CSNbbs

It's almost time to start talking actual football again.

Coverage on Twitter will be marked with the #MACMD hashtag.

(07-23-2011 07:09 PM)uakronkid Wrote: [ -> ]It's almost time to start talking actual football again.

Coverage on Twitter will be marked with the #MACMD hashtag.

WOO HOO!!!! we're getting closer and closer to Opening Weekend!!!! FINALLY!

Here's the schedule. Glad to see Umass getting a spot.

http://prod-mac.xosdigital.com/News/tabid/969/Article/135999/Watch-MAC-Football-Media-Day-Live.aspx

MAC Live Streaming Schedule (Tuesday, July 26th)

9:00-9:10 am - AKRON
Akron Head Coach Rob Ianello; Student-Athletes: OL Zac Kasparek; LB Brian Wagner

9:10-9:20 am – BOWLING GREEN
Bowling Green Head Coach Dave Clawson; Student-Athletes: DT Chris Jones; LB Dwayne Woods

9:20-9:30 am - BUFFALO
Buffalo Head Coach Jeff Quinn; Student-Athletes: WR Terrell Jackson; DT Richie Smith

9:30-9:40 am – KENT STATE
Kent State Head Coach Darrell Hazell; Student-Athletes: C Chris Anzevino; DT Roosevelt Nix

9:40-9:50 am - MIAMI
Miami Head Coach Don Treadwell; Student-Athletes: QB Zac Dysert; DT Austin Brown

9:50-10:00 am - OHIO
Ohio Head Coach Frank "Captain Morgan" Solich; Student-Athletes: LB Noah Keller; OL Joe Flading

10:00-10:10 am - TEMPLE
Temple Head Coach Steve Addazio; Student-Athletes: DE Adrian Robinson; C John Palumbo

10:10 – 10:25 am MAC Bowl Partners
Ken Hoffman-Little Caesars Pizza Bowl; Kevin McDonald-uDrove Humanitarian Bowl; Jerry Silverstein-GoDaddy.com Bowl

10:25-10:30 am - UMASS
University of Massachusetts, Director of Athletics, John McCutcheon

10:30-10:40 am – BALL STATE
Ball State Head Coach Pete Lembo; Student-Athletes: S Sean Baker; WR Briggs Orsbon

10:40-10:50 am – CENTRAL MICHIGAN
Central Michigan Head Coach Dan Enos; Student-Athletes: LB Armond Staten; WR Cody Wilson

10:50-11:00 am – EASTERN MICHIGAN
Eastern Michigan Head Coach Ron English; Student-Athletes: QB Alex Gillett; DL Andy Malumba

11:00-11:10 am – NORTHERN ILLINOIS
Northern Illinois Head Coach Dave Doeren; Student-Athletes: QB Chandler Harnish; DE Sean Progar

11:10-11:20 am - TOLEDO
Toledo Head Coach Tim Beckman; Student-Athletes: WR Eric Page; DB Desmond Marrow

11:20-11:30 am – WESTERN MICHIGAN
Western Michigan Head Coach Bill Cubit; Student-Athletes: WR Jordan White; LB Mitch Zajac

11:25-11:30 am - MAC Commissoner Dr. Jon A. Steinbrecher
MAC Commissioner, Dr. Jon A. Steinbrecher

Thanks uarkronkid, certainly pleasantly surprised we have a slot.

(07-24-2011 09:00 PM)Steve1981 Wrote: [ -> ]Thanks uarkronkid, certainly pleasantly surprised we have a slot.

Actually it will probably the most interesting slot. I wish the MAC would have given him the whole 10 minute segment.

Well, he has to do the CAA Media Day the next morning, so maybe he needed the extra 5 minutes to catch his flight.

I'm a little concerned about UMass being grouped with the West Division teams, but it's probably too soon to read much into that. For 2011 it's the best way to divvy up Media Day.

