[NU Sports] Is the ESPN Game Plan worth it?

[Jonathan Hodges]

The short answer is no - since ESPN GamePlan will no longer carry many Big
Ten games (no B10 home games in fact).

The pecking order of B10 home games is now: ABC, ESPN/ESPN2, then the BTN
will carry the remainder of the B10 home games.  This means some games will
be multiplexed - in other words will be on at the same time and your local
operator will have the choice of either carrying multiple games (as the case
will probably be on DirecTV) or carrying one "regional" game.  Other games
may then be played on tape delay.  It sounds like DirecTV will be the only
one offering multiple simultaneous game feeds starting out.

In terms of away games, it's all up to that conference.  The only non B10
home game for NU is at EMU which will be carried by ESPNU - which is on
DirecTV's sports tier (extra charge).  Other than that all NU games will be
on ABC/ESPN/ESPN2 or the BTN.

Moving to DirecTV is the only option to get NU games for the vast majority
of people.  For those of us in the Chicago area, even us in Evanston, we are
out in the cold if we don't switch to satellite (which many are not able to
do if you live in an apt. building and can't get approval for the dish).
DirecTV is cheaper, apparently has better customer service, and has the BTN,
but almost everyone is locked into the likes of Comcast - who is embattled
with the BTN over which tier of service the network will be placed into.

My personal opinion is that both sides are to blame - the BTN for their
stubborn insistence that they are a national network and should be on a
normal tier (they're regional whether we like it or not) - and
Comcast/TimeWarner/etc. for not making a deal happen for the sake of their
customers.  I know many of us are more than willing to pay extra to watch NU
football and if any pay option was offered it is much better than leaving us
in the dark.

Jonathan


On 8/2/07, Jim Leonard <jleonard518 at yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> Fellow Wildcat Faithful,
>
> In a few weeks I am making the switch to DirecTV so that I will have
> access to the Big Ten Network. Comcast may ultimately carry it, but I have
> learned over the years not to trust that company.
>
> So now the question is, do I pay the additional $110 for a season of ESPN
> Game Plan. Prior to the BTN, traditional cable would get you ABC, ESPN, and
> ESPN2. Then, the additional Big Ten games might be on ESPNU and ESPN+ which
> you needed the Game Plan to access. With the new BTN network, what is the
> pecking order of which games will be available on which networks?
>
> I have looked at information on the BTN website, the DirecTV website, and
> the ESPN website and no one seems to be able to explain this. Any help would
> be appreciated.
>
> Victory & Honor,
> Jim
>
>
>
>
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-- 
Jonathan W. Hodges
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