Mark it on your calendar - The 2013 Cowboys Classic against TCU on Aug. 31 will kick off at 8 p.m. CT on ESPN. http://lsul.su/13EiVUJ
photo courtesy of ESPN.com
photo courtesy of ESPN.com
Tinker:
Wow! Just beautiful. Because of the LSU purple & gold fighting tigers colors are going to be playing football there. Along with the great LSU golden band from tiger land. The LSU cheerleaders, and of course all the LSU tiger football fans. Let's see, what is the sound that they like so much? http://www.youtube.com/watch?
www.youtube.com
This is a video of the Golden Band from Tigerland performing the Pre-Game routin...See More
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LSU-TCU to kickoff at 8 p.m.
March 5, 2013 - © 2013 Tiger Rag
Cowboys Classic will be televised on ESPN
Tiger Rag News Services
LSU’s 2013 season-opener against TCU in the Cowboys Classic in Arlington, Texas, will kickoff at 8 p.m. and will be televised nationally by ESPN, the Southeastern Conference announced on Tuesday.
LSU and TCU open the 2013 season on Saturday, Aug. 31 in what will be the first meeting between the teams since 1968 when the Tigers beat the Horned Frogs, 10-7, in Tiger Stadium. LSU is 5-2-1 all-time against TCU.
CLICK HERE for LSU’s 2013 football schedule.
The TCU game will also mark LSU’s third appearance in Cowboys Stadium as the Tigers beat Texas A&M, 41-24, in the 2011 Cotton Bowl and then followed that with a 40-27 win over Oregon to open the 2011 season.
Comments
Responses to “LSU-TCU to kickoff at 8 p.m.”
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TigerGumbo on
March 5th, 2013 10:20 am I for one was more then worried about losing 11 experience juniors from LSU 2012 football team. But after reviewing the LSU Gameday column http://gamedayr.com/gamedayr/
lsu-tigers-freshmen-most- likely-to-play-in-2013/ . It looks like we can still make a good fight out of this coming LSU football season.
These guys are some great looking replacement that should indeed do a good job, filling in for the good LSU football players who left for the NFL draft in 2012. Leaving this 2013 LSU football team holding the bag. So I feel much better about that problem.
However, be that as it may, the question still remains. Will the LSU QB play efficient enough to keep moving the 2013 LSU football team down the football field. If Zach does do a good job. LSU will be right in the very thick of the championship battle. Can Cam get Zach playing QB good enough, that is my big question?
1. Kendell Beckwith – LB, Jackson, LA; 6-3, 228…freshman, What is certain, however, is that Miles was more than delighted to fend off Nick Saban and Alabama, who heavily pursued the elite talent.
2. Fehoko Fanaika – OL, San Mateo, CA; 6-6, 340…junior college transfer. LSU eventually won out over Florida and Georgia, and the Tigers may already have a starting position waiting for Fanaika at one of the tackle spots.
3. Quantavius Leslie – WR, Raymond, MS; 6-4, 191… junior college transfer. If Leslie does indeed qualify, he’s almost a lock to start.
4. DeSean Smith – TE, Lake Charles, LA; 6-4, 222…freshman, Smith may have the biggest upside of any player LSU signed.
5. Frank Herron – DE, Memphis, TN; 6-5, 260… five-star freshman. LSU had to fight off a scary, eleventh-hour push from Texas to secure Herron’s services,
http://lsufootball.net/
LSU Football - Geaux Tigers!!!
