ESPN Founder

Wherever I travel I'm always asked, "Where did you get the idea and how did you start ESPN?" Simple questions - complicated answers! You'll learn those answers and much more in the new paperback edition of my book, Sports Junkies Rejoice!  The Birth of ESPN, now available on ESPNFounder.com.

Sports Junkies Rejoice!  The Birth of ESPN is my personal account of the launch of the Total Sports Network founded over 30 years ago.  On September 7, 1979, ESPN went on the air for the first time as the first 24 hour network. This is a great gift for Dads and Grads!

Order today at ESPNFounder.com.

Labels: birth_of_espn, ESPN, Sports_Junkies_Rejoice

The winners of the NCAA DI brackets in the College Fanz Perfect 10 contest will be going on an all-expense paid exotic trip to the Maui Invitational in Hawaii during Thanksgiving week.

College Fanz is sending the Grand Prize winners of the women's bracket and the men's bracket and their companions on a trip of a lifetime.

Congratulations to DallasMavs, the winner of the NCAA Div. I Men's bracket with 121 pts.

Last year, JDLChu enjoyed his trip to the Maui Invitational.

Next year it might be your turn to win!

Labels: bracket_contest, championship, college_basketball, ncaa, perfect_10

Congratulations to our first seven winners in the College Fanz Perfect 10 – these winners are enjoying their brand new HDTVs!

Here’s how the College Fanz Perfect 10 Tournament Leaderboard turned out:
    NCAA Div. II Women:  rhanson_65 is the winner with 110 pts.
    NCAA Div. III Men:  titusott is the winner with 100 pts.
    NCAA Div. III Women:  kevint is the winner with 125 pts.
    NAIA Div. I Men:  TranSouthfan is the winner with 56 pts.
    NAIA Div. I Women:  JeremyFoleySucks is the winner with 64 pts.
    NAIA Div. II Men:  mills2626 is the winner with 46 pts.
    NAIA Div. II Women:  oscarlee is the winner with 64 pts.

    NCAA Div. II Men:  Cal Poly Pomona 65, Indiana (PA) 53
    NCAA Div. II Women:  Emporia State 65, Fort Lewis 53
    NCAA Div. III Men:  UW - Stevens Point 78, Williams 73
    NCAA Div. III Women:  Washington University 65, Hope 59
    NAIA Div. I Men:  Oklahoma Baptist 84, Azusa Pacific 83
    NAIA Div. I Women:  Union (Tenn.) 73, Azusa Pacific 65
    NAIA Div. II Men:  Saint Francis (IN) 67, Walsh 66
    NAIA Div. II Women:  Northwestern (IA) 85, Shawnee State 66

This is the second year College Fanz had the only bracket contest that includes all 10 NCAA and NAIA championship tournaments.

Congratulations to everyone who participated in this year's contest, especially our unofficial winner of the Men's NAIA DII bracket (highest points) and a youthful, ineligible follow-up bracket that I will only mention here to thank everyone for playing - even if it was just for fun.

Labels: azusa_pacific, cal_poly_pomona, emporia_state, fort_lewis, hope_college, indiana, naia, ncaa, northwestern, oklahoma_baptist, saint_francis, shawnee, uw_stevens_point, walsh, washington, williams

Bill's blog from April 29, 2010:

The uproar. The cries of "it will never work." Critics saying, "They're too greedy." College sports is filled with naysayers on the outside looking in -- only that time (1984), it was writers and fans decrying increasing the NCAA men's basketball tournament field to 64 teams for the 1984-1985 season. A lot has happened in the intervening 25 years, including the continued growth of the NCAA Tournament as a rallying point for college basketball fans, alumni, and "subway" alumni around the world. March brings with it madness, and each year, another form of madness -- how big can it get?

So the recent announcement by the NCAA, in the person of interim interim president Jim Isch was very careful not to rule out a move to 96 teams in the future -- saying that "everything is still on the table and it will be a membership decision" -- but he said that adding three more teams to the current tournament format is the anticipated scenario for now. What the agreement -- which also includes Internet, wireless and marketing rights -- means is that every game will be shown live on national television. Beginning next season, first- and second-round games will be shown on four networks: CBS, TBS, TNT and truTV (formerly known as Court TV). All games will continue to be streamed online as well.

(Of course, ESPN pioneered the broadcast of all NCAA Tournament games back in 1980 with the celebrated 'whip-around' format that is now much-beloved and greatly missed by college hoops fans everywhere).