I don't see Umass being grouped with the West teams, but being in between the divisions just like the bowl partners.

The MAC has established a new "Digital Network". I can't get any MAC website link that was tweeted to work, though.

MAC Game of the Week Schedule Announced (All games at noon ET). They will be broadcast on ESPN Regional.


Sept. 17: Central Michigan at Western Michigan

Oct. 1: Toledo at Temple

Oct. 15: Toledo at Bowling Green

Oct. 22: Northern Illinois at Buffalo

Oct. 29: Central Michigan at Akron

Nov. 5: Ball State at Eastern Michigan

Here's that release about the Digital network:

"ORLANDO, Fla. – The Mid-American Conference (MAC) and XOS Digital, Inc., the leading provider of content management solutions and digital media services for collegiate and professional sports organizations, jointly announced today that MAC fans will soon be able to keep up with the latest MAC sports news at the touch of a button, thanks to the fast-approaching launch of the MAC Digital Network. Fans will now have a multitude of ways to connect and interact with their favorite MAC teams.

“The newly established MAC Digital Network combines the strength of our athletics programs with the technology advantage that XOS Digital brings to the table, said Dr. Jon Steinbrecher, Mid-American Conference Commissioner. “We are now able to reach more fans on a broader scale than ever before, and in return, the fans can truly connect with their favorite teams.

The MAC Digital Network will launch on July 21, just in time for football media days. This new set of connected platforms will certainly be watched closely and set a great example of how sports organizations can aggregate, manage and distribute premium content to fans. Connecting to fans through the web, mobile phones and internet enabled devices like Smart TV and gaming consoles, the MAC will have an unprecedented medium to reach their audience.

For the first time, MAC fans will have access to an extensive digital library of exclusive MAC sports content available anytime, anywhere, on a number of different devices. Upon launch, the MAC Digital Network will provide its fans and alumni from all 14 Conference schools with original produced programming and studio shows.

“What makes the MAC Digital Network engaging is the number of different ways fans can interact with their favorite teams, said Chris McCleary, CEO, XOS Digital. This is a great opportunity for the conference to strengthen their brand across new digital platforms and reach fans in a way that they never could before.”

Fans will have 24-hour, multi-platform access to their favorite MAC sports, that includes a completely redesigned Web site (http://www.MAC-sports.com), a Smart TV application compatible with many different televisions and devices and a MAC mobile application for the iPhone, iPad, Android and BlackBerry phones and tablets. Through their digital account, fans can purchase exclusive content via a MAC download store and watch it on all of their compatible devices.

XOS Digital will also be the exclusive licensor for all Mid-American Conference multimedia. The company’s licensing division currently represents more than 120 schools, conferences and leagues in the same capacity.

For more information fans can also visit http://www.xosdigital.com.

About Mid-American Conference:
Founded in 1946, the Mid-American Conference is an NCAA Division I, 12 full-member conference that sponsors 23 championships and is one of 11 members of the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). With total enrollment of nearly 300,000 students, the league represents institutions of higher learning in seven (7) states - Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, New York, and Ohio. In addition, two universities – Temple University in Philadelphia, Pa., and the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, Ma. – are members for football only.

About XOS Digital, Incorporated:
Founded in 1999, XOS Digital is the leading provider of digital asset management solutions for collegiate and professional sports organizations. Conference officials, league offices, coaching staffs and athletic departments rely on the XOS portfolio of products and services to manage, analyze, archive, distribute, protect and monetize their digital assets. The XOS Thunder™ Coaching Platform, XOS Xchange™, XOS PlayerOnDemand™, XOS Digital Licensing Portal™, and the XOS Digital Sports Network™ digital media distribution technology provide the most advanced, comprehensive digital asset management solution available in the world. For more information, visit http://www.xosdigital.com.