USA Today | Dwayne Bowe's pay day: $56M, with $26M guaranteed |
Louisiana Daily | .mp3 Audio (10 min, 14 sec): Bradie James on his breast cancer outreach program |
Everything Alabama | JaMarcus Russell 'can flick it,' Jeff Garcia says (embedded video) |
LSU Sports | Baseball: LSU opens five-game week against SFA |
LSU Reveille | Baseball: Mainieri faced steroids head on |
Shreveport Times *1 | Guilbeau: Baseball - LSU struts power pitching during weekend sweep |
Athlon Sports | Spring Preview: South Carolina |
ESPN Media Zone | Broadcast details announced for 6 SEC games |
Sports Business Daily | Fox and ESPN: What’s behind unlikely alliance? |
Athlon Sports | SEC spring preview and storylines |
Everything Alabama | Battlefield Louisiana: Alabama looks to raid LSU's plentiful back yard |
Opelika-Auburn News | Dameyune Craig more than just wide receivers coach for Auburn |
Athens Banner-Herald | J.J. Green to the rescue this spring as Georgia's tailback depth takes hit |
Post & Courier, SC | Five questions as South Carolina opens spring football practice |
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FSU, Boise State Set Up Series
Heather
Dinich discusses Florida State's football team beefing up its
nonconference schedule by booking a home-and-home series in 2019 and
2020 with Boise State.
--------------------------http://www.dandydon.com/
Dandy Don's LSU Sports Report
Good morning, Tiger Fans,
After winning all four games last weekend, the LSU baseball team climbed to No. 3 in the USAToday Coaches Poll, remained at No. 4 in the Collegiate Baseball’s rankings, and climbed to No. 8 in Baseball America’s. The Tigers rankings were boosted in part by LSU having the nation’s best RPI (Rating Percentage Index), which is not only a reflection of the team's win/loss record, but also the team’s strength of schedule. Every now and then I get asked to explain what RPI is, so I'll go ahead and address that now. PRI is calculated differently for different sports, but for basketball and baseball it's pretty much the same. The index is calculated based on a team’s winning percentage (25%), its opponents’ winning percentage (50%), and the winning percentage of those opponents’ opponents (25%). In other words, the basic equation is RPI = (WP * 0.25) + (OWP * 0.50) + (OOWP * 0.25). Additional details on how RPIU is calculated for different sports can be found on this WikiPedia page.
LSU (10-1) will return to action at Alex Box Stadium tonight against Stephen F. Austin (3-6) at 6:30 p.m. Senior left-hander Brent Bonvillain is expected to get the start for the Tigers. SFA will start senior right-hander Justin Choate (1-0, 9.72 ERA, 8.1 IP, 8 SO/3 BB, .368 opp. BA). Tonight's game will be the first of five home games for the Tigers this week. Tomorrow they wll play Sacred Heart at 6:30, and then Friday LSU will kick off a three-game weekend series against Washington. Next week the Tigers will begin SEC play with a series at Starkville, Mississippi, against Mississippi State.
There is no late-breaking football recruiting news to report and I do not expect any more commitments until after spring practice has started and probably not until the Spring Game. With Louisiana’s Class of 2014 being so stacked with talent, and with the excitement of Cam Cameron being LSU's new OC, this year's Spring Game will probably be attended by a record number of top recruits from Louisiana and far beyond.
Speaking of Louisiana prospects, one player who has seen his stock rise lately is wide receiver Gabe Fuselier of Catholic of New Iberia. Fuselier made headlines last week after clocking the fastest 40-yard dash (4.45) and shuttle (4.03) at the Houston Nike SPARQ Combine. Fuselier checked in at 5-10, 175 pounds. What he may lack in height, he more than makes up for in heart. In the last two years, his performance in the District Championship meant the difference in the games. Last year it was three TDs including a second half kick return, and this year a 90-yard punt return with 45 seconds in the first half that changed the momentum of the game. I currently have Fuselier at No. 61 on my list of Top LA Prospects for 2014, but will be moving him up later in the week when I make adjustments to the working list-in-progress.
Read more...http://www.dandydon.
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http://www.saturdaydownsouth.
NFL Draft rewind: LSU’s five-year recap
LSU had a record number of underclassmen declare for the NFL Draft this year – 10 in all, and at least three of them are projected to be first-round picks in Sam Montgomery, Barkevious Mingo and Kevin Minter.
Over the last five years, LSU has had 30 players drafted, and none of them are better than Patrick Peterson.