In the end, everybody wins -- fans get to see more games in the early rounds (the "bracket busters" we've all come to love), while the TV networks get more games to show, sponsors more opportunity to connect with fans, and the participating schools get a share of a larger tournament earnings pool. Even better, the National Invitational Tournament will continue, at least for now. I am glad that this latest "enhancement" to the NCAA Tournament is happening, without making the conference tournaments a moot point. If and when that day comes, however, I may be a little less forgiving. For now -- hoop it up!

Labels: basketball, cbs, college, ESPN, ncaa, nit, tbs, tnt

Bill's blog from August 23, 2009:

Are you ready for some football - NAIA style? Starting this Saturday you’ll have a full season of College Fanz NAIA Game of the Week at your fingertips. The College Fanz First Down Classic features the season openers for four teams in a day-night doubleheader streamed live from our site in partnership with Livestream. Avila University meets Doane College at 2:00 ET / 1:00 CT and McKendree University takes on Ottawa University at 8:00 ET / 7:00 CT. Check out the full schedule to discover which teams are included on the Inaugural season schedule.

We are extremely pleased to be working closely with the NAIA President Jim Carr and his staff to showcase the NAIA Champions of Character program. We’ll be talking more about this outstanding initiative throughout the season.

The entire College Fanz team is extremely proud to announce that we will provide over $50,000 in awards to colleges and universities through our newly formed College Fanz Scholarship Fund. Awards will be presented in the names of outstanding players and coaches appearing during the NAIA Game of the Week series.

Now, back to football! We will be streaming not only games live at no charge, but delivering news information and features 24/7 on our site. Bands, cheerleaders, dance teams, rivalries, mascots, traditions and more will be featured on the College Fanz Report daily.

Speaking of our live coverage of the NAIA Game of the Week, we’ll be doing all of the production from our innovative College Fanz Van and Mobile Broadcast Unit. The Fanz Van is provided by The Prestige Traveler, while the MBU comes from Wells Cargo. We’ll have actual footage of these units in action elsewhere on CollegeFanz.com.

There’s more! We have partnered with Webstorz, providing a unique opportunity to design your own items for clubs, groups, teams, etc. A portion of every sale will be donated to both the individual school and the NAIA. More details on this outstanding service may be heard on our 24/7 channel.

So, there you have it! Enjoy the season openers on Saturday and “stay tuned” for more innovation…there’s much more to come.

Labels: avila, college_fanz_scholarship_fund, college_fanz_van, doane, first_down_classic, game_of_the_week, jim_carr, livestream, mckendree, naia, ottowa, the_prestige_traveler, webstorz, wells_cargo

Bill's blog from June 24, 2009:

Last June, I traveled to Tampa to meet the unsung heroes of college sports, the members of the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).  The backbone of college sports, CoSIDA members are the vital link in communications between each team and the fanz, the media, and the general public.  Their work is behind-the-scenes, getting the schedules, scores, and stories out to the world, running the press boxes and press row at games around the country, and ensuring that their college or university has their best stories told to a wide range of audiences.

In the year since that meeting, College Fanz has become a partner with CoSIDA in reaching their fanz through their athletic website, and through College Fanz.  We are a partner website for each college's athletic website - a place where their fanz can interact with other fanz, a place where each college’s fanz can check out the competition for next week's game and next month's game - all in one place.  We introduced America’s College Scoreboard with their contributions, through their personal Virtual Pressbox, and we’ve created additional enhancements to College Fanz that are exclusive member benefits for CoSIDA.

This week, we have again joined CoSIDA at their annual convention, this year in San Antonio.  While some of us are visiting the Alamo and other historic sites, our focus as always is in providing CoSIDA members a social media platform to engage their fanz.  As their “team owner,” it is critical that they use College Fanz to reach the fanz who will never attend a game but follow a particular student-athlete or team.  We’re pleased that College Fanz provides CoSIDA with the platform to reach their fanz.

For all fanz, we’ll be introducing some major enhancements to College Fanz this month and throughout the summer, including live video-streaming webcasts of selected college games, a cross-country tour visiting college campuses around the U.S.A.

College Fanz has grown tremendously over the past year, and we are gearing up for the start of our third year with a new look to the web site and even more enhancements.  It has been my dream to enhance the fanz experience, to include the fanz -- allow them to show their passion for their favorite team, show their school colors, and take on their greatest rival.  With the College Fanz Sports Network, we have been able to do what no school has dared to do - allow the fanz to have their say!

 

Labels: cosida, san_antonio, texas

Bill's blog from April 22, 2009:

Before we get to this weekend's football game, another basketball season has ended, and with it comes another wonderful album of memories.  Congratulations to the University of North Carolina Tarheels on winning the NCAA Division I Men‘s Basketball Championship, and to the University of Connecticut Huskies on winning the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship.

