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Sports on TV: WAC's new deal is no big deal

No Pun intended | 1:32 a.m. Sept. 5, 2008

Who cares. It's all in the name. This conference is WAC*k. :D

You're Right | 6:31 a.m. Sept. 5, 2008

Yeah, like who'd want to play a football game on national tv on a Tuesday night when your the only game on. And in HD. I'd 10 times rather play a game on a network that nobody has heard of and a lot of people don't even get. And those who do get it complain about how poor the quality of the production is.

Give it a rest | 6:33 a.m. Sept. 5, 2008

Why does this article start out talking about the WAC and end up talking about the Mtn.? Are there any writers at the Deseret News that aren't total MWC homers?

Comments continue below

Ernest T. Bass | 7:22 a.m. Sept. 5, 2008

Nobody, aside from 21,327 people in boise, even cares about the wac.

Tue/Wed horrors | 8:14 a.m. Sept. 5, 2008

The Good News: The WAC will get more exposure.

The Bad News: Their fans will pay the price, or not.

How many fans are going to show up for Tue/Wed night games. If the game starts at 7pm, that means kickoff isn't until 7:10pm or later, which means the game won't be over until sometime between 10:30pm and 11pm. Fans who don't live close to the stadium won't get home until after midnight.

Many fans will choose to stay home and watch the game on TV. Blacking out the game locally to encourage fan attendence will simply alienate the local fan base.

Tue/Wed games also make scheduling more difficult, because teams will have to have a bye the week before.

SC Fan | 8:22 a.m. Sept. 5, 2008

Out side of the intermountain west or utah county, no one even knows the Mt. Worst Confrence is even a conference. Another case of the pro zobbie salt lake media telling zoobies all over that they are the best and not to fear one day they'll be big boys. NOT the WAC is a better conference in the minds of those outside your little bubble! have fun playing in a bowl game before christmas!!!

Ernest T. Bass Jr. | 10:05 a.m. Sept. 5, 2008

Dad doesn't know what he's talking about no one outside of Utah and SL county's care about the MWC so th WAC and the MWC are the same except now you can see Utah State nationally.

ALL OF US!!! | 10:05 a.m. Sept. 5, 2008

Tell it like it IS!

The MOUNTAIN is the worst thing that ever happened to the league - money or not!

And their announcers (Marius Payton = Superficial fluff at best, hideously pompous and unprofessional at worst) make me turn down the TV and listen to the radio!

SC Fan is Bitter | 10:08 a.m. Sept. 5, 2008

SC fan huh? more like BSU fan. Go away bitter little man.

Bitter, Negative Article | 10:57 a.m. Sept. 5, 2008

Scott, why are you so negative about this WAC TV deal. It is a big improvement for the WAC, and it will certainly help Utah State. Why be so negative?
Why talk about the MWC in this article? They've got their own deal and their own problems with the Mtn. I suspect that outside of the Intermountain area, the rest of the coutnry doesn't see any difference between the WAC and the MWC. Sorry to break this news to you! In reality, there really is no difference when you look across all sports from top to bottom. The WAC has certainly regained respectability and can certainly complete head to head across all sports with the MWC. Please drop the negative, defensive reporting Deseret news, and start showing some respect outside of your "beloved" MWC!!!

To Tue/Wed Horrors | 10:58 a.m. Sept. 5, 2008

I think you vastly overestimate the time it takes to get home from a WAC game. 13,000 fans don't generate all that much traffic.

OrangeDeath | 11:05 a.m. Sept. 5, 2008

Boise State fan, here. While, non-Saturday games are a pain, they have not decreased our attendance in the past. To my knowledge, we have played on every day except Monday and Tuesday in the past 2-3 years. No big deal. Being up past our bedtime (*gasp*) does not factor into going to the game or not. The exposure we have gained from ESPN televised games has paid dividends. Games will continue to sell out regardless of the day they are played on.

WAC = MWC???? | 11:45 a.m. Sept. 5, 2008

First, I agree that the D-News is a homer paper. It's a BYU homer paper and a MWC homer paper. However, for those of you saying that the MWC is the same as the WAC in the eyes of the rest of the nation maybe you've been reading to much of your own homer comments. In a recent blog ESPN's Bruce Feldman ranked the MWC as the 6th best conference in the nation (ahead of the ACC). He also mentions that the MWC has a chance to leapfrog the Big East.

You might want to also scoll down to find the WAC at 10th... I have nothing against the WAC and I usually cheer for them when they're playing big name teams, but honestly the WAC shouldn't be mentioned with the MWC when it comes to football this year.

sandiego bronco | 12:31 p.m. Sept. 5, 2008

Wac=MWC????

Having the 6th nicest car in a car club vs the 10th nicest car is not going to get the 6th car any attention if it's parked in the garage all the time and no one can see it. You keep driving that 10th nicest car around alot and it will be noticed and admired.

IMO the SEC is the only conference that could successfully have it's own network, that is why ESPN pays them so much. Last time I checked the MTN is and will never be the SEC>

OBTW in recruiting this year alone BSU has obtained 4 verbal commits that UTAH offered also. Utah has no verbal commits that BSU offered also.

Tell me again why our significant upgrade in our ESPN contract is worth nothing??

FYI BSU has not lost a game to a MWC school "EVER"!

Brad Rad | 12:38 p.m. Sept. 5, 2008

Although I agree with most post and this article to say that the MWC is leaps ahead of the WAC is silly.

Although the WAC bottom feeders are probably worse that the MWC's. The top of the conference is just as good if not better than MWC and that is what counts nationally. If you don't believe it just take a look at Boise State's record against the MWC, 13-0. And that includes 4 games against BYU and Utah. And doesn't include the win against TCU in the Fort Worth Bowl. And who wouldn't take Fresno against any of the MWC teams?

