Media Notes
With the BCS considering a proposal from ESPN that would see all BCS bowl games wind up on ESPN, ACC Commissioner and BCS Coordinator John Swofford said, "We've had good meetings and discussion to [this] point. The BCS is obviously an attractive television property, but we simply have not completed our process." Fox VP/Communications Dan Bell said that the net has "until Monday to respond" to the BCS' proposal, which seeks around $125M annually for the rights. Bell: "This is very much an ongoing process" (USA TODAY, 11/12). USA TODAY's Michael Hiestand writes, "Does it matter if top bowls go to cable? Be honest: Do you care whether you watch sports on broadcast or cable TV?" (USA TODAY, 11/12). RIVALS.com's Matt Hinton wrote from a "pro-playoff perspective," the real consequence of a "ridiculously lucrative deal between the BCS and [ESPN] is the potential for the playoff argument to disappear altogether from the discourse of the sport's most visible, agenda-setting media giant" (RIVALS.com, 11/11).
FIGHT CLUB: UFC President Dana White yesterday appeared on ESPN’s “First Take” to discuss Saturday's UFC 91, headlined by Randy Couture and former WWE star Brock Lesnar. White: “We think it’s going to be the biggest PPV draw in UFC history.” He added, “We think we’re going to do 1.2 million buys on this fight. It’s a big fight and obviously the WWE crossover for this fight, a lot of WWE fans are going to tune in to see if their former wrestling champion can win in the real fighting. Vince McMahon might even buy this fight” (“ESPN First Take", 11/11).
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