ESPN Airs 34 College Bowl Games Including The Next-to-Last BCS

ESPN has sent its schedule for the college football bowls as well as the Bowl Championship Series. In addition, we have the announcing assignments for all of the games on the ESPN platforms. Most of the games will air on ESPN, some on ESPN2. ESPN Radio also carries a series of games including the entire BCS.

Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit and Heather Cox will call the Rose Bowl and the BCS National Championship Game. ESPN’s other teams for the BCS and the other bowls approaching January are Brad Nessler/Todd Blackledge/Holly Rowe, Sean McDonough/Chris Spielman/Quint Kessenich and Joe Tessitore/Matt Millen/Maria Taylor.

Other teams include ESPN’s regular combos of Beth Mowins/Joey Galloway, Carter Blackburn/Rod Gilmore/Jemele Hill, Mike Patrick/Ed Cunningham, Bob Wischusen/Danny Kanell, Dave Pasch/Brian Griese/Jenn Brown and Mark Jones/Brock Huard.

Here’s ESPN’s press release in full.

ESPN to Carry 34 College Football Bowl Games including Entire BCS

ESPN’s extensive college football coverage continues with 34 bowl games, highlighted by all five of the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) matchups, including the BCS National Championship (No. 1 Notre Dame vs. No. 2 Alabama) on Monday, Jan. 7, at 8:30 p.m. ET on ESPN, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Radio, ESPN 3D and WatchESPN.

The schedule will kick off with an ESPN and ESPN Radio doubleheader on Saturday, Dec. 15: the New Mexico Bowl (Nevada vs. Arizona), which is also on ESPN 3D, at 1 p.m. ET and the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (Toledo vs. No. 22 Utah State) at 4:30 p.m.

Schedule highlights:

  • An ESPN outlet will offer coverage of at least one game a day for 16 out of the 19 days from Dec. 20 to Jan. 7.
  • ESPN’s New Year’s Day lineup will include six games:
  • Noon: Gator Bowl (Mississippi State vs. No. 20 Northwestern) on ESPN2 and Heart of Dallas Bowl (Purdue vs. No. 13 Oklahoma State) on ESPNU.
  • 1 p.m.: Capital One Bowl (No. 7 Georgia vs. No. 16 Nebraska) on ABC and ESPN Radio and Outback Bowl (No. 10 South Carolina vs. No. 18 Michigan) on ESPN and ESPN Radio.
  • 5 p.m.: Rose Bowl (Wisconsin vs. No. 6 Stanford) on ESPN, ESPN Deportes and ESPN Radio.
  • 8:30 p.m.: Orange Bowl (No. 15 Northern Illinois vs. No. 12 Florida State) on ESPN, ESPN Deportes and ESPN Radio.
  • Every bowl game on ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU will be available on computers at WatchESPN.com and on smartphones and tablets via the WatchESPN app. WatchESPN is currently available in 40 million households nationwide to fans who receive their video subscription from Time Warner Cable, Bright House Networks, Verizon FiOS TV, Comcast Xfinity TV or Midcontinent Communications.
  • ESPN Deportes will televise all five BCS bowls, marking the first telecast of the entire BCS in Spanish for U.S. Hispanic sports fans. ESPN Deportes also aired the BCS Championship between Alabama and LSU last year. According to the most recent ESPN Deportes Sports PollSource: ESPN Deportes Sports Poll 2011, P2+
  • , 42 percent of U.S. Hispanics follow college football. That’s more than the Hispanic fanbase following UEFA Champions League.
  • ESPN 3D, the world’s first 24/7 all-sports 3D channel, will televise five bowl games, highlighted by the Sugar Bowl and BCS National Championship. It will mark the third year ESPN 3D has televised the BCS National Championship. ESPN 3D, launched in 2010, is available to more than 63 million homes in the U.S. through carriage agreements with DIRECTV, Comcast, Bright House Networks, Cablevision, Time Warner Cable, Verizon FiOS TV and Google Fiber.
  • ESPN Radio will broadcast 24 bowl games, including all five BCS matchups and the Cotton Bowl (No. 9 Texas A&M vs. No. 11 Oklahoma on Friday, Jan. 4, at 7 p.m.).
  • ESPN will cover all seven ESPN Regional Television owned-and-operated bowl games: the New Mexico Bowl (Saturday, Dec. 15, at 1 p.m.), St. Petersburg Bowl (Friday, Dec. 21, at 7:30 p.m.); Las Vegas Bowl (Saturday, Dec. 22, at 3:30 p.m.); Hawaii Bowl (Monday, Dec. 24, at 8 p.m.); Texas Bowl (Friday, Dec. 28, at 9 p.m.); Armed Forces Bowl (Saturday, Dec. 29, at 11:45 a.m.); and BBVA Compass Bowl (Saturday, Jan. 5, at 1 p.m.).
  • ESPN International will telecast the BCS in: Australia/New Zealand (ESPN Pacific Rim); Latin America North & South; Brazil; Caribbean; Europe (ESPN America); Sub-Saharan Africa (ESPN Atlantic) and Middle East.

