COOKEVILLE, Tenn. -- The Ohio Valley Conference "Game of the Week"
package on ESPN3 has Tennessee Tech listed as a potential wild card
pick for the second time in the season when the Golden Eagles host
defending league champion Eastern Illinois on Saturday, Nov. 1.
Tech's game with Murray State on Oct. 4 is already a potential wild
card game for that week in the eight-game "Game of the Week"
package that will be carried exclusively on ESPN3 this fall.
The fifth game in the series will be played on Saturday, Oct. 25
when Tennessee State travels to Eastern Illinois for a 1:30 p.m. CT
kickoff. The sixth game of the package will take place on Saturday,
Nov. 1 and will be a "wild card" selection which will be announced
roughly 12 days before the contest.
The remaining two games will be announced via OVC social media
outlets (Twitter.com/OVCSports and Facebook.com/OVCSports) as well
as OVCSports.com on Friday.
Tennessee State and Eastern Illinois played twice last year, with
EIU winning 34-16 at LP Field in October and also coming out on top
51-10 in the second round of the FCS Playoffs in Charleston. In the
two wins senior quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo (who was selected in
the second round of the NFL Draft by the New England Patriots)
combined for 650 passing yards and seven touchdowns. After winning
three of the last four in the all-time series, Eastern Illinois now
leads the all-time series 10-7.
The four games up for consideration for the Nov. 1 Wildcard
selection are Austin Peay/Jacksonville State, Eastern
Illinois/Tennessee Tech, Eastern Kentucky/Tennessee State and UT
Martin/Murray State.
This marks the second-straight season the league has produced the
Game of the Week package in conjunction with WebStream Sports.
WebStream Sports, an Indianapolis-based company which is a proven
leader in video production, streaming video and content creation.
The company, founded in 2006, produces more than 1,000 events
annually and has also served as a web streaming consultant for the
OVC for the past year.
Kevin Ingram, host of "The Wake Up Zone" on 104.5 The Zone in
Nashville, will handle play-by-play duties while Bob Belvin, on-air
talent and contributor at 100.7 FM/AM 540 (ESPN Clarksville), will
provide analysis. The duo has worked together each of the past two
years in the league's TV package.
The OVC Football Game of the Week package is part of a five-year
agreement with ESPN which was announced last October. The deal runs
through the completion of the 2017-18 season.
ESPN3 is ESPN's live multi-screen sports network, a destination
that delivers thousands of global sports events annually and
accessible online via WatchESPN.com, on smart phones and tablets
via the WatchESPN app, through ESPN on Xbox LIVE to Gold members
and on Apple TV. It is currently available in more than 85
million homes at no additional cost to fans who receive their
high-speed Internet connection or video subscription from an
affiliated service provider. It is also available at no cost
to approximately 21 million U.S. college students and U.S.-based
military personnel via computers connected to on-campus educational
networks and on-base military networks.
2014 OVC Football Game of the Week on ESPN3
Schedule
Sept. 20 - Eastern Kentucky at UT Martin, 12:00 p.m. CT
Oct. 4 - Wildcard Selection (Eastern Kentucky at Austin Peay, UT
Martin at Jacksonville State, Murray State at Tennessee
Tech,
Tennessee State at Southeast Missouri)
Oct. 11 - Jacksonville State at Tennessee State, 2:00 p.m. CT
Oct. 18 - Murray State at Austin Peay, 6:00 p.m. CT
Oct. 25 - Tennessee State at Eastern Illinois, 1:30 p.m. CT
Nov. 1 - Wildcard Selection (Austin Peay at Jacksonville State,
Eastern Illinois at Tennessee Tech,
Eastern Kentucky at Tennessee State,
UT Martin at Murray State)
The remaining two games will be announced Friday.