IHSA Announcements
December 13, 1996
Basketball One Part of 20-Sport Package to be Televised on SportsChannel Chicago
Now that the basketball season is upon us, we have begun receiving calls and mail from fans of America's Original March Madness who have heard that the 1997 tournaments will not be televised on a combination of commercial and cable systems as in the past, but on cable television by SportsChannel Chicago instead. Please take a few minutes of your time to learn about the IHSA television agreement with SportsChannel Chicago: what it means to our schools, to high school athletes, and to the fans.
From 1991 to 1996, KOST Broadcast Sales, Inc. produced the state basketball tournament telecasts: eight (8) games of both the boys Class A and Class AA state basketball finals, along with the two (2) championship games in girls basketball, a total of 18 games. KOST's production of the games was carried on a network of commercial television stations and cable television systems. SportsChannel Chicago was the outlet for the games in the Chicago market. During those same years, SportsChannel Chicago produced coverage of state championships in 18 other sports. Included in this package was annual live coverage of the boys football championship games in all six classes, periodic live telecasts of girls volleyball, girls softball and boys baseball, plus the regular taped coverage of these events.
With both of these contracts due to expire at the end of the 1995-96 (last) school year, IHSA solicited proposals from more than a half dozen companies which previously informed us they were interested in televising IHSA state final events. IHSA asked these companies to prepare proposals which would give television exposure to as many of the students who participate in IHSA sports as possible. The rights to televise IHSA events would be for the next four years.
Two companies eventually submitted proposals. KOST Broadcast Sales, Inc. submitted a proposal to televise only the previously mentioned basketball games. SportsChannel Chicago submitted a proposal to televise an expanded schedule of 22 basketball games (all eight games in each of the boys state tournaments and three Saturday games in each of the girls state tournaments), plus the 18 other sports state finals it has been televising for nearly a decade, and a series of specials during the school year.
Obviously, making a selection between the two proposals involved some hard choices, which the IHSA Board of Directors did at its May 22, 1996, meeting.
KOST's proposal included free, over-the-air coverage in a good portion of the state outside the Chicago market. But there remained viewership problems in deep Southern Illinois, the southwestern corner of the state and no over-the-air television in Chicago. Those viewership situations had been persistent over the past four years. KOST's proposal was for basketball only. No other sports or special shows would be televised, nor would there be any replays later.
SportsChannel Chicago's proposal, on the other hand, was exclusively cable, with no free TV involved. And while a large number of the communities in Illinois are wired for cable these days, not all local cable companies offer SportsChannel Chicago, nor does everyone in these communities subscribe to cable, nor does everyone who receives cable subscribe to SportsChannel Chicago. The proposal provides for: a) televising a package of 20 different IHSA athletic state final events, including replays throughout the calendar year; b) a series of special shows including a Football Pairings Show, a live show from the March Madness Experience Playing in Peoria, and the popular School Yard Jam Show shot on location at the Peoria Civic Center; among several to be created; and c) a package of promotional opportunities throughout the school year.
The IHSA Board of Directors pondered the implications of both proposals. Ultimately, the decision was reached to provide broad opportunities for recognition of as many sports, students, schools and communities as possible under the SportsChannel Chicago proposal.
The boys basketball tournament games have been televised by IHSA continually since 1952. From 1997 through the year 2000, they will be carried by SportsChannel Chicago and the cable systems which carry its programming Since it has taken over the management and production of the 20-sport IHSA package, SportsChannel Chicago has worked at expanding its reach throughout Illinois. More than 107,000 new subscribers have been added already. Overall, SportsChannel Chicago has more than 2.77 million subscribers.
Local cable systems which ordinarily do not have SportsChannel Chicago may carry SportsChannel Chicago's programming of any of the IHSA events. Territorial requirements of Major League Baseball, the National Basketball Association and the National Hockey League do not allow their programming on SportsChannel Chicago on cable systems in various geographical areas throughout the Midwest, including southern and southwestern Illinois. But these restrictions do not in any way prevent local cable systems in these areas, or any other part of Illinois, from carrying any or all of the IHSA events. Fans need to encourage their local cable operators to work out the necessary arrangements with SportsChannel Chicago.
IHSA On SportsChannel Chicago Telecast Lineup
State Final Events
| Sport | Events Televised | IHSA Schools
with Teams | Students
Participating |
|---|
Special Shows
Football Playoff Pairings Show
Boys Basketball Pairings Show
Girls Basketball Title Game Specials
Boys Basketball State Final Preview Shows
March Madness Playing In Peoria Special
Schoolyard Jam at March Madness Experience
Scholastic Bowl Special