ESPN College Sports Update

Rachel Margolis Siegal

November 8, 2011

November 8, 2011

On ESPNU

We’ve got 11 reasons to watch ESPNU on 11-11-11, and here are a few more reasons to tune in before Friday:

Tuesday (7:30 p.m.) – ESPNU All-Access: EA SPORTS Maui Invitational gives viewers behind-the-scenes access to the players, coaches and the basketball programs of Kansas, Memphis, Georgetown and UCLA in a four-part series chronicling the teams as they prepare for the event. Full Details and Trailer

Wednesday (6 p.m.) – ESPNU All-Access: Texas Tech gets an inside look at Texas Tech’s mascot, The Masked Rider, a facilities tour with wide receiver Alex Torres and wired at practice with head coach Tommy Tuberville.

Wednesday (6:30 p.m.) – ESPNU Road Trip hosts Drubner and Niki Noto go inside the Alabama locker room, help cook up a world record pot of gumbo for a good cause and get a “suite” view when No.1 LSU defeated then-No. 2 Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Ala., on Saturday, Nov. 5.

Thursday (6:30 p.m.) – The Battle Presented by AT&T – an inside look at the HBCU (Historically Black College and University) Marching Bands – will return for its second season with five 30-minute shows over five straight weeks, every Thursday from Nov. 10 to Dec. 8. This year the series will focus on the training, discipline, heart, soul and sweat of the Grambling State University Tiger Marching Band.

Spotlight Games

ESPN’s Saturday college football schedule includes eight of the top 10 teams in the BCS Standings, including No. 7 Oregon at No. 4 Stanford (8 p.m., ABC) – called by Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit & Erin Andrews

One-loss Oregon was the only team to defeat Stanford last year
Undefeated Stanford is led by Heisman Trophy candidate quarterback Andrew Luck
Stanford can clinch the Pac-12 North, and a spot in the conference championship game, with a victory
Stanford currently has a 17-game winning streak and Oregon is at eight

ESPN’s college hoops coverage will include telecasts of the first matchup from the deck of an aircraft carrier and the first two games of Coach K’s quest to become the winningest coach in men’s Division I basketball.

Quicken Loans Carrier Classic – No. 1 North Carolina vs. Michigan St. (Fri. at 7 p.m., ESPN, ESPN3 & ESPN 3D)
Dan Shulman, Dick Vitale, Jay Bilas & Andy Katz

Top-ranked UNC against Michigan State in a rematch of the 2009 title game won by the Tarheels
Will be played in San Diego on the USS Carl Vinson

ESPNU will televise Duke’s first two games of the season as head coach Mike Krzyzewski attempts to tie the Division I men’s all-time wins record

Friday at 9 p.m. against Belmont and Saturday at 4:30 p.m. against Presbyterian
Coach K is currently at 900 and needs two more to tie Hall of Fame coach Bob Knight

Weekly Schedule & Talent
Football | Men’s Basketball | Studio Programming

College GameDay Notebook

ESPN’s Emmy Award-winning College GameDay Built by The Home Depot is making its first visit to Palo Alto, Calif., and the campus of Stanford University Saturday, Nov. 12. The show visits its second straight top-10 matchup – this week featuring No. 7 Oregon at No. 4 Stanford (8 p.m., ABC). The GameDay set will be located on the Oval and airs from 9-10 a.m. on ESPNU and 10 a.m.-noon on ESPN.

Stanford is appearing for the second time this season and for the third time overall, while Oregon is appearing for the third time this season and 14th time overall.

When GameDay visited the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Saturday, Oct. 29, in advance of the then- No. 6 Stanford at USC game, Lee Corso put a new spin on wearing his weekly headgear selection. He donned the Cardinal Tree to pick Stanford as that week’s winner.

Longhorn Network: Upcoming Schedule

Eight University of Texas basketball games – five men’s and three women’s – will be televised live on Longhorn Network during November. Friday, Nov. 11 at 8 p.m., the No. 5 Stanford women will visit No. 25 Texas. The game – called by Rebecca Lobo and Andrew Monaco – will tip off the network’s season-long coverage of 26 total (12 men’s & 14 women’s) basketball games.

LHN Schedule

Spotlight: Director of Programming & Aquisitions Nick Dawson

The college basketball season is underway and we are only one week away from the College Hoops Tip-Off Marathon Presented by Disney Destinations on Tuesday, Nov. 15 beginning at midnight ET.

Nick Dawson, ESPN’s director of programming and acquisitions for men’s basketball, leads the team of ESPN employees responsible for scheduling the games – including the live early morning telecasts at 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 a.m. Finding teams to play games during the one-day event is just part of his overall responsibility of overseeing ESPN’s men’s college basketball programming strategy for more than 1,450 games this year.