MWC schools unified in improving TV deal

What's good for BYU and Utah is good for the rest of the Mountain West Conference when it comes to distribution of the league's sports broadcasts.

Last Friday, BYU and Utah jointly announced they had retained the services of Kelly Crabb, a Los Angeles-based attorney who specializes in sports broadcasting, to examine the MWC's television deal and search for ways to expand TV accessibility for their fans.

Turns out, the other seven MWC schools share similar concerns.

During this week's annual meeting of the MWC board of directors in Santa Fe, N.M., the body voted unanimously to retain Crabb, who is examining the distribution strategies available to the league.

Commissioner Craig Thompson and an ad hoc committee of the board — TCU chancellor Victor Boschini, Colorado State president Larry Edward Penley and BYU president Cecil Samuelson — will work with Crabb to explore various options.

All nine MWC institutions are pushing for increased distribution of The mtn., the league's flagship network, to satellite companies like Dish Network and DirecTV. Negotiations between cable company Comcast and CSTV, which co-own The mtn., and satellite providers are ongoing.

Fans of MWC teams around the country who have a satellite provider cannot receive The mtn. The network is not carried by any broadcast provider in Texas, home of TCU.

"We look forward to having our representative work with CSTV and Comcast to accelerate distribution in the best interest of the conference," said Penley, who chairs of the MWC board of directors. "Feedback regarding The mtn. programming for those who have access has been very positive, but the board believes it is critical to expand the availability of the network to all MWC constituents. To that end, we have engaged Mr. Crabb to achieve the desired goal."

The board also decided it may retain expertise from other sources as needed to expedite a timely resolution.

In other action taken by the board:

• Changed the tip-off of the MWC basketball tournament's men's game between the No. 8 and No. 9 seeds from Tuesday to Wednesday as part of a lineup that includes the women's quarterfinals.

• Set a one-game suspension as the penalty for a second ejection from a contest in any sport.

• Opposed the establishment of an early signing period in football. The board noted a lack of consensus among the league's football coaches on this matter.

• Supported the concept of a fifth season of eligibility in football. The NCAA Football Issue Committee has solicited feedback on this issue as it considers whether to submit legislation into the NCAA governance structure.

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E-mail: jeffc@desnews.com