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University of Massachusets Athletics
Photo by: Chris Tucci - UMass Athletics
Massachusetts Enters Bowl Rights Agreement With ESPN Events
August 31, 2022 | Football
The deal, which runs through the 2025 postseason, complements UMass' three-year broadcast rights agreement with ESPN.
AMHERST, Mass. – University of Massachusetts Athletics has entered into a football bowl rights agreement with ESPN Events, which runs through the 2025 season, it was announced on Wednesday. The agreement covers the next four seasons complementing UMass' three-year broadcast rights agreement with ESPN for its Division I FBS Independent football program announced on August 18.
"This is another important step in the maturation process for our growing FBS Independent football program," said Director of Athletics Ryan Bamford. "We hope to build perennial bowl-eligible teams under Coach Brown and this agreement will provide opportunities to bring our Minutemen to a postseason bowl for the first time in school history."
"It is exciting for our program to have an opportunity in front of us to do something no team at UMass has done: play in an FBS bowl game," said head coach Don Brown. "ESPN bowl events are first-class so we are excited for the chance to be considered for a postseason bowl game when we become eligible in the near future."
The bowl games currently owned and operated by ESPN Events include the Boca Raton Bowl, the Camellia Bowl, the Cure Bowl, the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, the Fenway Bowl, the Frisco Bowl, the Myrtle Beach Bowl, and the New Mexico Bowl.
"We're pleased to expand our relationship with UMass to include their football bowl rights for the next four seasons," said Clint Overby, vice president, ESPN Events, "Adding the postseason to an already robust slate of programming offerings featuring the Minutemen across our platforms, ESPN networks will be the destination for UMass fans."
For an FBS team to be officially bowl eligible, it must win six or more games in a 12-game schedule and post a minimum winning percentage of .500. If playing more than one game against FCS competition, only one FCS win will count toward bowl eligibility.
As previously announced, ESPN will provide live coverage for all five Massachusetts football home games from McGuirk Alumni Stadium this season, with the Sept. 17 home opener against Stony Brook set to air on ESPN3. The remainder of the home contests are subject to the standard 12-day selection process throughout the season to stream on ESPN3 or ESPN+. In the 2023 and 2024 seasons, at least one Massachusetts football home game will be televised on ESPN networks in addition to streaming.
"This is another important step in the maturation process for our growing FBS Independent football program," said Director of Athletics Ryan Bamford. "We hope to build perennial bowl-eligible teams under Coach Brown and this agreement will provide opportunities to bring our Minutemen to a postseason bowl for the first time in school history."
"It is exciting for our program to have an opportunity in front of us to do something no team at UMass has done: play in an FBS bowl game," said head coach Don Brown. "ESPN bowl events are first-class so we are excited for the chance to be considered for a postseason bowl game when we become eligible in the near future."
The bowl games currently owned and operated by ESPN Events include the Boca Raton Bowl, the Camellia Bowl, the Cure Bowl, the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, the Fenway Bowl, the Frisco Bowl, the Myrtle Beach Bowl, and the New Mexico Bowl.
"We're pleased to expand our relationship with UMass to include their football bowl rights for the next four seasons," said Clint Overby, vice president, ESPN Events, "Adding the postseason to an already robust slate of programming offerings featuring the Minutemen across our platforms, ESPN networks will be the destination for UMass fans."
For an FBS team to be officially bowl eligible, it must win six or more games in a 12-game schedule and post a minimum winning percentage of .500. If playing more than one game against FCS competition, only one FCS win will count toward bowl eligibility.
As previously announced, ESPN will provide live coverage for all five Massachusetts football home games from McGuirk Alumni Stadium this season, with the Sept. 17 home opener against Stony Brook set to air on ESPN3. The remainder of the home contests are subject to the standard 12-day selection process throughout the season to stream on ESPN3 or ESPN+. In the 2023 and 2024 seasons, at least one Massachusetts football home game will be televised on ESPN networks in addition to streaming.
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