For many college students, TV-watching on Sunday evenings usually means sitting down to watch The Simpsons or enjoying an NFL football game; but this year, with the introduction of Fox Sports Net's ACC Sunday Night Hoops, viewers across the nation have a new option.
Although some welcome the new situation, not everyone, especially the players, are thrilled about their schedule change.
"I don't know if Ohate' is a strong enough word," Duke forward Mike Dunleavy said after the Duke-Virginia game. "There's nothing you can do about it. I don't think [the media] like covering it on Sunday nights, I don't think we like playing in it, I don't think our opponents like it. I don't know if people even like watching it. I think that they'd rather watch The Simpsons. But that's how it is--I think we've adjusted to it well."
Not surprisingly, Fox Sports Net's Coordinating Producer, Roy Hamilton, views the situation differently. He noted that if he had participated in the matchup when he was a player, it would have posed little difficulty.
"One of the things that people are forgetting is that, in the old days when I was playing, NBC always had a Sunday afternoon game," Hamilton said. "College basketball is not a new phenomenon on a Sunday.... It may be a little bit tough for the guy who's travelling, but when you're home, you go back to your apartment or your dorm room and you're ready to go to class the next day.
"We know these are student-athletes and we respect that part, but I don't think that it's caused a major ripple in the whole
Although Hamilton said he hopes Sunday night games do not cause a ripple in the players' schedules, a ripple in television is exactly what he is striving for. Just as ABC's Monday Night Football took the sports world by storm when it was initially created, Fox Sports Net, which is eagerly promoting the unique features of its Sunday night basketball, hopes for the same result.
Hamilton points to the use of an upbeat hip-hop theme song, a more student-centered focus, particularly in displaying the players' biographical information and an audio mixer that captures the electricity of the crowd--especially in the raucous Cameron Indoor Stadium student section.
Perhaps the most noticeable innovation ACC Sunday Night Hoops brings is the incorporation of former ACC players who provide commentary which supplement those of Fox's regular announcers. So far this season, games have featured appearances from former N.C. State stars David Thompson and Spud Webb, former North Carolina standout Charlie Scott and former Duke point guard Bobby Hurley. Sunday night, Fox Sports Net asked former Duke center Mike Gminski--who also has television experience as a color commentator for the Charlotte Hornets--to take part in Sunday Night Hoops.
Overall, Hamilton said he has received positive feedback on the "special guest" element of his production.
"Our idea is that we want everyone nationally to get a sense about what ACC basketball is all about," Hamilton said. "We think that [the special guest] adds a little texture
Not all of Fox Sport Net's innovations have been received positively. In one instance, before the start of the Duke-Clemson game in December, sideline reporter Duane Ballen interviewed Clemson's Edward Scott as both teams were receiving their final instructions from their respective coaching staffs. Although the network went through the proper protocol to arrange the interview, the conference and the coaches expressed their displeasure and a discussion in the media ensued.
Hamilton, though, said he believes the subsequent controversy was overblown.
"It's unfortunate that that's something that the conference itself does not like to have," Hamilton said. "So what they've told us is once the players are on the floor, it's the player's time, and we respect that.... It really got blown out of proportion. Basically, we tried it, but it's sort of a rule within the conference."
Despite eliciting negative responses from the participants involved in the weekly show, Fox Sports Net feels good about its newest venture and is happy it can bring the regional craze of ACC basketball to a national audience.
"Our overall ratings are up. Our ACC games have set high benchmarks for college basketball games on Fox Sports Net," said Hunter Nickell, the network's general manager. "We feel great about it. We'll have to wait until the end of the year to see, but so far, from what we've seen, it's been terrific."
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