Indiana High School Athletic Association

9150 North Meridian Street, P.O. Box 40650, Indianapolis, Indiana 46240-0650

Phone: 317-846-6601    Fax: 317-575-4244    Website: www.ihsaa.org

Blake Ress, Commissioner

___________________________________________________________________________

MEDIA INFORMATION                                                        October 25, 2005

Contact: Joe Gentry, Communications Director

E-Mail: jgentry@ihsaa.org

 

IHSAA PARTNERS WITH COMCAST, BRIGHT HOUSE NETWORKS & INSIGHT

The Indiana High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) will team with Comcast, Bright House Networks, and Insight cable companies to form the IHSAA Television Network for statewide coverage of tournament action in baseball, boys and girls basketball, football, and volleyball for the next five years. The agreement was announced at a press conference in Indianapolis this afternoon.

 

“Partnering with the cable industry is a win for the IHSAA,” said Blake Ress, IHSAA Commissioner.  “It gets us the statewide distribution that we’ve lacked in recent years, and we will have more of our championships on television than ever before.”

 

The network will provide live coverage (no tape delay) of 18 tournament events annually and debuts with coverage of the Class 4A volleyball state championship game from Hinkle Fieldhouse on Saturday, November 5 at 8 p.m.  The network completes its fall schedule with coverage of all five football state championship games from the RCA Dome on November 25-26.

 

In the winter season, the network will provide coverage of all four girls basketball championship games on March 4 from Conseco Fieldhouse.  Boys basketball tournament coverage tips off with a sectional game on February 28 or March 3 and continues with a regional game on March 11, a semi-state contest on March 18 and four state finals games from Conseco Fieldhouse on March 25.

 

In the spring, the network will telecast the Class 4A baseball state championship game from Victory Field on June 17.

 

The network coverage is expanded from the IHSAA’s previous agreement with the addition of sectional, regional, and semi-state boys basketball games and state finals in baseball and volleyball. All events will be carried live and will be seen in additional markets that have not been reached in recent years like Northwest Indiana and New Albany in southern Indiana. The number of markets and subsequent homes is also expected to grow.

 

“This is a big first-step for us,” said Rusty Robertson, Comcast Regional Vice President.  “Cable has the ability to deliver programming statewide, which gives us an advantage over the broadcasters.  We’re hopeful that we will be able to secure even more exclusive programming in the future.”

 

“We have long been an enthusiastic supporter of the IHSAA, and we know how important these local games are to our customers,” said Kevin Dowell, senior vice president at Insight. “This agreement is a win-win for all concerned, and we at Insight are especially thrilled to provide this exclusive programming to our customers across the state.”

 

The new IHSAA Network will reach 1,086,438 subscribers on 39 cable systems throughout the state.  Each of the cable systems will have a designated channel for all IHSAA tournament action.  The network coverage extends beyond state boundaries to Chicago; Niles, Mich.; and Henderson, Ky.

 

 

IHSAA TELEVISION NETWORK, 2005-06 SCHEDULE

 

Date

Sport

Event

Time

November 5

Volleyball

4A Championship

8 p.m. EST

November 25

Football

1A Championship

3:30 p.m. EST

 

 

2A Championship

7 p.m. EST

November 26

Football

3A Championship

12 p.m. EST

 

 

4A Championship

3:30 p.m. EST

 

 

5A Championship

7:05 p.m. EST

March 4

Girls Basketball

1A Championship

10:30 a.m. EST

 

 

2A Championship

Following 1A Final

 

 

3A Championship

6:30 p.m. EST

 

 

4A Championship

Following 3A Final

February 28 or March 3

Boys Basketball

Sectional Game

TBA

March 11

Boys Basketball

Regional

10 a.m., 12 p.m., or 8 p.m.

March 18

Boys Basketball

Semi-State

1 p.m. or 3 p.m.

March 25

Boys Basketball

1A Championship

10:30 a.m. EST

 

 

2A Championship

Following 1A Final

 

 

3A Championship

6:30 p.m. EST

 

 

4A Championship

Following 3A Final

June 17

Baseball

4A Championship

TBA

 

 

 

IHSAA TELEVISION NETWORK STATIONS

 

System

City

Channel

Insight

Anderson

3

Insight

Bedford

96

Insight

Bloomington

96

Comcast

Columbus/Seymour

19

Comcast

Crawfordsville

18

Insight

Evansville

2

Insight-Sigecom

Evansville

7 or 9

Comcast

Fort Wayne

95

Insight

Greenfield

78

Insight

Greenwood

96

Comcast Chicago

Hammond

3

Insight

Hartford City

72

Insight

Henderson, Ky.

2

Bright House Networks

Indianapolis

63

Comcast

Indianapolis

76

Insight

Jasper

2

Insight

Kokomo

16

Insight

Lafayette

16

Comcast Chicago

LaPorte

3

Insight

Lebanon

78

Comcast

Logansport/Peru/Wabash

23

Bright House Networks

Marion

9

Insight

Martinsville

96

Comcast Chicago

Michigan City

3

Comcast

Monticello

2

Comcast

Muncie

98

Insight

New Albany

25 or 2

Insight

New Castle

3

Comcast

Niles, Mich.

20

Insight

Noblesville

18

Comcast Chicago

Portage

4

Insight

Princeton

2

Insight-TV Cable

Rensselaer

72

Insight

Richmond

69

Comcast

South Bend/Elkhart

74

Comcast

St. Joseph

74

Comcast Chicago

Valparaiso

4

Comcast

Warsaw

74

Insight-TV Cable

Winamac

69

Totals

39 Systems

Total Subscribers:  1,086,438