IU TV schedule released

  • 09/11/2007 10:32 am in

bigten.jpgThe Hoosiers’ 2007-08 television schedule’s just been released, and guess what: Big Ten Network rules the day:

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Nov. 4 North Alabama (exhibition) Bloomington, Ind. 12 p.m. BTN
Nov. 10 Pembroke State (exhibition) Bloomington, Ind. 8 p.m. BTN
Nov. 12 Chattanooga Bloomington, Ind. 7 p.m. BTN

CHICAGO INVITATIONAL CHALLENGE
Nov. 18 Longwood Bloomington, Ind. 12 p.m. BTN
Nov. 20 UNC Wilmington Bloomington, Ind. 7 p.m. BTN
Nov. 23 Illinois State Hoffman Estates, Ill 8:30 p.m. BTN
Sears Centre
Nov. 24 Xavier/Kent State Hoffman Estates, Ill 6/8:30 p.m. BTN
Sears Centre

ACC-BIG TEN CHALLENGE
Nov. 27 Georgia Tech Bloomington, Ind. 7 p.m. ESPN

Dec. 1 at Southern Illinois Carbondale, Ill. 9:30 p.m. ESPNU
Dec. 3 Tennessee State Bloomington, Ind. 7 p.m. BTN
Dec. 8 Kentucky Bloomington, Ind. 4 p.m. CBS
Dec. 15 Western Carolina Bloomington, Ind. 8 p.m. BTN
Dec. 22 Coppin State Bloomington, Ind. 12 p.m. BTN
Dec. 29 Chicago State Bloomington, Ind. 7 p.m. BTN
Jan. 2 at Iowa Iowa City, Iowa 9 p.m. BTN
Jan. 8 at Michigan Ann Arbor, Mich. 7 p.m. ESPN
Jan. 13 Illinois Bloomington, Ind. 1/4:30 p.m. CBS
Jan. 17 at Minnesota Minneapolis, Minn. 9 p.m. ESPN/ESPN 2
Jan. 20 Penn State Bloomington, Ind. 2 p.m. BTN
Jan. 23 Iowa Bloomington, Ind. 9 p.m. BTN
Jan. 26 Connecticut Bloomington, Ind. 1 p.m. CBS
Jan. 31 at Wisconsin Madison, Wisc. 9 p.m. ESPN/ESPN2
Feb. 3 Northwestern Bloomington, Ind. 12 p.m. BTN
Feb. 7 at Illinois Champaign, Ill. 9 p.m. ESPN/ESPN2
Feb. 10 at Ohio State Columbus, Ohio 1 p.m. CBS
Feb. 13 Wisconsin Bloomington, Ind. 7 p.m. BTN
Feb. 16 Michigan State Bloomington, Ind. 9 p.m. ESPN
Feb. 19 Purdue Bloomington, Ind. 7 p.m. ESPN
Feb. 23 at Northwestern Evanston, Ill. 8 p.m. BTN
Feb. 26 Ohio State Bloomington, Ind. 7 p.m. ESPN
March 2 at Michigan State East Lansing, Mich. 12 p.m./2 p.m. BTN/CBS
March 5 Minnesota Bloomington, Ind. TBD BTN/ESPN/ESPN2
March 8 or 9 at Penn State University Park, Pa. 3 p.m. BTN/ESPN/CBS
March 13-16 Big Ten Tournament Indianapolis, Ind. TBD BTN/CBS

March 20-22 or March 21-23 NCAA Tournament First and Second Rounds
March 27-29 or March 28-30 NCAA Regionals
April 5-7 NCAA Final Four, Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas
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Grrrr. That’s — count ’em — at least 17, and as many as 21, games to be televised on the Big Ten Network this year, running the gamut from who-cares preseason exhibitions to mid-year showdowns with Wisconsin and Michigan State. It also looks like early portions of the Big Ten Tourney will be on BTN too.

It’s not like our Big Ten Network complaints go noticed by anyone anyway, but consider me officially angry. I’m angry at the Big Ten for caring far more about the bottom line than about ensuring as widespread a penetration for its athletics as possible, and I’m angry at cable companies like Comcast for stubbornly holding out on their right hand while they help roll out an SEC network (!!!) on their left.

Listen, assholes: You’re just forcing us away from your product. Instead of selling us all cable, building brand loyalty and getting our monthly fees, you’re pushing us into crowded areas (bars) where we will all share one TV and one satellite. Or, of course, we will just pony up next month’s disposable TV income on a dish of our own. If this — concentrating your market share to bars, and pushing 18-34 males away from service subscription — is your version of a solid business plan, by all means, keep doing what you’re doing. It’s just us loyal fans getting screwed, that’s all.

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