle, and now is the moment.  Felix Jones was drafted for this moment. If they don’t get the balance, if they can’t slowdown that pass rush a little bit with some form of running game, I don’t think the Cowboys can win it.

SIMMS: I don’t think we can underscore Tony Romo and the hand. You know, one, he plays down in Dallas. It is basically an indoor stadium. Now he’s going outside. I kind of compare it a little bit to Drew Brees. You know, they are not as good on the road because there is something about being in those domes where the passing game just clicks. So that hand’s hurting, the pass rush, even though the weather is not going to be severe, it’s going to be enough.  I think it is going to be a problem for Tony Romo.

On Cam Newton…
COLLINSWORTH: You’re talking about a guy [Cam Newton] that may be changing the game a little bit.  In that, okay, we’ve all been talking about Tim Tebow this whole time, whatever. But this guy (Newton) has proven that he can stand in the pocket and make some throws. It’s something.

Michael Lombardi’s thoughts on the St. Louis Rams…
LOMBARDI: I think St. Louis obviously has been really a disappointment last year. After winning seven games they come back. They’re going to make a lot of changes. I think St. Louis is going to rebuild their entire organization with new owner Stan Kroenke in there, front office included. I think there are going to be many changes in St. Louis. Jeff Fisher is a logical choice there [for head coach]. The one survivor in St. Louis will be Kevin Demoff, he is the chief executive officer. Kevin Demoff’s father is Marvin Demoff who represents Jeff Fisher so there’s a lineage there between the two.

On this upcoming Sunday’s Kansas City Chiefs vs. Denver Broncos game…
COLLINSWORTH: Now it really comes down to one guy in my estimation.  Tamba Hali is a beast. And he is athletic enough to not only take Tim Tebow and force him to pitch the ball on those option plays, but go make the tackle out there too. He is one of the great talents in this league. And really he doesn’t get a whole lot of help in the pass rush in Kansas City.

On the Cincinnati Bengals…
SAPP: The Bengals are like the Tampa Bay Bucaneers when I first got there. There were a lot of walls that needed to be broken down and they only have one win versus a team that has better than .500 record right now. So when the going gets tough the Bengals kind of cower away from that challenge. So I want to see if they are going to come out this Sunday and meet the Baltimore Ravens at the 50-yard line and fight for four quarters for a playoff spot.

SIMMS:  You know this is a new group and Marvin Lewis, the head coach (Cincinnati Bengals), he got a second chance with the same team. How many coaches in history get to do that? And you can see the difference in their attitude, the way they play, the way they look. I did get a chance to talk to him this week and he’s got a young team and you know what he says, ‘I know two things about this game this weekend. I am going to see something incredible from my team because of that young talent.’ But he goes, ‘I also know I’m going to see something incredibly stupid too.’ But it’s exciting. I think that you can hear it when you talk to him how excited he is because he is in control again and the young players buy into what they are doing.

That will do it.

NFL Network’s Programming Schedule For The Next 7 Days

We have the NFL Network’s slate of programs from tonight through next Tuesday. Let’s see what’s in store.

NFL NETWORK & NFL.COM PROGRAMMING NOTES (12/28 – 1/3)

NFL GAMEDAY MORNING PREVIEWS COWBOYS-GIANTS FOR NFC EAST TITLE & PRESENTS SOUNDS OF THE REGULAR SEASON SUNDAY, JAN. 1 AT 9:00 AM ET
Michael Irvin, Steve Mariucci, Willie McGinest & Charles Davis on No Huddle TONIGHT at 10:00 PM ET
Jeff Schaeffer, Alec Berg & Little NFL Gurus on The Rich Eisen Podcast Thursday, Dec. 29 at 4:30 PM ET
Complete Game Broadcast of Week 14 Giants-Cowboys Matchup Thursday, Dec. 29 at 8:00 PM ET

THIS WEEK ON NFL GAMEDAY MORNING

Sunday is GameDay, beginning with NFL GameDay Morning at 9:00 AM ET. Join host Rich Eisen and analysts Steve Mariucci, Marshall Faulk, Kurt Warner, Warren Sapp and Michael Irvin on the first and most comprehensive pregame show on television, taking viewers straight up to kickoff with the latest news, injury reports, pregame analysis, exclusive interviews and game previews.

With the New York Giants facing the Dallas Cowboys at MetLife Stadium for the NFC East title, NFL GameDay Morning previews the matchup by examining the past performances of quarterbacks Eli Manning and Tony Romo in big games. Through interviews with Stephen J. Dubner and various media members from both New York and Dallas, NFL GameDay Morning discusses Manning and Romo’s history in the fourth quarter of games and more.

Additionally, NFL Films presents New Year’s resolutions, the sounds of the regular season and the best images of the past year.

Featured on NFL GameDay Morning:

• What is at stake for the Denver Broncos against the Kansas City Chiefs, and could quarterback Kyle Orton spoil his former team’s season?
• What do the playoff contenders still have to prove?
• How important is homefield advantage for the 49ers, Saints, Ravens and Steelers?
• What should the New York Jets do with quarterback Mark Sanchez?
• If they get the No. 1 overall pick, what should the St. Louis Rams do?
• Who is the MVP?

NFL Network reporters will provide pre-game news and interviews from the following games:

• Stacey Dales reports from Cincinnati for Ravens-Bengals
• Steve Cyphers reports from Denver for Chiefs-Broncos
• Steve Wyche reports from New York for Cowboys-Giants
• Michelle Beisner reports from Oakland for Chargers-Raiders

THIS WEEK ON AROUND THE LEAGUE LIVE and NFL TOTAL ACCESS

Thursday, December 29
Around the League Live:

• Steve Wyche reports from New York with the Giants
• Lindsay Soto reports from Dallas

Friday, December 30
Around the League Live:

• Steve Wyche reports from New York with the Giants

Michael Irvin, Steve Mariucci, Willie McGinest & Charles Davis on No Huddle
TONIGHT at 10:00 PM ET

Michael Irvin, Steve Mariucci, Willie McGinest and Charles Davis appear this week on No Huddle tonight at 10:00 PM ETfor a roundtable discussion. The four analysts will discuss the following topics:

• What is the big factor that will determine the game between the Cowboys & Giants?
• Will former Denver quarterback Kyle Orton and the Chiefs prevent Tim Tebow and the Broncos from making the playoffs?
• Can the Cincinnati Bengals upset the Baltimore Ravens and make the playoffs?
• What is wrong with the New York Jets?

Below are quotes from this week’s edition of No Huddle:

“The Giants might lose to anyone on the map, but when it comes to the Jets and the Cowboys, that’s a wrap. They bring their best game.” – Michael Irvin on the New York Giants

“We’re talking about the Ravens with something to prove. They can’t let the division get away, can’t let homefield advantage get away because we’ve seen the Ravens in the playoffs where homefield has mattered.” – Charles Davis on the AFC North-leading Baltimore Ravens

Jeff Schaeffer, Alec Berg & the Little NFL Gurus on The Rich Eisen Podcast Thursday, December 29 at 4:30 PM ET – Available for Download on NFL.com & iTunes

The latest edition of The Rich Eisen Podcast airs on NFL Network Thursday, December 29 at 4:30 PM ET. It is also available for download on NFL.com and iTunes.

Co-creator of The League and writer for Curb Your Enthusiasm and Seinfeld Jeff Schaeffer and fellow Curb & Seinfeld writer Alec Berg join Eisen in-studio for a discussion about potential playoff scenarios, fantasy football championships and how The Rich Eisen Podcast has possibly been a catalyst for a ninth season of Curb Your Enthusiasm. Schaeffer and Berg also discuss their new movie, The Dictator, starring Sacha Baron Cohen which comes out in theatres May 2012.

With the final week of the regular season ahead and the playoff picture coming into focus, the Little NFL Guru’s are back. Antonio Stefan (11 years old) and Jake Robinson (10) return to give their thoughts on the second half of the season and their predictions for the playoffs, as well as how Eisen did in his fantasy league with Jake’s father.

To download the latest editions of NFL.com’s six podcasts, visit the NFL.com podcast page:
http://www.nfl.com/podcast

NFL Classic Games Features Week 14 New York Giants at Dallas Cowboys Complete Game Broadcast Thursday, December 29 at 8:00 PM ET

In advance of the Week 17 game between the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys for the NFC East title, NFL Network presents an NFL Classic Games full game telecast of the Giants’ Week 14 victory over the Cowboys on Thursday, December 29 at 8:00 PM ET.

NFL Classic Games features the complete NBC broadcast of the game with original graphics and announcers Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth.