ESPN Regional Release:

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – For the fourth consecutive season, ESPN Regional Television, Inc., a subsidiary of ESPN, and the Mid-American Conference have announced a six-week regionally syndicated football package that will air in 27 television markets, including Chicago; Philadelphia; Detroit; Cleveland; Columbus, Ohio; Cincinnati; Indianapolis; Grand Rapids, Mich.; and Buffalo, N.Y. The package will consist of MAC conference matchups, running six weeks, beginning Saturday, Sept. 17.

“We are extremely excited about the upcoming football season and the MAC Game of the Week schedule,” said Pete Derzis, senior vice president & general manager, ESPN Regional Television. “We have assembled an extensive group of MAC affiliates that reaches a significant base of college football fans. The demand for this content is a testament to the quality of MAC football.”

All games will begin at noon ET, with the telecast window extending to 3:30 p.m. The games will be distributed nationally via the ESPN GamePlan pay-per-view package, which is available to fans via cable, DIRECTV and Dish Network. The telecasts will also be available on ESPN3.com, ESPN’s broadband sports network.

“The Mid-American Conference is a proud partner with ESPN Regional Television and our syndicated package has brought tremendous value and exposure to our conference,” said Dr. Jon A. Steinbrecher, Mid-American Conference Commissioner. “This year’s package presents a number of attractive match-ups. Through the efforts of our partners at ESPN Regional Television, we have a strong group of affiliates throughout the MAC footprint that assist in our continuing efforts to foster and grow the MAC brand.”

The six-week package will begin Saturday, Sept. 17 with an in-state rivalry between Central Michigan and Western Michigan. The package will conclude Saturday, Nov. 5, when Ball State travels to Eastern Michigan.

The 27 markets that will air the package represent 24 million television households, or 21 percent of the U.S. Those markets and affiliates include: Chicago (WPWR – MNT); Philadelphia (WPVI – ABC); Detroit (WXYZ – ABC); Cleveland (WEWS – ABC); Indianapolis (WNDY – CW); Columbus (WWHO – CW); Cincinnati (EKRC – CW); Milwaukee (WMLW – Independent); Grand Rapids (WZZM – ABC); and Buffalo (WNYO – MNT).

Michael Reghi will call the action each week with analyst Doug Graber.

The 2011 football campaign marks the 65th season of MAC football and the 15th with a championship game. The season concludes Friday, Dec. 2, at Ford Field with the Marathon MAC Football Championship on ESPN2. With a conference record of at least four schools participating in bowl games in each of the last three consecutive seasons, the MAC has produced bowl teams from 10 conference schools in the past three years. In addition, the competitiveness of the league has seen six different schools represent their respective divisions in the last three championship games.

MAC student-athletes continue to excel at the professional level. In last year’s Super Bowl between Green Bay and Pittsburgh, the MAC witnessed 13 former players on the combined rosters of teams competing for the NFL’s Lombardi Trophy, which tied for second among FBS conferences. Among those athletes are two-time Super Bowl champion with the Pittsburgh Steelers – quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (Miami University) and 2008 NFL Defensive Player of the Year James Harrison (Kent State University).

The legacy of MAC greatness also has been recognized within its coaches, including former MAC greats and College Football Hall of Famers Sid Gillman, Woody Hayes, Don James, Don Nehlen, Ara Parseghian, Doyt Perry, Bo Schembechler and Herb Deromedi.



