More fans around the country will soon be able to watch and cheer on Iona College sports teams as they walk to class, work at their desk or lounge in their living room.
The school announced Wednesday that it has reached a partnership with ESPN to broadcast its athletic events live beginning next month on the ESPN3 and WatchESPN mobile streaming platforms.
The school’s men’s and women’s basketball games will be available on the online platforms beginning in February, and women’s lacrosse will follow in the spring. More sports are expected to be added in the fall.
Both professionals as well as students under the direction of Iona’s College Athletics Communications staff will be responsible for the production and the hosting of the broadcasts, which will include ESPN graphics and replay capability. Iona College students will produce pregame, halftime and post-game feature pieces, commercials, highlights and interviews.
Officials said the school is assembling a portable production and editing studio with state-of-the art equipment that will be available for the 10-to-15 person crew needed to produce live event broadcasts.
Iona College President Joseph E. Nyre said the partnership is beneficial for the school on multiple levels.
“Our teams merit the additional exposure, but just as valuable is the opportunity for students to get hands-on professional broadcast experience at the highest levels,” he said. “This is great news.”
In a statement released Wednesday, school officials said the partnership with ESPN not only brings the school increased exposure, but also allows for the future production of events outside of athletics.
“The real-world, experiential-learning opportunities for Iona students will help build credentials for internships and post- and pre-graduate employment,” officials said.
ESPN3, the company’s multi-screen sports network, is available online at WatchESPN.com, through the WatchESPN app and streamed on televisions through Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Chromecast and other devices. ESPN, headquartered in Bristol, Conn., estimated it is available to more than 99 million homes with high-speed Internet as well as 21 million U.S. college students. The WatchESPN app allows users to stream the company’s various channels on portable devices.
Iona currently broadcasts live coverage of its sporting events on its own online platform, Iona Insider, which was launched seven years ago.
Iona, which competes in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, becomes the conference’s fifth school to partner with ESPN, joining Fairfield University, Monmouth University, Siena College and Canisius College.
Iona College has 21 varsity athletic programs and competes at the NCAA Division I level.