In the Week 14 game, the Giants scored two touchdowns in the final 3:14 to defeat the Cowboys and snap a four-game losing streak. The Cowboys’ 47-yard field goal attempt to tie the game as time expired was blocked by Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul.

THIS WEEK ON PLAYBOOK

Friday 8:00 PM ET – AFC Playbook with Sterling Sharpe, Brian Baldinger and Joe Theismann

• Sterling Sharpe on how Jerome Simpson fits into the Bengals offense
• Joe Theismann on why Tim Tebow will cost the Broncos the AFC West title
• How the Steelers will win the AFC North
• Why the Bengals will clinch the final playoff spot in the AFC
• What the Patriots need to fix before the playoffs
• 2:00 Warning – Who will be the best quarterback in the AFC in Week 17?

Friday 9:00 PM ET – NFC Playbook with Sterling Sharpe, Brian Baldinger and Joe Theismann

• Sterling Sharpe on how the Giants will ground and pound their way to the NFC East title
• Joe Theismann on how the 49ers will clinch a first-round bye
• Why the Lions will be a tough out in the playoffs
• How the Falcons defense can set the tone for the postseason
• Matt Millen film study on how the Giants offense can neutralize DeMarcus Ware
• 2:00 Warning – Who will be the best quarterback in the NFC in Week 17?

Cincinnati Bengals Back in the Top 10, First Six Teams Unchanged in NFL.com’s Week 17 Power Poll

Looking to make it wire-to-wire effort, the Green Bay Packers remained atop NFL.com’s Week 17 Power Poll with a dominant victory over the division-rival Chicago Bears.

While the top six teams in the Power Poll remained unchanged from last week’s, the Cincinnati Bengals moved back into the top 10, checking in at No. 9 and becoming the highest-ranked team yet to clinch a playoff berth.

Below are the top 10 teams in the NFL.com Power Poll, with their previous week’s ranking listed in parentheses:

1. Green Bay Packers (1)
2. New Orleans Saints (2)
3. New England Patriots (3)
4. San Francisco 49ers (4)
5. Baltimore Ravens (5)
6. Pittsburgh Steelers (6)
7. Detroit Lions (9)
8. Atlanta Falcons (7)
9. Cincinnati Bengals (12)
10. Houston Texans (8)

To view the entire poll, visit:
http://www.nfl.com/news/story/09000d5d82574d06/article/week-17-top-teams-hold-onto-spots-lions-make-a-move?module=HP11_hot_topics

DAY-BY-DAY PROGRAMMING SCHEDULE (all times listed are ET)

Wednesday, December 28
10:00 PM – No Huddle
11:00 PM – NFL Total Access
12 MIDNIGHT – NFL Fantasy Live
12:30 AM – NFL Replay: San Francisco 49ers at Seattle Seahawks – Week 16, 2011
2:00 AM – Sound FX: Week 16, 2011
2:30 AM – No Huddle
3:30 AM – NFL Films Presents: Colts Kicking Combo

Thursday, December 29
12 NOON – Sound FX: Week 16, 2011
12:30 PM – NFL Replay: San Francisco 49ers at Seattle Seahawks – Week 16, 2011
2:00 PM – NFL Fantasy Live
2:30 PM – Sound FX: Week 16, 2011
3:00 PM – No Huddle
4:00 PM – NFL Films Presents: Real Life Heaven Can Wait
4:30 PM – The Rich Eisen Podcast
5:00 PM – Around the League Live
7:00 PM – NFL Total Access
8:00 PM – NFL Classic Game: New York Giants at Dallas Cowboys – Week 14, 2011
11:00 PM – NFL Total Access
12 MIDNIGHT – NFL Fantasy Live
12:30 AM – NFL Classic Game: New York Giants at Dallas Cowboys – Week 14, 2011
3:30 AM – Sound FX: Week 16, 2011

Friday, December 30
12 NOON – NFL’s Top 10: Quarterback Controversies
1:00 PM – NFL’s Top 10: Clutch Quarterbacks
2:00 PM – NFL Fantasy Live
2:30 PM – NFL Films Presents: Real Life Heaven Can Wait
3:00 PM – Sound FX: Week 16, 2011
3:30 PM – NFL Replay: New York Giants at Dallas Cowboys – Week 14, 2011
5:00 PM – Around the League Live
7:00 PM – NFL Total Access
8:00 PM – Playbook: AFC
9:00 PM – Playbook: NFC
10:00 PM – NFL’s Top 10: Football Myths
11:00 PM – NFL Total Access
12 MIDNIGHT – NFL Fantasy Live
12:30 AM – Playbook: AFC
1:30 AM – Playbook: NFC
2:30 AM – NFL’s Top 10: Football Myths
3:30 AM – The Rich Eisen Podcast

Saturday, December 31
9:00 AM – NFL Replay: New York Giants at Dallas Cowboys – Week 14, 2011
10:30 AM – NFL Films Presents: Real Life Heaven Can Wait
11:00 AM – Playbook: AFC
12 NOON – Playbook: NFC
1:00 PM – Sound FX: Week 16, 2011
1:30 PM – The Rich Eisen Podcast
2:00 PM – No Huddle
3:00 PM – NFL’s Top 10: Football Myths
4:00 PM – NFL’s Top 10: Records That Won’t Be Broken
5:00 PM – Sound FX: Tony Romo
5:30 PM – NFL Replay: New York Giants at Dallas Cowboys – Week 14, 2011
7:00 PM – NFL Total Access
8:30 PM – Sound FX: Week 16, 2011
9:00 PM – NFL Holiday Spectacular
10:00 PM – NFL’s Top 10: Quarterback Duels
11:00 PM – NFL Total Access
12:30 AM – The Rich Eisen Podcast
1:00 AM – NFL Holiday Spectacular
2:00 AM – NFL’s Top 10: Quarterback Duels
3:00 AM – NFL Total Access

Sunday, January 1
9:00 AM – NFL GameDay Morning
1:00 PM – NFL GameDay Statzone
4:00 PM – NFL GameDay Scoreboard
7:30 PM – NFL GameDay Highlights
11:30 PM – NFL GameDay Final

Monday, January 2
1:00 PM – Around the League Live
6:00 PM – Up to the Minute
6:30 PM – The Coaches Show
7:00 PM – NFL Total Access
8:30 PM – NFL’s Top 10: Quarterback Duels
9:30 PM – NFL’s Top 10: Overtime Finishes
10:30 PM – Sound FX
11:00 PM – NFL Total Access
12:30 AM – NFL’s Top 10: Quarterback Duels
1:30 AM – NFL’s Top 10: Overtime Finishes
2:30 AM – Sound FX

Tuesday, January 3
12 NOON – America’s Game: 2009 New Orleans Saints
1:00 PM – America’s Game: 2010 Green Bay Packers
2:00 PM – NFL’s Top 10: Uniforms
3:00 PM – NFL’s Top 10: Overtime Finishes
4:00 PM – NFL’s Top 10: Quarterback Duels
5:00 PM – Around the League Live
7:00 PM – NFL Total Access
8:00 PM – NFL Replay: TBD
9:30 PM – NFL Replay: TBD
11:00 PM – NFL Total Access
12 MIDNIGHT – NFL Replay: TBD
1:30 AM – NFL Replay: TBD
3:00 AM – NFL Total Access

And that will do it.

Monday Night Football is the Most Watched Series on Cable For 6th Straight Year

Once again, since Monday Night Football became a cable series in 2006, ESPN has seen it garner the highest ratings in primetime for the sixth straight year. The 17 games averaged an 8.4 rating throughout the season. Viewership averaged 13.25 million people.Throughout the regular year, the games ranked first in the males 18-34 and 18-49 demographic.

And the last game of the season between Atlanta and New Orleans received a 9.2 rating. We have the official ESPN press release.

ESPN’s Monday Night Football: Cable’s Most-Watched Series for Sixth Straight Year

14 of 20 Biggest Cable Household Audiences of 2011; Saints-Falcons MNF Finale Helps ESPN Win the Night

For the sixth straight year, ESPN’s Monday Night Football ranks as the most-watched series on cable television, drawing 14 of the calendar year’s 20 biggest cable household audiences, and 13 of the top 20 among viewers. ESPN’s 17 Monday Night Football telecasts in 2011 averaged a 9.7 rating (8.4 US rating), representing an average of 9,589,000 households (13,252,000 viewers – P2+), according to Nielsen. Additionally, ESPN ranked as the No. 1 network each Monday night this season among the coveted key male demographics (M18-34 and M18-49).

