University of Connecticut Huskies home football games will air exclusively on CBS Sports Network, beginning with a four-game slate in 2020.
The University of Connecticut Huskies football team might be independent, but the program announced on Monday that it’s latched on to a new television home.
Beginning next season, UConn’s home football games will be broadcast exclusively on CBS Sports Network, entering a four-year deal with the premium network. The deal begins with four home games during the potential 2020 season. It’ll then move to a full-time basis for the 2021, 2022, and 2023 campaigns.
“Adding UConn football to our already robust lineup of partners provides more high-quality football content for CBS Sports Network,” Dan Weinberg, CBS Sports Executive Vice President of Programming said in a statement. “We look forward to a long and successful relationship with UConn in the years ahead.”
The Huskies’ 2020 four-game slate includes matchups against Indiana (Sept. 26), Liberty (Oct. 31), Middle Tennessee (Nov. 21), and Army (Nov. 28).
“I am excited that we have been able to finalize this multi-year partnership with CBS Sports,” UConn athletic director David Benedict added in the same release. “CBS Sports is a tremendous brand for our football program to be associated with and I know UConn Nation will be pleased that it will be able to watch the Huskies compete against a compelling group of opponents on a nationally-distributed network.”
Connecticut plays its home games at Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field in Hartford. The team has shifted to independence for the second time in program history (previously doing so in 2000-03). Such a move was made after all other UConn athletics programs rejoined the Big East Conference, which no longer sanctions football competition. UConn previously partook in the American Athletic Conference with several other football remnants of the Big East.
The Huskies are far from the first team to seek exclusivity for their home games. Notably, fellow independent Notre Dame has seen its home games broadcast on NBC since 1991. CBS Sports Network also hosts Army home games from West Point.
Notable visitors to Hartford under the new deal include Purdue in 2021, Syracuse and Boston College in 2022, and North Carolina State in 2023.
Connecticut struggled in its final AAC seasons, winning only 10 total games the last four years combined. The Huskies’ last postseason appearance was a 2015 visit to the St. Petersburg Bowl at Tropicana Field. They’ve seen at least one player chosen in three of the past four NFL Drafts. For example, defensive tackle Folorunso Fatukasi was taken in 2018’s sixth round by the New York Jets. Offensive tackle Matt Peart, on the other hand, went to the New York Giants in last month’s third round.
Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags
