ESPNU, the new 24-hour college sports network, will reach its 100th day on the air
Saturday, June 11. Extensive event programming from many men's and women's college sports has
been the network's foundation, including regular-season and NCAA Championships. In fact, during
the first 100 days, ESPNU will have presented 154 live (or short turnaround) events, supplemented
by 52 live telecasts of The U - the network's signature studio show. ESPNU is on pace to
significantly exceed the original plan of 300 live events in its first year.
On Friday, June 10 - ESPNU's 99th day - the schedule will include a live, 2.5-hour NBA Pre-Draft Camp
special from Chicago (6-8:30 p.m. ET) - the first-ever live national telecast of that event and an
example of the distinctive, college-themed programming that has found a home on ESPNU as a supplement
to the wide range of intercollegiate events. On its 100th day, ESPNU will offer extensive action from
the NCAA Baseball Super Regionals.
Following is an event breakdown (games by sport) for ESPNU's first 100 days. Included in these numbers
are regular-season games and NCAA Championships in Women's Basketball, Ice Hockey, Wrestling,
Baseball, Lacrosse, Softball and Men's Volleyball:
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| • 49 basketball | • 12 ice hockey | • 2 wrestling |
| • 47 baseball | • 6 spring football | • 1 track and field |
| • 16 lacrosse | • 4 water polo | |
| • 15 softball | • 2 volleyball | |
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"Collectively, ESPNU's first 100 days underscore our mission — to serve the diverse interests
of college sports fans everywhere by delivering them the sports they love, any way or any time they
choose to consume them," said Burke Magnus, ESPNU Vice President and General Manager. "For 25-plus
years, ESPN has been the unrivaled leader in coverage of college sports and ESPNU has expanded that
commitment by showcasing great stories, historic moments, never-seen-before events and unprecedented
NCAA Championship action all through the unmatched multi-media platforms that are ESPN's
hallmark."
ESPNU TO PRESENT LIVE COVERAGE OF NBA PRE-DRAFT CAMP JUNE 10
On Friday, June 10 from 6-8:30 p.m., ESPNU will provide extensive coverage of the NBA Pre-Draft
Camp from Moody Bible Institute in Chicago. The first-ever live telecast from the NBA-sanctioned camp
will include action from the scrimmages, with a focus on the college players and their potential NBA
Draft status. The show will also feature interviews with NBA general managers and scouts. Mark Jones
will host the telecast with analysts Doug Gottlieb and Steve Lavin, while ESPN.com senior writer
Andy Katz will serve as reporter.
The attendee list includes Taylor Coppenrath (Vermont), John Gilchrist (Maryland), Luther Head
(Illinois), Carl Krauser (Pittsburgh), Keith Langford (Kansas), Jackie Manuel (North Carolina),
Jason Maxiell (Cincinnati), Pops Mensah-Bonsu (George Washington), Aaron Miles (Kansas),
Randolph Morris (Kentucky), Anthony Roberson (Florida), Luke Schenscher (Georgia Tech), Salim Stoudamire
(Arizona), Eric Williams (Wake Forest), Bracey Wright (Indiana) and many others.
ESPNU's fall lineup will be highlighted by an extensive, high-quality college
football schedule, featuring top programs and conferences such as the Big Ten, ACC, Big East, MAC,
WAC, Sun Belt, MEAC, SWAC, Army, SIAC and more.
PEOPLE ARE TALKING ABOUT ESPNU
Following are thoughts from various college sports coaches and administrators (whose teams have been
featured on ESPNU) about the network:
Steve Spurrier - Head Football Coach, University of South Carolina
"We have not done anything to earn the spotlight. Hopefully, our play will earn more nationally
televised games. They've given us a little head start. We had a lot of good response because of our
spring game on television. It was an honor for us to welcome our almost-40,000 fans to Wiliams-Brice
Stadium on ESPNU."
Dave Pietramala - Head Men's Lacrosse Coach, Johns Hopkins University:
"The sport of lacrosse in general and the Johns Hopkins University men's lacrosse program in
particular received another boost with the launch of ESPNU. We have received tremendous feedback from
our fans and alumni about our presence on the network. ESPN's commitment to lacrosse is a significant
step in the continued growth of the sport."
Kim Mulkey-Robertson - Head Women's Basketball Coach, Baylor University:
"It is great that ESPN has expanded its programming by adding the ESPNU network. Now the nation
will be able to see more women's college basketball games than ever before. All of us in women's
basketball appreciate what ESPN continues to do to help us promote the sport."
Jon A. Steinbrecher -- Commissioner, Ohio Valley Conference:
"Our membership was very proud to showcase the O'Reilly Ohio Valley Conference Basketball
Tournament as the premier telecast on ESPNU. We are very pleased that we were able to get in on the
ground floor of what will undoubtedly become another successful channel from ESPN."
Alissa Smith - Assistant Softball Coach, Bethune Cookman College:
"ESPNU provided coverage of our softball team that we usually would not receive. It was
exciting to have that fascinating exposure. I think ESPNU is great, especially for smaller schools
who would like to receive that type of exposure."
ESPNU
ESPNU has secured distribution agreements with DIRECTV, Adelphia, Mediacom, several smaller affiliates
and is close to distribution agreements with others. The 24-hour television network is the key
component of the multi-media ESPNU initiative that will deliver college sports content across ESPN's
family of services, such as ESPN.com, ESPN The Magazine, ESPN Mobile (wireless), ESPN Radio, ESPN Interactive,
ESPN360 (broadband), merchandising and more.
Original Dream Job winner Mike Hall serves as ESPNU's signature anchor, hosting the majority of
the network's studio programming from Charlotte, N.C., headquarters of ESPN Regional Television (ERT),
which handles production responsibilities for ESPNU.
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