09/07/18: ESPN explores Sports After 9/11

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SEC vs. Mountain West showdown

Arkansas at Colorado State

Tomorrow 7:30 ET

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Good morning. It’s Friday September 7, 2018 and this is your first early morning Sports briefing.

On the 17th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, ESPN will explore how “sports helped the nation heal following one of the darkest days in US history.” Produced in conjunction with the National September 11 Memorial & Museum in New York, the E:60 presentation of Comeback Season – Sports After 9/11 will air Sept. 11, at 7p on ESPN, anchored by Mike Greenberg and include interviews, features and memories from athletes, coaches, families and others whose stories marked key emotional milestones in sports following the 9/11 attacks.

ON THE AIR

ESPN locked in game times and networks for the ACC/Big Ten Challenge and the SEC/Big 12 Challenge. The 2018 ACC/Big Ten Challenge, in year 20, will span three days, beginning Nov. 26, with matchups on ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU with the lineup set to include UNC/Michigan on Nov. 28 at 9p on ESPN. Tipping it off will be Clemson/Nebraska on ESPN2 at 7p. Meanwhile, the 2019 SEC/Big 12 Challenge, in its sixth year, will take place Jan. 26 beginning with Florida/TCU at noon with the matchups set to include Kansas/Kentucky at 6p.

Speaking of college basketball, BTN revealed its complete television schedule for the 2018-19 men’s and women’s basketball seasons. BTN will showcase at least 132 men’s basketball games, including 77 conference games and 10 Big Ten Tournament games. The network will also broadcast at least 68 women’s basketball games, featuring four ACC-Big Ten Challenge matchups alongside 12 conference tournament games, including both semifinals. The men’s schedule begins with non-conference action on Nov. 6 as the Indiana Hoosiers host Chicago State. The women’s non-conference schedule gets rolling on Nov. 11, when Northwestern welcomes Duke. From March 6-9, BTN will broadcast nearly the entire women’s basketball tournament from Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, including both semifinal games.

Major League Soccer locked in its schedule and format for the Audi 2018 MLS Cup Playoffs where the 2018 MLS Cup will be played on Dec. 8 at 7:30p on FOX and UniMas. and across more than 170 countries worldwide via MLS’s network of international broadcasters. The 2018 MLS Cup Playoffs kick off with the Knockout Round, four single-game elimination matches on Oct. 31-Nov. 1, before moving on to the Eastern and Western Conference Semifinal series on Nov. 4 and 11. Both conferences then face off on Nov. 25 and Nov. 29, in doubleheaders that will ultimately decide the 2018 MLS Cup finalists.

In Nielsen news, MLB Network is touting that its studio programming viewership has grown year-over-year form Opening Day to Sept. 2. Series with upticks include MLB Central up 12%, High Heat with Christopher Russo up 49%, The Rundown up 25%, MLB Now rising 19%, Intentional Talk growing 7% and MLB Tonight up 3%. MLB Network’s live game schedule for September will continue tonight (with the AL West-leading Houston Astros visiting the AL East-leading Boston Red Sox at 7p.

With the 2018 WNBA Finals presented by YouTubeTV tipping off tonight at 9p on ESPNEWS, pitting the Seattle Storm and Washington Mystics, ESPN reports that through the end of the semifinals, the WNBA postseason on the combined ESPN networks is up 31% over 2017 with an average of 293,000 viewers per game.

TVG Television Network and FanDuel Group announced the launch of its first ever live, integrated Sunday morning sports betting pregame show, titled More Ways to Win as well as the debut of Barstool Sports new syndicated program, The Barstool Sports Advisors. More Ways to Win is a live two-hour studio show hosted by former ESPN and SportsCenter anchor Lisa Kerney. Leading into More Ways to Win, The Barstool Sports Advisors will be hosted by Barstool Sports personalities Daniel “Big Cat” Katz, Stu “The Source” Feiner, PFT Commenter, and Barstool Sports founder, Dave Portnoy. Both debut on Sunday.