In six seasons on ESPN, Monday Night Football has registered eight of the top 10 all-time biggest household audiences in cable history. (Only two 2011 Bowl Championship Series college football games – which also aired on ESPN – rank higher.)

MNF Season-Finale: Falcons-Saints
MNF ended its 42nd season on a strong note this week with the New Orleans Saints’ 45-16 victory over NFC South rival Atlanta, as Saints quarterback Drew Brees broke Hall of Famer Dan Marino’s 27-year-old NFL single-season passing record. The telecast delivered a 10.6 rating (9.2 US rating), representing an average of 10,530,000 households (15,638,000 viewers – P2+). MNF led all the night’s programs (broadcast or cable) among households, viewers and all key male and adult demos, making ESPN the top network for the night in all categories.

MNF on TV
Highlights for the 2011 NFL season:

• ESPN’s MNF games rank as 14 of the 20 biggest audiences among households and 13 of the 20 biggest among total viewers for cable television in 2011;
• ESPN led all networks – cable or broadcast – in delivery of men 18-34 and 18-49 every Monday in prime time this season; ESPN was also No. 1 in men 25-54 in 15 of 16 weeks, and No. 1 among adults 25-54 on 10 Mondays;
• Four times, ESPN won the night as the most-watched network among households and five times among viewers – cable or broadcast – in prime time on Monday;
• ESPN’s highest-rated MNF game of 2011 was the Washington Redskins at Dallas Cowboys (Sep. 26) with 12,173,000 households and 17,104,000 viewers based on a 12.3 rating.

ESPN Monday Night Football Season Averages (2006-11)

Year	Rating	Households (000s)	Viewers (000s)
2011	9.7	9.589	13.252
2010	10.5	10.495	14.657
2009	10.4	10.315	14.382
2008	8.9	8.679	11.962
2007	8.6	8.277	11.230
2006	9.9	9.109	12.325

Source: Nielsen

NFL on ESPN Digital Platforms
On Saturday through Monday, ESPN digital platforms generated an average minute audience of 100,000 – up 8 percent compared to the same time period last season (source: Adobe/Omniture). The Fantasy Football section on ESPN.com was also up 14 percent with an average minute audience of 13,000. Additionally, the NFL section on the ESPN mobile Web site logged an average minute audience of 20,000, a 37 percent gain. Season-to-date, the average minute audience of NFL content across digital platforms is up 16% from last year.

MNF Team to Call 2012 Orange Bowl
ESPN’s Monday Night Football team of Mike Tirico, Jon Gruden and Ron Jaworski will return to the booth to call the 2012 Orange Bowl between Big East champion West Virginia (ranked No. 23) and ACC champion Clemson (No. 15). The Bowl Championship Series game will be played at Sun Life Stadium in South Florida on Wednesday, January 4, 2012, on ESPN and ESPN HD (simulcast on ESPN3.com) at 8:30 p.m. ET.

And that does it.

Sports Media Weekly Podcast No. 85 — Best of 2011 Featuring James Andrew Miller, Michelle Beadle, Ian Eagle & Curt Menefee

This is a special Year-in-Review podcast. Keith Thibault and I look back at some of our best interviews from 2011. Over the past year, we interviewed quite a few guests and some heavy hitters in the Sports Media world.

Keith and I chose four of the best podcasts and some are run again in their entirety, others we join in progress.

For this podcast, we chose interviews with James Andrew Miller, co-author of the book, “Those Guys Have All Fun: Inside the World of ESPN”; Michelle Beadle, co-host of ESPN2′s SportsNation; Fox NFL Sunday host Curt Menefee; and Ian Eagle from CBS Sports/Tennis Channel and YES Network.

Give a listen and go back in time as Keith and I interview our guests regarding the issues that were prevalent at the time of each podcast.

Download it at iTunes or find the podcast

Bringing Out The Wednesday Links

Ok, going to try to give you a full set of links today. Let’s get started.

Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch has his 2011 Media Awards. Very good list of people getting awards this year.

Michael Hiestand from USA Today writes that when all is said and done, the NFL’s TV ratings for this season will finish down compared to last season’s record highs.

The Nielsen Wire blog notes that the NFL almost had the entire Top 10 highest rated Single Telecast category to itself.

Sofia M. Fernandez of the Hollywood Reporter lists the 11 most triumphant, terrifying and bizarre moments in sports television.

Mike Reynolds at Broadcasting & Cable writes that four networks will air coverage of the NHL Winter Classic Alumni Game on New Year’s Eve.

Mike adds that TNT got cable’s fourth-largest audience ever for an NBA regular season game with its airing of Celtics-Knicks on Christmas Day.

At Multichannel News, Mike says TNT also received good numbers for its Tuesday night NBA doubleheader.

Mike looks at NBC Sports Network’s first original programming project that airs just a half-hour after its launch on January 2.

SportsbyBrooks reports that even if college football analyst Craig James hadn’t run for U.S. Senate, ESPN would have likely dropped him in 2012.

Dan Fogarty at SportsGrid says Shaquille O’Neal had his first real funny moment on TNT Tuesday night.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell says an Ohio car dealer hopes to make some buzz if the Cleveland Browns not just beat, but shut out the Pittsburgh Steelers this Sunday.

Jamison Hedley of ESPN.com reports that the Cincinnati Bengals have avoided their 7th blackout of the season.

Pete Dougherty at the Albany Times Union writes about ESPN pulling First Take co-host Dana Jacobsen off the show and assigning her to other duties.

Sara Ganim of the Harrisburg (PA) Patriot-News says the attorney for embattled former Penn State assistant coach Jerry Sandusky is shopping his client and his wife for a potential interview on a natioal network.

Neal Zoren of the Delaware County Times talks with Philadelphia Flyers TV analyst Rich Tocchet who will have two duties at the NHL Winter Classic.

Tom Jones of the now-Tampa Bay (no longer the St. Petersburg) Times gives his year in review in local and national sports media.

The Louisville Courier-Journal reports that one of its writers has won an Eclipse Award for Writing about horse racing.

Jerry Garcia at the San Antonio Express-News says the Spurs topped the local TV ratings on Monday.

Ed Sherman in Crain’s Chicago Business has his winners and losers for 2011 in sports business and media.

Scott D. Pierce of the Salt Lake Tribune talks with CBS’ Verne Lundquist about Utah’s appearance in the Sun Bowl and other matters.

Bruce Dowbiggin in the Toronto Globe and Mail has his top televised images of 2011.

Sports Media Watch has a look at the Top 20 Sports Media stories of the year, starting with #20-16, #15-11 and #10-6.

Awful Announcing looks at the Don Cherry Piano Desk.

Barry Petchesky of Deadspin remembers writing a fan letter to ESPN and getting something in return.

Steve Lepore at Puck The Media lists his People of the Year in Hockey Broadcasting for 2011.

The Big Lead notes that ESPN research finds that women don’t like the network’s debate shows. I can’t find any men who like them either.

And we’re done.

NBC Gets Xmas Gift of 24 Million People Watching Sunday Night Football on 12/25

The Chicago Bears-Green Bay Packers game on Christmas Night got a big viewership. NBC says the game received an average of 24 million viewers. Against weak competition on the other broadcast networks and the NBA on ESPN, Sunday Night Football dominated the 18-49 demographic with a 7.7 rating and a 23 share. Overall, the rating was 12.7 with a 24 share. The rating is down from last year’s Week 16 game between Minnesota and Philadelphia that was played on a Tuesday due to a two day snow delay.

Football Night in America saw one of its biggest audiences with an average viewership of over 14.7 million viewership in the 8 p.m. half-hour leading up to the game. In fact, it was the 2nd most watched program of the night after the Bears-Packers game.

So we have this press release from NBC regarding the Christmas Night broadcast.

24.0 MILLION WATCHED BEARS-PACKERS; MOST-WATCHED NFL CHRISTMAS PRIMETIME GAME SINCE 1995

Sunday Night Football is Most-Watched and Highest-Rated Show of Primetime Television Season

The Bears-Packers game on Sunday Night Football was seen by 24.0 million viewers, the most for an NFL game played on Christmas night since 1995 (Cowboys-Cardinals, 25.4 million on ABC). The 24.0 million for Sunday’s game is three percent higher than the last game played on Christmas night (Eagles-Cowboys, 23.4 million on Christmas 2006 on NBC), and 39 percent higher than the Christmas night game in 2000 (Cowboys-Titans, 17.3 million on ABC).

Additionally, the Christmas night game is the third most-watched SNF game this season, the eighth most-watched game in the six-year history of NBC Sunday Night Football and one percent higher than last year’s Week 16 game (Vikings-Eagles, 23.7 million), which was played on a Tuesday night due to a snow postponement.

