ESPN 2
Launched	October 1, 1993
Owned by	ESPN Inc. (The Walt Disney Company (80%) Hearst Corporation (20%))
Picture format	480i (SDTV) 720p (HDTV)
Country	United States
Language	English
Headquarters	Bristol, Connecticut
Sister channel(s)	ESPN ESPNU ESPNews ESPN Classic ESPN Plus ESPN on ABC Longhorn Network
Website	ESPN2 Website
Availability
Satellite
DirecTV	209 (SD/HD) 211 Alternate feed (SD) 211-1 Alternate feed (HD)
Dish Network	144 (SD/HD) 146 Alternate feed
Cable
Available on most cable systems	Check local listings
Verizon FiOS	74 (SD) 574 (HD)
IPTV
AT&T U-Verse	606

ESPN2 is an American sports cable television network owned by ESPN. The channel debuted on October 1, 1993.

Originally nicknamed "the deuce," ESPN2 was initially branded as a network for a younger generation of sports fans featuring edgier graphics as well as extreme sports like motocross, snowboarding, and BMX racing. This mandate was phased out by the late 1990s, as the channel increasingly served as a second outlet for ESPN's mainstream sports coverage. ESPN2 is carried in 89 million homes in the United States, eleven million fewer than ESPN.

History[link]

"The Deuce" launched on October 1, 1993 with the first episode of SportsNight, a sports news program originally hosted by Keith Olbermann and Suzy Kolber, where Olbermann opened the show by jokingly welcoming viewers to "the end of [his] career." SportsNight would also serve as the starting point for many other ESPN personalities, among them Stuart Scott, Suzy Kolber and Kenny Mayne.

ESPN2 would also be used for experimental broadcasts and technology. On September 18, 1994, ESPN2 aired a simulcast of ESPN's coverage of CART's Bosch Spark Plug Grand Prix, using only onboard camera feeds. In 1995, ESPN2 debuted a sports news ticker, dubbed the "BottomLine,"^[1] a persistent ticker which stayed at the bottom of the screen at all times during most programming, unlike ESPN, who only shows their own at the :28 and :58 of each hour(accompanied by an audio cue) and during select programming. ESPN2's sports telecasts were also among the first to regularly use a scoring bug. In later years, ESPN2 would also participate in "Full Circle" telecasts, productions of a single game aired across multiple ESPN services to provide additional features and angles.

ESPN2 also featured several half-hour news programs focused on specific sports, such as NFL 2Night (football), NHL 2Night (hockey), and RPM 2Night (auto racing).

In the late 1990s, ESPN2 would phase out its youth-oriented format and begin to serve as a secondary outlet for ESPN's mainstream programming. The "graffiti 2" logo was dropped in 2001 and replaced with a variant of ESPN's normal logo, and telecasts began to use a more traditional style. However, on-screen graphics (such as the BottomLine) would use a blue color scheme instead of red to differentiate it from ESPN. On February 12, 2007, the use of ESPN2 branding would also be reduced — all graphics and elements would begin to only use the ESPN logo, and the ESPN2 brand would be retained only for identification between the two channels, such as on the BottomLine.^[2]

Programming[link]

Sports events presented on ESPN2 originally tended to be alternative sports such as poker, billiards, lumberjacking, extreme sports and, more recently, drum and bugle corps. However, in recent years ESPN2 has broadcast increasingly more mainstream sporting events, including Major League Baseball games, the East-West Shrine Game, much of the 2006 World Baseball Classic, many Major League Soccer and NCAA basketball games, the WNBA, the Arena Football League, and NASCAR Nationwide Series races on Saturday afternoons. In 2011, ESPN2 also picked up delayed broadcast rights for some American Le Mans Series events, with ABC broadcasting the major events.

The channel has also become ESPN's home for tennis coverage. The showpieces are all four of the "Grand Slam" tournaments – the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Also featured on ESPN2 are the ATP World Tour Finals and US-based tournaments, including the ATP Masters 1000 events at Indian Wells and Miami, as well as the US Open Series.

