IU Purdue fans to be left in the dark tomorrow

I grew up in Southern Indiana. There is not a lot to do there in the winter—that’s why we’re crazy about basketball. One of the biggest game(s) of the year is Indiana versus Purdue. In the past, everyone would gather around their TV set and turn on WTTV-4, if you were without cable, you could still pick up the signal through your antenna.

A few years ago, the Big Ten signed up with ESPN to air its games. This has caused a few problems over the years, but most of IU games have appeared through ESPN Plus on WTTV 4 if it is not already on ESPN or a major network. Now ESPN is trying to promote its new station-ESPNU, which is a network focusing on college sports. The problem is that most cable companies still do not carry ESPNU mostly because (according to the article below) ESPN’s subscriber fees for its other networks are already among the highest in the industry. So, tomorrow night, IU and Purdue fans will lose out on a traditional rivalry. Hopefully, the Big Ten will do a better job in renegotiating its contract with ESPN because the loss of this game not only hurts fans, but also recruiting.

As for me, I’ll be meeting some friends to watch the game at Average Joe’s in Broad Ripple. Maybe, I’ll see you there.

link to Indianapolis Star