MOST WATCHED “SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL” GAMES:
*Sundays Only

1. 25.8 million, Cowboys-Jets, 9/11/11 (2011 SNF Week 1)
2. 25.73 million, Eagles-Cowboys, 12/12/10 (2010 SNF Week 14)
3. 25.68 million, Vikings-Packers, 10/24/10, (Favre Return to Lambeau II)
4. 25.3 million, Cowboys-Redskins, 9/12/10 (2010 SNF: Week 1)
5. 24.8 million, Giants-Cowboys, 9/20/09 (Dallas Cowboys Stadium Debut)
6. 24.5 million, Giants-Cowboys, 12/11/11 (2011 SNF Week 14)
7. 24.2 million, Packers-Patriots, 12/19/10 (2010 SNF Week 15)
8. 24.0 million, Bears-Packers, 12/25/11 (2011 Christmas Night Game)
9. 23.7 million, Vikings-Eagles, 12/28/10 (2010 SNF Week 16 – Tuesday Game)
10. 23.4 million, Eagles-Falcons, 9/18/11 (2011 SNF Week 2)

*9/9/10, Vikings-Saints, 27.5 million (2010 Thursday Night Opener)
*9/8/11, Saints-Packers, 27.2 million (2011 Thursday Night Opener)

TOP 10 METERED MARKETS FOR BEARS-PACKERS:

1. Milwaukee, 45.8/73
2. Chicago, 29.2/55
3. New Orleans, 20.7/32
4. Las Vegas, 18.5/33
5. Minneapolis, 17.9/37
6. Nashville, 17.3/28
7. Albuquerque, 16.6/29
8. Greenville/Spartanburg, 15.5/25
9. Norfolk, 14.8/26
10. Richmond, 14.7/25

SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL DOMINATES PRIMETIME

Through 16 weeks of the NFL season (16 Sundays and one Thursday), Sunday Night Football is averaging 21.2 million viewers, and a household rating of 12.7/20.

• For the primetime television season,* Sunday Night Football ranks as the most-watched (persons 2+) and highest-rated show, and the No. 1 program across the key demographics of Adults 18-49, 18-34, 25-54 as well as Men 18-49, 18-34 and 25-54, based on Nielsen live + same day data. Additionally, SNF is the No. 4 show among both Women 18-34 and Women 18-49

*NOTE: The primetime television season began on Sept. 19 and does not include the first three NBC primetime games (Thursday night NFL Kickoff Opener and first two SNF games).

• The critically acclaimed Football Night in America is the most-watched and highest-rated NFL pregame show averaging 8.7 million viewers and a household rating of 5.3/9 (7:30-8:15 p.m. ET) through 16 weeks, both up six percent from last season and the most in the six-year history of Football Night.

That will do it.

Episode 3 of 24/7 Flyers/Rangers on HBO Tonight

Our third straight NHL-centric post will deal with tonight’s episode of the critically-acclaimed HBO Sports 24/7 series on the Philadelphia Flyers and New York Rangers meeting at the Winter Classic. Tonight’s installment will entail with another week of preparation between the two teams leading up to the January 2 game.

In addition, we’ll get our first glimpse of the ice being laid down at Citizens Bank Ballpark in Philadelphia, the site of this year’s game.

We get details from this HBO Sports press release.

24/7 FLYERS/RANGERS:  ROAD TO THE NHL WINTER CLASSIC
DEC. 28 EPISODE

Episode #3

Debut:  WEDNESDAY, DEC. 28 (10:00-11:00 p.m. ET/PT)

Other HBO playdates:  Dec. 28 (11:00 p.m.), 29 (5:00 p.m., 11:50 p.m.), 30 (11:00 a.m., 8:00 p.m.) and 31 (noon), and Jan. 1 (9:00 a.m.), 2 (7:00 p.m., 1:55 a.m.)

HBO2 playdates:  Dec. 30 (midnight) and Jan. 1 (11:45 p.m.), 2 (9:00 a.m.) and 3 (10:00 p.m.)

HBO On Demand availability begins:  Jan. 2

The Flyers and Rangers square off at Madison Square Garden in a highly anticipated contest as their showdown in the Winter Classic looms. Preparations to transform Citizens Bank Park are under way. Rating:  (TV-MA) [AL]

The series finale debuts Thursday, Jan. 5 at 10:00 p.m. (followed by an encore at 11:00 p.m.) three days after the Classic, with cameras tracking all the drama and excitement surrounding the Flyers and Rangers on game day. The series is also available on HBO On Demand^® and HBO GO^®.

The executive producer of 24/7 FLYERS/RANGERS:  ROAD TO THE NHL WINTER CLASSIC is Rick Bernstein; senior producer, Dave Harmon; coordinating producers, Scott Boggins and Bentley Weiner; co-producer, Abtin Motia; writer, Aaron Cohen; narrator, Liev Schreiber.

I hope to have a full set of links for you today. Keep your feeds updated.

NHL Winter Classic Alumni Game To Be Aired on Four Networks With One Announcing Team

On New Year’s Eve, one of the fun features of the NHL Winter Classic is the alumni game featuring former players from the teams participating in the annual outdoor game. This year, with the New York Rangers taking on the Philadelphia Flyers, former players from both sides in this fierce rivalry will be back on the ice to faceoff against each other one more time.

CBC will have the game in Canada. Versus will air the game live across the US except in Philadelphia where Comcast SportsNet will have the honors. MSG Network in New York will carry the game on tape after it has aired live on Versus. The game will be aired live at 1 p.m. ET on CBC, Versus and Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia. MSG Network takes it at 4 p.m. ET.

Jim Jackson of Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia will handle the play-by-play. Kevin Weekes of CBC and NHL Network will do the analysis. MSG’s Al Trautwig will be on the Rangers bench while Comcast SportsNet’s Steve Coates will report from the Flyers bench. That team will be seen on all four networks.

We have the press release.

2012 NHL WINTER CLASSIC ALUMNI GAME WILL BE TELEVISED ACROSS U.S. AND CANADA

VERSUS, CSN Philadelphia and MSG Will Broadcast the Game in the U.S., CBC Will Broadcast Across Canada

NEW YORK, NY (December 23, 2011) – For the first time, fans throughout North America will be able to enjoy live broadcast coverage of the 2012 NHL Winter Classic^® Alumni Game when Philadelphia Flyers and New York Rangers legends meet outdoors at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Saturday, Dec. 31 at 1 p.m., ET. A reunion of celebrated names in the proud histories of both franchises, the game will be broadcast live on VERSUS in the United States; CBC in Canada and Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia in the Philadelphia area. MSG Network will show the game on a tape delay in the New York area at 4 p.m. ET p.m.

In partnership between the NHL^® and its broadcast partners, there will be one broadcast, using talent across all networks. CSN Philadelphia’s Jim Jackson will handle the play-by-play, CBC contributor and NHL Network’s Kevin Weekes will serve as analyst and MSG’s Al Trautwig will report on the Rangers’ bench while CSN Philadelphia’s Steve Coates will handle the Flyers’.

NHL Network will provide a comprehensive look of the event post-game across the U.S. and Canada with its 2012 NHL Winter Classic^® Alumni Game Recap show from 3:30 p.m. – 5 p.m. ET.

In the lead-up to the 2012 NHL Winter Classic, former New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers greats will take to the ice at Citizens Bank Park™. Currently, 59 former players and coaches are scheduled to participate in the celebration of this legendary rivalry in this unique outdoor setting. Those set to return for the Flyers include Bob Clarke, Eric Lindros, John LeClair, Mark Howe, Jeremy Roenick, and Reggie Leach. Pat Quinn, whose tenure as Flyers head coach included an NHL-record, 35-game unbeaten streak in 1979-80, will direct the Philadelphia bench. Mike Keenan, who coached both teams and guided the Rangers to their first Stanley Cup^® in 54 years in 1993-94, will coach a Rangers alumni roster that is expected to include Mark Messier, Brian Leetch, Adam Graves, Ron Duguay, Dave Maloney and Mike Gartner.

That does it.

NBC Sports Network To Air Documentary on 1972 Canada-USSR Summit Series

Back in 1972, a group of NHL All-Stars took on the powerful national team from the Soviet Union in an eight game series that was known as the Summit Series. Western media thought the Canadian team would walk over the USSR and after the first three minutes of Game 1, it certainly looked that way, but the Soviets stormed back and took it, 7-3. From then on, the Canadians knew that they were in for a fight. Canada took the series, 4-3-1, but not after struggling to combat the Soviet style of play.

