College Football on ABC
| ESPN College Football on ABC | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Also known as | 'College Football on ABC (1966–2006) |
| Genre | College football telecasts |
| Presented by |
Steve Levy Brian Griese Todd McShay Mike Patrick Ed Cunningham Dr. Jerry Punch Stan Verrett Mark May Mack Brown |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 46 |
| Production | |
| Location(s) | Various NCAA Division I football stadiums (game telecasts and halftime show) ESPN Center, Bristol, Connecticut (studio segments) |
| Camera setup | Multi-camera |
| Running time | 210 minutes or until game ends |
| Production company(s) |
ABC Sports (1950, 1966–2006) ESPN (2006–present) |
| Release | |
| Original network | ABC |
| Picture format |
480i (SDTV), 1080i (HDTV) |
| Original release |
|
| Chronology | |
| Related shows |
College Football Countdown Saturday Night Football |
ESPN College Football on ABC is the branding used for broadcasts of National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) college football games that are produced by ESPN, and televised on the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) in the United States. ABC first began broadcasting regular season college football games in 1950 and has aired them on an annual basis since 1966. The network has first pick of games from The American, Atlantic Coast, Big Ten, Big 12, and Pac-12 conferences. In addition, ESPN also produces a separate prime time regular-season game package for ABC, under the umbrella brand Saturday Night Football. (ESPN and ABC are both owned by The Walt Disney Company).
ABC has historically aired the premier games, since it has had contracts with all of the major NCAA football conferences at one time or another. Keith Jackson – whose his down-home, folksy style symbolized college football – served as its unofficial voice.
By 1950, a small number of prominent football schools, including the University of Pennsylvania (ABC) and the University of Notre Dame (DuMont Television Network) had entered into individual contracts with networks to broadcast their games on a regional basis. In fact, all of Penn's home games were broadcast on ABC during the 1950 season under a contract that paid the university $150,000. However, prior to the 1951 season, the NCAA – alarmed by reports that indicated television broadcasts had decreased attendance at games – asserted control and prohibited live game broadcasts. Although the NCAA successfully forced Penn and Notre Dame to break their contracts, the NCAA suffered withering attacks for its 1951 policy, faced threats of antitrust hearings and eventually caved in and lifted blackouts of certain sold-out games. Bowl games were always outside the control of the NCAA, and the 1952 Rose Bowl at the end of that season was the first truly national telecast of a college football game, on NBC.
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