Saturday's Brown-Rhode Island game is the 108th rendition of the storied Ocean State rivalry. It is also the first aired on Providence's new MeTV affiliate. The game is part of a three-year contract between the University of Rhode Island and the local Providence affiliate of the antenna station that specializes in reruns of TV shows ranging from the 1950s up to the 1990s that began this year. The deal kicked off with the Rams' home opener against Holy Cross.
MeTV may be the strangest broadcast partner in Division I, but the arrangement benefits local fans and the Rhode Island program. Rhode Island previously did not have a linear TV partner, forcing most local fans to pay FloSports' $30 subscriber fee. Now, local fans only require an antenna to view Rhode Island football.
While local viewers can see two of Rhode Island’s Division I programs square off on Saturday, the other FCS school in the state, Bryant, is out of the equation.
The Providence MeTV affiliate's decision to blackball Rhode Island's CAA rival Bryant is unacceptable. The Bulldogs do not have a linear TV partner after MeTV did not pick up any of their home games. MeTV's lack of Bryant football games summarizes the Bulldogs' standing on the state's football totem poll.
The Bulldogs are much younger and less established than their in-state counterparts. Bryant started its program in 1999, while Rhode Island and Brown had 19th-century starts. Rhode Island and Brown always resided in the Northeast's preeminent FCS conferences, while Bryant toiled in the lowly-regarded Northeast Conference and even the Big South-OVC for a year. The perception of Bryant is so low that Delaware News Journal reporter Kevin Tresolini included them as an example of an inferior CAA program in his now infamous "there goes the neighborhood" article last year.
Providence's MeTV snub is another chapter of the state of Rhode Island overlooking Bryant, but it is their loss. If you have not heard of MeTV you are not the only one. It is just another run-of-the-mill antenna channel with only two original series: a horror movie compilation show called Svengoolie and a Saturday morning cartoon compilation show called Toon In With Me. Younger viewers hardly have any reason to tune into MeTV. Live sports are the gateway to attracting younger viewers to the Providence affiliate.
MeTV could have increased its sponsorship opportunities and viewership by adding Bryant home games that occur in weeks Rhode Island does not play at home. The Bulldogs play the same teams, so a drop in the quality of games is no excuse. Furthermore, the Bulldogs play Brown regularly. The potential to air one Ivy League game per year, rather than biennially when Rhode Island hosts Brown, is a significant opportunity for the affiliate.
Whether it was pride or negligence on Providence's MeTV affiliate's part, their inability to agree to a deal with Bryant is detrimental. The MeTV affiliate needs the extra sports inventory if they are serious about broadcasting local collegiate athletics or simply want to be a relevant channel. Hopefully, they can rethink their decision soon.
