"NEW YORK/SOUTH BEND, Ind. – June 19, 2008 – The University of Notre Dame and NBC Sports will conduct a media conference call today at Noon ET with Notre Dame President Rev. John I. Jenkins and Dick Ebersol, Chairman, NBC Universal Sports & Olympics."

TerryD Wrote:"NEW YORK/SOUTH BEND, Ind. – June 19, 2008 – The University of Notre Dame and NBC Sports will conduct a media conference call today at Noon ET with Notre Dame President Rev. John I. Jenkins and Dick Ebersol, Chairman, NBC Universal Sports & Olympics."

Obviously this would have to be about extending the TV contract. Wonder if they will give $$$ figures?

Cheers,
Neil

http://und.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec...08aaa.html



Football

Notre Dame, NBC extend football contract through 2015

Partnership between the University and network to reach 25 years

June 19, 2008

The University of Notre Dame and NBC Sports have reached agreement on a new five-year contract giving NBC the rights to televise Irish home football games from 2011 to 2015, extending the partnership between the University and network to 25 years.

A joint announcement of the extension was made Thursday (June 19) by NBC Sports & Olympics chairman Dick Ebersol, NBC Sports president Ken Schanzer and Notre Dame's president, Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C.

"We are absolutely thrilled to be continuing our landmark agreement with Notre Dame, the most storied brand in college sports," Ebersol said. "This new deal, which will bring us to 25 years as partners, is great tribute to the wonderful relationship that Ken Schanzer has built with the entire Notre Dame community."

"For almost 20 years, the innovative partnership between Notre Dame and NBC has been a valuable relationship for both the University and the network, and we are delighted that it will be extended by another five years," Father Jenkins said. "Our fans and student-athletes have benefited, of course, but, most importantly, it is the general student body that has realized the greatest gains. In a collaboration unlike any other in higher education, revenue derived from the NBC contract has provided millions of dollars in financial aid to thousands of deserving students at Notre Dame, and we are pleased that this support to the academic mission of the University will continue."

Notre Dame head football coach Charlie Weis added: "I'm thrilled on two levels to hear that Notre Dame will maintain its great relationship with NBC. As the head football coach, it is very beneficial for the program to have all of our home games broadcast into every living room in the country for the foreseeable future. As an alumnus, it is great to know that future students at Notre Dame will benefit from this partnership in the form of need-based scholarships."

Each season from 2011 to 2015, NBC will televise seven games at Notre Dame Stadium and an additional eighth off-site game airing in prime time.

Revenues from the NBC contract have played a key role in Notre Dame's financial aid endowment since the start of the relationship in 1991. University officers decided then to use a portion of the football television contract revenue for undergraduate scholarship endowment (not athletic scholarships). To date, some 2,400 Notre Dame undergraduate students have received nearly $26 million in aid.

The University also has committed NBC revenues to endow doctoral fellowships in its Graduate School and MBA scholarships in its Mendoza College of Business.

The revenue generated through the NBC contract is a primary reason why Forbes magazine has recognized the substantial financial contributions made by Irish athletics to the University's academic enterprise. In a 2007 survey, Forbes reported that the Notre Dame football program returns $21.1 million to academic initiatives, a total that is more than the survey's next five programs combined.

NBC has been televising Irish home games since 1991, and this marks the fifth of a series of five-year agreements with Notre Dame. The original agreement covered the seasons from 1991 through 1995. The first five-year extension (announced in 1994) covered 1996 to 2000, the second extension (announced in May '97) covered 2001 to 2005, and the third extension (announced in December '03) covered 2006 to 2010.

Each of the initial three contracts featured a combined 30 home games over each five-year span. When the current contract expires in 2010, NBC will have televised 36 games over five years, due to the addition in several years of a seventh home game and/or an eighth off-site game.

NBC's schedule of Notre Dame home games for the coming season features San Diego State (Sept. 6), Michigan (Sept. 13), Purdue (Sept. 27), Stanford (Oct. 4), Pittsburgh (Nov. 1) and Syracuse (Nov. 22).

Good deal for ND.

Too bad the Big East can't work on a deal with NBC for a primetime sat game. oh well.

That stinks for the BE. More and more the domers will want to play all of the BE games in South Bend or in big off campus stadiums for BE "home" games (like the current Syracuse 10 year contract, if true)

I don't think it's a coincidence that the Rose Bowl contract with ABC also ends in 2015. In all likelihood, there isn't going to be much chance for major change in college football until that year with respect to conference movements (since it puts a firm date 7 years from now as to when ND will re-evaluate whether it wants to stay independent, which means the Big Ten will hold at 11 members at least until that time and, no matter what other Big East partisans may want, there's no way the conference's school presidents will willingly split away from ND on the basketball side, so the chances of the Big East splitting prior to 2015 are a lot less) and the bowl system (since nothing will be done without the Big Ten and Pac-10 on board for the reasons that I've stated on the "non-conference home game" thread).

Every NBC/ND extension since the original 1990 five year contract has been for five years. The last one in 2005 extended it through the 2010 season.

