Big News?

[SOLO_Gold]

Another plus: @bfreeland just confirmed the broadcasts will be in HD.

[ORUalum]

i hope part of the agreement is that ESPN is required to use "ORU" in the basketball scores crawl on the screen.....hate seeing "ORob", "OralRob", "ORoberts", and every other deviation i've seen them use.  that would make this a HUGE deal.

[ORUIllini]

Man I was hoping for new uni's!   I guess I can't be upset by this news, in regards to gaining basketball program exposure, but now my sports package on DirecTV is useless, and I'm not crazy about watching games on a computer or device.

 

Oh well, bring on the first practice in a few weeks!

[ORU82]

My kids do it for me so I can't tell you how, but if you have either an X-Box or Playstation, you can watch these games on your TV. I have used it for years to watch Ohio games. On another note, is this just us or does it involve all of the Summit? If just us, there could be some nice $$$ coming our way. Also, ESPN at times works with the local broadcast team to broadcast these games. Anyone know what is happening here? Finally, this in the longrun will increase the University's national footprint. It is not a bad thing.

 

As for the rollout, next time don't make vague comments about something "big" and then basically sit on it for about a week.  Also, try not to over-hype something.  Don't get me wrong, I am truly glad for ESPN coming in but I am not sure it rises to the level of "huge" unless the contract is only with us and we are getting serious $$$ for the broadcast rights.

 

GO GOLDEN EAGLES!

[Old Titan]

There are eight decades worth of evidence that prove that live television coverage has virtually no negative impact on in-game attendance. If anything, it only increases attendance.

Eight decades?

That's impressive - would love to see those stats, especially the ones from back in the '30's and '40's before broadcast television was even conceived.

All I know is this: when I worked in the ORU athletic department on two occasions in the past 20 years, the general consensus was that live broadcasts of ORU games put the walk-up ticket sales at risk. That's why the home games on KGEB were shown on a tape-delay basis.

ORU has (since the 1980's) a very fickle fan base that seems to look for excuses to stay home: the holiday season, competing high school and college games, campus events, bad weather, popular television programming, etc.

The thinking then was: why give them another reason to not show up by broadcasting the game live locally?

And, returning to your original statement, if there truly is no cause-and-effect between attendance and live local broadcasts, then why do all the major professional sports leagues STILL black out games from local broadcast if they are not already sellouts?

[ORU82]

Good questions OT.  On one side of the coin I know that there was a lot of debate at Ohio and in the MAC when that school/conference went heavily into the ESPN Family of Networks, especially with the midweek MACaction Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday football games.  However, these broadcasts have certainly raised the level of awareness on a national basis of the MAC in general and Ohio in particular.  I also know that schools like the University of Louisville and Boise State used the Thursday/Friday night games template to raise their national footprint.  And, our sister Christian institution, Liberty University seems to broadcast most if not all of their football games on ESPN3.  As for professional teams, both the Steelers and Pirates have all of their respective games broadcast locally.  However, the Steelers have not had a problem selling out every game for basically the last four (4) decades.  The Pirates can be a different story but even in the bad years their games are all broadcast locally on ROOT Sports.  At the end of the day, local attendance may suffer somewhat or may not, only time will tell.  What I hope does happen and what has happened in the cases referenced above is that on a national basis, alumni reconnected with their alma maters and others started to follow their programs.  How do I know this?  Because at least at Ohio if you look over the last several years, attendance has steadily gone up and contributions have increased and merchandise sales have also shot up.  In regard to ORU, I hope this will help alumni reconnect to the University which in turn over time hopefully will increase contributions and sales generating more revenue for the program.  One who understood the concept of getting our product in front of as large an audience as possible, was Oral.  Think back to the heady days of the 70's when ORU was well know on a national level.  Oral realized that sports go into every home like nothing else.  Again, I pray that is what occurs here.  I am a season ticket holder of several seats for Men's Basketball even though I usually only get to see one or two games a year due to living about 1,000 miles from Mabee.  However, for every home game I am on my computer watching our team.  I hope that being available through ESPN3 other alums will reconnect with the University and start to support the team.  By the way, I always turn down the sound on the television broadcast and pull-up Hax on the radio.  That man truly is the Voice of ORU and I love and look forward to his broadcasts.

 

One other thing and I apologize for going on so long.  I was not thinking of our Fox College Sports broadcasts when I posted earlier.  If this is to be a success then the contract with ESPN must exceed that which we had with Fox.  Hopefully we are getting more $$$ with ESPN.  And again, does this contract only involve us or is this a Summit thing?

