TV Schedule, Sunday May 1

AFL Premiership Football: Collingwood vs Western Bulldogs 1am on ESPN2

Auto Racing:

MotoGP: World Championship am on Speed Channel
AMA Supercross: FIM World Championship 11am on CBS
Indy Racing League: Sao Paulo 300 11am on VERSUS
Lucas Oil Off Road: 12pm on CBS
Global Rallycross Championship 4pm on ESPN2
NHRA: O'Reilly Auto Parts Spring Nationals 6pm on ESPN2 (same day tape)

Bull Riding: PBR Tour 3pm on VERSUS

College Baseball:

Oklahoma @ Texas 1pm on ESPNU
Auburn @ South Carolina 2pm on ESPN

College Lacrosse:

Women's Atlantic 10 Championship: Teams TBA 12pm on CBS Sports Network
Patriot League Championship: Teams TBA 2pm on CBS Sports Network

College Softball:

Purdue @ Penn St. 11am on Big 10 Network
Michigan St. @ Minnesota 1pm on Big 10 Network
Michigan @ Wisconsin 3pm on Big 10 Network

Golf:

European PGA Tour 8am on Golf Channel (same day tape)
PGA Tour: Zurich Classic (Final Round) 2pm on CBS
LPGA Tour: Avnet LPGA Classic (Final Round) 3pm on Golf Channel

MLB Baseball:

Toronto @ NY Yankees 12pm on TBS
St. Louis @ Atlanta 12:30pm on FS Midwest
Baltimore @ Chicago White Sox 1pm on Comcast SportsNet Chicago
Milwaukee @ Houston 1pm on FS Wisconsin
Minnesota @ Kansas City 1pm on FS Kansas City, FS North, & FS Midwest
Chicago Cubs @ Arizona 3pm on WGN
NY Mets @ Philadelphia 7pm ESPN

NBA Playoffs:

Memphis @ San Antonio 12pm on ABC
Boston @ Miami 2:30pm on ABC

NHL Playoffs:

Detroit @ San Jose 2pm on NBC
Tampa Bay @ Washington 6pm on VERSUS

Soccer:

English Premiere League: Liverpool vs Newcastle United 6am on Fox Soccer Channel
English Premiere League: Aresnal vs Manchester United 8am on Fox Soccer Channel
English Premiere League: Manchester City vs West Ham United 10am on Fox Soccer Channel
Italian Serie A: Bari vs Roma 1:30pm on Fox Soccer Channel
WPS Soccer: Sky Blue FC @ Boston 5pm on Fox Soccer Channel

Disclaimer: All times are Central and blackouts are likely for regional MLB telecasts outside of Iowa.

TV Schedule,Saturday April 30

Arena Football League:

Orlando @ Jacksonville 7pm on NFL Network
Philadelphia @ Iowa 7pm on Mediacom Channel 22

Auto Racing:

Sprint Cup: Matthew and Daniel Hansen 400 6pm on Fox
NHRA Drag Racing: O'Reilly Auto Parts Spring Nationals Qualifying 5pm on ESPN2 (same day tape)
Indy Racing League: Sao Paulo 300 Qualifying 5pm on VERSUS (same day tape)

Boxing: Friday Night Fights (special presentation) 9pm on ESPN2

Bull Riding: PBR Tour 3pm on VERSUS

College Baseball:

Oklahoma @ Texas 11:30am on Comcast SportsNet Chicago, FS Midwest, & FS North
Arkansas @ Georgia 12pm on ESPN2
Georgia Tech @ Clemson 12pm on Fox College Sports Atlantic
Baylor @ Nebraska 2pm on NET*
Penn St. @ Michigan St. 2pm on Big 10 Network
Washington @ Washington St. 2pm on Fox College Sports Pacific
Kansas St. @ Texas Tech 5pm on Fox College Sports Central

*NET - Nebraska Public TV, available across most of Western Iowa

College Football:

Oregon Spring Game 3pm on ESPN2
Michigan St. Spring Game 7pm on Big 10 Network (same day tape)

College Lacrosse:

Princeton @ Cornell 11:30am on CBS Sports Network
Johns Hopkins @ Ohio St. (women's) 12pm on Big 10 Network
Women's Patriot League Championship: Teams TBA 2pm on CBS Sports Network
Notre Dame @ Syracuse 6pm on ESPNU

