Connecticut Represented on Opening Day Baseball Rosters

As the 2013 major league baseball season gets underway, Connecticut is well represented in the major leagues, as it has been through the years.  The Nutmeg State has seen just under 200 natives called up to the big leagues since baseball record-keeping began. This year, seven players from Connecticut are expected to be on major league rosters, led by Matt Harvey of Groton and Fitch High School, who broke into the big leagues last July with the New York Mets at age 23, and will be in the starting rotation in 2013.   Among the others listed as active major leaguers by the Baseball Almanac:

• Craig Breslow, who attended Trumbull High School and Yale University, was 25 years old when he broke into the big leagues on July 23, 2005, with the San Diego Padres.  Now a pitcher with the Boston Red Sox, he’ll start the season with an extended spring training after a shoulder injury.
• Rajai Davis of Norwich was 25 years old when he broke into the big leagues on August 14, 2006, with the Pittsburgh Pirates.  He’s now the regular left fielder for the Toronto Blue Jays and hit .257 with 46 stolen basis last year.
• John McDonald of East Lyme was 24 years old when he broke into the big leagues on July 4, 1999, with the Cleveland Indians.  The veteran infielder was traded from the Arizona Diamondbacks to the Pirates a week before Opening Day 2013.
• A.J. Pollock of Hebron was 24 years old when he broke into the big leagues on April 18, 2012, with the Arizona Diamondbacks.  The Diamondbacks center fielder his .247 as a rookie last year.
• Chris Denorfia of Bristol was 24 years old when he broke into the big leagues on September 7, 2005, with the Cincinnati Reds.  Now the starting right fielder for the San Diego Padres, he hit .293 a year ago.
• Jared Hughes of Stamford was 26 years old when he broke into the big leagues on September 7, 2011, with the Pittsburgh Pirates.  With the Pirates last year, the right-handed pitcher was 2-2.

Looking to return to the major leagues:

• Andrew Carignan, who attended Norwich Free Academy, was 25 years old when he broke into the big leagues on September 2, 2011, with the Oakland Athletics.  The pitcher, called up to the A’s in 2011 and 2012, underwent Tommy John surgery in 2012.
• Jesse Carlson, who attended Berlin High School, was 27 years old when he broke into the big leagues on April 10, 2008, with the Toronto Blue Jays.  He was the team’s Rookie of the Year at the major league level, and after injuries was signed by the Red Sox, only to be released last year.

There may be more on the way.  Two years ago, UConn baseball stand-outs George Springer of New Britain and Matt Barnes of Bethel were selected in the first round of the MLB draft by the Houston Astros and Boston Red Sox, respectively and are working their way up through the minors.

Connecticut’s Jackie Robinson

Although not a Connecticut native, legendary ballplayer Jackie Robinson lived in Stamford for nearly 20 years, having moved to the community while a member of the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1954.  Robinson, known world-wide for breaking the color barrier in major league baseball in 1947, died of a heart attack in 1972, at age 53. 

Stamford has a public park named in his honor, recalling that Robinson represented tolerance, educational opportunity, and the confidence that inspires personal achievement and success. A life-size bronze statue of Jackie Robinson with an engraved base bearing the words “COURAGE,” “CONFIDENCE,” AND “PERSEVERANCE” stands in the park located on West Main Street, the gateway to downtown Stamford.

Robinson, a member of baseball’s Hall of Fame, will be the subject of a new major motion picture, “42,” which premieres on April 12 in theaters around the country.  In 1997, Major League Baseball "universally" retired his uniform number, 42, across all major league teams; he was the first pro athlete in any sport to be so honored. Initiated for the first time on April 15, 2004, Major League Baseball has adopted a new annual tradition, "Jackie Robinson Day," in which all players on all teams wear #42.

All Star Season?

Does Opening Day set the tone for an entire season? Not so much. The record for most consecutive Opening Day wins by a team is nine, shared by the St. Louis Browns, Cincinnati Reds and New York Mets, according to Baseball Almanac.  Of particular note this year, the 2013 Major League Baseball All-Star Game is scheduled to be played on July 16, 2013, at Citi Field, the relatively new home of the Mets.

