|
The UConn Daily Tournament Challenge
|
|
|---|---|
|
The UConn Daily’s NCAA tournament pools are well underway!
See where you stack up in each of our competitions:
|
|
 |
 |
Why SNY Is So Important
The Story: The AAC and ESPN will host a conference call this afternoon announcing their $1 billion, 12-year deal that will put many games on ESPN+. What does that mean for UConn? And what does that mean for the relationship with SNY and women’s basketball?
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW: SNY once was the home of football, men’s basketball and eventually women’s basketball as it showed the games that were not on the ESPN family of networks. SNY made a huge commitment in 2012 when it took over the women’s contract from CPTV for more than $1 million a year. The network promised hundreds of hours of UConn-specific programming every year and had pre- and postgame shows. When the AAC signed its original contract with ESPN, the men’s basketball and football programming went away except for some random early season games against lesser opponents.
SNY remained the production home of women’s basketball and for the last seven years has been an exposure and ratings bonanza in the Hartford/New Haven market. How important was UConn to SNY? Prior to signing the first UConn deal, the network was not even carried on many cable systems in Connecticut. SNY took UConn into New York and UConn took SNY into all of Connecticut.
Just this past year, UConn women’s basketball ratings beat the Red Sox in the Hartford/New Haven market.
NEW AAC DEAL A PROBLEM: The last AAC deal gave ESPN rights to UConn women’s hoops, but except for the marquee games, there was little reason for the network to produce the games — hence SNY stepping in. The new deal with ESPN provides another issue. The network has its streaming service, ESPN+, and is in need of content for the service. Producing games for the ESPN+ audience seems to be a natural play by the network considering the ratings. Women’s basketball is a niche sport, and Connecticut may be the only market in the country that will pay for women’s hoops. That could mean ESPN wants nearly all of the women’s games for its ESPN+ inventory, which would mean Connecticut fans have to pay $5 a month for the pleasure of watching women’s and men’s games.
SNY IN THE DARK: One thing is clear, SNY is in the dark about what this means for its relationships with UConn. We like ESPN+, but we also know that there is no capacity for dedicated UConn women’s coverage in its portfolio. If it takes all the games — and why wouldn’t it? — where does that leave the UConn coverage that SNY does so well?
SNY’s senior vice president of programming Gary Morgenstern told the Hartford Courant the future is unknown:
“It’s such a great relationship,” he said. “I think it’s been really good for the university and we know it’s been really good for SNY. And it would be a shame if it we weren’t able to continue. We just don’t know. We’re just sitting on the sidelines waiting on the call to really understand what the next step would be. Clearly, if we’re left out of that, that’s not good for the fans. That’s what we strive to do — put a service out there that satisfies what the fans want. But we just don’t know how it’s going to play out.”
WHAT DOES UCONN SAY? Nothing, yet. Mum’s been the word since the deal was leaked to Sports Business Journal last week. We are hoping for some clarity this afternoon after ESPN and the AAC take their victory lap.
OUR TAKE: This is of utmost importance for us as UConn fans. It was frustrating to watch men’s hoops and football transfer from the UConn-centric coverage of SNY to the nondescript generic coverage of ESPN and CBS Sports Network. The Huskies lost the exposure that the network gave them in pre- and postgame shows and other specials. We liked it even though SNY did not control the broadcasts for men’s basketball and football. UConn got more national games with the last AAC deal, but it lost a lot of the personalization that came with the previous deal that put third-tier TV rights on a local network.
The women’s deal is even more critical to exposure. The women’s team had its own broadcast crew that covered the program and generated top-shelf original content. It is one of the more unique deals in the country. UConn athletics took one for the team in the last AAC deal, which generated about $2 million per year. The school could have gotten more on its own as an independent than what it was paid by the conference. It did that to help build the league, but make no mistake, it was vastly under-compensated.
Now, the school may lose more exposure for its program because of the new AAC deal. If SNY loses many more games, what’s the incentive to invest in production? This is a bridge too far for us. UConn is more valuable than it is being compensated and the last thing women’s basketball needs is for its games to be banished to the internet as inventory.
To us, the only women’s basketball team in the AAC that is worth any money is UConn. The rest of the conference didn’t help build that program so it shouldn’t take from UConn in this regard. The UConn women have never lost an AAC game, but the Tulanes of the world could force the Huskies off a local channel, which would be a big loss to UConn fans.
Baseball Plays a Home Game!
The story: The baseball team finally played a home game on the frozen tundra of J.O. Christian Field. The Huskies took down Hartford 12-4 behind four RBIs from Mike Woodworth. Kenny Haus picked up the win.
ROAD WARRIORS: We don’t know how Jim Penders does it, but the Huskies were 13-8 after playing their first 21 games on the road this season. It’s the Northeast. What are you gonna do? The Huskies somehow recruit enough talent to be an NCAA tournament contender despite the fact they don’t play home games until late March and usually don’t have good weather until mid-April.
FINAL YEAR OF J.O.: One of the good things about this season is it will be the last at J.O. Christian Field — a fine field but in all practicalities, a field. The school is building a baseball stadium and the only thing missing is a dome, which wasn’t in the budget. That said, we are hopeful that a new stadium will attract fans to one of the better baseball programs in the country. Fans love baseball in New England. Connecticut loves UConn. Baseball is a natural market if the stadium is good and weather cooperates.
HOW IS THIS YEAR’S TEAM? UConn is 14-8 this season and has several players scouts love, including highly touted left-handed pitcher Mason Feole (1-0, 3.44 ERA). The Huskies are led by Woodworth, who has a .388 average and a terrific .465 on-base percentage. Anthony Prato is hitting .344 with a .472 OBP.
NEXT UP: UConn hosts Boston College today in Storrs before heading south once again for league play with a three-game set in Orlando against UCF. UConn is 2-1 in the AAC after beating Houston last week.
Morning Read
NCAA TOURNAMENT IS HARD: Geno Auriemma isn’t looking for a cakewalk to the Final Four. That’s not the way it’s supposed to be (Hartford Courant)
UNHAPPY ADVANCE: The women’s basketball team has high expectations. By holding on against Buffalo, it didn’t meet them on Sunday. (Journal Inquirer)
LOBO, TAURASI, BIRD TALK CANCELED: A talk with Rebecca Lobo, Diana Taurasi and Sue Bird that was scheduled to take place tonight at Mohegan Sun was canceled because Taurasi has an injury that won’t allow her to fly. It’s the second time the event has been canceled. (WNBA.com)
SHERMAN RETURNS: Fresh off his first Pro Bowl appearance, fullback Anthony Sherman signed a new one-year contract with the Kansas City Chiefs. (Chiefs on Twitter)
SOFTBALL’S HOME OPENER: The softball team will play its home opener this afternoon against UMass-Lowell. UConn is 9-16 early in the season. (UConnHuskies.com)
WALZ LEAVING LOUISVILLE? Louisville women’s basketball coach Jeff Walz will reportedly become the next coach at Tennessee, according to the Chattanooga Times Free Press. (Gene Henley on Twitter)