2012 (5)
Morris Claiborne, Cowboys (1st round)
Michael Brockers, Rams (1st round)
Reuben Randle, Giants (2nd round)
Brandon Taylor, Chargers (3rd round)
Ron Brooks, Bills (4th round)
2011 (6)
Patrick Peterson, Cardinals (1st round)
Kelvin Sheppard, Bills (3rd round)
Stevan Ridley Patriots, RB (3rd round)
Drake Nevis, Colts (3rd round)
Joseph Barksdale, Raiders (3rd round)
Lazarius Levingston, Seahawks (7th round)
2010 (6)
Chad Jones, Giants (3rd round)
Brandon LaFell, Panthers (3rd round)
Perry Riley, Redskins (4th round)
Al Woods, Saints (4th round)
Trindon Holliday, Texans (6th round)
Charles Scott, Eagles (6th round)
2009 (6)
Tyson Jackson, Chiefs (1st round)
Quinn Johnson, Packers (5th round)
Herman Johnson, Cardinals (5th round)
Curtis Taylor, 49ers (7th round)
Demetrius Byrd, Chargers (7th round)
Ricky John-Francois, 49ers (7th round)
2008 (7)
Glenn Dorsey, Chiefs (1st round)
Chevis Jackson, Falcons (3rd round)
Jacob Hester, Chargers (3rd round)
Early Doucet, Cardinals (3rd round)
Craig Steltz, Bears (4th round)
Matt Flynn, Packers (7th round)
Keith Zinger, Falcons (7th round)
Best Pro: One of the most electrifying SEC players to ever suit up was former corner Patrick Peterson. Formally known as Patrick Johnson, unlike many other five-star players exiting high school, Peterson lived up to all the hype and more. Not only is he a sick cover corner, but he’s also one the best punt returners in the league. He’s combined for 111 tackles and nine INTs in two seasons in the league, along with returning 95 punts for 1,125 yards and four touchdowns. Peterson could be the best overall player to come out of LSU, ever.
Most Disappointing Pro: As a former can’t-miss defensive tackle out of college and former first-round pick, Glenn Dorsey certainly hasn’t lived up to the hype. In five seasons, Dorsey has totaled 159 tackles with just four sacks. Dorsey only played in four games in ‘12, making just seven tackles, and was placed on injury reserve to finish the season. Dorsey certainly hasn’t turned out to be a fraction of the player we all thought he would be exiting LSU.
Photo Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-US PRESSWIRE
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?
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http://espn.go.com/college-
Stay The Course
Oregon's ambition hasn't changed despite Chip Kelly's departure. With Mark Helfrich's appointment, the Ducks are following a familiar formula. Ted Miller » Ducks will keep edge Pac-12 blog »Mark J. Rebilas/USA TODAY Sports
http://espn.go.com/blog/sec/
SEC Blog
SEC teams with the best BCS title paths
March, 4, 2013
By
Edward Aschoff | ESPN.com
This marks the final year of the BCS, and you better believe the SEC would love to close the BCS era with eight straight titles. It would also ensure that the league has even more momentum going into the playoff, which starts during the 2014 season.
Colleague Travis Haney took a look at which conference has the best playoff path starting next year. He makes a pretty good case for the SEC, which should be able to get its conference champion in every year.
But who can wait for 2014 title talk? Yeah, me either, so why not take a look at SEC teams with the best BCS title paths in 2013? Spring practice begins this month, so we might as well throw out some very, very early thoughts on teams' championship hopes.
Let's take a look at which SEC teams have real BCS title shots in 2013:
ALABAMA
Pros: The Crimson Tide still have Nick Saban. That should be reason enough to make Alabama the odds on favorite to win its third straight national championship and fourth in five years. But there are many other reasons why Alabama tops our list. The offensive line might have to be rebuilt, but Alabama returns the nation's most efficient quarterback in AJ McCarron, who could have easily opted for the NFL after his junior year, a beast at running back in rising sophomore T.J. Yeldon, a host of talent -- and explosiveness -- at wide receiver, and most of the pieces to last year's top-ranked defense. Some big names have to be replaced on both sides, but this team really is reloading in 2013. Also, if the Tide can escape Virginia Tech (in Atlanta) and Texas A&M (in College Station) early, Alabama could go through the year unscathed, with road games coming against Kentucky, Mississippi State and Auburn.