Pilot Proposed to Track High School Sports Injuries; Prospects in Doubt

Even with increased attention of late on the prevalence of concussions in youth sports, the Connecticut Athletic Trainers Association (CATA) says there is no reliable sports-related injury data compiled by secondary schools across Connecticut – for concussions or other injuries. They’d like to change that, and are urging legislators to  The goal is to “make recommendations to decrease the number” of injuries, and to quantify the need for appropriate medical coverage for secondary school student-athletes.

The proposal is opposed by the state Department of Public Health (DPH), citing a lack of funding for such a pilot.  In testimony earlier this month for the legislature’s Public Health Committee, Commissioner Jewel Mullen said “DPH does not have resources to conduct a pilot program solely for the purpose of studying injury rates in school athletic programs.”

She went on to offer that “the DPH can assist in providing support to statewide injury prevention initiatives that would address systems and environmental change to prevent injuries and disabilities to Connecticut residents.”

The department’s Office of Injury Prevention (OIP) “ceased to exist” in August 2010, after 17 years, when it was unsuccessful in obtaining federal funds from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).  A five-year grant from CDC, which had supported operations of the OIP, expired in 2010.

The new pilot program being proposed by CATA and a coalition of statewide organizations would:

• Collect injury data from 20 schools over a 2-year period
• Identify injury rates, patterns and trends among high school sports participants in CT
• Assist with the development of evidence-based interventions to improve the health and safety of participants by lowering the number and/or severity of injuries and illnesses
• Provide evidence that may drive rule or policy change to ensure athlete safety
• Quantify the need for appropriate medical coverage for secondary school student –athletes

Thomas H. Trojian, Sports Medicine Fellowship Director at the UConn Health Center and a member of the Connecticut Concussion Task Force, described the plan as “vital to the health and safety of the children of the state of Connecticut.”  He told the committee that “due to the lack of a data collecting process, both physicians and those involved in these sports at a regulatory level cannot make fully educated decisions regarding interventions or rule changes to protect the health and safety of our student athletes in Connecticut.”

A multi-disciplinary group has begun collaborating, and supports the initiative.  Included are the Connecticut Athletic Trainer’s Association, Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference, Connecticut State Medical Society, Connecticut Children’s Medical Center and University of Connecticut School of Medicine.

Nationally, there are 30 million high school students participating in organized sports, with more than 2 million sports-related injuries each year.  The Connecticut State Medical Society said the pilot program proposed in Connecticut is “the appropriate first step by putting in place the appropriate entities to study and report on incidence of injuries and concussions at the high school level.”  The organization added that “it has been estimated that up to 50% of injuries may be preventable or at least have the long-term consequences lessened if tracking and reporting occurred.”

In her testimony, Mullen noted that “unintentional injuries cause 25% of all deaths among Connecticut children 1 to 14 years of age and approximately half of all deaths among young persons between the ages of 15 to 24 year.”

Connecticut athletic trainers are licensed health care professionals who collaborate with physicians to optimize activity and participation of patients and clients.  Athletic training encompasses the prevention, assessment and intervention of emergency, acute and chronic medical conditions involving impairment, functional limitation and disabilities.

The National Athletic Trainers’ Association has formed a Youth Sports Safety Alliance, with more than 100 health care and sports organizations and parent activities involved.  Their goal:  to make America’s sports programs safer for young athletes.

The organization has developed a “Secondary School Student Athletes’ Bill of Rights,” and urges schools to adopt safety measures to protect students from injury or illness, particularly cardiac events, neurological injuries, environmentally-induced conditions and dietary/substance-induced conditions.

