It’s been way too long since you’ve seen linkage on this site. This has been the main mission of Fang’s Bites since the beginning, but too often, I get roped into doing family stuff and it prevents me from getting on here until late.
I hope to rectify that. So without further delay, here’s the linkage.
I’ll begin with Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch who looks at tonight’s ESPN production of the BCS National Championship Game and he breaks news that former Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine will co-host a daily NBC Sports Radio show.
From The Sherman Report, Ed Sherman talks with ESPN’s Brent Musburger about retirement.
John Ourand of Sports Business Journal says thanks to its parent company buying into YES Network, Fox Sports will have the rights to as many as 18 New York Yankees games for its national MLB broadcasts (for now, subscription required).
Tripp Mickle of Sports Business Daily writes that DirecTV is dropping NASCAR Hot Pass due to the high cost and low demand.
ESPN’s Darren Rovell reports that the “Catholic 7”, the breakaway basketball schools from the Big East, is negotiating a megabucks deal with Fox Sports.
Nathan Savin Scott of USA Today lists the best sports commercials of 2012.
Mike Reynolds at Multichannel News says tonight’s BCS Championship Game could set an all-time viewership record for ESPN and cable TV.
The extremely warped Anthony Crupi (he’ll even admit this) of Adweek writes that the NFL’s regular season ratings were down slightly from last year, but it delivers an audience unlike any other programming.
Friend of Fang’s Bites Michael McCarthy at Advertising Age notes that college football is close to passing baseball as the nation’s second most popular sport.
Natalie Zmuda of Ad Age says Pepsi wants to make you, yes you, part of its Super Bowl ad.
Mark J. Miller at BrandChannel notes how a Nike ad campaign helped to nudge the NHL into ending its lockout.
Toni Fitzgerald from Media Life Magazine wonders if the ratings will return for the NHL now that its lockout has been resolved.
SBNation’s Steve Lepore reports that Michelle Beadle’s new show, The Crossover, will replace NBC Sports Talk later this month.
David Rogers over at Awful Announcing scolds NHL Network for not covering one second of the end of the lockout.
At the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center, Wheat Hotchkiss (I like this name) delves into ESPN’s production of the BCS National Championship Game in South Flordia.
EPL Talk reviews Fox’s first-ever broadcast of an FA Cup game.
Will Leitch at Sports on Earth says NBC Sports Network’s ratings may be low, but at least it’s trying to be the anti-ESPN.
Chad Finn from the Boston Globe writes about Bobby Valentine’s new foray into daily sports radio.
Brian Stelter at the New York Times says rising sports fees are causing cable providers to drop lower performing channels.
Phil Mushnick of the New York Post needs to stop watching television.
Newsday’s Neil Best says there’s too much sports television and radio for the average fan to keep track of. Well put, Neil.
Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union says Golf Channel has had to adjust its schedule for the weather-delayed Tournament of Champions.
Ken McMillan of the Middletown (NY) Times Herald-Record says CBS Sports Radio has a home in the Hudson Valley.
Keith Groller with the Allentown (PA) Morning Call talks with an Eastern Pennsylvania native who’s been covering Notre Dame for the last six years.
David Zurawik of the Baltimore Sun feels CBS did not get the job done covering yesterday’s Colts-Ravens game.
David says yesterday’s Colts-Ravens game received the highest rating in the Charm City since last year’s Super Bowl.
Dan Steinberg from the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog has the national media reaction to DC NFL Team head coach Mike Shanahan’s decision to keep quarterback Robert Griffin III on the field despite him seemingly being hurt until an injury that ended his game.
Dan says a local sports radio morning show now gets an opportunity on TV.
Tom Jones at the Tampa Bay Times has the winners and losers in the NHL Lockout.
Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald has some info from ESPN on tonight’s BCS National Championship Game.
Mike Herndon of the Birmingham (AL) News says ESPN could not have asked for a better matchup in the BCS National Championship Game.
Jon Solomon of the Birmingham News looks into the behind-the-scenes for ESPN’s telecast of Alabama-Notre Dame.
David Barron with the Houston Chronicle says Saturday’s Bengals-Texans local rating matched last year’s Wild Card playoff game number.
David writes that former Houston Astros broadcaster Alan Ashby will return to the team as its TV analyst on Comcast SportsNet.
WDIV-TV in Detroit had the suspended Rob Parker from ESPN’s First Take in his first TV interview since he was taken off the air for his comments on DC NFL Team QB Robert Griffin III (starts at 6:15). h/t to Richard Deitsch for the link.
Dusty Saunders of the Denver Post says a Rocky Mountain region sportscaster has plenty of memories that include the Broncos.
Joe Flint of the Los Angeles Times writes that the NFL’s ratings have slipped a bit from last season, but they still remain king of all television.
Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News has the five things he learned from the weekend.
Tom also has the SoCal sports calendar for this week.
Bruce Dowbiggin from the Toronto Globe and Mail asks with the NHL Lockout over, what’s in it for the fans?
Sports Media Watch notes that the overnight rating for the Cincinnati-Houston NFL Wild Card Game on NBC was up from last year.
SMW says NBC’s nightcap of Vikings-Packers was down slightly from last year.
SMW tells us that Seattle-Washington had the third highest overnight for an NFL Wild Card game since 1999.
And for Indy-Baltimore on CBS, the overnight number was very good.
And that’s going to be it for now.
