AAC Commissioner Mike Aresco on Saturday said that he is “planning to meet with ESPN in December to ‘talk about the future,' which includes the possibility of renegotiating the existing deal with hopes of generating more revenue for conference schools," according to Tom Schad of the Memphis COMMERCIAL APPEAL. The AAC’s current TV deal with ESPN “reportedly expires” after the ‘19 season for football and after the '19-20 season for basketball. Aresco said, “We’re far more valuable than what we’re being paid.” He added, “In terms of ESPN, I’d love to do something with them. But I don’t know that they’re going to necessarily be ready to do anything. We’re going to talk to them. I hope that they look at us as an investment that can really, really pay dividends. Because it will, and has already.” Aresco hopes there will be “robust competition” for AAC rights. Meanwhile, Aresco said that there have been “discussions about moving” AAC HQ from Providence to Dallas. He said, “Dallas would be a logical spot.” Aresco noted that “there are still several years remaining on the AAC’s current lease in Providence and he is unsure what the timetable would be on such a move” (COMMERCIALAPPEAL.com, 10/31).
CHANNEL SURFING: In West Virginia, Chuck Landon writes it is becoming "very difficult to watch Marshall football" on TV, as "it's a chore" to find the games. If the telecast is on American Sports Network, “then viewers with Comcast or other cable companies are happy.” But most fans who have DirecTV or Dish “can’t get the ASN telecast at all.” Landon: “The same problem -- in reverse -- happens when beIN Sports televises Marshall's games. The DirecTV and Dish subscribers are happy because they get the game. But Comcast customers? Not so much” (Huntington HERALD-DISPATCH, 11/1).
