WAC completes ESPN deal
| • | UH, USC schedule three football games |
By Stephen Tsai
Advertiser Staff Writer
The University of Hawai'i yesterday grudgingly agreed to move one of its marquee home football games to a Friday afternoon to accommodate ESPN.
Soon after, the Western Athletic Conference announced it has finalized a three-year deal with ESPN.
The WAC and ESPN reached an agreement in principle last month, but league officials were told one of the conditions for completion was to move the game between UH and Fresno State from Saturday night, Oct. 27, to Friday afternoon, Oct. 26. ESPN is launching a Friday night series of college football games in the fall.
ESPN officials "were very adamant that (moving the date of) the game was needed to make this deal work," WAC commissioner Karl Benson told The Advertiser yesterday.
UH officials did not want to move the game, arguing a switch would cost the athletic department up to $250,000 in ticket sales, hurt attendance and inconvenience fans. They predicted a Saturday night game between the schools could net as much as $650,000.
UH coach June Jones, who strongly opposes playing on Fridays, also noted the Warriors play the previous Saturday in Tulsa, Okla., and a switch would leave an inadequate amount of time to prepare for one of their top rivals.
But after being pressured by the other WAC athletic directors, UH officials reluctantly consented to the move yesterday morning.
"The message was loud and clear from my fellow athletic directors," UH athletic director Hugh Yoshida said. "(The switch) was a deal-breaker. It was important to the conference."
Said Benson: "ESPN has always looked at Hawai'i as a valuable property. (ESPN officials) made it clear that Hawai'i was instrumental in completing this agreement."
In exchange, Yoshida said, the WAC offered to provide UH some compensation for lost revenue, and ESPN has agreed to look into televising the Rainbow Classic men's basketball tournament.
"I feel very reluctant," Yoshida said. "But there are things we need to do to make the conference whole. We don't have a lot of options as far as national television is concerned."
Benson said ESPN did not have a "Saturday window" available for the WAC. He also said an afternoon kickoff — 4 p.m. Hawai'i time, 10 p.m. on the East Coast — was necessary to reach a wider national audience.
"We understand the sensitivity to a Friday game," Benson said. "We realize it's not the best, but it will provide an exposure window that Hawai'i hasn't had for several years. I appreciate Hawai'i, June Jones and the entire University of Hawai'i community who will have to be inconvenienced to some extent."
Yesterday, Jones deferred comment to Yoshida.
"He's disappointed," Yoshida said of Jones. "I don't blame him. It's one of those situations where a decision had to be made. There are long-term ramifications for the university and the WAC. All of those things came into the decision-making."
Benson said the WAC's deal calls for ESPN to televise four regular-season football games and three regular-season men's basketball games during the coming academic year.
The controversy might not be over. ESPN is considering asking UH to move its football game against Air Force from Saturday, Nov. 24, to Friday, Nov. 23. A decision will be made in late October, Benson said.
