Comcast Channel Targets Fans Of Sports In Oregon

The Oregonian : The foundation of Oregon sports broadcasting will undergo a seismic shift at 5 p.m. Nov. 1 when Comcast SportsNet flips the switch on its new regional television channel, bringing more local sports programming to the Beaver State.The new channel will broadcast a majority of the Portland Trail Blazers’ and Oregon Ducks’ basketball games, as well as offer coverage of amateur sports events that otherwise might not be televised. It will be led by David Manougian, who in 13 years helped The Golf Network blossom from a startup into a cable success.

“This is going to be Oregon’s sports network,” said Manougian, executive vice president of Comcast sports programming. “We really want to try and become a fabric of Oregon sports.”

Think Fox Sports Northwest, but replace that station’s Seattle-centric coverage with Oregon flair.

The first weekend telecast offers a taste of the potential. Twenty-four hours after the station launches, it will air its first Blazers game, a road matchup at New Orleans. The following day, on Saturday, it will air a trio of local college football matchups, including a potential Pacific-10 Conference blockbuster.