Liberty University announced Monday a five-year media rights extension with ESPN, the Lynchburg News & Advance reported.
Damien Sordelett reported the announcement, which includes news of at least one Flames tilt airing over an ESPN linear network during each year of the agreement.
Liberty announces it has signed a five-year extension with ESPN for exclusive media rights to the Flames’ home football games.
Deal guarantees at least one home game each season on a linear network.
— Damien Sordelett (@DamienSordelett) July 26, 2021
The agreement also allows for the network to choose one additional non-Saturday contest to air over its networks.
“We are pleased to continue to showcase Liberty home football games exclusively on ESPN platforms in the years ahead through this multi-year extension of our rights agreement which began in 2018. The recent success of the Flames has made them one of the more intriguing programs in college football the past few seasons.” said Dan Margulis, senior director of programming and acquisitions, ESPN.
“We are extremely grateful to have such a strong relationship with ESPN,” said Liberty Director of Athletics Ian McCaw. “ESPN platforms afford Liberty the best opportunity to tell our story of the fastest rising college football program in the country to Flames Nation and beyond.”
During Liberty’s 2020 season, ESPN elevated three of the Flames’ six home telecasts to linear networks (Sept. 26 vs. FIU on ESPNU, Oct. 10 vs. ULM on ESPN2 and Nov. 14 vs. Western Carolina on ESPNU).
Imagine being so stupid that you still think being an independent is a good plan.
The Atlantic Sun Conference is adding football with plans to go FBS. Liberty is ASun in all sports except football since ASun has never offered it.
Central Arkansas, Jacksonville State, North Alabama, Kennesaw State, and Eastern Kentucky are all members of ASun football.
I think Liberty will join them at the FBS level to have more bowl tie-ins, but don’t know how long this will take.
Minus North Alabama, I think they other schools are ready. Central Arkansas regularly beats FBS teams (Arkansas State, Western Kentucky). Jacksonville State had taken Auburn to the wire. Eastern Kentucky was almost the Sun Belt choice over Coastal Carolina a few years ago. Kennesaw State is one of the biggest schools in the state of Georgia (more students than Southern, State and Tech. They did have more students than UGA at one point.) and their football team has jumped to a consistent top-25 FCS team, almost immediately.
ASun FBS football will be competitive, I think, almost immediately.
ASun is and will remain FCS.
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Liberty will end up in the Sun Belt soon enough.
Ratface – FCS schools versus FBS, during the Playoff era, has a record of 47 and 637 (6.9%). Breaking down this by Power-5 and Group of 5, one finds that against the Power-5 they are 12-298 (3.9%) and against the Group of 5 they are 35-339 (9.4%). Focusing only on the Group of 5 one finds that the FBS against the American is 5-65 (7.1%); Mountain West is 5-62 (7.4%); Conference USA is 8-69 (10.4%); the MAC is 7-60 (10.5%); and; the Sun Belt is 7-57 (10.9%). None of these outcome records are signature of promise. For you to state that the “ASun FBS football will be competitive, I think, almost immediately” against any level within the FBS is not rooted in reality and chucklesome.