The "Science" of Picking Up College Football Games
Athens, GA (Nov 8, 2007) - With the expanded number of broadcasters covering college football across the country, fans are sometimes left scratching their heads trying to figure out how games are allocated to the different networks for broadcast. For fans of the 22nd-ranked University of Kentucky Wildcats and the 10th-ranked University of Georgia Bulldogs, there is confusion on why their November 17th matchup is being broadcast by Lincoln Financial Sports, and not by CBS Sports or ESPN.
There are a number of theories being thrown about on sports talk radio and in the bars at happy hour. One long-standing rumour is that the game is being carried because Lincoln Financial has an obligation to show each school in the Southeastern Conference either at least once a year or at least once every two years.
"No, I am not going to discuss the details of our contract," says Jimmy Rayburn of Lincoln Financial Sports. "If the question is are we showing Georgia because we have to, the answer is no. We got the game because CBS picked up the LSU game, and ESPN did not pick up any SEC games. So we got the call and we have the game."
Since the game between the Wildcats and the Bulldogs may be the game the decides the winner of the SEC Eastern Division, fans are still left to wonder why it will not be broadcast on a national network. "Since LSU is number 2 in the country and on a path for both the SEC Championship and the BCS Championship game, CBS probably decided that this is the game the audience wanted to see," says Claude Felton, the Sports Communication Director for the University of Georgia.
Since Georgia was on CBS last week and again this coming weekend, the fans should not be grumbling too much. They are still going to see the November 17th contest as it plays out in Athens.
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