Brent Musburger and Kirk Herbstreit will work their sixth consecutive BCS National Championship game on ESPN (Monday, Jan. 7, at 8:30 p.m.) with Saturday Night Football reporter Heather Cox and College GameDay host and reporter Tom Rinaldi. For the second straight year, ESPN’s Monday Night Football signal caller Mike Tirico will work ESPN Radio’s broadcast with ESPN college football analyst Todd Blackledge and reporters Holly Rowe and Joe Schad.

As part of an extensive four-year agreement with the Bowl Championship Series that began in 2010, ESPN will provide exclusive worldwide television coverage, radio broadcasts, digital content and more for the five annual BCS games from January 2011 through January 2014. ESPN Radio has broadcast every BCS game since 2000.

The 2012 college football season on ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN3, ESPN Radio, ESPN 3D, ESPN Deportes, Longhorn Network, ESPN Mobile TV, ESPN Regional Television, WatchESPN and ESPN GamePlan totals more than 450 regular-and post-season games.

Bowl Championship Series

Tuesday, January 1 5 p.m. Rose Bowl: Wisconsin vs. No. 6 Stanford
ESPN: Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit, Heather Cox & Tom Rinaldi
Radio: Dave Pasch, Brian Griese & Jenn Brown
Deportes: Georgina Ruiz Sandoval & Robert Abramowitz
ESPN, ESPN Deportes & ESPN Radio
8:30 p.m. Orange Bowl: No. 15 Northern Illinois vs. No. 12 Florida State
ESPN: Joe Tessitore, Matt Millen & Maria Taylor
Radio: Bill Rosinski, David Norrie & Joe Schad
Deportes: Eduardo Varela & Pablo Viruega
ESPN, ESPN Deportes & ESPN Radio
Wednesday, January 2 8:30 p.m. Sugar Bowl: No. 21 Louisville vs. No. 3 Florida
ESPN: Sean McDonough, Chris Spielman & Quint Kessenich
Radio: Bob Wischusen, Danny Kanell & Allison Williams
Deportes: Eduardo Varela & Pablo Viruega
ESPN, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Radio & ESPN 3D
Thursday, January 3 8:30 p.m. Fiesta Bowl: No. 4 Oregon vs. No. 5 Kansas State
ESPN: Brad Nessler, Todd Blackledge & Holly Rowe
Radio: Bill Rosinski, David Norrie & Joe Schad
Deportes: Eduardo Varela & Pablo Viruega
ESPN, ESPN Deportes & ESPN Radio
Monday, January 7 8:30 p.m. BCS National Championship Game: No. 1 Notre Dame vs. No. 2 Alabama
ESPN: Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit, Heather Cox & Tom Rinaldi
Radio: Mike Tirico, Todd Blackledge, Holly Rowe & Joe Schad
Deportes: Eduardo Varela & Pablo Viruega
ESPN, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Radio & ESPN 3D

