NFL scheduling news continues to drip, with Bills-Titans and Eagles-Vikings set to form a split-network doubleheader on ESPN/ABC in Week 2. In other news, Dick Vitale will be honored at the ESPYs; Kevin Harlan is getting an expected promotion; Sinclair has set its price for its new OTT service.
Bills-Titans, Eagles-Vikings, form ESPN/ABC’s first split MNF doubleheader
The first split-network Monday Night Football doubleheader of ESPN’s new NFL rights deal is scheduled for Week 2 of the season and will feature Bills-Titans on ESPN at 7:15 PM ET followed Eagles-Vikings on ABC at 8:30. ESPN’s rights deal, which formally begins in the 2023 season, includes three split-network doubleheaders across ESPN and ABC each year.
There have been multiple split-network Monday night doubleheaders in past years, but they have been the result of postponements.
In other NFL schedule news, the first ever exclusive NFL game on ESPN+ will be an early morning Broncos-Jaguars game from London in Week 8. ESPN+ has rights to an annual international game each year of ESPN’s rights deal. ESPN will also carry another international series game in Week 11 when it airs 49ers-Cardinals from Mexico City in the usual MNF window.
The NFL is releasing its schedule piecemeal this year, with CBS, NBC and FOX set to announce one game each over the next three days. The full schedule release is Thursday.
Vitale to be honored at ESPYs
ESPN college basketball analyst Dick Vitale — who has spent the past year battling various health maladies, including two separate bouts with cancer — has been announced as the recipient of the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance at the annual ESPY Awards. The award, named for Vitale’s former broadcast partner Jim Valvano, has long been given to figures in the sports and broadcasting worlds who have battled cancer and other health challenges. Vitale has devoted much of his public life to raising funds for cancer research, even in the years before he dealt with the disease himself.
Vitale is set to receive the award at the ESPYs on Wednesday, July 20, a return to the event’s usual spot on the calendar on the day after the MLB All-Star Game. The event is scheduled to air on ABC.
Harlan to call West Finals for TNT
Kevin Harlan has been selected as Turner Sports’ play-by-play voice for the Western Conference Finals, according to multiple reports, working alongside Reggie Miller and Stan Van Gundy. Harlan fills the vacancy left by the retired Marv Albert. This year will mark the first time that Harlan has called a conference final for Turner; two years ago, when Albert missed the playoffs over COVID-19 concerns, Harlan was unable to call the conference finals as they conflicted with his NFL duties. Brian Anderson called the games that year.
Sinclair sets $20 as price of RSN service
Sinclair Broadcasting last week announced its over-the-top Bally Sports streaming service will cost $20 per month or $190 per year, making it substantially more expensive than other OTT sports platforms like ESPN+ ($8 per month) but still far less expensive than initial projections. The service, called Bally Sports+, is expected to “soft launch” in the coming weeks. [The Streamable 5.9]