Quinnipiac Skates to New Heights; Games Over for MCC

While one is flying high, the other is grounded.  That’s the world of difference now facing student-athletes at two Connecticut higher ed institutions.  Quinnipiac University’s hockey team is ranked number one in the nation, the first time that’s happened for a team from the Hamden school.  Over at Manchester Community College, officials have announced plans to eliminate all sports at the school, due to budgetary cutbacks, abruptly ending the collegiate sports careers – and possibly the college attendance – for student athletes in soccer and basketball.  Baseball was eliminated earlier this decade. Quinnipiac was just voted atop the USCHO.com poll on Monday for the fourth successive week, according to The New Haven Register.  The USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll consists of 50 voters, including 28 coaches from the Division I conferences and 22 beat writers and sports professionals from across the country.

The Bobcats (24-5-5) received 36 of 50 first-place votes to keep them ahead of No. 2 Minnesota, which had 12 first-place votes. The nationally-ranked No. 1 Quinnipiac team defeated No. 18 Dartmouth, 4-1, in its final regular-season game of the 2012-13 season. Quinnipiac improves to 24-5-5 overall and will finish the ECAC Hockey regular season at 17-2-3. The Bobcats were 11-0-0 against ranked opponents for the year.

In Manchester, college President Gena Glickman told The Hartford Courant that the athletic program costs the school about $370,000 - at a time when hard decisions and cuts need to be made.  While announcing plans to eliminate the sports program, she acknowledged that some students who would otherwise not attend college do so because of the athletic opportunities, and have a high rate of academic success, with many continuing on with their education after earning their Associate’s degree.

Men's soccer coach Darren Foster said that he would not be where he is now without having attended Manchester CC, after his military service in Afghanistan. Athletic director Cynthia Washburne attended MCC for a semester in 1981 before going on to play softball at Eastern.

No word on whether the funds can be located – or donated from an outside benefactor – to reverse the decision and keep the programs alive at MCC for at least another year.  Such a rescue appears unlikely.  Of Connecticut's 12 community colleges, only New Haven's Gateway Community College is slated to offer sports next year, even though education officials acknowledge that athletics is a way in to higher education for some students - students who might not otherwise pursue college.  .

After winning its first Cleary Cup, for the ECAC Hockey Regular-Season Championship, two weeks ago, Quinnipiac earned the top seed and a first-round bye in the ECAC Hockey Tournament. The Bobcats will host an ECAC Hockey Tournament Quarterfinals series on Mar. 15-17.

The thinner ice, it turns out,  is in Manchester.  In Hamden, there’s solid ground.

Concussion Dangers Continue to Resonate in High School Sports

Nearly 450 Idaho prep athletes who competed last fall in football, soccer and volleyball were held out of games or missed practice because of confirmed or potential concussions, according to a new survey reported by the Associated Press. The survey was conducted by the Boise-based Idaho High School Activities Association, the governing body for all prep sports and high schools statewide. The survey was sent to all schools, but data compiled in the findings are based on responses from just 45 percent, or 68, schools from all competitive class levels.

Football was by far the leading sport for missed games or practices, with 307 football players missing action during the season last fall, according to a story published Friday in the Idaho Statesman. Girls soccer ranked second, followed by boys soccer and volleyball.

A recent study in Massachusetts found that 28 percent of high school athletes in the state have shown regression in their cognitive abilities after moderate exertion once returning to the playing field too soon following a concussion. The study highlighted that high school student-athletes who have suffered concussions are returning to the playing field before their brain has fully recovered.

The study, conducted by neuropsychologist Neal McGrath of Brookline, Mass., looked at 54 athletes in football, soccer and hockey who suffered head injuries. McGrath told the Boston Globe that the findings suggest more oversight is needed in regard to when athletes can return to the field following a concussion. The study is schedule to be published in the upcoming issue of Brain Injury.

The findings come on the heels of the Boston Globe’s findings last October that almost 3,000 students in Massachusetts schools suffered concussions while playing sports during the 2011-12 school year.