College Softball:

Florida @ South Carolina 3pm on Fox College Sports Atlantic
Northwestern @ Illinois 5pm on Big 10 Network
Oklahoma @ Texas 7pm on ESPN

Cycling: Tour de Romandie 3pm on VERSUS (same day tape)

Golf:

European PGA Tour 8am on Golf Channel (same day tape)
PGA Tour: Zurich Classic (Third Round) 2pm on CBS
LPGA Tour: Avnet LPGA Classic (Third Round) 3pm on Golf Channel

IHF World Hockey Championship: Austria vs United States 9am on VERSUS

MLB Baseball:

St. Louis @ Atlanta 12pm on Fox
Baltimore @ Chicago White Sox 6pm on WGN
Milwaukee @ Houston 6pm on FS Wisconsin
Minnesota @ Kansas City 6pm on FS Kansas City, FS Midwest across Iowa on Mediacom, & FS North
Seattle @ Boston 6pm on MLB Network
Chicago Cubs @ Arizona 7pm on Comcast SportsNet Chicago

NFL Draft: Rounds 4-7 10:58am on NFL Network & 11am on ESPN

NHL Playoffs:

Boston @ Philadelphia 2pm on NBC
Nashville @ Vancouver 8pm on VERSUS

Soccer:

English Premier League: Sunderland vs Fulham 8:55am on ESPN2
English Premier League: West Bromwich Albion vs Aston Villa 9am on Fox Soccer Channel
English Premier League: Chelsa vs Tottenham Hotspur 11:30am on Fox Soccer Channel
Italian Serie A: Napoli vs Genoa 1:30pm on Fox Soccer Channel

Track & Field: USA vs the World 7pm on ESPN2 (same day tape)

Disclaimer: All times are Central and blackouts are likely for regional MLB telecasts outside of Iowa.

NBA Playoff viewership is up 27% on ABC & up 23% on ESPN

Through the first couple of weeks of NBA Playoff action, ratings have been strong on ABC & ESPN.

According to a press release from ABC & ESPN, ratings for three televised NBA playoff games on ABC is up 27% from last year and over on ESPN, viewership through 7 televised NBA playoff games is up 23% from last year.

For a complete ratings breakdown on ABC & ESPN, please visit this site: http://sportsmedianews.com/04/nba-playoffs-viewership-up-27-percent-on-abc-23-percent-on-espn/javascript:void(0)

NBC Sports Group to present 14 hours worth of Kentucky Derby coverage

The NBC Sports Group coverage of "The Run For The Roses" begins this Wednesday on VERSUS and in total, the NBC Sports Group will have 14 hours worth of coverage.

According to a press release from NBC Sports, coverage will begin Wednesday at 3pm (CT) on VERSUS with a look back at some of the legendary horses that have competed in the Kentucky Derby. In addition, VERSUS will televise the Kentucky Derby Draw at 4pm (CT).

Coverage on Derby Day will begin at 10am (CT) on VERSUS and a total of eight hours worth of Derby Day coverage will be shown on VERSUS and NBC.

For a complete schedule of Kentucky Derby week programming, please click here: http://sportsmedianews.com/04/nbc-sports-group-presents-14-hours-of-kentucky-derby-coverage/

VERSUS has taken the first step to some sort of NBC sports rebrand

The marriage between Comcast & NBC and in particular, the upcoming rebrand of VERSUS to an NBC themed sports channel took another step today with VERSUS.com being shut down and visitors being redirected to NBCsports.com.

This is just another subtle change since Comcast took over NBC, some of the other changes when it comes to sports are:

*Incorporating the Golf Channel name and on-screen graphics into NBC Sports coverage of the PGA;

*Including a tagline on the Comcast Regional Sports Networks that reads "Comcast SportsNet Chicago, a part of the NBC sports family" or something like that;

*The Notre Dame Spring Game airing on VERSUS;

*and in the Bay area, Comcast SportsNet Bay Area has started or will soon start providing sports reports for the Bay Area NBC affiliate.

All of these subtle changes are leading up to an eventual overhaul of the VERSUS sports channel, including a new name which will include the NBC Sports brand.