NBC Sports Network will air a documentary called “Cold War on Ice” produced by former HBO Sports President Ross Greenburg. The documentary, which will air on the first day of NBC Sports Network’s launch on January 2, 2012 at 4:30 p.m. ET, will have interviews with some of the Canadian players including Bobby Clarke who was known for a controversial play in Game 6, Phil Esposito and Game 8 game-winning goal scorer Paul Henderson. There will also be interviews with players from the Soviet team including goaltending legend Vladisov Tretiak,

Actor Peter Coyote who has voiced many documentaries and commercials will be the narrator for this new look at the Summit Series.

We have the press release from the NBC Sports Group.

“COLD WAR ON ICE: SUMMIT SERIES ’72” AIRS ON NBC SPORTS NETWORK DEBUT DAY ON JANUARY 2

90-minute film presented by Lexus with limited commercial interruption focuses on historic 1972 hockey series between Canadian NHL All-Stars and U.S.S.R National Team
Interviews Include: Team Canada Coach Harry Sinden; Players Phil Esposito, Tony Esposito, Rod Gilbert, Bobby Clarke, Paul Henderson; Soviet players Boris Mikhailov, Vladislov Tretiak, Alexander Yakushev
Film Produced by 51-time Emmy Award-winner Ross Greenburg
Part of NBC Sports Network’s DAY 1 Schedule
“I really thought it was going to be an all star game. We were going to have some laughs and some fun.” – Phil Esposito on the series
“I don’t know what I was thinking at all. It was an awful thing to do. It sure felt good.” – Bobby Clarke on slashing Russian Star Valeri Kharlamov, breaking his ankle.
“It’s the closest I’ve ever come to kissing a man.” – Phil Esposito on Henderson’s game-winning goal in Game 8
“COLD WAR ON ICE: SUMMIT SERIES ’72” IS AN NBC SPORTS GROUP ORIGINAL PRODUCTION

NEW YORK – December 28, 2011 – Cold War on Ice: Summit Series ’72, a 90-minute documentary with limited commercial interruption, will be a featured component in the launch of the NBC Sports Network as it debuts at 4:30 p.m. ET on Monday, Jan. 2, 2012, the same day the channel is re-branded from VERSUS.

Cold War on Ice, produced by 51-time Emmy Award-winner Ross Greenburg, chronicles the historic 27-day Summit Series in September of 1972 between a team of NHL All-Stars from Canada and the Soviet National Team during the height of the Cold War.

“It is an honor to present this unique story as the first original program on the new NBC Sports Network,” said Greenburg. “This historic confrontation between the Canadian National Team and the Soviet Union was a battle of two cultures both on and off the ice. This was a defining moment in hockey and NHL history. It is exciting to give this story the platform it deserves.”

Team Canada was composed of the National Hockey League’s greatest stars, expected to easily defeat the Soviet team. In fact, on the eve of the ‘good will’ eight-game series, the Montreal Gazette published predictions from people inside the hockey world. The great majority of those polled shared the opinion of all-star goalie Jacques Plante and New York Times Hockey writer Gerald Eskenazi, who both claimed that the NHL squad “will slaughter them in 8 straight.”

The event left its stamp on the national psyche of Canada and the entire National Hockey League. Hockey is not a sport in Canada; it is a matter of national pride, and what started as a friendly exhibition series turned into a microcosm of the Cold War. It was a dramatic confrontation that jumped the Iron Curtain to pit the east against the west, communism against capitalism, and good vs. evil.

Phil Esposito of the Boston Bruins scored past Soviet goaltender Vladislav Tretiak just 30 seconds into Game 1 (at the Montreal Forum). Team Canada went up 2-0 five minutes later. Team Canada’s predicted rout was on as the entire nation watched.

The country’s mood would quickly change as the Soviet’s went on to completely dominate the rest of the game. They mesmerized the NHL squad with their precision playmaking, effortless skating, and intricate offensive attack, and stunned Team Canada by charging back to win Game 1, 7-3.

The Soviets were disciplined and relentless and their three third-period goals signified their superior conditioning. The NHL squad was rested, coming off a summer off-season, and they were completely outworked and dominated by the Soviets, who competed at the highest level, all year round. The pre-series predictions were thrown out the window and the war was on.

Team Canada bounced back to take Game 2 of the series, 4-1 (Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto), and led Game 3 (Winnipeg Arena) by two goals late in the third period, until the Soviets scored two late goals to end Game 3 in a 4-4 tie.

Team Canada played poorly in Game 4 in Vancouver, losing 5-3.

The crowd of 16,000 booed Team Canada off the ice in Vancouver. Feelings of frustration had turned to anger as the Canadian faithful felt that the poor play of Team Canada was both embarrassing and shameful. In response to the overwhelming negative public and media reaction, Phil Esposito called out the fans for their conduct.

“We are absolutely giving it our all and we are really disappointed in you (fans),” said Esposito, the captain of Team Canada after Game 4. “We cannot believe…were trying like hell. Canada is our home and it is just not fair. It is totally ridiculous that we are being booed.”

The series shifted to the Soviet Union for the remaining four games of the series as Team Canada contemplated the end to its perceived dominance in the sport they so dearly love, but not before a two-week European hiatus in which Team Canada played two exhibition games against the Swedish national team in Stockholm.

The second game against Sweden featured many fights. Team Canada was criticized by the Swedes for their ‘goonish’ style of play, but these two games along with Esposito’s impassioned speech, helped galvanize the NHL team. The Canadian squad was made up of players from different NHL teams, many of who hated each other, but now were coming together because of a common enemy, the Soviets.

While the final four games of the Summit Series were hosted by the Soviets, more than 3,000 Canadian fans accompanied the NHL squad. Team Canada got out to a 4-1 lead in Game 5, but the Soviets scored four unanswered goals to win that game, 5-4, and take a 3-1-1 lead in the series.

Team Canada would now have to win all three remaining games to win the series. Despite the backbreaking loss, and the apparent stranglehold they had on their game, all 3,000 fans sang “Oh Canada” as Team Canada left the ice after Game 5.

Prior to Game 6, the Canadian team became upset over a shipment of beer they believed that the Soviets had deliberately “lost” at the airport. They took any additional incentives they could get and Team Canada held on for a 3-2 win. Unheralded Paul Henderson scored what turned out to be the game-winner late in the second period. This game also featured the most controversial play of the series. Philadelphia Flyers Bobby Clarke was instructed by Team Canada’s bench to stop the high-flying Soviet star and captain, Valeri Kharlamov. During his next shift Clarke deliberately slashed Kharlomov and broke his ankle.

“He was killing us and somebody had to do it. This is war. It is us versus them and the guy was killing us.” said Clarke after the game.

Team Canada would capture Game 7, 4-3, with Paul Henderson once again scoring the game-winning tally late in the 3^rd period. The game also featured a controversial rebuttal by the Soviets, as Boris Mikhailov used his skate as a weapon and kicked Team Canada’s Gary Bergman twice during an on-ice altercation.

GAME 8, WITH SERIES TIED 3-3-1

Team Canada was down by two goals heading into the third period of the decisive Game 8, and the Soviets were on the verge of laying claim to Canada’s national sport.

Team Canada however came out roaring in the third period and tied the score at 5-5 with the series tied 3-3-1.

In the final minute of play Esposito got off a good shot and Henderson, the journeyman turned hero, who later said he knew he was going to score, put the rebound past Tretiak in perhaps the single most-famous moment in Canadian sports history. The “Goal Heard Round the World” became one the countries most endearing images, one that is as fresh and vivid to the entire nation 40 years after that late September day in 1972.

In the end, the Summit Series proved that the gap between the best Canadian NHL players and the top players in Europe was much narrower than most observers on both sides realized. The success of the series led to the Super Series, where Soviet clubs played NHL clubs on numerous occasions throughout the 1970’s and eventually the immersion of many Soviet players to the National Hockey League in the 1980’s.

INTERVIEWS FOR “COLD WAR ON ICE”

Subjects include – Team Canada Coach Harry Sinden; Players Phil Esposito, Tony Esposito, Rod Gilbert, Bobby Clarke, Paul Henderson, Peter Mahovlich, JP Parise; Soviet players Boris Mikhailov, Vladislov Tretiak, Alexander Yakushev.

ON PLAYING FOR TEAM CANADA:

Clarke: “It was certainly an honor to wear the Canadian jersey, but it was also supposed to be a vacation almost. It was supposed to be a cakewalk for Canada”

Phil Esposito: “I really thought it was going to be an all star game. We were going to have some laughs and some fun.”