Connecticut was one of the first states in the nation to adopt a concussion law,

following Oregon and Washington, which implemented similar statutes in 2009. Connecticut's concussion law was signed by Gov. M. Jodi Rell on May 19, 2010 and became effective July 1, 2010. The law is in place to prevent student-athletes from participating in games after suffering head injuries.  Main provisions include:

• All coaches holding a coaching permit issued by the State Board of Education are required to take a three-hour concussion training course

• Annually, coaches are expected to review new information provided by the State Board of Education

• Every five years after the initial training, coaches must complete a refresher course

• Any athlete who exhibits signs or symptoms of a concussion must be removed from play

• Athletes will not be permitted to return to play until they have received written medical clearance from a qualified medical provider

• Coaching permits may be revoked if coaches are in violation of these provisions

Connecticut state law requires all coaches to take a concussion management course prior to the start of their season.

The web site Masters in Health Care has prepared an extensive infographic with nationwide data highlighting the prevalence of concussions and symptoms to keep a watchful eye for.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has developed a web page with information about concussions and injury prevention.  Heads Up: Concussion in Youth Sports is a free, online course available to coaches, parents, and others helping to keep athletes safe from concussion.

It features interviews with leading experts, dynamic graphics and interactive exercises, and compelling storytelling to help recognize a concussion and know how to respond.

Connecticut as College Soccer Hotbed?

Connecticut is well known for its fans devotion to college basketball, but apparently college soccer in the Nutmeg State is gaining some notice as well.  The University of Connecticut finished the 2012 with the second highest average attendance in the nation, with 4,228 fans per game.  That’s just behind UC Santa Barbara, which finished first for the sixth consecutive season, with an average of 5,543 fans per game. Now comes word that the University of Hartford men's soccer team has developed notice in the Greater Hartford soccer community, and it shows in the NCAA's final attendance rankings for the 2012 season. In their seven home games, the Hawks drew an average of 998 fans per game to Al-Marzook Field at Alumni Stadium, which ranked 27th best in Division I men's soccer.  (Season total attendance was 6,985.)

The Hawks drew more fans to their games in 2012 than any other team in the America East. Part of the reason for Hartford's high attendance numbers in 2012 is attributed to support from the Red Army, a student fan group.

In 2011, the University of Hartford’s average game attendance did not reach the top 50 nationally.  UConn was #4 in 2011, averaging 3,600.  College sports historians will recall that UConn was #1 in 2000, 2002, and 2006, the last time any university has outpaced UC Santa Barbara in average game attendance.

Highlighting the Hawks' home slate was their 2012 debut at Alumni Stadium, a thrilling 2-1 overtime victory over neighboring rival Central Connecticut State University on Labor Day. Junior Anthony Santaga, who was later named to the America East All-Conference Second Team, scored both UH goals, including the game-winner 147 seconds into the extra period.  The 1,504 spectators who packed themselves in to Alumni Stadium proved to be a record-breaking crowd for the Hartford's men's soccer program.

In case you’re wondering, Maryland (3,153) Akron (2,778) and Cal Poly (2,709) rounded out the top-five in average game attendance during the2012 season.

Norwich Will Host New York-Penn. League All-Star Game in August

A cold winter’s week is the perfect time to think ahead to baseball season.  And if thinking ahead is attractive, there’s nothing better than seeing future major league stars in action on the diamond.  The Norwich Tigers will make that possibility more accessible this year when they host the 2013 New York-Penn League All-Star Celebration. The 2013 New York-Penn League All-Star Game will take place on Tues. August 13 at 7:35 p.m. at Dodd Stadium in Norwich.

The All-Star Celebration logo honors the community's rich maritime history and it's affiliation with the American League Champion Detroit Tigers. Maritime flags, an anchor and a dock rope make up the nautical logo, combined with classic Tigers old English lettering.

"We're thrilled to be hosting this game," said Vice President/General Manager C.J. Knudsen. "It's a great tribute to our fan base and exciting for all baseball fans throughout the state of Connecticut."

Tickets - now on sale - for the All-Star Celebration Game are the same as the 2013 single game ticket prices: $10.00 for premium seat tickets, $9.00 for reserved seat tickets and $8.00 for grandstand seat tickets.  They can be purchased  online at www.cttigers.com and at the ticket office at Dodd Stadium.

