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The announcement was made today by Ken Owen, director of media relations at DePauw and Jim Amidon, director of public affairs and marketing at Wabash.
The game will be played at 1:00 p.m. (EST) on Saturday, November 15, 2003 at DePauw's Blackstock Stadium. The telecast will mark the game's first national network exposure since ESPN2 telecast of the 1994 Battle for the Bell. In the past, the game has been televised on ABC and has also been featured on CBS Sunday Morning, and has twice been featured in Sports Illustrated.
“We are pleased to bring the Monon Bell Classic to viewers everywhere in spectacular high definition,” said Mark Cuban, co-founder of HDNet. “As fans from both teams watch the game in HDTV, they will feel as if they are right there in the stadium.”
“This is an incredible opportunity to bring a great game and two nationally-recognized liberal arts colleges to a broad audience utilizing the best television technology that's ever been developed,” said Owen. “Our alumni and parents will be able to tune in the game easily, and a national audience will see, many for the first time, what a great rivalry this is and learn about the two schools, their rich traditions and their fine programs. Everyone will experience the game in 1080i HD, which I’d describe as film-like and awe-inspiring.”
“Just as HDNet is paving the way for the future of high definition television, the Monon Bell Classic is a showcase event in small college athletics,” said Amidon. “We're tremendously excited to be associated with HDNet and its cutting edge technology. Our hope is that the rest of the country will learn what those of us close to the rivalry have known for years—that the Monon Bell Classic is the best, most spirited rivalry in America.”
Heading into the 2003 contest, the all-time series between Wabash and DePauw is knotted at 50-50-9. The two teams first clashed on the gridiron in 1890 and have met every year since 1911.
HDNet is available on DIRECTV, DISH Network, Charter Communications, and several other cable providers. To receive the game in high definition format, you must have an HD-small dish and tuner, an HDTV, and you must be a subscriber to one of these providers’ HDTV service tiers.
Even if you don’t have high definition equipment, you can get in on the action. For more than a decade the two schools have worked together to stage alumni parties across the nation where graduates and friends of the colleges can gather to catch up with friends and cheer on their favorite team. Alumni telecast parties will again held in more than 40 states coast to coast.
“Nothing gets our spirits up like the Monon Bell Classic,” said Tom Runge, director of alumni affairs at Wabash. “For our alums across the country, getting together with alumni from DePauw is the next best thing to being at the game in person. This year, when state-of-the-art technology meets one of the most traditional sporting events in the NCAA, watching on TV will be almost like watching it live. We're all very excited.”
DePauw's director of alumni relations, Chris Wurster, agreed and added, “People who are interested in serving as coordinators of Monon Bell telecast parties can get in touch with us immediately and we can begin working with them to find sites in their cities that have HD technology. The numbers are growing every day, and if you've never seen an HDTV football broadcast before, you're in for a treat that may convert you to this new and breathtakingly clear format.”
HDNet features a variety of HDTV programming, including live sports, sitcoms, dramas, action series, documentaries, travel programs, music concerts and shows, special events, and news features, including the popular HDNet World Report—all in spectacular HDTV.
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