Henderson: “It was going to be a wonderful experience to be able to play with the Espositos, Cournoyer, Savard, Lapointe, and get to enjoy their ability and be on the same ice with them. The other side of the coin is, anyone who kept you from winning the Stanley Cup you didn’t like them, and you had to bump heads with them.”

Tony Esposito: “They were your rivals and a few of the guys you really didn’t like. We weren’t a team; we were just a bunch of guys thrown together. So when we went over there (to Russia for games four through eight), that’s when we really gelled.”

ON THE RUSSIANS STEALING THE CANADIAN’S BEER:

Phil Esposito: “They stole our beer. We had to drink vodka. Homemade vodka. You ever taste homemade vodka? Go into your garage and get turpentine and drink it. Holy cripe it is bad.”

ON BOBBY CLARKE SLASHING RUSSIAN VALERI KHARLAMOV IN GAME 6, BREAKING HIS ANKLE:

Clarke: “I don’t know what I was thinking at all. Obviously I wasn’t. I chased him down the ice and wacked him.”

Henderson: “That’s the way Clarkie played the game. Probably on that team he was the only guy that would go out there and do something like that. But he would’ve done that for the Philadelphia Flyers. That’s who he was. He wasn’t out of character. He was so competitive that he would push his grandmother down a flight of stairs to win a hockey game.”

Phil Esposito: “The only thing I regret about that is he didn’t do it in the first game. Are you kidding me? Are you KIDDING me? That’s part of the game and I have no problem with it. None, you understand? This is war.”

Clarke: “As I said often, it was an awful thing to do. It sure felt good.”

ON PLAYING RUSSIA DURING THE COLD WAR:

Henderson: “They were challenging us as a people, and certainly as a hockey empire.”

Mahovlich: “The Cold War. The us-against-them attitude was certainly what this turned out to be.”

Phil Esposito: “I would’ve killed those son of a bitches to win. It scares me every time I think about it.”

ON HENDERSON SCORING THE GAME-WINNING GOAL IN GAME 8 GIVING TEAM CANADA THE SERIES WIN:

Parise: “We went nuts.”

Clarke: “Ecstatic, but there was also a real…whew…relief.”

Phil Esposito: “It’s the closest I’ve ever come to kissing a man. Really kissing him. I loved that man that moment. I did.”

CREDITS:

Producers: Ross Greenburg, George Roy, Steve Stern
Director and Editor: George Roy
Writer: Steve Stern
Narrator: Peter Coyote

Here’s a promo narrated by Peter Coyote on the documentary.

That’s it.

Universal Sports To Air Full Slate of Skiing

Universal Sports has already started to air the FIS Alpine Skiing World Cup season and it will continue all the way to the end at the World Cup Finals in Schladming, Austria in March.

The World Cup season took a break for Christmas and resumes today in Lienz, Austria with the Women’s Giant Slalom. You’ll see US skiers like Lindsay Vonn, Julia Mancuso, Ted Ligety and Bode Miller on the slopes.

Let’s take a look at the Universal Sports press release.

Universal Sports Network Rings in the New Year with Alpine Ski World Cup Skiing in Austria, Italy and LIVE Coverage from Croatia

U.S. Skiers Continue to Surge Heading into 2012 Races

Los Angeles — Universal Sports Network will close out 2011 and ring in 2012 by showcasing American elite skiers Lindsey Vonn, Julia Mancuso, Ted Ligety and Bode Miller competing against the world’s best during stops in Lienz, Austria (Dec. 28-29), Bormio, Italy (Dec. 29) and Zagreb, Croatia (Jan. 3, Jan. 5).

Coverage in Lienz, Austria begins Wednesday, December 28 at Noon ET with Women’s Giant Slalom and continues Thursday, December 29 at 2 p.m. ET with the Women’s Slalom. Also on Thursday, December 29, the men will compete in Bormio, Italy in the Downhill at 11 a.m. ET.

Coverage continues in the New Year on Tuesday, January 3 at 11:30 a.m. ET and Thursday, January 5 at 11 a.m. ET with the Women’s Slalom and Men’s Slalom, respectively, LIVE from Zagreb, Croatia.

The U.S. skiers continue to turn in strong performances on the World Cup circuit, with Vonn continuing to build the buzz on her strong season, most recently finishing eighth in the Slalom in Flachau, Austria and holding an impressive 230 point lead in the overall World Cup standings. Teammate Mancuso is currently eighth in the standings. In addition, two American men hold top 10 spots in the standings with Ligety, currently third, finishing fourth in the Giant Slalom in Alta Badia, Italy, and Miller, holding the seventh spot, boosted by a second place finish in the Super G in Val Gardena, Italy. Austrian Marcel Hirscher leads the men’s standings and has emerged as the athlete to beat on the circuit.

Universal Sports Broadcast Schedule
schedule subject to change
ALL TIMES ET

Ski World Cup: Lienz, Austria — SDD
Wed., Dec. 28: Noon — 2:00 PM, Women’s Giant Slalom, Universal Sports
Thurs., Dec. 29: 2 PM — 4:00 PM, Women’s Slalom, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: Bormio, Italy — SDD
Thurs., Dec. 29: 11 AM — 1 PM, Men’s Downhill, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: Zagreb, Croatia — LIVE
Tues., Jan. 3: 11:30 AM — 1 PM, Women’s Slalom, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: Zagreb, Croatia — LIVE
Thurs., Jan. 5: 11 AM — 12:30 PM, Men’s Slalom, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: Bad Kleinkirchheim, Austria — SDD
Sat., Jan. 7: 11 AM — 1 PM, Women’s Downhill, Universal Sports
Sun., Jan. 8: 11 AM — 1 PM, Women’s Super G, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: Adelboden, Switzerland — SDD
Sat., Jan. 7: 2 PM — 4 PM, Men’s Giant Slalom, Universal Sports
Sun., Jan. 8: 2 PM — 4 PM, Men’s Slalom, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: Wengen, Switzerland — SDD
Fri., Jan. 13: 11 AM — 1 PM, Men’s Super Combined, Universal Sports
Sat., Jan. 14: 2 PM — 4 PM, Men’s Downhill, Universal Sports
Sun., Jan. 15: 2 PM — 4 PM, Men’s Slalom, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy — SDD
Sat., Jan. 14: 11 AM — 1 PM, Women’s Downhill, Universal Sports
Sun., Jan. 15: 11 AM — 1 PM, Women’s Super G, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: Kitzbuehel, Austria — SDD
Fri., Jan. 20: 11 AM — 1 PM, Men’s Super G, Universal Sports
Sat., Jan. 21: 11 AM — 1 PM, Men’s Downhill, Universal Sports
Sun., Jan. 22: 2 PM — 4 PM, Men’s Slalom, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: Maribor, Slovenia — SDD
Sat., Jan. 21: 2 PM — 4 PM, Women’s Giant Slalom, Universal Sports
Sun., Jan. 22: 11 AM — 1 PM, Women’s Slalom, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: Schladming, Austria — LIVE
Tues., Jan. 24: 2 PM — 4 PM, Men’s Slalom, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: St. Moritz, Switzerland — SDD
Sat., Jan. 28: 11 AM — 1 PM, Women’s Downhill, Universal Sports
Sun., Jan. 29: 1:30 PM — 3:30 PM, Women’s Super Combined, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany — SDD
Sat., Jan. 28: 2 PM — 4 PM, Men’s Downhill, Universal Sports
Sun., Jan. 29: 11 AM — 1 PM, Men’s Super G, Universal Sports