The 2013 Connecticut Tigers schedule is now available online at cttigers.com and features six Friday fireworks games in addition to five Saturday promotional giveaways. The 2013 season begins on Monday, June 17 against the Lowell Spinners, the NYPL affiliate of the Boston Red Sox, at 7:05 p.m. at Dodd Stadium with fireworks after the game.

In 2012, the Connecticut Tigers ranked #182 in average attendance among all minor league and independent teams, with 1,660 fans per game.  The independent Bridgeport Bluefish were #162, with an average of 2,033 fans attending games, and the Triple-A New Britain Rock Cats were #47 with average home attendance of 5,061.  The top minor league team in the nation was in Lehigh, PA where the Lehigh Valley IronPigs drew 9,153 per game.

The All-Star logo was brought to life at Brandiose in San Diego, where the company generated top selling logos for teams ranging from the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs to America's oldest baseball club, the Cincinnati Reds. T-shirts featuring the All-Star Celebration logo will also be available through the Tigers' official website.

The Connecticut Tigers are the NYPL affiliate of the Detroit Tigers and play a 76 game (38 home, 38 away) schedule from late June through early September.  The Dodd Stadium Box Office is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Fans that want to purchase tickets may call the Tigers at (860) 887-7962, visit the box office or log on to www.cttigers.com.   Play ball!  (Well, not quite yet.)

Newington Arena Hosts Nation's First Adult Sled Hockey League

Most of us are unfamiliar with sled hockey, but the sport received major attention recently in The New York Times, which focused on - of all places - Newington, Conn., which hosts the Northeast Sled Hockey League (NESHL) monthly at the Newington Arena.  It is the first-ever organized, multi-state, adult sled hockey league in the U.S, with teams representing Connecticut, New Hampshire, New York, New Jersey, Western Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania. Sled hockey, also known as sledge hockey, is a fast, exciting, rough-and-tumble version of ice hockey played primarily by people with lower limb mobility impairments. The game is essentially the same as “stand-up” ice hockey, the major difference being that the players use a sled with two hockey skate blades mounted under a seat.

A full slate of action is scheduled for Sunday, January 6 at the Newington Arena, with all the teams in town to play six back-to-back games set to begin at 10 AM and run through early afternoon.  The teams will all be back in Newington again for a full slate on February 10.  Connecticut's team, the Wolfpack, is 1-0-1 on the season, in second place.

No strikes, no lockouts, no labor disputes in this league.  Just hard work and hockey.

The Times story highlighted Sara Tabor, 31, “in her rookie season with a sled-hockey team sponsored, in part, by the NHL’s Rangers, which explains why players wear red, white and blue sweaters.”  The Times reported that “Tabor was partly paralyzed when she fell in a shower in Germany four years ago.”

Each team in the NESHL plays eight regular-season games and there are also playoff games. A 45-minute game is played on a standard rink. Players strap themselves into seated sleds with two skates mounted on the bottom, one at the front, one under the seat. They propel themselves with two half-hockey sticks in a fashion similar to cross-country skiers.  The stick blades are less curved than those on standard ice-hockey sticks, and the elbows of the sticks are straighter than those on ice-hockey sticks, in part because the players are lower to the ice.

Two years ago, the Hartford Courant ran a story on the league featuring Eric Veilleux, then 27. Veilleux lost a leg in a construction accident in 2006, which he said sent him into a dive. His old friends said they'd stay in touch, but seemed to fade away, the Courant reported.  Playing with the sled hockey’s Wolfpack “has brought him out of his shell, given him a chance to get some aggression out and make new friends, whom he now considers a second family,” Veilleux told the Courant. "I was depressed before I got into sports," Veilleux said. "It's basically brought me back to life."  In 2013, Veilleux is now the second highest rated goaltender in the league.

Practices for the Connecticut team are held at Loomis Chaffee School and Westminster School.  Volunteers to support and assist the CT Wolfpack are welcome.

There is a US National Sled Hockey team, which competes in the US Paralympics, and has included members of the Connecticut team and others from throughout the NESHL.  According to the league website, "these players have competed at the highest level reinforcing our commitment to provide an environment where our athletes can mature and realize their full potential, both on and off the ice."