Cons: Forget the pressure. Saban doesn't allow pressure to eat at his players. What Alabama has to do is replace three studs on that offensive line. Barrett Jones, Chance Warmack and D.J. Fluker are all gone. Winning the battle in the trenches is essential to competing in the SEC, so Alabama's less experienced linemen have to grow up in a hurry. Also, no team can do it three times in a row, right?
TEXAS A&M
Pros: Johnny Manziel is back and last year proved that the Aggies are tough enough to compete in the big, bad SEC. Kliff Kingsbury might not be calling the plays anymore, but there is a lot of young talent on offense, including wide receiver Mike Evans and running backs Brandon Williams and Trey Williams, that should still give SEC defenses fits. A&M gets Alabama at home in Week 3 and trade Florida for Vanderbilt.
Cons: The Aggies lost a lot from their 2012 team. Left tackle Luke Joeckel is gone, along with receivers Ryan Swope and Uzoma Nwachukwu, who combined for 98 catches for 1,398 yards and 15 touchdowns. The front seven has a lot to replace, including All-American defensive end Damontre Moore and linebackers Jonathan Stewart and Sean Porter. Kingsbury's sideline work with Manziel will be missed, and the Aggies have to play LSU, Ole Miss and Arkansas on the road.
GEORGIA
Pros: Georgia will be down wide receiver Tavarres King on offense, but it shouldn't be too hard to find someone to help make up for the loss of his production with all those talented receivers. "Gurshall" returns and so does quarterback Aaron Murray, who could become the first SEC quarterback to throw for 3,000 yards in each of his four years on campus. Bringing back the entire starting five on offense will also keep this offense trending upward.
Cons: The Bulldogs lost 12 players who either started or saw significant time on defense. Jarvis Jones, Alec Ogletree and Bacarri Rambo are just a few of the big names that are gone. There certainly is talent remaining, but replacing all those players would be tough for anyone. Also, look at that schedule. The Dawgs start the year with Clemson, South Carolina and LSU before September even arrives. Losing more than one game during that stretch could all but end Georgia's title hopes.
FLORIDA
Pros: The Gators lost some key players on defense, but coach Will Muschamp is bringing back a host of defensive talent that should do just fine in 2013. Marcus Roberson could be an All-SEC performer at cornerback, and incoming freshman Vernon Hargreaves III has the talent to start opposite him immediately. Ronald Powell returns to help out a young but very talented front seven that includes rising sophomores Dante Fowler Jr. and Jonathan Bullard. Also, the Gators should be very deep at running back and have a more complete offensive line in 2013.
Cons: No one is quite sure what to make of that offense. Sure, the Gators should be able to run the ball, even without workhorse Mike Gillislee, but what about throwing it? Jeff Driskel really struggled last year, and the Gators lost their best receiving option in tight end Jordan Reed. Florida will have to rely on five true freshmen to help at receiver, but Driskel has to increase his confidence and become a better presense in the huddle for this offense to improve at all. Florida also takes on Miami, LSU and South Carolina on the road.
SOUTH CAROLINA
Pros: The Gamecocks might be without Marcus Lattimore and Ace Sanders, but they should be very balanced on offense in 2013. South Carolina has two very capable quarterbacks to work with in Connor Shaw and Dylan Thompson, a talented group of running backs returning, led by rising sophomore Mike Davis, and more experience at receiver. One-man wrecking crew Jadeveon Clowney is back, and could be a legit Heisman candidate. South Carolina also spends the final month of the season at home.
Cons: Replacing Sanders will be tough because he did so much on offense and special teams. Clowney will have help up front, but South Carolina must replace its two-deep at linebacker. That's going to be quite the chore. Also, stud safety D.J. Swearinger, Spur DeVonte Holloman and cornerback Akeem Auguste all have to be replaced. Right now, this staff will have to rely on a handful of youngsters to help out this spring. The Gamecocks must also go to Georgia, Tennessee and Arkansas.