TV Schedule, Friday April 29

College Baseball: Michigan @ Ohio St. 6pm on Big 10 Network

College Lacrosse:

Patriot League Tournament First Semi-final: Army vs Colgate 4pm on CBS Sports Network
Patriot League Tournament Second Semi-final: Bucknell vs Lehigh 6:45pm on CBS Sports Network

Cycling: Tour de Romandie 3pm on VERSUS (same day tape)

Golf:

European PGA Tour 8am on Golf Channel
LPGA Tour: Avnet LPGA Classic (Second Round) 11:30am on Golf Channel
PGA Tour: Zurch Classic (Second Round) 2pm on Golf Channel

MLB Baseball:

NY Mets @ Philadelphia 6pm on MLB Network (DirecTV Chanel 214)
St. Louis @ Atlanta 6:30pm on FS Midwest
Baltimore @ Chicago White Sox 7pm on Comcast SportsNet Chicago
Milwaukee @ Houston 7pm on FS Wisconsin
Minnesota @ Kansas City 7pm on FS Kansas City, FS North, & Mediacom Channel 22
Chicago Cubs @ Arizona 8:30pm on Comcast SportsNet Chicago+

NASCAR:

Nationwide Series: Bubba Burger 250 Final Practice 9:30am on Speed Channel
Sprint Cup Series: Matthew and Daniel Hansen 400 Practice 11am on Speed Channel
Sprint Cup Series: Matthew and Daniel Hansen 400 Final Practice 1:30pm on Speed Channel
Sprint Cup Series: Matthew and Daniel Hansen 400 Qualifying 3pm on Speed Channel
Nationwide Series: Bubba Burger 250 6:30pm on Speed Channel

NBA Playoffs:

San Antonio @ Memphis 8pm on ESPN

NFL Draft, Rounds 2-3 4:59pm on NFL Network, 5pm on ESPN, & 8pm on ESPN2

NHL Playoffs:

Tampa Bay @ Washington 6pm on VERSUS
Detroit @ San Jose 9pm on VERSUS

Soccer:

Miami Cup: Mexico vs United States 2:30pm on Fox Soccer Channel
Miami Cup: Brazil vs Spain 3:3pm on Fox Soccer Channel
MLS League: DC United @ Houston 7:30pm on Fox Soccer Channel

Disclaimer: All times are Central and blackouts are likely for regional MLB telecasts outside of Iowa.

TV Schedule, Thursday April 28

College Baseball:

Kentucky @ LSU 6:30pm on ESPN2

Cycling: Tour de Romandie 3pm on VERSUS (same day tape)

Golf:

European PGA Tour 8am on Golf Channel (same day tape)
LPGA Tour: Avnet LPGA Classic (First Round) 11:30am on Golf Channel
PGA Tour: Zurich Classic (First Round) 2pm on Golf Channel

MLB Baseball:

Tampa Bay @ Minnesota 12pm on FS North
Toronto @ Texas 1pm on MLB Network
Boston @ Baltimore 6pm on MLB Network
Chicago White Sox @ NY Yankees 6pm on Comcast SportsNet Chicago
Kansas City @ Cleveland 6pm on FS Kansas City & Mediacom Channel 22
St. Louis @ Houston 7pm on FS Midwest
Tampa Bay @ Minnesota 7pm on FS North
Chicago Cubs @ Arizona 8:30pm on WGN

NFL Draft, Round 1: 6:58pm on NFL Network & 7pm on ESPN

NBA Playoffs:

Orlando @ Atlanta 6:30pm on NBATV
LA Lakers @ New Orleans 7pm on TNT
Dallas @ Portland 9:30pm on TNT

NHL Playoffs:

Nashville @ Vancouver 8pm on VERSUS

Disclaimer: All times are Central and blackouts are likely for regional MLB telecasts outside of Iowa.