ADDED TO SCHEDULE: Ski World Cup: Chamonix, France- SDD
Fri., Feb. 3: 11 AM — 1 PM, Men’s Downhill, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany — SDD
Sat., Feb. 4: 11 AM — 1 PM, Women’s Downhill, Universal Sports
Sun., Feb. 5: 11 AM — 1 PM, Women’s Super G, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup:  Chamonix, France — SDD
Sat., Feb. 4: 2 PM — 4 PM, Men’s Downhill, Universal Sports
Sun., Feb. 5: 2 PM — 4 PM, Men’s Super Combined, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup:  Sochi, Russia — SDD
Sat., Feb. 11: 10 AM — 12 PM, Men’s Downhill, Universal Sports
Sun., Feb. 12: 10:30 AM — 12:30 PM, Men’s Super Combined, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup:  Soldeu, Andorra — SDD
Sat., Feb. 11: 12:30 PM — 2:30 PM, Women’s Giant Slalom, Universal Sports
Sun., Feb. 12:  8 PM — 10 PM, Women’s Slalom, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup:  Sochi, Russia — SDD
Sat., Feb. 18: 11 AM –1 PM, Women’s Downhill, Universal Sports
Sun., Feb. 19: 11 AM — 1 PM, Women’s Super Combined, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: Bansko, Bulgaria — SDD
Sat., Feb. 18: 2 PM — 4 PM, Men’s Giant Slalom, Universal Sports
Sun., Feb. 19: 2 PM — 4 PM, Men’s Slalom, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: Moscow, Russia — LIVE
Tues., Feb. 21: 11 AM — 12:30 PM, City Event, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: Bansko, Bulgaria — SDD
Sat., Feb. 25: 11 AM — 1 PM, Women’s Downhill, Universal Sports
Sun., Feb. 26: 11 AM — 1 PM, Women’s Super G, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: Crans-Montana, Switzerland — SDD
Sat., Feb. 25: 2 PM — 4 PM, Men’s Super G, Universal Sports
Sun., Feb. 26: 2 PM — 4 PM, Men’s Giant Slalom, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: Kvitfjell, Norway — SDD
Sat., March 3: 2 PM — 4 PM, Men’s Downhill, Universal Sports
Sun., March 4: 11 AM — 1 PM, Men’s Super G, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: Ofterschwang, Germany — SDD
Sat., March 3: 4:30 PM — 6:30 PM, Women’s Giant Slalom, Universal Sports
Sun., March 4: 2 PM — 4 PM, Women’s Slalom, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: Are, Sweden — SDD
Fri., March 9: 11 AM — 12 PM, Women’s Giant Slalom, Universal Sports
Sat., March 10: 10 AM — 11 PM, Women’s Slalom, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: Kranjska Gora, Slovenia — SDD
Sat., March 10: 11 AM — 12 PM, Men’s Giant Slalom, Universal Sports
Sun., March 11: 11 AM — 12 PM, Men’s Slalom, Universal Sports

Ski World Cup: Schladming, Austria — SDD — World Cup Finals
Wed., March 14: 11 AM — 12:30 PM, Men’s Downhill Final, Universal Sports
Wed., March 14: 1:30 PM — 3 PM, Women’s Downhill Final,  Universal Sports
Thurs., March 15: 11 AM — 12:30 PM, Men’s Super G Final, Universal Sports
Thurs., March 15: 1:30 PM — 3 PM, Women’s Super G Final, Universal Sports
Sat., March 17: 11 AM — 12:30 PM, Women’s Slalom Final, Universal Sports
Sat., March 17: 1:30 PM — 3 PM, Men’s Giant Slalom Final,  Universal Sports
Sun., March 18: 11 AM — 12:30 PM, Men’s Slalom Final, Universal Sports
Sun., March 18: 1:30 PM — 3 PM, Women’s Giant Slalom,  Universal Sports

That will do it.

Primetime & Late Night Viewing Picks

College Basketball
Men’s
Northwestern at Ohio State — Big Ten Network, 5:30 p.m.
Oklahoma vs. SMU at Dallas — ESPNU, 6:30 p.m.
Seton Hall at Syracuse — Big East Network, 7 p.m.
Villanova at West Virginia — Big East Network, 7 p.m.
Wofford at South Carolina — CSS, 7 p.m.
Georgetown at Louisville — ESPN2, 7 p.m.
Indiana at Michigan State — Big Ten Network, 7:30 p.m.
Missouri State at Creighton — Fox College Sports Central/Fox Sports Midwest, 8 p.m.
Lamar at Kentucky — ESPNU, 8:30 p.m.
UConn at South Florida — Big East Network, 9 p.m.
Mississippi State vs. Baylor at Dallas — ESPN2, 9 p.m.
New Orleans at Colorado — Fox College Sports Central/Root Sports Rocky Mountain, 9 p.m.
Purdue at Iowa — Big Ten Network, 9:30 p.m.

College Football
Military Bowl, Washington, DC
Air Force vs. Toledo — ESPN, 4:30 p.m.

Holiday Bowl, San Diego, CA
Cal vs. Texas — ESPN, 8 p.m.

IIHF World Junior Championships
USA vs. Finland — TSN/NHL Network (US), 3:30 p.m.
Sweden vs. Switzerland — TSN2, 5:30 p.m.
Canada vs. Czech Republic — TSN/NHL Network (US), 8 p.m.
Russia vs. Slovakia — TSN2, 10 p.m.

NBA
Oklahoma City at Memphis — NBA TV, 8 p.m.
New York at Golden State — NBA TV, 10:30 p.m.

NFL
Inside the NFL — Showtime, 9 p.m.
NFL Turning Point — Versus, 10 p.m.

NHL
Buffalo at New Jersey — MSG Buffalo/MSG Plus, 7 p.m.
New York Rangers at Washington — Versus/TSN2, 7:30 p.m.
Minnesota at Nashville — Fox Sports North/Fox Sports Tennessee, 8 p.m.
Los Angeles at Chicago — Fox Sports West/Comcast SportsNet Chicago, 8:30 p.m.
Boston at Phoenix — NESN/Fox Sports Arizona Plus, 9 p.m.
Vancouver at San Jose — TSN/Comcast SportsNet California, 10:30 p.m.

NHL Live — NHL Network, 6:30 p.m.
NHL Live — Versus, 6:30 p.m.
NHL on the Fly — NHL Network, 7 p.m.
24/7 Flyers/Rangers: Road to the NHL Winter Classic — HBO, 10 p.m.
NHL Tonight — NHL Network, 11 p.m.
NHL Overtime — Versus, midnight

Skiing
FIS World Cup, Lienz Austria
Women’s Giant Slalom — Universal Sports, noon (same day coverage)

Sports Talk
The Best of the Dan Patrick Show — Audience Network (DirecTV)/Fox Sports Net, 9 a.m.
Tim Brando Show — CBS Sports Network, 10 a.m.
The Box Score — Audience Network, noon
The Scott Van Pelt Show — ESPNews, 1 p.m.
Numbers Never Lie — ESPN2, 3:30 p.m.
SportsNation — ESPN2, 5 p.m.
NBC Sports Talk — Versus, 6 p.m.

Entertainment
Grand Canyon — Fox Movie Channel, 8 p.m.
GasLand — HBO2, 8 p.m.
Machete — Cinemax, 8:15 p.m.
Sportfolio — Bloomberg, 9 p.m.
Sons of Guns: Boys and Their Maxim Toys — Discovery, 9 p.m.
40 Funniest Fails 2 — VH1, 9 p.m.
The Hooters International Swimsuit Pageant Highlights — Fuel, 10 p.m.

Quickie Tuesday Links

Let’s do some linkage while I can. Again, I’ve been away from the computer for most of the morning. Too busy.

Right after the end of the final Monday Night Football game of 2012 featuring Jon Gruden at the mic, reports surfaced that this ESPN analyst was a candidate for several potential coaching jobs including one in St. Louis. Michael Hiestand of USA Today says ESPN is trying to squash those rumors saying Gruden is committed to remaining at the network. In October, Gruden signed a new five year contract giving ESPN exclusivity and first right of refusal to any coaching offer. The next contract takes effect next year so if he takes an offer now, he would not fall under any penalty. We’ll see what happens here.

Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch has a take on Dana Jacobsen leaving ESPN First Take and why Skip Bayless seems to be taking more of a role on the show.

The great Jon Bois at SB Nation has the 25 Greatest Sportscasting Moments of 2011.

Bob’s Blitz asks who has the worst voice in sports broadcasting?

Sam Schechner and Christopher S. Stewart from the Wall Street Journal look at why cable programmers try to bundle less popular channels with their heavy hitters and how it leads to big disputes.

The WSJ’s Gabriele Marcotti explains why the English Premier League chooses to play so many games between Christmas and New Year’s Day.

The mysterious Nikki Finke from Deadline tells us what to expect from the new NBC Sports Network in 2012.

Barry Petchesky at Deadspin notes that ESPN omitted the hockey players who died from its year-end remembrances.

Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk says Cincinnati Bengals fans are responding to the call to avoid a 7th blackout this season.

Kelly McBride of the Poynter Institute wonders if ESPN can serve the female sports fan.

Glenn Davis from SportsGrid has the video of Betty White’s open for the final Monday Night Football game of the season.

Brian Lowry of Fox Sports notes that the NBA is back in a big way.

The Voice of America’s Tala Hadavi talks with ESPN’s Arash Markazi about beating cancer not just once, but twice.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell wonders if a new and untested ice bath machine might have hurt an NBA player’s chances to return to his team.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times writes about the NBA’s big ratings for its return on Christmas Day.

Evan Weiner of the New Jersey Newsroom says the NBA picture is not as rosy as Communist Sympathizer David Stern would have you believe.