Speaking of gambling, VSiN and radio syndicator Sports USA announced a strategic content partnership that will see VSiN create a sports gambling pre-game show to air ahead of Sports USA’s coverage of its doubleheader, which is carried by nearly 500 stations across the country. The VSiN Sunday Preview will air at 11:30a on Sports USA stations leading into coverage of its early NFL Game. The 60-minute show will provide listeners with the sports gambling information and analysis they need just ahead of the week’s biggest game.

Take a dive in The Beta Tank and get your free chance for funding!! The Esports Business Summit is now accepting candidates to take part in The Beta Tank, featuring an all-star lineup of judges from Infinite Esports and Entertainment, BITKRAFT Esports Ventures, SeventySix Capital, and Podium VC. Start-ups from the world of esports will make their case live on the main stage on Oct. 2, with each judge offering a private meeting to their selections to discuss the business plan and possible investment. Are you a start-up looking to break into esports? Do you have technology that supports esports event production? Are you a leading team or league looking for new partners to take you to the next level? This is your chance to shine and entry is free! Click here and apply today.

RIP to Orlando Magic Senior Chairman Rich DeVos, who passed away at age 92. “One of the NBA’s longest-serving owners, Rich DeVos formed a deep bond with the city of Orlando, and whether hosting the Finals or All-Star festivities, he was always incredibly welcoming to the NBA family,” said NBA Commissioner Adam Silver. “And on a personal note, I am grateful for his friendship and counsel over the past 25 years. We send our heartfelt condolences to Rich’s family and friends and the entire Magic organization.”

A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE

CALL FOR ENTRIES

The 2^nd Annual Cynopsis Short Form Video Festival

The Cynopsis Short Form Video Festival is searching for the most cutting-edge creatives from individuals and teams worldwide, including: production companies/studios, producers, networks, composers, lyricists, animators, video game developers/producers, website developers, mobile & app developers/producers, marketing companies, PR firms and more. Submissions will be judged by a panel of industry experts and finalists will be announced in mid-November.

SUBMIT VIDEOS

SPONSORSHIP & PROMOTION

IMG announced that the second annual Wendy’s College Tailgate Tour, an interactive, fan-focused pre-game experience featuring fresh food, music, gaming, and legend appearances, will travel to 13 college football games this season. The 2018 Wendy’s College Tailgate Tour kicks off on Sept. 8 in Gainesville and concludes in Pasadena at the Rose Bowl Stadium on January 1. Each stop will be anchored by the Wendy’s food truck serving Dave’s Singles and customized Frosty creations. Meanwhile, Kellogg’s returns as an associate partner in 2018 featuring Pringles Flavor Stacking, a chance to win a trip to the Cheez-It Bowl, tailgate games and celebrity meet-and-greets. Coca-Cola returns to join Wendy’s at eight of the 13 tour stops with sampling of more than 100 drink choices, including Wendy’s Exclusive Gameday Mixes on Coca-Cola Freestyle dispensers. Texas Pete joins as the newest associate partner of the 2018 Wendy’s College Tailgate Tour with additional partners expected to join in the coming weeks.

Hyundai Hope On Wheels announced a partnership with WWE in support of National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. This week’s Monday Night Raw kicked off a month-long worth of activities as HHOW joins WWE in a four-city tour to offer children cancer fighters at HHOW partner pediatric institutions a “VIP & Super Fan Experience.” Throughout the month, Hyundai Hope On Wheels messaging will be shared with fans across WWE’s global platforms, including TV broadcasts, WWE Network and digital and social media. In addition, activation will continue at Monday Night Raw on Sept. 10 in New Orleans, Sept. 17 in Dallas and Sept. 24 in Denver.

For the first time in Topps history, the company is letting someone else create a baseball card set, tapping Washington Nationals star Bryce Harper to create the Topps X Bryce Harper “220,” described as a first-of-its-kind set where Harper hand-picked the design, chose the players, theme, and added his own words to it featuring 14 MLB players that would encompass his own team, Best Hair; Harper’s Heroes; and Look Good, Feel Good.