Most of ESPN's soccer output is broadcast on ESPN2. This includes Major League Soccer, all Barclays Premier League matches on Saturday mornings and Monday afternoons, two dozen La Liga matches, and the United States' 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. ESPN2 formerly broadcast matches of the UEFA Champions League, until rights for that tournament moved to Fox Soccer Channel and its sister stations.

ESPN2's former flagship show, the morning sports/entertainment program Cold Pizza, achieved minimal success and saw several format and host changes. In January 2006, it was supplanted by the TV simulcast of ESPN Radio's Mike and Mike in the Morning (which moved from ESPNews) and moved to a later time slot (10 a.m. to 12 p.m. EST). In May 2007, Cold Pizza moved from New York City to the ESPN headquarters in Bristol, and was renamed ESPN First Take. After ESPN became part of a new broadcast contract with the association, ESPN2 also premiered the new daily show NASCAR Now (similar to the previous RPM 2Night, except only focusing on NASCAR) in February 2007.

In 2003, ESPN2 began broadcasting Major League Lacrosse games. In March 2007, both agreed on a contract that will run until the 2016 season.^[3]

Quite Frankly with Stephen A. Smith, a program that featured interviews with popular sports figures, had averaged extremely low ratings,^[4][5] and had also faced several time slot changes, until it was finally canceled in January 2007.

High definition[link]

A 720p high definition simulcast of ESPN2 launched in January 2005. Originally branded as 'ESPN2HD, the channel airs at least 8.5 hours per day of high definition programming (not including live event coverage). As with ESPNHD, ESPN2HD uses stylized pillarboxes during programming not produced in widescreen.

In January 2011, the separate ESPN2HD branding began to be phased out, as in May 2011, the channel would shift to using the widescreen format on both its high definition and standard definition feeds (through letterboxing).

Simulcasting[link]

ESPN2 has also simulcast many games with ESPN, usually as a part of a ESPN Full Circle special, which covers a single telecast across several ESPN networks, with each network providing a different form of coverage (such as different camera angles).

ESPN2 also simulcasts some ESPNews programming, often during local blackouts, and for a while provided a Sunday simulcast of ESPN Deportes' SportsCenter. In return, ESPN2 is often seen on ESPN during local blackouts.

ESPN2 also often carries SportsCenter on days where the regular ESPN broadcast is overrun by a longer than expected sporting event. ESPN and ESPN2 also jointly aired 2 episodes of a documentary special called This is SportsCenter, where ESPN showed a documentary showing the production of a SportsCenter episode, while the finished product aired on ESPN2.

Both ESPN and ESPN2 carried ABC News coverage of the September 11, 2001 attacks.

ESPN2 also aired the men's basketball SEC Championship Game in 2008 to most of the nation, since a storm damaged the initial site of the tournament, causing the schedule to be rearranged in conflict with CBS's coverage of the Big Ten Championship Game. The game was produced by CBS. In SEC territory, the Big Ten game appeared on ESPN2.

External links[link]

• Official Site

References[link]

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (April 2010)

Ramon Fernandez

Alias	"El Presidente", "The Franchise"
Jersey No.	10, 19
Position	Center/Power Forward
Current Team	Retired
Personal Info
Country	Philippines
Born	(1953-10-03) October 3, 1953 (age 58) Maasin, Southern Leyte, Philippines
Height	6 ft. 5 in.
Weight	175 lbs.
College	University of San Carlos
Career Highlights
Draft	Elevated, 1975 by Toyota Comets
Pro Career	1975 – 1994
Also played for	Toyota Comets/Tamaraws/Super Corollas/Silver Coronas (1975-1984) Beer Hausen/Manila Beer Brewmasters (1984-1985) Tanduay Rhum Makers (1985-1987) Purefoods Hotdogs (1988) San Miguel Beermen (1988-1994)
Awards Received
6-Time PBA All-Star (1989-94) 1982 PBA Most Valuable Player 1984 PBA Most Valuable Player 1986 PBA Most Valuable Player 1988 PBA Most Valuable Player 1976 PBA Mythical First Team 1977 PBA Mythical First Team 1978 PBA Mythical First Team 1979 PBA Mythical First Team 1980 PBA Mythical First Team 1981 PBA Mythical First Team 1982 PBA Mythical First Team 1984 PBA Mythical First Team 1986 PBA Mythical First Team 1988 PBA Mythical First Team 1989 PBA Mythical First Team 1991 PBA Mythical First Team 1992 PBA Mythical First Team 1985 PBA Mythical Second Team 1987 PBA Mythical Second Team 1990 PBA Mythical Second Team 19 PBA Championships PBA's 25 Greatest Players PBA Hall of Fame Class of 2005