I would also like to congratulate the final two winners in the College Fanz Perfect 10 March Madness contest, “xxxxxxxx” (NCAA Division I men’s bracket winner) and “xxxxxxxx” (NCAA Division I women’s bracket winner).  It was a phenomenal contest, and I hope everyone who played enjoyed watching 10 brackets in one place for the first time ever!  If you’ve been reading this blog lately, you know that my “bracket busted” when UConn’s men’s team didn’t make it to the National Championship, but it certainly was fun to watch all the tournaments this year. 

In another winter sport championship, how about the exciting performances in the recently-concluded NCAA “Frozen Four,” with the Boston University Terriers capturing the men’s ice hockey championship?  I’m a big fan of college hockey, and ice hockey in general, and it was fun to see the Terriers capture their fifth ice hockey National Championship (but their first since 1995). 

Now our attentions turn to other fields and arenas.  Coming up is the College Fanz Sports Network's Senior Classic, which pits 120 former NAIA football players against one another in a showcase of talent and character. The game kicks off Saturday, April 25th at 1:00 p.m. in Platte County’s Pirate Stadium in Platte City, Missouri. 

College Fanz Director of NAIA Relations, Jason Dannelly, is the founder of this event, which is in its third year.  For many of these players, it's a great chance to be seen in front of professional scouts and possibly earn their way onto an NFL or CFL team roster.  For others, it's just a chance to play football one last time before they hang up the cleats and head into their post-college careers.  It’s an exciting game, and we think it will be an exciting day for everyone. 

I’m also keeping an eye on my first love, baseball.  This time of year is a bonanza for the sports fan, with winter sports wrapping up, spring sports enthusiastically bursting on the scene, lots of baseball, golf, and football news (among others) to catch up on – if you love sports, you’ve gotta love the spring!

Labels: boston_university, college_fanz_perfect_10, connecticut, football, frozen_four, jason_dannelly, naia, ncaa, north_carolina, tarheels

Bill's blog from April 2, 2009:

Bracket-busters indeed!  The college basketball season is rapidly coming to a close, with the NCAA Division I men’s and women’s Final Four games this weekend, and National Championships in both tournaments early next week.  My bracket is already “busted” in regard to my men’s Final Four, but my earlier picks for both National Championships are still alive – Connecticut, in both cases. 

Of course, we’ve watched all 10 NCAA and NAIA basketball tournaments very closely this season at College Fanz, with our College Fanz Perfect 10 contest.  With eight tournaments concluded, we also have eight winners already in the contest. 

Congratulations to our eight winners in the College Fanz Perfect 10 – your prizes will be arriving shortly!  Here’s how the College Fanz Perfect 10 Tournament Leaderboard shapes up:

    NCAA Div. II Men:  xxxxxxxx is the winner with 146 pts.
    NCAA Div. II Women:  xxxxxxxx is the winner with 152 pts.
    NCAA Div. III Men:  xxxxxxxx is the winner with 139 pts.
    NCAA Div. III Women:  xxxxxxxx is the winner with 147 pts.
    NAIA Div. I Men:  xxxxxxxx is the winner with 55 pts.
    NAIA Div. I Women:  xxxxxxxx is the winner with 73 pts.
    NAIA Div. II Men:  xxxxxxxx is the winner with 68 pts.
    NAIA Div. II Women:  xxxxxxxx is the winner with 65 pts.

Congratulations as well to the incredible student-athletes, coaches and staff at the eight schools that have won National Championship titles in the past three weeks!  Here’s a quick look at the results:

    NCAA Div. II Men:  Findlay 56, Cal Poly Pomona 53 in overtime
    NCAA Div. II Women:  Minnesota State 103, Franklin Pierce 94
    NCAA Div. III Men:  Washington University 61, Richard Stockton 52
    NCAA Div. III Women:  George Fox 60, Washington University 53
    NAIA Div. I Men:  Rocky Mountain 77, Columbia (Mo) 61
    NAIA Div. I Women:  Union (Tenn.) 73, Lambuth (Tenn.) 63
    NAIA Div. II Men:  Oklahoma Wesleyan 60, College of the Ozarks 53
    NAIA Div. II Women:  Morningside (Iowa) 68, Hastings (Neb.) 63

Who will win the NCAA Division I men’s and women’s championships – both on the court and in the College Fanz Perfect 10?  We’ll all know that answer next week.  Until then, enjoy the extended March Madness in early April!