I think that this is just another typical five year extension.

this will kill any thoughts of ND going big 10, Acc, or BE.. it aint gonna happen. Big 10 will now have to stay at 11 or look elsewhere if they wish to expand.

Would have been interesting if the contract ran out in 2014 simply because that's when a bunch of other major contracts run out too.

TerryD Wrote:Every NBC/ND extension since the original 1990 five year contract has been for five years. The last one in 2005 extended it through the 2010 season.

I think that this is just another typical five year extension.

Likely true. It seems like some specific language was put in the contract guaranteeing NBC at least seven ND telecasts per year by how the article was written.

goodknightfl Wrote:this will kill any thoughts of ND going big 10, Acc, or BE.. it aint gonna happen. Big 10 will now have to stay at 11 or look elsewhere if they wish to expand.

Agreed - there's almost no chance the Big Ten would expand before this ND contract ends. Waiting 7 years is really nothing for the conference - prior to Penn State joining in 1993, the last time the Big Ten made a move was 1953 with the addition of Michigan State (and before that, it was expansion member Ohio State in 1912). To put that into perspective, 1953 was the very first year of the vaunted ACC's existence. So, the Big Ten certainly isn't going to expand unless it's a no-brainer (which is pretty much only Notre Dame).

Well the interesting thing is SEVEN games at ND and ONE at neutal site. That leaves FOUR away games yearly. So as someone said expect ND to try to get all BE games at HOME and at NEUTRAL site.

Quotes on the deal from the parties:

(Father Jenkins seems to imply that all eight neutral site games are already scheduled....)



EBERSOL ON THE PARTNERSHIP: "The announcement of our association with Notre Dame back in 1990 was one of the great moments in the history of NBC Sports so we're obviously thrilled to be continuing this landmark partnership with Notre Dame. Notre Dame, unquestionably, is one of the premier brands that defines who we at NBC are things like the Olympics, the NFL, the United States Open, and Notre Dame. And now to have this, and guarantee we'll have a partnership of at least a quarter of a century."

FATHER JENKINS ON NBC RELATIONSHIP: "The strength of this deal really is about two institutions. I think what we appreciated so much is NBC's respect of Notre Dame as an institution. It's not a short term deal. It's not a deal with a particular individual. It's a deal with an institution. That's what makes it so enduring for a quarter of a century we're looking at."

SCHANZER ON THE PARTNERSHIP: "It's always been about more than football. Notre Dame is the gold standard on so many levels, not just in terms of the history of its football program, but in the elegance of the institution, and the degree to which one can rely upon the fact that the university and its representatives are always going to comport themselves in ways that make you proud to be associated with them and allow you to live in the reflected glory of that nobility. This is a very, very special day for me. It's the fifth deal we've made with Notre Dame. My hope is that we'll go on beyond 2015 when that day arrives. At the end of the day this agreement is testimony to the leadership of Father Jenkins at the university."

FATHER JENKINS ON PRIMETIME GAMES: "We have scheduled teams who want to play us at off-site venues because it's as great for their program as for ours. That's how we were able to schedule these eight games.

"NBC has always been accommodating to us on that even though their viewership increases as the game gets later. So we've stuck to that. But with the off-site games, they're off campus. So it doesn't present the problem of disrupting campus life and the academic activities on campus. In fact, it's easier for our fans to travel. If it's at night, they can travel during a Saturday. So this worked out well for both of us. Again, it just shows the way NBC has accommodated us. Even though their viewership would increase later, they accommodated our concerns about on campus games. And the off-site games provide an opportunity to have a primetime game broadcast by NBC."

EBERSOL ON HOW NBC COVERS NOTRE DAME: "From the very beginning, Kenny [Schanzer] and I made it clear back in '91 to the producers and the talent who started with it, and it's still made clear to them, that they are to deal with all of the issues and spare no punches."

FATHER JENKINS ON BENEFIT TO FANS & STUDENTS: "This is just a great day for Notre Dame. First of all, our fans get to see eight games broadcast across the nation into their living rooms. That's wonderful for our fans. Secondly, it's very important that revenues we realize in this deal go to not only support student athletes, but students who are financially needy and will be enabled to go to Notre Dame who otherwise would not be able to go to Notre Dame.

Matt:

NBC already had seven home games. The only issue was whether ND would go the route of some other schools and schedule eight home games per year in the future.

Instead, they went the seven home, one "neutral site" route.

One more reason why the Irish need to go it alone. If they want their cake, let them share it - or find their own kitchen to cook it in.

This goes right back to my assertation that Big East teams need to demand a home/away/neutral rotation of 3-3-4 ... or 2-2-6 ... or 1-1-8 ... or 0-0-10 ... when dealing with Notre Dame for a longterm series. If the Fighting Irish want a neutral site game every year then just alternate Big East teams between Gillette Stadium and the Meadowlands, stop demanding we visit South Bend without return trips, and forget about barnstorming through remote locations against Big 12 and Pac-10 opponents.