DIGITAL & STREAMING

NBC Sports’ @OnHerTurf Instagram account, which launched during the Olympics earlier this year as a partnership between NBC Sports and Refinery29, is expanding the brand courtesy of several initiatives around the kickoff of the 2018 NFL season and beyond, including a podcast hosted by NBC Sports’ Kathryn Tappen, a digital video series “Football is Female,” and experiential elements including Refinery’s 29Rooms visiting NFL Kickoff, and an On Her Turf section of NBC Sports’ Sunday Night Football bus. The podcast will welcome accomplished guests each week and debuts on Sept. 19 with retired professional golfer Annika Sörenstam and Buffalo Bills owner Kim Pegula. The 20-episode series will debut each Wednesday,

CBS Sports HQ debuted its new show dedicated to sports gambling. SportsLine Edge with metrics-driven analysis and actionable advice from SportsLine and CBS Sports Digital experts and Vegas insiders. Hosted by Nick Kostos and featuring former oddsmaker Todd Fuhrman and SportsLine experts Hank Goldberg, Kenny White, Micah Roberts and Kelly Stewart, the show runs from 6-8p every Monday and Thursday, on Saturdays from 11a-noon with an additional 30-minute segment from 2:30-3p and on Sundays from noon-1p with a 30-minute segment from 3:30-4p.

DraftKings is bringing back it’s annual, Fantasy Football Millionaire Maker Contest for the NFL season and have signed on Roman Health as this year’s title sponsor. This is the first time DraftKings has had this contest sponsored. The contest series runs each week during the regular season with the first-place winner each week winning $1 million.

ESPORTS

Canadian Olympic Committee CEO Chris Overholt is stepping down after eight years at the organization to join the expansion Overwatch League franchise based in Toronto, according to SBJ. The Toronto spot is among eight reported expansion teams for Season Two of the league, owned by a group led by Canadian entrepreneur Michael Kimel and operated by esports organization Splyce.

Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins is getting his own event with his favorite NFL team, the Detroit Lions. The team will host a special fan event titled ‘Ninja Night’ at Ford Field on Sept. 10. Fans attending the game will also get a chance to participate in a meet-and-greet with Ninja, although it is not yet clear at what point this would take place.

ELEAGUE serves up the third episode of its CS:GO Premier 2018 documentary series tonight at 11p on TBS, with behind-the-scenes access to previous ELEAGUE Major Champions Cloud9 and Astralis. The latest episode, Opening Match, will feature the best parts of the teams’ Group Stage showdown.

ROSTER MOVES

The Walt Disney Co. is uniting its advertising sales operations under Rita Ferro, with Ed Erhardt, the head of ad sales for ESPN for the past 20 years, retiring in January. In her new post, Ferro will also handle the ESPN portfolio.

Roxanne Kosarzycki, former General Counsel for the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was named General Counsel for the XFL. Kosarzycki comes to the XFL from her prior position as Senior Vice President/General Counsel for Global Imaging Systems, Inc., a leading provider of business technology solutions.

THE MAIN EVENT

Cowboys/Panthers on Sunday at 4:35p on FOX.

A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE

SAVE THE DATE

The Cynopsis Digital Model D & Digital “It List” Awards

November 9th, 2018 | ThreeSixty, NYC

Save the date for the 6th Annual Cynopsis Digital Model D & It List Awards. Join in on the action as digital’s best and brightest honor those who have excelled in digital content, marketing, advertising and social media.

**Finalists will be announced in mid-September**

ON THIS DAY in 1979: ESPN makes its debut.

In the Know: Which NFL player had a nickname of Night Train? (Email [email protected] with your answer and be sure to include your name, company and city.) Note: Email issues have been blocking some responses. My apologies if I missed you!

Answer to Our Last Sports Trivia Question: Who is the NFL is awarded the Lamar Hunt Trophy? Answer: The AFC Champion. Kudos: Traci Liner-Endeavor/NY; Denis Barry-CBS/NY; Michael Ritz-BucStar Consulting/NY; Mark Lehman-Atlanta Braves/Atlanta; Lance Phegley-Texas Runner and Triathlete magazine/Houston; David Westberg-SAG-AFTRA Federal Credit Union/Burbank; Jaymz Wooden-Bottelsen American Dart Lines/Santa Maria

Later – Chris

Chris Pursell @VegasandVine
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