LSU
Pros: The offense has to be more well-rounded in 2013. Cam Cameron is in at offensive coordinator, and quarterback Zach Mettenberger made major strides during the last month of the season. All of his receiving weapons are back, the offensive line should be better and there is a wealth of talent still at running back. The Tigers also get Florida, Texas A&M and Arkansas at home.
Cons: The defense was gutted after the 2012 season. The defensive line has to be rebuilt, someone has to step in for Kevin Minter at middle linebacker and the secondary must fill in the holes left by Eric Reid and Tharold Simon. There is a lot of young talent on defense, but guys have to grow up quickly in Baton Rouge this year. Playing Alabama and Georgia on the road will be very tough as well.
Honestly
speaking of course none of us really know what SEC team is going to go
to the big showdown BCS game in 2013. But it is truly safe to say one of
the six SEC team above will give it their best shot. What is that
saying, If we had a skiff we all could go for a sale. Who will block
& tackle, run & catch, with better depth and skill is anyone
guess. Just because we want it, don't have much to do with getting it.
Knowing how to get there is much more important with the required
talent. After all, talent is talent.
I hope that LSU straightens out their QB efficiency problem once and far all. But I still don't know that yet?
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----------------------------I hope that LSU straightens out their QB efficiency problem once and far all. But I still don't know that yet?
-------------------
I
think this potentially could be Saban's best Alabama team. The offense
should be one of the most explosive in Alabama history with skill
position weapons all over the field. The schedule is very manageable
& if Bama wins their first 2 games then look out. The secondary
should be improved & if we can rush the passer the defense will be
as good as ever. Its bascially a 2 game season. At Texas A&M &
home vs LSU. The only 'trap' game I see is at Mississippi St the week
after LSU.
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Looking forward to running up and down the field like we did last year. This year, we need to finish the job
1 fan likes this.
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We
kicked their $@% up and down the field last year. Except for a last
minute miraculous drive by AJ whom I have a lot of respect for, they
lose and we are where they are. Not much separation between LSU and
bama. We have 2 championships in 10 years and they have 3.
2 fans like this.
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Agreed
and if I know Saban, he started working on Johnny 'Football; on Jan 8th
& Saban rarely loses rematches. Oughta be a hell of a game at
College Station on the 14th of Sept.
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We'll
see. The way I see it we dominated in 2011 & lost & LSU
dominated in 2012 & lost so those games are a wash. We won in OT in
2008 & LSU won in OT in 2007 so thats a wash. We won a close one
at home in 2009 & LSU won a close one at home in 2010 so thats a
wash. The big difference is the NC game which was no contest. We'll
see what happens in 2012 because LSU lost a ton of talent.
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We have a ton of talent returning.
1 fan likes this.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/
The New York Times
Sports
Seeing Riches in Sports TV, Fox Will Create New Network
By RICHARD SANDOMIR and AMY CHOZICK
For Rupert Murdoch, creating a national cable sports network in the United States to compete with ESPN has been his white whale — a tantalizing television opportunity but one of the few fields that his media empire has not conquered.
But two decades after shaking up the sports broadcasting world for the
first time by acquiring N.F.L. rights, Murdoch has plans to challenge
ESPN head on and claim some of the lucrative revenue that the sports
media giant has had largely to itself for more than three decades.
On Tuesday, Fox will announce its intention to start Fox Sports 1, an all-sports network, in August.
The channel will carry Nascar races, Major League Baseball games, college basketball and football, soccer and U.F.C. fights. It will also broadcast studio shows, including one that is to be hosted by Regis Philbin, a celebrated Notre Dame fan.
Murdoch’s effort is a long shot to topple ESPN, or at least take a huge bite out of it.
ESPN brings in more than $6 billion annually from its industry-high subscriber fees. It owns the rights to televise Major League Baseball; the N.F.L.; the N.B.A.; Nascar; tennis; myriad collegiate conferences; the Bowl Championship Series and its new playoffs; and a raft of other sports. Both ESPN and ESPN2 have 98.5 million subscribers.