Additional Postseason Games

Date Time (ET) Game Network
Saturday, Dec 15 1 p.m. New Mexico Bowl: Nevada vs. Arizona
ESPN: Bob Wischusen, Danny Kanell & Kaylee Hartung
Radio: Mark Neely, Ray Bentley & Marty Cesario
ESPN, ESPN Radio & ESPN 3D
  4:30 p.m. Famous Idaho Potato Bowl: Toledo vs. No. 22 Utah State
ESPN: Tom Hart, Mike Bellotti & Quint Kessenich
Radio: Rich Cellini, Tom Ramsey & Shelley Smith
ESPN & ESPN Radio
Thursday, December 20 8 p.m. Poinsettia Bowl: BYU vs. San Diego State
ESPN: Carter Blackburn, Rod Gilmore & Jemele Hill
Radio: Bill Rosinski, David Norrie & Joe Schad
ESPN, ESPN Radio & ESPN 3D
Friday, December 21 7:30 p.m. St. Petersburg Bowl: Central Florida vs. Ball State
ESPN: Dave Neal, Andre Ware, Desmond Howard & Cara Capuano
Radio: Dave Lamont, Matt Stinchcomb & Allison Williams
ESPN & ESPN Radio
Saturday, December 22 Noon New Orleans Bowl: East Carolina vs. Louisiana-Lafayette
ESPN: Beth Mowins, Joey Galloway & Quint Kessenich
Radio: Marc Kestecher, Dan Hawkins & Ian Fitzsimmons
ESPN & ESPN Radio
  3:30 p.m. Las Vegas Bowl: Washington vs. No. 19 Boise State
Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit & Tom Rinaldi
ESPN
Monday, December 24 8 p.m. Hawaii Bowl: Fresno State vs. SMU
ESPN: Carter Blackburn, Kelly Stouffer & Kaylee Hartung
Radio: Marc Kestecher & Pete Najarian
ESPN & ESPN Radio
Wednesday, December 26 7:30 p.m. Little Caesars Bowl: Western Kentucky vs. Central Michigan
Mark Neely, Ray Bentley & Jemele Hill
ESPN
Thursday, December 27 3 p.m. Military Bowl: No. 24 San Jose State vs. Bowling Green
Bob Wischusen, Danny Kanell & Quint Kessenich
ESPN
  6:30 p.m. Belk Bowl: Cincinnati vs. Duke
Mike Patrick, Ed Cunningham & Jeannine Edwards
ESPN
  9:45 p.m. Holiday Bowl: Baylor vs. No. 17 UCLA
ESPN: Dave Pasch, Brian Griese & Jenn Brown
Radio: Bill Rosinski, David Norrie & Joe Schad
ESPN, ESPN Radio & ESPN 3D
Friday, December 28 2 p.m. Independence Bowl: Ohio vs. Louisiana-Monroe
Dave Lamont, Kelly Stouffer & Cara Capuano
ESPN
  5:30 p.m. Russell Athletic Bowl: Rutgers vs. Virginia Tech
ESPN: Joe Tessitore, Matt Millen & Maria Taylor
Radio: Adam Amin, Tom Luginbill & Brett McMurphy
ESPN & ESPN Radio
  9 p.m. Texas Bowl: Minnesota vs. Texas Tech
ESPN: Mark Jones, Brock Huard & Jessica Mendoza
Radio: Tom Hart, John Congemi & Niki Noto
ESPN & ESPN Radio
Saturday, December 29 11:45 a.m. Armed Forces Bowl: Rice vs. Air Force
ESPN: Beth Mowins, Joey Galloway & Lewis Johnson
Radio: Eamon McAnaney, David Diaz-Infante & Paul Carcaterra
ESPN & ESPN Radio
  3:15 p.m. Pinstripe Bowl: West Virginia vs. Syracuse
ESPN: Chris Fowler, Jesse Palmer & Tom Rinaldi
Radio: Marc Kestecher, Jack Ford & C.J. Papa
ESPN & ESPN Radio
  4 p.m. Fight Hunger Bowl: Navy vs. Arizona State
Dave Pasch, Brian Griese & Jenn Brown
ESPN2
  6:45 p.m. Alamo Bowl: No. 23 Texas vs. No. 13 Oregon State
ESPN: Sean McDonough, Chris Spielman & Quint Kessenich
Radio: Mark Neely, Ray Bentley & Kaylee Hartung
ESPN & ESPN Radio
  10:15 p.m. Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl: TCU vs. Michigan State
ESPN: Brad Nessler, Todd Blackledge & Holly Rowe
Radio: Bill Rosinski, David Norrie & Joe Schad
ESPN & ESPN Radio
Monday, December 31 Noon Music City Bowl: NC State vs. Vanderbilt
Carter Blackburn, Rod Gilmore & Jemele Hill
ESPN
  3:30 p.m. Liberty Bowl: Iowa State vs. Tulsa
ESPN: Mark Jones, Brock Huard & Jessica Mendoza
Radio: Beth Mowins, Joey Galloway & Lewis Johnson
ESPN & ESPN Radio
  7:30 p.m. Chick-fil-A Bowl: No. 8 LSU vs. No. 14 Clemson
ESPN: Mike Patrick, Ed Cunningham & Jeannine Edwards
Radio: Dave Neal, Andre Ware & Cara Capuano
ESPN & ESPN Radio
Tuesday, January 1 Noon Gator Bowl: Mississippi State vs. No. 20 Northwestern
Bob Wischusen, Danny Kanell & Allison Williams
ESPN2
    Heart of Dallas Bowl: Purdue vs. Oklahoma State
Clay Matvick, Matt Stinchcomb & Kaylee Hartung
ESPNU
  1 p.m. Capital One Bowl: No. 7 Georgia vs. No. 16 Nebraska
ABC: Rece Davis, Jesse Palmer, David Pollack & Samantha Steele
Radio: Dave Lamont, Kelly Stouffer & Brett McMurphy
ABC & ESPN Radio
    Outback Bowl: No. 10 South Carolina vs. No. 18 Michigan
ESPN: Mike Tirico, Jon Gruden & Shannon Spake
Radio: Carter Blackburn, John Congemi & Jemele Hill
ESPN & ESPN Radio
Friday, January 4 7 p.m. Cotton Bowl: No. 9 Texas A&M vs. No. 11 Oklahoma
Brad Sham, Ed Cunningham & Ian Fitzsimmons
ESPN Radio
Saturday, January 5 1 p.m. BBVA Compass Bowl: Pittsburgh vs. Ole Miss
ESPN: Eamon McAnaney, David Diaz-Infante & Paul Carcaterra
Radio: Dave Lamont, Kelly Stouffer & Allison Williams
ESPN & ESPN Radio
Sunday, January 6 9 p.m. GoDaddy.com Bowl: No. 25 Kent State vs. Arkansas State
Mark Jones, Brock Huard & Jessica Mendoza
ESPN

That is all.

About Ken Fang

Ken has been covering the sports media in earnest at his own site, Fang's Bites since May 2007 and at Awful Announcing since March 2013. He provides a unique perspective having been an award-winning radio news reporter in Providence and having worked in local television. Fang celebrates the three Boston Red Sox World Championships in the 21st Century, but continues to be a long-suffering Cleveland Browns fan.

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