Clearing up confusion over Ute game, DirecTV

There's some confusion about Utah's game at Michigan today.

Yes, it's on ABC. And, yes, it's a national telecast. But it's not a national telecast on ABC.

ABC is airing two games today at 1:30 p.m. MDT — Utah at Michigan and Southern California at Virginia. So, obviously, neither of those games can be on all ABC stations across the country.

However, in the areas of the country where one of those games is not on ABC, it will be on ESPN2. Because, of course, ABC and the ESPN networks are all part of the Disney family.

So ... if you're in Utah and you're reading this, the Utes-Wolverines game will be on KTVX-Ch. 4, the local ABC affiliate.

But if, through the magic of the Internet, you're reading this story in another part of the country ... check your local listings.

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Yes, DirecTV added The mtn. to its lineup this week. Which is fantastic news for fans of Mountain West Conference teams across the nation.

Of course, it just wouldn't be the MWC's football deal if there weren't a few glitches. And there were at least a few.

I heard from some fans in Utah County who were quickly convinced that there was some kind of pro-Utah, anti-BYU conspiracy going on. Which is considerably less paranoid than it sounds, given the misinformation they received when they called DirecTV to find out what was happening.

The satellite TV provider, of course, added The mtn. on Wednesday. So most local subscribers woke up that morning to find it right there on Channel 616 — and we didn't have to do anything at all.

However ... at least a few people in Utah County discovered that The mtn. was NOT working on Channel 616. And when they called DirecTV, they were told by customer service reps that only ZIP codes in Salt Lake County would get The mtn. as part of their current programming packages. And that they'd have to shell out another $12 a month for a sports package that includes The mtn.

That's absolutely, positively wrong.

Here's the straight scoop from Robert Mercer, DirecTV's director of public relations: "All of Utah is in the Core Territory so they will get it in their Choice/Total Choice packages by the end of (Wednesday)."