It is a true empire, with eight domestic cable channels; the ESPN3 broadband network; the Web sites ESPN.com and Grantland.com; a radio network; digital properties like ESPNw, which focuses on women’s sports; a magazine; the WatchESPN app, which enables viewing of ESPN on computers, smartphones and tablets; and ownership of the Global X Games, college basketball tournaments and seven bowl games.
Fox Sports 1 will join a market that is far more crowded than it was when Murdoch first contemplated squaring off against ESPN. Not only will Fox face the dominance of ESPN, but NBC and CBS have their own sports channels, which are struggling for viewers and identities. The Big Ten and Pacific-12 conferences have created their own networks, and the Southeastern Conference is planning one. And in the past decade, M.L.B., the N.F.L., the N.B.A. and the N.H.L. have started their own channels.
Still, Fox and its parent, News Corporation, have a companywide faith in sports as a DVR-proof way to attract viewers — especially young men — and a belief that their new sports channel will differentiate itself from the competition, as the Fox News channel has demonstrated in its successful challenge to CNN and then MSNBC. To ensure that Fox Sports 1 has some of the style and attitude that Fox Sports has had since it began in the mid-1990s, Murdoch and Chase Carey, News Corporation’s president and chief operating officer, brought back one of their favorite executives, David Hill, for its creation and launch. Hill, the former head of the Fox Sports Media Group, left the division last year for another job within News Corporation.
“We think sports is a huge arena that has room in it to build a really attractive businesses,” Carey told analysts on an earnings call last month. He said that the company recognizes the escalating costs of sports rights but “in a world of increasing fragmentation, we think sports continues to be a more and more important and unique part of that overall landscape.”
The channel’s success might not have to come as a result of beating ESPN at its game.
David Bank, managing director of global media and Internet research at RBC Capital Markets, said that Fox Sports 1 would be a success “from Day 1” and could, in future years, bid against ESPN for N.B.A. rights and any cable package of N.F.L. games that might come to market.
“Do I expect them to be ESPN? No,” he said. “Mega-success will be hard to determine for five years.”
But, he said, “Rupert and Chase have had a pretty decent run at building long-term value.”
Michael Nathanson, an analyst at Nomura Securities, wrote in a recent report that Fox Sports 1 would be a “good start” for News Corporation but was “unlikely to make a material dent to ESPN’s business for the investable time horizon.”
One way to measure Fox Sports 1’s future success will be how many subscribers it gets and the subscriber fees it can accumulate. Fox has spent months working to convert Speed, a motorsports-centric network with 81 million subscribers, to Fox Sports 1. A companion service, Fox Sports 2, will replace another niche channel, Fuel.
Fox is seeking substantially more for Fox Sports 1 than the 31-cent monthly subscriber fee that Speed gets, according to the media research firm SNL Kagan.
Bank estimated that Fox Sports 1 will probably charge cable, satellite and telephone companies 75 cents to $1 a subscriber. “At $1 a sub, it’s a massive home run,” he said.
By comparison, ESPN charges $5.15 a month and additional fees for its other channels.
“We view Fox as a formidable competitor,” said John Skipper, ESPN’s president. “They’ve got the resources of News Corp., and the willingness that Fox has shown in the past to take big bets and to create a difference.”
He added: “We like our hand. We just have to play it well.”
Fox is certainly asset-rich. It plans to use existing long-term deals to fill Fox Sports 1 with M.L.B. games, including some from the league division series, beginning in 2014; Nascar Sprint Cup and truck races; U.F.C. matches; future World Cup soccer matches; and Big 12 and Pac-12 football and basketball games, as well as those from a basketball conference that is being formed by the seven Catholic universities that are leaving the Big East. The new network is also expected to buy some Big East games from ESPN.
Fox also has 22 regional sports networks to plumb for talent and some of its baseball programming. Two of those regional channels, each in Los Angeles, recently lost the rights to carry the Lakers and the Dodgers — each to networks created by Time Warner Cable. But last November, News Corporation made a major foray into the New York sports market by paying about $2 billion for a 49 percent stake in the YES Network, the profitable channel of the Yankees, with an option to buy up to 80 percent in three years.