Ramon S. Fernandez is generally regarded as the greatest basketball player (and certainly the best and most revolutionary player at the center position) produced by the Philippine Basketball Association.^[1] Fernandez won four Most Valuable Player awards and a record of 19 PBA championships (the equivalent of 6 championships in the NBA as the PBA runs three championships a year) bagged. Fernandez scored 18,996 points to finish as the PBA's all-time scoring leader. He is also the PBA's all-time leader in rebounds, blocked shots, and second all-time in assists and steals. He played for five teams in his entire the PBA career starting with Toyota, Manila Beer, Tanduay, Purefoods, and with San Miguel, his last stop. Fernandez played in many overseas tournaments by being a part of the Philippine basketball team.

Career[link]

Fernandez was a product of the University of San Carlos in Cebu and was a member of several national teams. These include the 1972 Asian Youth Championships(Champion), 1973 Asian Basketball Confederation championship team, 1974 World Basketball Championships in Puerto Rico, the 1974 Asian Games in Iran and the 1990 Asian Games in Beijing.

In 1975, Fernandez joined the Toyota team in the PBA, joining Robert Jaworski, Francis Arnáiz, Arnie Tuadles, Danny Florencio, and Abe King when they won nine titles from 1975-1983. Fernandez was the 1982 PBA Most Valuable Player, the only time he achieved the award during his days with the fabled Toyota team.

After Toyota's disbandment in 1984, Fernandez and several former Toyota teammates joined Beer Hausen. The move also further ignited a much-publicized feud with former teammate Jaworski. Fernandez won the 1984 MVP award, his second, during his first season with the Lucio Tan-owned franchise, but never led the team to the championship until he was shipped in the middle of the 1985 season to Tanduay for Abet Guidaben.

From 1986-1987, Fernandez along with former Crispa rivals Freddie Hubalde and Padim Israel, J.B. Yango, Willie Generalao, Onchie dela Cruz and imports Rob Williams, Andre McKoy and later, David Thirdkill, led the Rhum Masters to three PBA titles. Fernandez won his third MVP award in 1986.

Tanduay would disband before the 1988 season, but the franchise rights were bought by the Purefoods Corporation. Fernandez would become playing coach, his first coaching stint, of a young team composed of Jerry Codiñera, Jojo Lastimosa, Al Solís, Glen Capacio and later Alvin Patrimonio. In the 1988 Open Conference, he led his new team to a runner-up finish to San Miguel Beer. However, midway through the All-Filipino Conference, he would relinquish his coaching duties to his assistant, Cris Calilan, to concentrate on his game. But in a controversial move, Fernandez was benched during the Finals against Añejo Rhum. The said event led to his transfer to San Miguel Beer in exchange for, the second time, Abet Guidaben. Fernandez would later lead the Beermen to the 1988 Reinforced Conference Championship and also won his fourth MVP Award, becoming the first and the only player to win four MVP awards with four different teams.

Fernandez was a member of San Miguel's historic grandslam in 1989 while making amends with rival Jaworski during the 1989 All-Star Game, when El Presidente scored an undergoal stab off a Jaworski inbound pass at halfcourt, to lead the Veterans to a 132-130 win over the Rookie-Sophomores team. Legendary coach Baby Dalupan, then coaching the Veterans, summoned both players to a historic handshake at centercourt signaling the end of their bitter feud.

In 1990, Fernandez was a member of the Philippine basketball team that won a silver medal in the Beijing Asian Games. El Presidente was supposed to participate in the 1994 Asian Games team, but begged off due to an injury. That year also saw the final season of Fernandez's PBA career when he announced his retirement.