Labels: college_fanz_perfect_10, columbia, connecticut, findlay, george_fox, minnesota_state, naia, ncaa, oklahoma_wesleyan morningside, rocky_mountain, union, washington_university

Bill's blog from March 26, 2009:

If I’ve learned anything, it’s that March Madness is not confined to the NCAA Division I men‘s basketball tournament.  That’s partly what inspired our College Fanz Perfect 10 contest, which so many fanz have embraced this year.

With attention now focused on the men and women of NCAA Division I, I must tell you about my recent visit to Kansas City for the NAIA Division I men’s basketball tournament.  It’s the first time I ever attended this amazing championship.  Did you know that the NAIA men’s championship was founded by the inventor of the game of basketball, the legendary Dr. James Naismith, with a couple of his friends?  It’s also the country’s longest-running collegiate national championship in any sport – this year’s tournament was the 72nd annual championship.

It’s also probably the toughest tournament you can imagine – 32 teams, 31 games, one site, one week.  They start playing every day at 8:30 a.m. and they are still going strong well after midnight.  I saw some great games, some great fanz, and some great student-athletes who are as competitive as any student-athletes on any team in the country.

I even got the chance to get behind the radio microphone and do color commentary for the Freed Hardeman vs. Rocky Mountain contest in the tournament’s first round.  Rocky Mountain (out of Montana) won that game – a real battle, with the Battlin’ Bears coming back from a 20 point first half deficit to outlast the Lions in overtime, 78-77.

Rocky Mountain went on to win their first-ever NAIA National Championship, beating Columbia College (of Missouri) 77-61 in the championship game.  Both Rocky Mountain and Columbia were unseeded in the tourney, the first time that two unseeded teams ever played for the NAIA National Championship.  In fact, on the first day of the tournament, the #32 seed, William Jewell, upset #1 seed Rogers State, 76-73. What a week!

Of course, people always ask me what I think about the “other” tournaments.  Going back over the past 30 years, since the historic Larry Bird vs. Magic Johnson/Michigan State vs. Indiana State game in the 1979 NCAA National Championship and the launch of ESPN later that year, I’ve had the pleasure to meet many of the student-athletes and coaches, and attended countless games. Remember Keith Smart and the Hoosiers at the Super Dome in New Orleans or how about Danny Manning and Kansas at Kemper in Kansas City, six Big East teams in the Elite Eight and on and on?

Ok, great memories, but how about 2009?  Connecticut's my pick this year.  I think they have an unbeatable combination, with Jim Calhoun's coaching, their history of success, the big man in the middle, Charles Okwandu and the talent around him, and their draw in the tournament.  So my bracket has an All-Big East Final, with UConn beating Pitt for the National Championship.

I can’t wait!

Labels: all_big_east, connecticut, danny_manning, ESPN, indiana_state, jim_calhoun, kansas, keith_smart, larry_bird, magic_johnson, michigan_state, ncaa, pitt, pittsburgh, rocky_mountain, william_jewell

Bill's blog from February 11, 2009:

Back in 1979, sports on cable TV - 24 hours a day - was thought to be a joke by many people.  “It’ll never work,” “Nobody will watch sports 24 hours a day,”  “Where will you even find sports to televise around the clock?” were some of the responses.  On top of that, there were no 24 hour networks - not ABC, CBS or NBC - back then, HBO was only available 5 hours a night and CNN and MTV didn’t even exist!

ESPN changed all of that - and today, ESPN is a media conglomerate.  Now there are countless 24 hour networks up and down your on-screen TV Guide.  All-in-all, from “it won’t work” to today, sports fans have been the beneficiaries throughout ESPN’s growth.

Fast forward to 2009 and March Madness!  If you ask around, you probably will get a variety of answers about March Madness brackets.  Far and away the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship draws virtually all of the attention.  Did you know there are nine (9) other post-season tournaments?  Each has its own bracket and dedicated followers.

Well, it might not be as dramatic as 24 hours sports in 1979, but here we go again - this time with the 2009 College Fanz Perfect 10.  With a single registration you can play any or all of 10 different tournaments.  Never before have all 10 post-season basketball championship tournaments been gathered in a single place.

And best of all - it’s FREE!

Great prizes include a chance to win $25,000,000, a new car, a trip for two to the Maui Invitational and flat screen TV’s.  Find all the details at CollegeFanzPerfect10.

Register early so you’ll be ready to go when the fun begins on March 1st.  Be sure and come back for each tournament selection period - don’t miss one and your chance to win the big prizes!

Labels: abc, cbs, cnn, ESPN, hbo, march_madness, mtv, nbc, ncaa, ncaa_men's_basketball_championship, tv_guide