TV Schedule, Wednesday April 27

Bowling: USBC Queeesn 6pm on ESPN2

College Softball:

Indiana @ Illinois 4:30pm & 7pm on Big 10 Network
Oklahoma St. @ Oklahoma 7pm on Fox College Sports Central

Cycling: Tour de Romandie 3pm on VERSUS (same day tape)

Major League Baseball:

LA Dodgers @ Florida 11am on MLB Network
Colorado @ Chicago Cubs 1:20pm on Comcast SportsNet Chicago
Kansas City @ Cleveland 6pm on FS Kansas City & Mediacom Channel 22
Oakland @ LA Angels 6pm on ESPN
St. Louis @ Houston 7pm on FS Midwest
Tampa Bay @ Minnesota 7pm on FS North

NBA Playoffs:

Philadelphia @ Miami 6pm on TNT
Memphis @ San Antonio 7:30pm on NBATV
Denver @ Oklahoma City 8:30pm on TNT

NHL Playoffs:

Motreal @ Boston 6pm on VERSUS
Tampa @ Pittsburgh 8:30pm on VERSUS

Soccer:

Champions League: Barcelona @ Real Madrid 1:30pm on FX
CONCACAF: Real Salt Lake vs Montery 9pm on Fox Soccer Channel

Disclaimer: All times are Central and blackouts are likely for regional MLB telecasts outside of Iowa

ESPN announces it's NFL Draft Coverage

Draft week is here, the lockout is "over", but that's not stopping the NFL and the upcoming NFL draft.

ESPN has recently announced it's plans for coverage of the NFL Draft and as in previous years, the ESPN family of networks has the blanket coverage across all platforms.

According to a press release from ESPN, coverage of the opening round Thursday night actually begins Thursday afternoon at 2pm (CT) and continues throughout the afternoon with pre-draft coverage, including "red carpet interviews" as future NFL stars arrive for the draft.

For complete information on ESPN's coverage of the NFL Draft, as well as a full listing of special features, please click here: http://www.espnmediazone3.com/us/2011/04/25/espn-coverage-of-the-2011-nfl-draft/

TV Schedule, Tuesday April 26

College Baseball:

Georgia vs Georgia Tech 6pm on Fox College Sports Central
Louisville @ Kentucky 6pm on Fox College Sports Pacific
Kansas @ Creighton 6:30pm on NET* & CBS Sports Network

*Nebraska Public TV, available across most of Western Iowa

Cycling: Tour de Romandie 3pm on VERSUS (same day tape)

MLB Baseball:

Boston @ Baltimore 6pm on MLB Network (DirecTV Channel 214)
Chicago White Sox @ NY Yankees 6pm on Comcast SportsNet Chicago+
Kansas City @ Cleveland 6pm on FS Kansas City & Mediacom Channel 22
Cincinnati @ Milwaukee 7pm on FS Wisconsin
Colorado @ Chicago Cubs 7pm on WGN
St. Louis @ Houston 7pm on FS Midwest
Tampa Bay @ Minnesota 7pm on FS North
Atlanta @ San Diego 9pm on MLB Network

NBA Playoffs:

Atlanta @ Orlando 6:30pm on NBATV
Indiana @ Chicago 7pm on Comcast SportsNet Chicago & TNT
New Orleans @ LA Lakers 9:30pm on TNT

NHL Playoffs:

Buffalo @ Philadelphia 6:30pm on VERSUS
Teams Chicago @ Vancouver 9pm on VERSUS & JIP on Comcast SportsNet Chicago

UEFA Champions Soccer League: Schaike vs Manchester United 1:30pm on Fox Soccer Channel

Disclaimer: All times are Central and blackouts are likely for regional MLB telecasts outside of Iowa.

TV Schedule, Monday April 25

English Premier League Soccer: Blackburn vs Manchester City 1:55pm on ESPN2

MLB Baseball:

Chicago White Sox @ NY Yankees 6pm on ESPN (subject to blackout across Iowa on ESPN, but I think the "co-exist" will apply that will allow this game to be shown on ESPN across Iowa)
Cincinnati @ Milwaukee 7pm on FS Wisconsin
Colorado @ Chicago Cubs 7pm on Comcast SportsNet Chicago

Minor League Baseball: Lehigh Valley @ Buffalo 11am on MLB Network

NBA Playoffs:

San Antonio @ Memphis 7pm on TNT
Portland @ Dallas 7:30pm on NBATV
Oklahoma City @ Denver 9:30pm on TNT

NHL Playoffs:

Pittsburgh @ Tampa Bay 6pm on VERSUS
San Jose @ Los Angeles 9pm on VERSUS

Disclaimer: All times are Central and blackouts are likely for regional MLB telecasts outside of Iowa.