Until you beat WACs top team you can not claim superiority.

That's Funny | 12:49 p.m. Sept. 5, 2008

Didn't I see BYU and Utah in he top 25 as well as Fresno St. and Boise St. ranked? It looks like 2 for each conference looks alot the same to me.

D-new | 3:05 p.m. Sept. 5, 2008

D-News is not a BYU paper, most of the time they get things wrong about BYU, the only guy that knows what he is talking about is Dick Harmon, the rest of the beat writers for the rest of the sports aren't nearly as good as the SL tribune

Johnny | 3:18 p.m. Sept. 5, 2008

D-News not a BYU paper?
Sounds like someone is either in major denial or can't see the forest for the trees.

and your point is? | 6:08 p.m. Sept. 5, 2008

Say all you want about the WAC and it's no big deal TV contract. ESPN v the Mtn? I'll take ESPN anyday (incl tuesdays or wednesdays). Thank-you!

Go Aggies!

Levin | 7:30 p.m. Sept. 5, 2008

"National exposure" for the WAC means nothing if the game STARTS at midnight on Saturday. Where most of that "national exposure" is, people are either asleep or out partying at that time. Only the most diehard East Coast fans are going be to watching ESPN2 at that hour. Even if it were something like BSU vs FSU.

The WAC is eventually going to get sick of being pushed around by ESPN and find some better option.

Rampant Jealous(y) | 8:18 p.m. Sept. 5, 2008

First of all: When the Big West had games on Big Monday at 10pm on ESPN, USU had no problem selling those out, actually had to stand in lines to get tickets.
2nd: Bloggers are correct, (as I have lived in VA, Alabama, Tenn., Georgia), those fans don't know and don't care about teams in Utah. The only time anybody brought up those games were at church and those were members. They do however watch ESPN and often that was the talk of conversation next day in class. The WAC is in a far better position then the MWC, even if it is for less money.
To be honest, I could care less if a conf. gets 13 million or 4 million, I want to be able to see my team on TV with quality.
An athlete wants to first PLAY and 2nd be a star, or in other words, be exposed to the world. BYU can have the nicest facility in the country, but if nobody can see them play, athletes will not come to Provo.
Ask Ty Detmer if he got excited to play on ESPN. The WAC is doing what the MWC should be doing.

??? | 8:21 p.m. Sept. 5, 2008

If the deal is no big deal, why report on it? It sure is better than no deal at all. The WAC is improving and that is good step in the right direction. BSU and Hawaii going to the BCS sure helps.

Anonymous | 9:41 p.m. Sept. 5, 2008

I'm pretty sure both the WAC and The Mtn. were discussed because there were two sections of the article. There's only one sports on tv article a week, so there are always multiple sections to it covering more than one topic. It's not an attack on the WAC.

And, incidentally, Pierce wrote similarly negative comments when ESPN had the MWC playing on non-Saturday nights, and so he's not just ripping on the WAC contract.

Aggie Pride | 10:59 a.m. Sept. 6, 2008

There are certainly a lot of MWC zoobies commenting on a WAC topic. I guess I could wonder why that is, but I don't. I sense a little rear-view mirror hysteria. We at USU know both our place in the local pecking order and how we stack up with recruits when offers are on the table from all in-state schools. As such, additional national exposure can do nothing but help programs like USU in the long run. The bottom line: the ESPN deal is a HUGE improvement over what we in the WAC had previously. Contrary to the argument in this article, I feel it IS a big deal. Come on, USU basketball now has the potential to be on the ESPN family of networks 4 times as much as prior to this deal. That is simply better; money AND exposure are the name of the game. To the MWC: you'd have to admit your 'Mtn.' network has put you in a bit of a national hole. I'm sure you'll find your way out eventually. In the mean time, why are you so worried about the WAC?

Dan | 12:59 a.m. Sept. 7, 2008

Aggie Pride, have you even read the preceding comments? Most posters care deeply about the WAC, and have posted from that viewpoint.

The Deseret News reported on this story primarily because it is a story. The WAC is getting a deal with ESPN. It's not perfect, but it makes it easier for USU, BSU or FSU fans to watch their favorite teams on television.

The comment at the end about the MWC is marked off from the main article. Newspapers often do this. Scott Pierce's columns have featured this for well over a decade.

The MWC schools are worried about the WAC primarily because they left the WAC to form the MWC. If the WAC ends up doing better in the long run, the schools that left for the MWC are going to look pretty bad.

Most posters here lack basic English skills, and seem to be only looking for a fight. I wish the Deseret News would require registration before posting.

The Mountain | 2:53 p.m. Sept. 7, 2008

You conservatives are nuts. You can convince yourselves of anything. The MWC IS a better conference than the WAC. But outside of the rocky mountain region. The MWC has NO EXPOSURE. BYU and UTAH get one or two chances to play in front of a national audience.

Fresno State and Boise State play multiple games on ESPN. And although you red meat conservatives like to go to bed at 9:00. And don't like games on weeknights. You are missing the point.

Weekday games are the only games on TV at that time, so if you want to watch a college football game anywhere in the US on a wednesday thursday tuesday or god forbid sunday there is only one game to watch.

Who in the nation will watch BYU-WYO competeing with a LSU-FLA game. NOBODY

Your beloved Mountain network with Todd Christiansen and the obnoxiuos play by play dude climaxing every time the cougs pass the line of scrimmage may in fact arouse many people in the MWC footprint but those climaxes will never be experienced around the entire nation.

Spread your hate elswhere BYU and UTAH fans yes the MOUNTAIN is a travesty and you know IT.

Rick | 9:08 p.m. Sept. 7, 2008

Perhaps the writer is showing his envious colors? The WAC deal is great for a non-bcs conferance.

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