2011 MAC Game of the Week Schedule (All Times Noon ET)

Date
Matchup

Sat, Sep 17
Central Michigan at Western Michigan

Sat, Oct 1
Toledo at Temple

Sat, Oct 15
Toledo at Bowling Green

Sat, Oct 22
Northern Illinois at Buffalo

Sat, Oct 29
Central Michigan at Akron

Sat, Nov 5
Ball State at Eastern Michigan


MAC Football Affiliates
City/DMA Size - Station (Affiliation)
Chicago (3) - WPWR (MNT)
Philadelphia (4)- WPVI / WPVI-DT2 (ABC/Live Well)
Detroit (11)- WXYZ (ABC)
Tampa-St. Pete, FL(14) - Bright Hous (RSN)
Cleveland (18) - WEWS (ABC)
Orlando, FL (19) - Bright House (RSN)
Indianapolis (27) - WNDY (CW)
Cincinnati (33) - EKRC (CW)
Columbus, OH (34) - WWHO (CW)
Milwaukee (35)- WMLW (Independent)
Harrisburg, PA (39) - EHP-DT2 (CBS)
Grand Rapids, MI (41) - WZZM (ABC)
Buffalo, NY (51) - WNYO (MNT)
Providence, RI (53) - COX-New England (COX/RSN)
Dayton, OH (62) - WKEF (FOX)
Charleston, WV (64) - MYZTV (MNT)
Flint, MI (69) - WSMH (FOX)
Toledo, OH (70) - WTVG / WTVG-DT2 (ABC)
Green Bay, WI (71)- WACY (MNT)
Madison, WI (85) - ETVW (MNT)
South Bend, IN (93) - WMYS (Independent)
Youngstown, OH (111) - WYTV (ABC)
Lansing , MI (115) - WHTV (MNT)
LaCrosse, WI (128) - KQEG (FMN)
Rockford, IL (134)- WTVO / WTVO-DT2 (ABC)
Wausau, WI (135) - WSAW / WSAW-DT2 (CBS/MNT)
Wheeling, WV (159) - WTOV-DT2 (RTV)

ESPN Regional Television
The nation’s largest syndicator of collegiate sports programming, ESPN Regional Television (ERT) annually produces more than 1,200 sporting events. Content includes action from NCAA football, basketball and Olympic sports, NHRA and professional and amateur golf, accounting for more than 3,400 live and/or original hours of programming. ERT’s owned and operated events reach over a million fans a year and provides more than 200 additional hours of programming.

In addition to event ownership, ERT is the production headquarters for ESPNU; syndication rights-holder and producer of national, regional and local shows for college conferences (SEC, BIG EAST, Big 12, Mid-American, WAC) and manages the Big 12 Corporate Partner Program.

For more information, visit ESPNPlus.com.

MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE
Founded in 1946, the Mid-American Conference is an NCAA Division I, 12 full-member conference that sponsors 23 championships and is one of 11 members of the Football Bowl Subdivison (FBS). With total enrollment of nearly 300,000 students, the league represents institutions of higher learning in seven (7) states - Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, New York, and Ohio. In addition, two universities - Temple University in Philadelphia, Pa., and the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, Ma. (beginning in 2012) -- are members for football only.

Current MAC schools that hold full membership and the year they joined are -- East Division: University of Akron (1992), Bowling Green State University (1952), University at Buffalo (1998), Kent State University (1951), Miami University (1947), Ohio University (1946). West Division: Ball State University (1973), Central Michigan University (1971), Eastern Michigan University (1971), Northern Illinois University (1975-86, rejoined in 1997), University of Toledo (1950), Western Michigan University (1947). Temple University (2007) competes in the East Division in football only and the University of Massachusetts will compete beginning in 2012.

The conference office is based in Cleveland, Ohio.

SportsTimeOhio announcement:

CLEVELAND, OH – The MAC Regional Television Network, SportsTime Ohio, today announced its 2011 Mid-American Conference (MAC) Football coverage. STO became the regional television home of the MAC last year and provides expanded coverage of football, men’s and women’s basketball, and more.

SportsTime Ohio will produce a one-hour MAC Football Preview Show on Wednesday August 31st at 11:00pm. STO’s Michael Reghi, Frank Stams, and Ryan Cavanaugh will take an in-depth look at each of the schools’ Conference play.

The MAC Football Preview Show will also be available on other networks throughout the Midwest. Please check your local listings for times and availability.

