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Official Site of the Emerald Bowl
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August 6, 2002
San Francisco -- The San Francisco Bowl today announced that it has signed a seven-year agreement with ESPN for live television coverage of the game. The inaugural San Francisco Bowl will be played Tuesday, December 31 at 7:30 p.m. PST at Pacific Bell Park and carried on ESPN2. Under terms of the agreement, ESPN has the option to carry the game on either network. Specific financial terms were not disclosed. "ESPN is delighted to televise the first bowl game from one of the world's premier cities," said John Wildhack, ESPN senior vice president of programming. "The Mountain West facing the Big East on New Year's Eve from Pacific Bell Park will be a dynamic setting and a great way to ring in the New Year." The new bowl will match the No. 3 selection from the Mountain West Conference vs. the No. 3, 4, or 5 pick from the Big East Conference. For purposes of selection, Notre Dame will be included in the Big East Conference if it is not a Bowl Championship Series team. The San Francisco Bowl has four-year agreements with both the Mountain West and the Big East conferences. "This long-term agreement with ESPN gives the San Francisco Bowl immediate credibility, exposure and stability," said executive director Gary Cavalli. "Our partnership with ESPN brings us not only a national television audience for the game, but also extensive 'Bowl Week' promotion on ESPN's TV and radio networks, magazine and web site." In 2001, ESPN carried the second most watched "bowl week" in history. ESPN is now in 87 million homes and ESPN2, the fastest network to reach 80 million viewers, is in 83 million homes. |