Still, the possibility of starting a national sports network constitutes unfinished business at Fox.
In the late 1990s, Fox tied a package of M.L.B. games and a news operation with Keith Olbermann as the star anchor on its regional sports channels. It failed. Recalling that time, a former Fox executive said, “It was Chase’s vision that we’d use the regional sports networks to transition into a national sports network.”
Then, in 2004, Murdoch tried to create a national channel in partnership with the N.F.L. and cable operators. At the time, Murdoch said, “We want to consider the capacity of pay television subscribers to pay for two ESPNs.”
But that effort never got off the ground, and he has waited nine years to make his next move.
Sports will become even more integral by this summer, when News Corporation splits into two publicly traded companies. The company’s newspapers, including The Wall Street Journal and The New York Post, will join a publishing-based company that will retain the name News Corporation. The 20th Century Fox studio, Fox Broadcasting, Fox Sports, the cable channels FX and Fox News and the regional sports networks will form the Fox Group.
News Corporation has recently grown its sports business in the United States and abroad, making live sports programming central to the Fox Group, executives have said.
In the past year, News Corporation paid $335 million to complete its acquisition of Singapore-based ESPN Star Sports, previously a joint venture with the Walt Disney Company, and $757.6 million to broadcast Indian Premier League cricket through March 2018 on its Star TV channel.
“Across the whole sports portfolio, it’s about making choices about where you want to invest and where to prioritize,” James Murdoch, the deputy chief operating officer of News Corporation, said on the earnings call last month.
On Tuesday, Fox will announce its intention to start Fox Sports 1, an all-sports network, in August.
The channel will carry Nascar races, Major League Baseball games, college basketball and football, soccer and U.F.C. fights. It will also broadcast studio shows, including one that is to be hosted by Regis Philbin, a celebrated Notre Dame fan.
Murdoch’s effort is a long shot to topple ESPN, or at least take a huge bite out of it.
ESPN brings in more than $6 billion annually from its industry-high subscriber fees. It owns the rights to televise Major League Baseball; the N.F.L.; the N.B.A.; Nascar; tennis; myriad collegiate conferences; the Bowl Championship Series and its new playoffs; and a raft of other sports. Both ESPN and ESPN2 have 98.5 million subscribers.
It is a true empire, with eight domestic cable channels; the ESPN3 broadband network; the Web sites ESPN.com and Grantland.com; a radio network; digital properties like ESPNw, which focuses on women’s sports; a magazine; the WatchESPN app, which enables viewing of ESPN on computers, smartphones and tablets; and ownership of the Global X Games, college basketball tournaments and seven bowl games.
Fox Sports 1 will join a market that is far more crowded than it was when Murdoch first contemplated squaring off against ESPN. Not only will Fox face the dominance of ESPN, but NBC and CBS have their own sports channels, which are struggling for viewers and identities. The Big Ten and Pacific-12 conferences have created their own networks, and the Southeastern Conference is planning one. And in the past decade, M.L.B., the N.F.L., the N.B.A. and the N.H.L. have started their own channels.
Still, Fox and its parent, News Corporation, have a companywide faith in sports as a DVR-proof way to attract viewers — especially young men — and a belief that their new sports channel will differentiate itself from the competition, as the Fox News channel has demonstrated in its successful challenge to CNN and then MSNBC. To ensure that Fox Sports 1 has some of the style and attitude that Fox Sports has had since it began in the mid-1990s, Murdoch and Chase Carey, News Corporation’s president and chief operating officer, brought back one of their favorite executives, David Hill, for its creation and launch. Hill, the former head of the Fox Sports Media Group, left the division last year for another job within News Corporation.
“We think sports is a huge arena that has room in it to build a really attractive businesses,” Carey told analysts on an earnings call last month. He said that the company recognizes the escalating costs of sports rights but “in a world of increasing fragmentation, we think sports continues to be a more and more important and unique part of that overall landscape.”