In addition, STO will televise five (5) live football games. Matt Underwood will provide play-by-play with former Notre Dame All-American Frank Stams providing color commentary and Katie Witham on the sidelines. The majority of the games will be available in High Definition. The MAC Football schedule on STO includes:


• Saturday, Oct. 8 Bowling Green @ Western Michigan, 2:00 pm ET
• Saturday, Oct. 15 Ball State @ Ohio, 3:30 pm ET
• Saturday, Oct. 22 Ohio @ Akron, 3:30 pm ET
• Saturday, Oct. 29 Buffalo @ Miami, 3:30 pm ET
• Saturday, Nov. 12 Kent State @ Akron, 2:00 pm ET

For more programming information visit http://www.STOHD.com

About SportsTime Ohio
SportsTime Ohio is a Northern Ohio regional sports network reaching 2.8 million homes and designed to offer a variety of sports programming produced for the Ohio sports fan. STO’s initial venture was the largest television package in Cleveland Indians team history. STO offers 150 Indians games annually with ALL games in HD. Beginning July 1, 2007 STO became the official cable home of the Cleveland Browns offering Browns fans 52 weeks of Browns coverage. STO is also the television home of the OHSAA football and basketball playoffs and championships and the official cable partner of the Mid-American Conference. Additional programming is geared specifically toward Ohio-area sports fans and the passion that makes the region the greatest sports community.

MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE
Founded in 1946, the Mid-American Conference is an NCAA Division I, 12-member conference that sponsors 23 championships and is one of 11 members of the Football Bowl Subdivison (FBS). With total enrollment of nearly 300,000 students, the league represents institutions of higher learning in seven (7) states – Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, New York, and Ohio. In addition – Temple University in Philadelphia, Pa. and the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, Ma. -- are affiliate members for football only.

Current MAC schools that hold full membership and the year they joined are -- East Division: University of Akron (1992), Bowling Green State University (1952), University at Buffalo (1998), Kent State University (1951), Miami University (1947), Ohio University (1946). West Division: Ball State University (1973), Central Michigan University (1971), Eastern Michigan University (1971), Northern Illinois University (1975-86, rejoined in 1997), University of Toledo (1950), Western Michigan University (1947). Temple University (2007) competes in the East Division in football only. The conference office is based in Cleveland, Ohio.

Toledo and Miami picked to win their divisions.

The Tour is over, baseball is in the doldrums, World Cup is done and the only golf around here is a bunch of old guys playing at Inverness (why do people go see old golfers but there is no old guy basketball or track or football leagues?). I'm lost without the Tour so some football news would be welcome.

(07-26-2011 07:49 AM)uakronkid Wrote: [ -> ]MAC Game of the Week Schedule Announced (All games at noon ET). They will be broadcast on ESPN Regional.


Sept. 17: Central Michigan at Western Michigan

Oct. 1: Toledo at Temple

Oct. 15: Toledo at Bowling Green

Oct. 22: Northern Illinois at Buffalo

Oct. 29: Central Michigan at Akron

Nov. 5: Ball State at Eastern Michigan

How do they pick the game of the week? I could understand the first 3, but I'm not sure about the attraction of the last 3 matchups.

(07-26-2011 10:07 AM)NIU007 Wrote: [ -> ]

(07-26-2011 07:49 AM)uakronkid Wrote: [ -> ]MAC Game of the Week Schedule Announced (All games at noon ET). They will be broadcast on ESPN Regional.


Sept. 17: Central Michigan at Western Michigan

Oct. 1: Toledo at Temple

Oct. 15: Toledo at Bowling Green

Oct. 22: Northern Illinois at Buffalo

Oct. 29: Central Michigan at Akron

Nov. 5: Ball State at Eastern Michigan

How do they pick the game of the week? I could understand the first 3, but I'm not sure about the attraction of the last 3 matchups.

Because the last three games will "force" you to watch something else. Unless, of course, you have a fetish for empty stadiums.

Akron has most games on tv beween the regional gotw package and STO. 3 times. Kent state on just 1 time.