Hawkeye Fans Scramble to Get Saturday's Game on the Tube

By: Claire Kellett, Anchor/Reporter

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By Danielle Plogmann

Story Created: Sep 6, 2007 at 9:42 PM CST

Story Updated: Sep 7, 2007 at 10:26 AM CST

IOWA CITY - The ongoing battle between Mediacom and the Big 10 Network is frustrating Hawkeye fans. Unless the two reach a deal by Saturday, Iowa’s game against Syracuse won’t make Mediacom's lineup. That's why Mediacom subscribers are switching to satellite TV, but now it might be too late to get Saturday's game.

Hawkeye football fans are ecstatic their team has its first win. But watching another victory might be out of the question for some supporting the black and gold.

“It used to be on in Iowa every week. You didn't have to worry about basketball or football," says Hawkeye fan Bill Bode.

But worrying is part of this week's game plan. If Mediacom and the Big 10 Network don't reach a deal by game time Saturday, Iowa's largest cable provider won't be showing any Hawkeye players. Unwilling to take the risk, Hawkeye fans, like Bill Bode, are jumping ship to a Direct TV satellite provider. A fan since the seventies, Bode prefers to cheer from his couch.

“It's too much effort to go over there and fight the crowd. The crowd is wild and crazy a lot of times,” says Bode.

Local bars are also scrambling to get the game. It was a close call at Quinton’s Bar in Iowa City.

“We called Direct TV directly, and they couldn't get anyone out here until late September. So, we started going through the phone book for anyone else to find," says Lucas Haldeman, owner of Quinton’s Bar.

The bar found a company to install Direct TV Friday morning. But such demand is leaving some out of luck.

Bode called a Direct TV satellite provider last week, so he was able to get the service before Saturday. That same company told TV-9 News it's been bringing over workers from the Quad Cities to help meet the demand, since this has more than doubled their daily service calls. Another local Direct TV provider told says it's booked through Tuesday.

The Big 10 Network just reached a deal Thursday with the other satellite TV provider, Dish Network. So, anyone with that service will get Saturday's game.

Both Mediacom and the Big 10 Network told TV-9 News they’re still working on reaching an agreement. Neither side will say for sure whether that will come before Saturday's home opener. Mediacom wants the Big 10 Network to be on a sports tier, so only true fans have to pay for it. The Big 10 Network wants a spot on basic cable. Other, smaller cable companies are carrying the Big 10 Network.

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