 

GO GOLDEN EAGLES!

[ORUalum]

Man I was hoping for new uni's!   I guess I can't be upset by this news, in regards to gaining basketball program exposure, but now my sports package on DirecTV is useless, and I'm not crazy about watching games on a computer or device.

 

Chromecast

[SOLO_Gold]

We have to get past the small thinking of walk up, in person sales. We've had limited television exposure for years and that hasn't turned the Mabee Center into a sell out every game. Ultimately winning (and winning big games) is the only thing that's going to do that. 

 

Happy for the program. Keep it going #ORUMBB. 

[ORUTerry]

Anything that gets us publicity and into the media (internet/TV) is a good thing. I also have to believe that since we are now part of the ESPN family, it will be easier to get mentioned on SportsCenter or get place on SC Top 10 - if our players do something worthy.

 

I appreciated the Fox affiliation and the fact that the games were shown on DirecTv, but this is a nice move. I still think the school/GEB could have leveraged the games more to increase ORU's  profile. 

[Old Titan]

Lots of strong points.

 

Should point out I'm as much (or more) concerned about season ticket holders (especially the ones who get comps as part of a donation or corporate sponsorship) not showing up as much when they can simply watch at home instead.

 

I hope I'm wrong.

 

Let's see what actual attendance does in the next couple of years.

[drclean1]

I have cable with att and I do not espn3  

[Old Titan]

I have cable with att and I do not espn3  

 

ESPN3 is not a cable channel; it's a website & app.  Here is the official description from the ORU press release:

 

"ESPN3 is ESPN's live multi-screen sports network, a destination that delivers thousands of exclusive sports events annually.  It is accessible online at WatchESPN.com, on smartphones and tablets via the WatchESPN app and streamed on televisions through Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, Roku, Xbox 360 and Xbox One.  The network is currently available to 95 million homes at no additional cost to fans who receive their high-speed Internet connection or video subscription from an affiliated service provider.  The network is also available at no cost to approximately 21 million U.S. college students and U.S.-based military personnel via computers, smartphones and tablets connected to on-campus educational and on-base military broadband and Wi-Fi networks."

 

Bottom line:  if your cable or internet provider offers ESPN programming, then you can access and watch ESPN3 through your computer, smart phone, tablet, Xbox, etc. 

If your cable or internet provider does not offer ESPN programming, then you are not permitted to sign on to ESPN3.

[Old Titan]

Here's the whole press release from ORU Athletics:

 

TULSA, Okla. – Oral Roberts University is collaborating with ESPN3 to deliver as many as 11 men’s basketball home games during the 2014-15 season.

Games include non-conference matchups with Tulsa (Nov. 15) and New Mexico State (Dec. 13) and all eight Summit League contests. The Dec. 7 game against Missouri State may also be made available.

 

“A huge thanks to Mike Carter, Scott Higgins, all the people at GEB America and at ESPN who have worked so hard to make this happen,†said Blake Freeland, Assistant A.D. for Media Relations. “We are excited about what this means in terms of additional exposure for Oral Roberts University and look forward to working with ESPN3.â€

 

With the agreement, Golden Eagle fans everywhere can watch online at WatchESPN.com, on smartphones and tablets via the WatchESPN app and streamed on televisions through Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, Roku, Xbox 360 and Xbox One. ESPN3 is available in 95 million homes and by an additional 21 million US-based college students and military personnel.

 

Home games will also be tape-delayed nationally on GEB America and locally in Tulsa on KGEB. Other road games, including ORU’s trips to Oregon State on the Pac-12 Networks and to Norman to face Oklahoma on ESPNU, will also be available via WatchESPN. A full Summit League television schedule will be announced in October.

 

ORU MBB Broadcast Schedule (As of September 19, 2014)

Date                 Opponent                                  Time (ET)           TV/Broadcast

11/3/2014          vs. East Central (Exhibition)        7:00 p.m.            ELIve

11/8/2014          vs. Rogers State (Exhibition)       7:00 p.m.            ELIve

11/15/2014        vs. Tulsa                                    7:05 p.m.            ESPN3

11/21/2014        at Oregon State                          8:00 p.m.            Pac-12 Networks

12/7/2014          vs. Missouri State                       3:05 p.m.            ESPN3*

12/13/2014        vs. New Mexico State                 7:05 p.m.            ESPN3

12/16/2014        at Oklahoma                               7:00 p.m.            ESPNU

12/28/2014        vs. Haskell                                 3:00 p.m.            ELIve