The channel’s success might not have to come as a result of beating ESPN at its game.
David Bank, managing director of global media and Internet research at RBC Capital Markets, said that Fox Sports 1 would be a success “from Day 1” and could, in future years, bid against ESPN for N.B.A. rights and any cable package of N.F.L. games that might come to market.
“Do I expect them to be ESPN? No,” he said. “Mega-success will be hard to determine for five years.”
But, he said, “Rupert and Chase have had a pretty decent run at building long-term value.”
Michael Nathanson, an analyst at Nomura Securities, wrote in a recent report that Fox Sports 1 would be a “good start” for News Corporation but was “unlikely to make a material dent to ESPN’s business for the investable time horizon.”
One way to measure Fox Sports 1’s future success will be how many subscribers it gets and the subscriber fees it can accumulate. Fox has spent months working to convert Speed, a motorsports-centric network with 81 million subscribers, to Fox Sports 1. A companion service, Fox Sports 2, will replace another niche channel, Fuel.
Fox is seeking substantially more for Fox Sports 1 than the 31-cent monthly subscriber fee that Speed gets, according to the media research firm SNL Kagan.
Bank estimated that Fox Sports 1 will probably charge cable, satellite and telephone companies 75 cents to $1 a subscriber. “At $1 a sub, it’s a massive home run,” he said.
By comparison, ESPN charges $5.15 a month and additional fees for its other channels.
“We view Fox as a formidable competitor,” said John Skipper, ESPN’s president. “They’ve got the resources of News Corp., and the willingness that Fox has shown in the past to take big bets and to create a difference.”
He added: “We like our hand. We just have to play it well.”
Fox is certainly asset-rich. It plans to use existing long-term deals to fill Fox Sports 1 with M.L.B. games, including some from the league division series, beginning in 2014; Nascar Sprint Cup and truck races; U.F.C. matches; future World Cup soccer matches; and Big 12 and Pac-12 football and basketball games, as well as those from a basketball conference that is being formed by the seven Catholic universities that are leaving the Big East. The new network is also expected to buy some Big East games from ESPN.
Fox also has 22 regional sports networks to plumb for talent and some of its baseball programming. Two of those regional channels, each in Los Angeles, recently lost the rights to carry the Lakers and the Dodgers — each to networks created by Time Warner Cable. But last November, News Corporation made a major foray into the New York sports market by paying about $2 billion for a 49 percent stake in the YES Network, the profitable channel of the Yankees, with an option to buy up to 80 percent in three years.
Still, the possibility of starting a national sports network constitutes unfinished business at Fox.
In the late 1990s, Fox tied a package of M.L.B. games and a news operation with Keith Olbermann as the star anchor on its regional sports channels. It failed. Recalling that time, a former Fox executive said, “It was Chase’s vision that we’d use the regional sports networks to transition into a national sports network.”
Then, in 2004, Murdoch tried to create a national channel in partnership with the N.F.L. and cable operators. At the time, Murdoch said, “We want to consider the capacity of pay television subscribers to pay for two ESPNs.”
But that effort never got off the ground, and he has waited nine years to make his next move.
Sports will become even more integral by this summer, when News Corporation splits into two publicly traded companies. The company’s newspapers, including The Wall Street Journal and The New York Post, will join a publishing-based company that will retain the name News Corporation. The 20th Century Fox studio, Fox Broadcasting, Fox Sports, the cable channels FX and Fox News and the regional sports networks will form the Fox Group.
News Corporation has recently grown its sports business in the United States and abroad, making live sports programming central to the Fox Group, executives have said.
In the past year, News Corporation paid $335 million to complete its acquisition of Singapore-based ESPN Star Sports, previously a joint venture with the Walt Disney Company, and $757.6 million to broadcast Indian Premier League cricket through March 2018 on its Star TV channel.
“Across the whole sports portfolio, it’s about making choices about where you want to invest and where to prioritize,” James Murdoch, the deputy chief operating officer of News Corporation, said on the earnings call last month.
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