Notre Dame Staying On NBC Through 2015

The start of the college football season is still more than two months away, but two stories impacting where fans tune in for games on fall Saturday afternoons are making headlines. After a lengthy, and oftentimes contentious, negotiation, the Big Ten Network finally receives carriage on Comcast. The MSO will carry the channel on basic cable through the spring within the Big Ten footprint, while the net agrees to back off its demand for basic carriage for all subs. The deal, by far the largest for the fledgling broadcaster, could provide a blueprint for other major cable companies to also sign on. Meanwhile, NBC re-ups with Notre Dame through 2015 in a deal that centers on a series of primetime neutral-site games. Despite a disastrous ’07 season ratings-wise, Dick Ebersol says the Irish are “one of the premier brands that defines who we at NBC are.”