Travelers Championship Selected for Three PGA TOUR Awards

If you thought the Travelers Championship did a superb job during last year’s tournament in accommodating fans, involving players and utilizing its name sponsor, you’d be right on all counts.  The PGA TOUR has honored the Travelers Championship with three of its "Best of" Awards for "Most Fan Friendly Event,"  "Best Use of Players" and "Best Title Sponsor Integration" for the 2012 tournament, held at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell. "On behalf of the PGA TOUR, I am pleased to acknowledge and congratulate the outstanding job and special recognition the Travelers Championship has received for its efforts," said Andy Pazder, PGA TOUR executive vice-president and chief of operations. "The tournament should be extremely proud for being recognized as the best among their peers on the TOUR." The awards were presented this month, after a selection process by PGA TOUR officials and tournament directors from around the country.

In the area of "Most Fan Friendly Event," the Travelers Championship has continually improved its SUBWAY® Fan Zone for fans of all ages, which includes a kid's area, concert stage, Travelers Chipping Challenge and a host of other activities. In addition:

• The tournament builds fan awareness through the BlumShapiro 5K race, held two weeks prior to the tournament.
• During tournament week, fan enhancements include Military Appreciation presented by Saint Francis Care, Farmington Bank Fan and Family Day, Golf Digest Junior Pro-Am, Women's Day presented by Travelers, Powerstation Events Concert Series, Travelers Championship Challenge online game, the Travelers "Call the Shots" Twitter contest, as well as daily giveaways to fans through the tournament's social media channels.
• The Travelers Championship also offers a number of affordable ticket packages and promotions in conjunction with area charities, on-site parking for the majority of fans, an ambassador program, free water and sunscreen, lockers for fans, Travelers-branded tote bags, welcome station and a prize patrol.

For "Best Use of Players," the Travelers Championship created eight events with 14 players that involved charity, fans, sponsors and volunteers.

• The tournament hosted defending champion Fredrik Jacobson for a media day where he participated in a networking breakfast with 150 area business leaders and a Q&A with ESPN's Chris Berman.
• On Monday during tournament week, the Travelers Championship brought Masters Champion Bubba Watson to Citi Field in New York City to throw the first pitch and help promote tournament week to fans in the New York market.
• To build relationships with the future stars of the PGA TOUR, the tournament also gave sponsor's exemptions to young, up-and-coming players like Ryo Ishikawa, Patrick Cantlay, Kelly Kraft, Bryden Macpherson and Patrick Rodgers. The previous week's U.S. Open winner Webb Simpson kept his commitment to the Travelers Championship, due in part to the fact that he received a sponsor exemption in 2008.

For the "Best Title Sponsor Integration" award, there were a number of activities throughout the year.

• With Japan's Ryo Ishikawa competing at the Travelers Championship, the title sponsor provided cultural training for employee volunteers and tournament staff, offered Asian-inspired cuisine for the media in attendance and printed tournament staff business cards in English and Japanese.
• The title sponsor and tournament worked on an integrated marketing plan with Travelers tagging national ads with broadcast tune-in information and supplementing tournament buys with additional media spends in outlying markets.
• Travelers also held a Travelers Championship Employee Day prior to the tournament in dozens of field offices across the U.S. and internationally, which included a number of golf-related activities. Travelers Championship Employee Day generated 90,000 views on the company's internal website, raised $34,000 for Birdies for Charity, generated $17,000 in ticket sales and recruited a company-record 1,252 employee volunteers.

"We are so fortunate to have Travelers as our title sponsor since 2007. Their commitment to making the tournament better each year has made the difference in the popularity of our event," said Nathan Grube, Travelers Championship tournament director. "We are thrilled to receive recognition in these categories, because it represents how much this tournament means to our title sponsor and the community that supports the Travelers Championship every year."

The 2013 Travelers Championship will be held June 17-23.

