BOONE, N.C. — The Appalachian IMG Sports Network and ESPN 730 AM in Charlotte have agreed to a three-year contract that makes ESPN 730 the exclusive radio home of Appalachian State football and men’s basketball in the Charlotte market.

As part of the three-year deal, which begins with the 2014 football season, ESPN 730 will air all Appalachian State football and men’s basketball games, as well as up to five baseball games each season live. The station will also carry the Appalachian IMG Sports Network’s weekly Mountaineer Talk football and basketball coach’s call-in shows and its daily Around The Mountain segment.

In addition, ESPN 730 will air its popular Bottom Line College Gameday Edition show each week live from Appalachian State’s game site, home and away. ESPN 730 will also broadcast a 30-minute program to run prior to the Bottom Line College Gameday Edition that features director of athletics Charlie Cobb and a key figurehead in the college sports culture talking about topical issues in college sports.

With the new 30-minute show and the Bottom Line College Gameday Edition originating from Appalachian State’s game site, Mountaineer football will benefit from three-and-a-half hours of pregame coverage in the Charlotte market each gameday.

The agreement also includes that ESPN 730 will have a presence at Appalachian State athletics events hosted in the Charlotte area throughout the year, including potential games at Bank of America Stadium, Time Warner Cable Arena and BB&T Ballpark, as well as the Yosef Club Spring Tour, Appalachian Alumni Association events and more.

Appalachian State coaches and student-athletes will also be featured in interviews during ESPN 730 drive-time programming and the station will broadcast major athletics department announcements live.

“Over the past four years, Appalachian State athletics has benefited in one of our key markets from the coverage afforded by ESPN 730 and we could not be more excited to take that relationship to the next level,” associate athletics director David Jackson said. “Not only will Appalachian fans in the Charlotte area be able to hear more coverage of Mountaineer football, basketball and baseball than ever before, but this partnership will give Appalachian State a strong marketing push in an area that features a vibrant base of both alumni and current students. (ESPN 730 general manager) Lanny Ford and his staff have been long-time partners of ours and we knew with the impact we are looking to make in the Charlotte market, ESPN 730 was the right place to come.”

“It is always a goal of ours to maximize our exposure in Charlotte — our largest alumni and fan base — and this agreement gives Appalachian State its largest radio presence ever in the Charlotte market,” Cobb said. “We’re grateful for the efforts of David Jackson and Lanny Ford in making this happen and we look forward to a great partnership with ESPN 730 for the next three years and beyond.”

BURNS NAMED REGIONAL ASSOCIATE DEVELOPMENT OFFICER IN CHARLOTTE: In another effort to cultivate and maximize Appalachian State’s presence in the Charlotte market, senior associate athletics director Rick Beasley announced on Wednesday that former Appalachian football student-athlete and Yosef Club president Brian Burns has been named regional associate development officer for the Charlotte area.

In his role, Burns will be responsible for the identification, cultivation, solicitation and stewardship of Appalachian State athletics donors in the Charlotte area on behalf of the Yosef Club. Based out of his hometown of Belmont, N.C., Burns will market Yosef Club and Appalachian athletics events in the Charlotte area and assist the athletics department in promoting Mountaineer athletics in the region.

Burns was a member of Appalachian State’s football program for two seasons prior to his graduation from Appalachian in 1988. He founded Prestige Collision Repair Centers in Charlotte in 1998 and owned and operated the successful business until its sale last year. He has also served as a member of Appalachian State’s alumni council (2004-05) and academic athletics council (2008-present) and served as the president of the Yosef Club advisory board in 2004-05.

“We couldn’t be more excited to have someone with Brian’s experience and love for Appalachian on board to help us strengthen our presence in the Charlotte area,” Beasley said. “We think that having Brian on our staff as a voice in Charlotte will not only be beneficial for our department but also for our alumni and fans in the Metrolina region.”

T-Dog wrote:Listening to the announcement.

ESPN730's top coverage is now App State. Will do pregame for all FB games, home and away. Will do a 30-minute pregame show with Cobb plus the one-hour The Bottom Line pregame show. Combine that with the regular two-hour pregame, App State will now have three and a half hours of pregame show.

That's just about it right now. Further details will be announced later.

mtnjax wrote:I like this for the fact that I will now be able to listen vis mobile phone now if I'm somewhere not within range of an App broadcast.


And because we're kicking UNCc off the station

App91 wrote:Sweet, was hoping for this. Brian will do a great job! Daphne what would be the best way to reach out to Brian?

App91 wrote:Sweet, was hoping for this. Brian will do a great job! Daphne what would be the best way to reach out to Brian?

Appsolutley wrote:

App91 wrote:Sweet, was hoping for this. Brian will do a great job! Daphne what would be the best way to reach out to Brian?

Agree...in the long run the news about Burns may be more significant than the radio station pick-up. It appears he will work on Yosef Club membership. Maybe that will have an impact on corporate dollars. Beasley better hope so; we are woefully lacking in corporate sponsorship dollars, and that must change.

MAD Doctor wrote:Heard this today. The announcers seemed genuinely excited about all things APP, and paid our university some very high compliments. They also interviewed DJ. I plan to begin listening to them more, as opposed to WFNZ, which has become a UNC-CHeat- Duke love fest 24/7/365. Tough week for an unnamed school near Concord, as Tom Sorenson at the disturber wrote a column about their BBall program not working, and now their radio home drops them to welcome us.
Hey QC, WE ARE APP STATE!

Nugget49 wrote:

MAD Doctor wrote:Heard this today. The announcers seemed genuinely excited about all things APP, and paid our university some very high compliments. They also interviewed DJ. I plan to begin listening to them more, as opposed to WFNZ, which has become a UNC-CHeat- Duke love fest 24/7/365. Tough week for an unnamed school near Concord, as Tom Sorenson at the disturber wrote a column about their BBall program not working, and now their radio home drops them to welcome us.
Hey QC, WE ARE APP STATE!

It looks like the App experiment is over and ESPN 730 has picked Charlotte back up for Football, Men's BBall, some Women's BBall, and a few Baseball games. Don't change that preset in your car, because this is where you can find our game next year.