1/2/2015            at North Dakota State                 7:00 p.m.            ESPN3*

1/7/2015            vs. IUPUI                                    7:05 p.m.            ESPN3

1/14/2015          vs. Omaha                                  7:05 p.m.            ESPN3

1/17/2015          vs. IPFW                                    7:05 p.m.            ESPN3

1/24/2015          vs. South Dakota State               7:05 p.m.            ESPN3

1/27/2015          vs. Tabor                                    7:00 p.m.            ELIve

2/5/2015            at IUPUI                                      6:00 p.m.            ESPN3*

2/12/2015          vs. Western Illinois                      7:05 p.m.            ESPN3

2/14/2015          vs. South Dakota                        7:05 p.m.            ESPN3

2/21/2015          at South Dakota State                 7:00 p.m.            ESPN3*

2/26/2015          vs. North Dakota State                7:05 p.m.            ESPN3

2/28/2015          vs. Denver                                  7:05 p.m.            ESPN3

*Tentatively scheduled to be picked up by ESPN3

For the latest information on ORU men’s basketball, follow @ORUMBB on Twitter or go to www.ORUAthletics.com.

 

About ESPN3

ESPN3 is ESPN's live multi-screen sports network, a destination that delivers thousands of exclusive sports events annually.  It is accessible online at WatchESPN.com, on smartphones and tablets via the WatchESPN app and streamed on televisions through Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, Roku, Xbox 360 and Xbox One.  The network is currently available to 95 million homes at no additional cost to fans who receive their high-speed Internet connection or video subscription from an affiliated service provider.  The network is also available at no cost to approximately 21 million U.S. college students and U.S.-based military personnel via computers, smartphones and tablets connected to on-campus educational and on-base military broadband and Wi-Fi networks.

[Dr. Cornelius]

I have cable with att and I do not espn3  

 

ATT & ATT U-verse are both ESPN3 Participating Providers. So, you are already paying ABC / Disney through your ISP whether you use it or not.

 

Like ORUAlum suggested above, the best idea is to get a Roku or Chromecast if you want to view it on a TV.

[theeagleman5]

So ORU games will be on ESPN3 instead of FCS?...........BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!....It's better than nothing but TheEagleman prefers watching the games on the BIG screen.....

[SOLO_Gold]

So ORU games will be on ESPN3 instead of FCS?...........BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!....It's better than nothing but TheEagleman prefers watching the games on the BIG screen.....

Chromecast is probably cheaper than 5 months of the extra sports package through a cable provider. 

[ORU82]

Yes, let's pass on the opportunity to be viewed in approximately 96,000,000 homes in this nation and another 21,000,000 overseas so that we can stay on a network with a potential to reach what, a couple hundred thousand?  Makes sense to me.

[Old Titan]

Yes, let's pass on the opportunity to be viewed in approximately 96,000,000 homes in this nation and another 21,000,000 overseas so that we can stay on a network with a potential to reach what, a couple hundred thousand?  Makes sense to me.

 

As a gluten for punishment, I just wonder what the realistic chances are of someone (anyone?) who is not specifically LOOKING FOR ORU'S GAMES to watch an ESPN3 broadcast featuring the Golden Eagles, as opposed to someone who might be channel surfing (or bored) and stumbles onto an ORU game being broadcast on FCS (or any other cable broadcast channel)?

 

Make no mistake:  being on ESPN3 is simply NOT the same as being on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Classic - or even FCS.

 

Those broadcast channels are easy to come across when flipping around, or just looking for "a good game".  We all go to those channels out of habit just to see what they might be showing, right?  With no prior inkling of what might be showing before we do?

 

ESPN3 broadcasts, on the other hand, are more likely seen as the end result of a focused SEARCH for particular programming of interest.  I don't think I have ever once signed onto ESPN3 just to see what they might be showing.  I have, however, watched dozens of broadcasts on ESPN3 that I specifically went there to watch.  Big difference!

 

It's like the difference between unexpectedly coming across an advertisement while reading a magazine or newspaper, vs. the chances of you seeing that same ad buried in the deepest recesses of those publications' websites, or even more unlikely, that you would go LOOKING for that ad deep in the recesses of the publications' website.

 

So, to answer my own rhetorical question (can you even do such a thing?):  I think the likelihood of ANYONE serendipitously tuning into an ORU broadcast on ESPN3 just because "it's there" is FAR less than that same person perhaps giving it a look if he came across it while channel surfing, or looking for a decent game to watch, or because it was showing in a restaurant, or sports bar, or airport terminal, etc.