Randy Ludlow of the Columbus Dispatch has ESPN accusing Ohio State of trying to hide the truth in a case being heard in the Ohio Supreme Court.

Bill Dwyre of the Los Angeles Times has a feature inexplicably praising the Perpetually Angry Doug Gottlieb of ESPN Radio.

Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail has a look at the biggest sports media stories in Canada and the US in 2011.

I’ll end there for now. I hope to bring you more links later.

The Final NFL Week 17 Schedule

With New Orleans’ win over Atlanta on Monday Night Football, we now have the final Week 17 schedule in the League Where They Play For Pay. The last game’s starting time that was to be decided was Carolina at New Orleans and with the Saints’ win, the NFL will slot that into a 1 p.m. ET game on Fox.

The entire schedule is now complete. Let’s look at the schedule as it will be played on Sunday, January 1, 2012. All games will be played Sunday, there are no Thursday or Monday Night games.

SUNDAY, JANUARY 1 (WEEK 17)

From there, it’s onto the playoffs.

NBC Sports Execs and Mike “Doc” Emrick Talk About NHL Winter Classic

Last week, NBC Sports and the NHL held a joint media event at the famed 8H studios where Saturday Night Live is performed, to promote next week’s Winter Classic and the rebrand of Versus into NBC Sports Network right after the conclusion of the game on January 2.

We have this video from NBCUniversal catching up with NBC Sports President of Programming, Jon Miller; voice of the NHL for NBC Sports and NBC Sports Network, Mike “Doc” Emrick and Executive Producer of NBC Sports and NBC Sports Network, Sam Flood.

That’s all.

NBC Sports Group Gears Up For NHL Winter Classic & Rebranding of Versus

In what has become a signature event for NBC Sports, the network is getting ready for the 2012 NHL Winter Classic at Citizens Bank Park between the New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers. NBC will air the game live from Philadelphia on Monday, January 2 at 1 p.m. Eastern Time. When the game is over, Versus will then rebrand and be called NBC Sports Network from 4 p.m., January 2 until the end of time or something else comes around before then.

The NBC Sports Group will have plenty of promotion leading up to the game including the airing of the NHL Alumni Game between former members of the Rangers and Flyers on New Year’s Eve on Versus. In addition, Versus will air the previous two NHL Winter Classics on January 2 starting at 7:30 a.m. ET.

So there will be plenty of events that Versus/NBC Sports Network and the NBC Sports mothership will televise.

Here’s the NBC Sports Group press release.

NBC SPORTS GROUP BROADCASTS 2012 NHL WINTER CLASSIC® & LAUNCHES NBC SPORTS NETWORK ON JAN. 2

Fifth NHL Winter Classic Presented Live on NBC at 1 p.m. ET
“A holiday tradition.” — Newsday
NBC Sports Group to Air 26 Hours of Hockey Programming Surrounding the Winter Classic Beginning with NHL Alumni Game on Dec. 31 at 1 p.m. ET on VERSUS
VERSUS Becomes NBC Sports Network at 4 p.m. ET on Jan. 2 with Special NHL Live Winter Classic Post-Game Show Hosted by Bob Costas from Philadelphia

NEW YORK – December 27, 2011 – January 2 is an important day for the NBC Sports Group as it broadcasts the 2012 NHL Winter Classic at 1 p.m. ET on NBC and launches the NBC Sports Network, currently VERSUS, immediately following the game at 4 p.m. ET with a special NHL Live post-game show hosted by Bob Costas from Philadelphia.

NHL WINTER CLASSIC: This year’s game features an intense rivalry between the top two teams in the Atlantic Division as the Philadelphia Flyers and New York Rangers battle outdoors at Citizen’s Bank Park in Philadelphia, home of the Phillies. This is the fifth iteration of the NHL Winter Classic, an event created by both NBC Sports and the NHL, and that has already been described as “a holiday tradition” by Newsday.

NBC’s coverage of the Winter Classic will be hosted by Costas, a 22-time Emmy Award-winner. He will be joined by NBC Sports Group studio analysts Mike Milbury and Jeremy Roenick for coverage on NBC and post-game coverage on NBC Sports Network. NBC’s game coverage will be led by Emmy Award-winner Mike “Doc” Emrick (play-by-play) Eddie Olczyk (analyst), and Pierre McGuire (inside-the-glass reporter).

Last year’s Winter Classic was the most-watched NHL regular-season game in 36 years. Played between the Washington Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins from Heinz Field in Pittsburgh and broadcast on New Year’s Day in primetime due to a weather delay, the game was watched by 4.5 million viewers.

Click here for a time-lapse video of the rink being built at Citizen’s Bank Park in Philadelphia: http://video.nhl.com/videocenter/console?catid=14&id=137090

FROM VERSUS TO NBC SPORTS NETWORK: As part of a new strategy to bring all four tiers of NBC Sports Group’s assets (broadcast network, two national cable networks, 11 regional sports networks and digital) into a consistent framework of branding, VERSUS will be re-named the NBC Sports Network on Jan. 2 at 4 p.m. ET. The NBC Sports Network will serve as a 24/7 cable platform for NBC Sports’ rich heritage of unmatched storytelling, best-in-class production and broad promotional power. Following are highlights of Dec. 31-Jan. 2 programming:

• Prior to being re-branded, VERSUS will kick-off the weekend with the 2012 NHL Winter Classic Alumni Game featuring former Philadelphia Flyers against former New York Rangers in a New Year’s Eve showdown on Dec. 31 at 1 p.m. ET. The Alumni Game will showcase six members of the Hockey Hall of Fame, recent retirees and Stanley Cup winners, including Mark Messier, Brian Leetch, Eric Lindros and NBC Sports’ Jeremy Roenick. NBC Sports Network guest analyst and former Rangers coach Mike Keenan, who won the Stanley Cup in 1994 while coaching the team, will lead the Rangers alumni team.
• Continuing the transition to the NBC Sports Network, VERSUS will premiere the hour-long special, NBC Sports: A Storied History, on Dec. 31 at 6 p.m. ET following the NHL Winter Classic Alumni Game, chronicling the last seven decades of Emmy Award-winning event coverage on NBC Sports.
• On Jan. 1, VERSUS will air the 2008 and 2009 NHL Winter Classics at 7 p.m. ET and 10 p.m. ET, respectively.
• Jan. 2 will begin on VERSUS and end on the NBC Sports Network. VERSUS will air the 2010 and 2011 Winter Classic games back-to-back at 7:30 a.m. ET and 10 a.m. ET, respectively. At 3 p.m. ET, it will air an encore presentation of NBC Sports: A Storied History. At 4 p.m. ET, the switch will be flipped and the NBC Sports Network officially launches with a special NHL Live Winter Classic Post-Game show hosted by Costas and featuring all the highlights from the outdoor game.
• The new NBC Sports Network will continue with hockey-themed programming at 4:30 p.m. ET with the premiere of Cold War on Ice: Summit Series ’72 produced by Ross Greenburg. The documentary focuses on the hockey series played in 1972 between a team of Canadian NHL all-stars and the Soviet Union national team during the height of the Cold War.
• Cold War on Ice will be followed by a special 90-minute edition of NBC SportsTalk at 6 p.m. ET, NHL Live at 7:30 p.m. ET and the Vancouver Canucks hosting the San Jose Sharks at 8 p.m. ET. NHL Live post-game and NHL Overtime will end the NBC Sports Network’s first day.

Highlights of the NBC Sports Group’s Jan. 2 Schedule (all times ET, subject to change):

7:30 a.m.: VERSUS — Replay of 2010 NHL Winter Classic
10 a.m.: VERSUS — Replay of 2011 NHL Winter Classic
1 p.m.: NBC — 2012 NHL Winter Classic
3 p.m.: VERSUS – NBC Sports: A Storied History
4 p.m.: NBC Sports Network — NHL Live Post-Game (from Philadelphia)
4:30 p.m.: NBC Sports Network — Cold War on Ice: 1972 Summit Series
6 p.m.: NBC Sports Network — NBC SportsTalk
7:30 p.m.: NBC Sports Network — NHL Live Pre-Game
8 p.m.: NBC Sports Network — NHL: San Jose at Vancouver
10:30 p.m.: NBC Sports Network — NHL Live Post-Game
11 p.m.: NBC Sports Network — Replay of NBC SportsTalk
12:30 a.m.: NBC Sports Network — NHL Overtime

After the jump, I’ll have some highlights of an NBC Sports Group media conference call conducted last week regarding the NHL Winter Classic and the rebranding of Versus into NBC Sports Network.

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