Southland TV to Televise McNeese State at Central Arkansas
FRISCO, Texas - The new purple and gray striped field at First
Security Field at Estes Stadium in Conway, Ark., will make its television debut
Saturday when Central Arkansas welcomes McNeese State in the Toyota Game of the
Week on the Southland Conference Television Network. Network coverage beings at
3 p.m., Central, with kickoff scheduled just five minutes later.
While the Bears
have already played two games on the new playing surface, which was installed
during the summer, this will mark the first televised game home game for
Central Arkansas this season. The field alternates purple and gray every five
yards except for the 10 yards at midfield, which is gray to feature the UCA
logo. The end zones are black with white lettering. Central Arkansas, which has
a 3-3 overall record to go with a 2-1 mark in conference play, is 2-0 on its
new field. The Bears are 32-8 at home during the last seven years.
Central Arkansas
is averaging 31.5 points and 395.2 yards per game this season. The Bears rank
third in the Southland and 15th nationally with 283.3 passing yards per game
thanks to quarterback Nathan Dick, who has the conference's third best pass
efficiency rating at 158.30, which ranks 11th nationally. He has completed 67.5
percent of his passes (108 of 160) for 1,330 yards and 12 touchdowns despite
missing one game this season. His 266.0 yards per game ranks second among
Southland quarterbacks. Receivers Jesse Grandy and Dominique Croom each have
reeled in four touchdown passes. Grandy leads the team with receptions for an
average 78.5 yards per game and 17.4 yards per catch. Seven different receivers
have a touchdown reception. Jackie Hinton is the leading ground gainer. He is
averaging 73.0 yards per game and 5.0 yards per carry on 58 attempts in four
games.
McNeese State
has yet to lose a conference game and is 2-0 in league play to go with a 3-2
overall record. The Cowboys are 1-1 on the road this season. The win came two
weeks ago at Northwestern State, while the loss came in the season opener at
Kansas. McNeese is averaging 27.4 points and 387.8 yards per game on offense,
mostly through the air. The Cowboys pass for an average of 225.8 yards per game
on the arm of quarterback Cody Stroud, who has completed 85 of 133 passes (63.9
percent) for 951 yards and five touchdowns. Darius Carey is the team's leading
receiver with 26 catches for 317 yards and two scores. Andre Anderson and
Marcus Wiltz have combined to score seven of the Cowboys' eight rushing
touchdowns. McNeese leads the conference and ranks eighth in the nation in punt
returns thanks to a 16.4 yard average per return.
This will be the
sixth meeting between McNeese State and Central Arkansas. The Bears won 28-24 last
year in Conway on the final day of the regular season to keep the Cowboys from
sharing the league title with Stephen F. Austin. The teams had played the "Red
Beans and Rice Bowl" on the final Saturday of the season each of the last four
years. UCA has won both meetings in the series played in Conway.
Randy McIlvoy, sports director at KPRC-TV in
Houston, will handle football play-by-play duties and will be joined in the
booth by color analyst Shea Walker, a former Texas A&M standout and veteran
broadcaster for the last 17 years. Jane Slater, a reporter for
WFAA-TV and KRLD-AM in Dallas, will serve as the sideline reporter.
As one of the nation's most innovative broadcast
opportunities, the Southland TV Network became a reality in 2008 and has
broadcast nearly 100 events during three-plus years. The network has earned a
College Sports Media Award (2009) and an honorable mention (2010) at the
College Sports Video Summit as well as four prestigious Telly Awards. The
network will deliver programming this fall to over 20 markets, expanding its
reach to a potential 10 million television households.
This list of Texas markets includes Abilene-Sweetwater
on KTXS (12.3); Amarillo on KCPN (19.2); Austin on Time Warner (77); Beaumont-Port
Arthur on KUIL (12.3); Corpus Christi on KIII (3.2); Dallas-Fort Worth on WFAA
(8.3); Houston on KUBE (57.1); Lubbock on KMYL (22.2); Midland-Odessa on KWWT
(30.2); Rio Grande Valley on KRGV (5.3); San Antonio on KCWX (2.1);
Tyler-Longview-Lufkin-Nacogdoches on KYTX (19.2); and, Waco-Temple-Bryan on
KCEN (6.2). The list of Louisiana markets includes Baton Rouge on WBTR (41);
Hammond on WSTY (23); Lafayette on KLWB (50.1), Lake Charles on KVHP (29.2);
Morgan City-Houma on KWBJ (22); and, Shreveport-Texarkana on KPXJ (21.1). The
network reaches the Little Rock-Pine Bluff, Arkansas, market on KARZ (42.1). The
list of affiliates will vary week to week, so check Southland.org/television for the
carriage list prior to each game.
All Southland TV games will be streamed live and for free
on SLC NOW on conference's website, Southland.org. This week's game will also
be carried live on ESPN3 at WatchESPN.com and on the WatchESPN application for
iPhone, iPad and Android users.
The
game will re-air nationally on Fox College Sports Central, Sunday at 5 p.m.,
Central. Two stations will air the game on a tape-delayed basis: KTXW (8.2) in
Laredo, Texas, and The Comcast Network in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Check the
listings below for specific dates and times.
Southland TV Network Affiliate List for
McNeese State at Central Arkansas
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LIVE COVERAGE
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Texas
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Abilene-Sweetwater
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KTXS
12.3 (This TV)
|
|
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Amarillo
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KCPN
19.2 (MyNetwork)
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|
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Austin
|
Time
Warner 77
|
|
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Beaumont-Port
Arthur
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KUIL
12.3 (MYTX/MyNetwork)
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Corpus
Christi
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KIII
3.2 (MYTX/MeTV)
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Dallas-Fort
Worth
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WFAA
8.3 (Live Well Network)
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Houston
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KUBE
57.1
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Laredo
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KTXW
8.2 (CW)
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Lubbock
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KMYL
22.2 (MyNetwork)
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Midland-Odessa
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KWWT
30.2 (Retro TV)
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Rio
Grande Valley
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KRGV
5.3 (Retro TV)
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|
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San
Antonio
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KCWX
2.1 (MyNetwork)
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|
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Tyler-Longview
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KYTX
19.2 (MYTX/Retro TV)
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Waco-Temple-Bryan
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KCEN
6.2 (MYTX/This TV)
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|
| |
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Arkansas
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Little
Rock-Pine Bluff
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KARZ
42.1 (MyNetwork)
|
|
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Texarkana
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KPXJ
21.1 (CW)
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|
| |
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Louisiana
|
|
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Baton
Rouge
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WBTR
41
|
|
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Hammond
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WSTY
23 (My Family TV)
|
|
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Lafayette
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KLWB
50.1 (MeTV)
|
|
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Lake
Charles
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KVHP
29.2 (CW)
|
|
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Morgan
City-Houma
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KWBJ
22
|
|
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Shreveport
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KPXJ
21.1 (CW)
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| |
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Online
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SLC
NOW
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Southland.org
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ESPN3
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WatchESPN.com
|
|
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iPhone/iPad/Android
|
WatchESPN
app
|
|
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TAPE-DELAYED
COVERAGE
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National
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Fox
College Sports Central
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5
p.m., CT, Sunday
|
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Laredo, Texas
|
KTXW
8.2 (CW)
|
1
a.m., CT, Sunday
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Pittsburgh, Pa.
|
The
Comcast Network
|
6
p.m., CT, Saturday
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