He was the first four-time MVP of the league, winning it in even numbered years during the 1980s—1982, 1984, 1986, and 1988. Considered as the best center to have come out of the PBA, he can however play all five positions on the court with uncanny ability. His trademark one-handed running jumper dubbed the "elegant shot" was his most potent offensive weapon. In 1984, he came awfully close to averaging in triple-double the whole season, being only five assists shy from achieving the feat. He ended his PBA career as the all-time leader in most points scored with 18,996, number two behind Jaworski in assists with 5,220, number one in defensive rebounds with 6,435, number two in offensive rebounds behind Guidaben with 2,217, number one in overall rebounds with 8,652, number one in minutes played with 36624:30, number 2 in games played behind Guidaben, number one in blocks with 1,853, and, only since February 5, 2007, number two behind Johnny Abarrientos in steals with 1,302 (He retired number one in steals in 1994). He ended with career averages of 17.7 points per game, 8.1 rebounds per game, 4.9 assists per game, 1.2 steals per game, and 1.7 blocks per game in 1,074 games.

Retirement[link]

After his playing career, Fernandez ran for a senatorial seat under the Nationalist People's Coalition in the 1995 elections but lost. In 1998, he became the first commissioner of the defunct professional league, Metropolitan Basketball Association.

In 2000, he was included in the PBA's 25 Greatest Players' list and was awarded during the league's anniversary on April 9, 2000.

In 2003, Fernandez was named the Commissioner of the Collegiate Champions League tournament. A few months earlier, Fernandez was part of the Toyota Tamaraws in the Crispa-Toyota Reunion Game. The highlight of the event was the kickout pass of Fernandez to Jaworski, who sank a three-pointer to seal the Tamaraws' 65-61 win over their bitter rivals, the Redmanizers.

He also became the Commissioner of the now-inactive United Regional Basketball League during its only run in 2004.

Fernandez was also inducted in the PBA Hall of Fame and participated in the Greatest Game, a reunion of several members of the league's 25 Greatest Players, on May 30, 2005 when they lost to the TM Greats team 96-92.

Legacy[link]

Medal record
Men’s Basketball
Competitor for  Philippines
FIBA Asia Championship
Gold	1973 Manila	Team competition
Asian Games
Silver	1990 Beijing	Team competition

Fernandez is remembered as one of the most popular players during the PBA's golden years and is also one of the most prominent faces in Philippine basketball, even to this day.

Fernandez could actually play all five positions on the basketball court as he mastered every skill needed in the point guard, off-guard, forward, power-forward and center slots. He is known for his dribbling skills (unusual for a center during his era), uncanny passing ability, perimeter jumpers, and unstoppable high or low post moves. In an open court game, it was not unusual to see him collar a rebound then dribble down the full length of the court and finish off the break with a lay-up down the middle or a fancy pass to a streaking teammate on the wings. The fact that he could dribble the ball so well came about as a result of him playing pointguard in high school when he was still too short to play the center slot. He is also well known for his trademark one handed running shot dubbed as "the elegant shot.". He could play facing the basket or with his back to it. One major distinguishing aspect of his game and which, amongst other exploits, showed a level of skill unmatched in Philippine basketball before or since, was his ability to drive towards the basket at will during a half-court game. This was remarkable because centers and power-forwards in his era usually played near or underneath the basket.