How one man's idea became the world-wide leader in sports broadcasting

ESPN Founder Bill Rasmussen addressed students at the University of Connecticut last week, and  in a Forbes magazine article recalls how it all began, highlighting a series of marvelous, insightful and often-ironic anecdotes, as well as some sit-up-and-take-notice numbers:

• “A salesman once told me that every sale starts with a ‘no.’ We knew we were going to be really be big because we got lots of ‘no’s’ in the beginning. Now there are over six U.S. networks and 46 international networks that have grown from the original ESPN.”
• “I met with the man from RCA along with my son, Scott. He told us all about what satellite packages were available, including a 24-hour package that no one had ever bought. When Scott went over the pricing structure, he realized the 24-hour package was the best option. Of course, we didn’t have any money, but I called the man from RCA the next day and said, ‘We’ll take one of those things.’ ‘One of what things,’ he asked. ‘One of those 24 hour things.’”
• “When we first went out to meet with the cable systems around the country, we asked them to pay the ridiculously exorbitant $.01 (cents) per day per subscriber -– a cost of $.30 (cents) per month -– triple that of Ted Turner‘s already established SuperStation WTBS. They practically laughed us out of the meetings.”
• “We ended up costing cable systems 2.4 cents per subscriber per month – and when the word started to get out, especially during the 1980 NCAA Basketball tournament, we had cable systems calling us trying to get on board. Now ESPN charges $5.13 per subscriber per month and has over 100 million households in the U.S. alone.”
• “NBC had the national TV contract back then, but only aired the Final Four and some regional tournament games, a handful of contests in all. I told Mr. Byers (NCAA President), ‘We want to do every single game you haven’t committed to the (major) networks.’ He said, ‘Every single one?’ I said yes.”
• “We (Bill and Scott Rasmussen) were in traffic on I-84 in Connecticut, it was sweltering hot, and we had all the windows rolled down. And we were trying to come up with ideas to fill 8,760 hours a year of television programming. We had been talking back and forth for a while, until Scott finally said something like, ‘Play football all day, for all I care.’ And suddenly, the ideas started coming fast and furious during that car ride, we came up with the idea for ‘Sports Center.’”

And how did it all begin?  “In 1978, I was working as the Communications Director of the New England Whalers of the World Hockey Association, and when the Whalers didn’t make the 1978 WHA playoffs, most of the front office staff – including me – were fired.”  So, Rasmussen began working on an idea he had to telecast Connecticut college sports – somehow- and provide more than the traditional three-minutes on the evening local news that were traditionally devoted to sports.  Needless to say, one thing led to another, and the quickly incorporated E.S.P. Network soon evolved into ESPN, among the most recognizable sports broadcasting brands in the world.

Build It and They Will Come (or Stay); Sports Broadcasting Grows in CT

Fiscal incentives offered by the State of Connecticut are propelling the sports broadcasting to a critical mass in Connecticut. led by veteran ESPN in Bristol but increasingly joined by fledgling and long-established companies taking advantage of the tax breaks and taking root across the state.  The Connecticut Post is reporting:

• Back9Network received an aid package that includes a 10-year, $750,000 loan at 1 percent interest, a five-year, $250,000 job-creation loan at 2 percent interest, and a $100,000 matching grant.  Facilities will be built in downtown Hartford.  (It also can take advantage of state laws set up to help bring media and film companies here that include a 30 percent tax credit for expenditures made in Connecticut.)
• ESPN and NBC Sports last year were given deals as part of Gov. Dannel P. Malloy's "First Five" program, set up for the first businesses to agree to create 200 jobs over two years or invest $25 million in Connecticut and create 200 jobs over five years.  NBC Sports' package includes tax incentives and a $20 million low-interest loan.
• ESPN, which last year announced plans to build a second digital center in Bristol, received at 10-year, $17.5 million loan, up to $1.2 million in job-training grants, and up to $6 million in tax exemptions on capital equipment and construction materials for that expansion.

The YES Network, the #1 Regional Sports Network in the country, has had production facilities based in Stamford for a decade, and ESPN took root in Bristol in 1979.