Fernandez is perhaps the most ambidextrous player to have played the game since Carlos Loyzaga a generation before him. Almost always, whenever he led a fastbreak (after getting the defensive rebound), he was like a maestro conducting an orchestra with the ability to hit the open man on either wing or finish a lay-up with either hand. A lot of times he would switch the ball from right hand to left hand and draw a foul for a three point play. One of his more famous moves was driving down the middle of the lane, fake a right-handed shot and then, at the very last second when the defender has committed himself, switch the ball to his left hand for an up-and-under scoop shot that almost always drew a foul. He had an ambidextrous hook shot that was almost impossible to stop and a weird looking variation of a lay-up that was executed while "fading away" from the basket which made it equally indefensible. His "elegant shot" often came after a right-handed cross-over dribble and moving away from a defender. His pivot moves, pump fakes, and trick shots from under the basket that he executed to flawless perfection even before Kevin McHale wrote his NBA playbook are legendary. He owned what was perhaps the craziest no-look pass that was executed on Philippine hardwood because it came about as a fake behind-the-back pass going to one direction only to go the opposite direction at the precise moment when the recipient is ready to receive the pass. His pinpoint passing ability was so devastating to opponents because he could execute them with either hand as well. It didn't matter to Fernandez whether he was hitting the open man through a crowd of defenders or hitting the same open man via a Hail Mary pass from outside the backcourt. Philip Cezar and Abe King, two premier defenders of local players and imports alike, in television interviews, always said that Fernandez was the toughest assignment they ever had to handle.

His MVP-stats in the 1984 season of the PBA, where he averaged in double figures in almost all of the major statistical categories (points, rebounds, assists), turning in an incredible 27 point-15 rebound-9.9 assist performance (an almost a triple-double season), may never be matched as it stands as perhaps the most dominating individual performance in the history of Philippine professional basketball.

Career highlights[link]

This section is empty. You can help by adding to it.

PBA career[link]

• 4-time Most Valuable Player (1982, 1984, 1986, 1988)
• PBA Hall of Fame
• Member of the 1989 San Miguel Grand Slam Team
• 13-time Mythical First Team Selection (1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1992)
• 3-time Mythical Second Team Selection (1985, 1987, and 1990)
• 4-time PBA All-Star
• PBA's 25 Greatest Players
• PBA Hall of Fame Class of 2005

Others[link]

• Member, 1972 Asian Youth, Manila, Philippines
• Member, 1973 Asian Basketball Confederation, Manila. (ABC-NOW FIBA ASIA)
• Member, 1974 Mundo Basket, San Juan, Puerto Rico(World Basketball Championship)
• Member, 1974 Asian Games, Tehran, Iran
• Member, 1990 Asian Games, Beijing, China
• 1994 Asian Games Assistant Coach
• Metropolitan Basketball Association Commissioner 1998-1999

Trivia[link]

• A Ramon Fernandez-Abet Guidaben trade was executed twice. In 1985, Manila Beer swapped Fernandez to Tanduay for former Crispa rival Guidaben. In 1988, after a controversial shelving of Fernandez during the 1988 All-Filipino championship series led to Purefoods dealing the then-three time MVP to San Miguel for Guidaben, the reigning 1987 PBA MVP. It was speculated that there was an unwritten rule in the PBA that Fernandez and Guidaben could only be traded for each other.
• Fernandez won his four MVPs through four different teams Toyota, Beer Hausen, Tanduay, and San Miguel Beer and all in even-numbered years (1982, 1984, 1986, and 1988). On the other hand, rival Guidaben won the MVP award twice in odd-numbered years (1983 and 1987). Had the 1985 last conference swap between Fernandez and Guidaben did not materialize, Guidaben would have been the MVP also in 1985.
• Fernandez has led the teams he has played in a PBA championship series. He won nine titles with Toyota, led Beer Hausen to a title-series loss to Great Taste in 1984, led Tanduay to three PBA titles, led Purefoods to the finals in 1988 (played Game 1 after which he was barred from playing the rest of the series), and won seven titles with San Miguel.
• Outside of basketball, Fernandez also held a barangay seat at Ayala Alabang Village.
• He ran for Senator under the Nationalist People's Coalition in the 1995 senatorial elections, but lost.

References[link]

External links[link]

• SMB Recharged

Dat Tan Nguyen ( /ˌdæt ˈwɪn/; Vietnamese: Nguyễn Tấn Đạt, pronounced [ŋʷjə̌ˀn tə̌n ɗàːt]) (born September 25, 1975) is a former American college and professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for seven seasons. He played college football for Texas A&M University, and earned All-American honors. He played professionally for the NFL's Dallas Cowboys, became the first Vietnamese-American to play in the NFL, and was recognized as an All-Pro.