2024 Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame: Jim Delany, Daring Leader and Architect of Modern College Athletics By Brandon Costa, Director of Digital
Friday, December 6, 2024 - 9:41 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
Leading up to the 2024 Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame ceremony on Dec. 17 at the New York Hilton, SVG is profiling the 10 inductees in this year's class. For more information, CLICK HERE.
Daring. Disruptive. Different.
The 2024 college-football season has been one unlike any other: beefier power conferences, an expanded playoff system, the transfer portal, and Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL).
This isn't your father's college sports. Heck, it isn't even your older brother's.
It's undeniable that live television is a major force driving the revolutionary shifts in college sports. Although the early days of ESPN, Jefferson Pilot Sports, and the like laid the foundation for college-sports fans' relationships with their schools, the turn of the century and the birth of the conference network took the concept into a new universe.
Daring. Disruptive. Different. Enter Jim Delany.
Delany's storied career as commissioner of the Big Ten Conference spanned 31 transformative years. He retired in January 2020, having become one of the most influential figures in the history of collegiate athletics. From pioneering groundbreaking media ventures to expanding the conference's footprint, his legacy is defined by bold initiatives, strategic foresight, and a steadfast commitment to the values of collegiate sports.
Delany's crowning achievement in sports broadcasting is obvious: the 2007 launch - and continued success - of the Big Ten Network (BTN), the first successful dedicated television network for a collegiate conference. More than a financial success, BTN redefined how conferences could control their brand and showcase their institutions.
My judgment was, if somebody could do it, we could because of our brand strength and the demographics of our conference, Delany says. It was great branding and a great way for Olympic sports, women's sports, football, and basketball to get on the air. It was a success both financially and artistically.
The network's innovative model paved the way for similar ventures: the SEC Network launched eight years later, the ACC Network 13 years later. BTN's success wasn't without its challenges, requiring patience and collaboration. We did it the old-fashioned way, Delany notes. We weren't on the air for a year. It was difficult but successful.
Says FOX Sports President/COO Mark Silverman, who was president of BTN from its inception until 2018, The Big Ten Network was the first of its kind. Jim Delany is one of a kind. He was the leader into this new era of college football.
Beyond television, Delany's other lasting legacy is expansion. Under his leadership, the Big Ten Conference grew significantly, adding Penn State in 1990, Nebraska in 2011, and Maryland and Rutgers in 2014. These additions not only increased its geographical reach but also strengthened its brand and competitive profile.
These moves were ahead of their time, foreshadowing the disruptive conference consolidation that has changed today's college landscape.
Great leaders are able to see things that haven't happened yet, says current Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti. When you can stand back and say that you were there and you created a network, very few people in our industry are going to be able to make that claim.
During his tenure, Delany also spearheaded initiatives that improved the fan experience and modernized the game. He oversaw development of college football's first instant-replay system, which set a precedent for fairness and transparency in the sport - and advanced the live-television product.
At the end of the day, though, although the revenue poured in, attendance ballooned, and the Big Ten brand grew, what makes Delany most proud is the culture that he helped foster inside the conference's Chicago office.
[It's] the internal culture and the cohesion that we created not only in our staff but in the institutions that have allowed us to enter into some challenging initiatives, he says, whether that's starting the Big Ten Network or putting together [all of our] television partners and making that work cohesively.
Even in retirement, Delany's influence continues to shape the Big Ten. The conference honored his contributions by naming its new state-of-the-art Big Ten Network studios after him.
I don't think you can overstate Jim's legacy when it comes to the Big Ten Network, says BTN President Francois McGillicuddy.
Delany's peers and partners consistently hailed his ability to take calculated risks and deliver results.
He was outstanding in terms of choosing risks that would be winners, says Sally Mason, a former president of the University of Iowa. Jim knew how to win. He was a winner.
From the launch of BTN to the expansion of the Big Ten, Delany's visionary leadership transformed the landscape of college athletics. His tenure not only elevated the Big Ten to unprecedented heights but also set a standard of excellence and innovation that continues to resonate across the world of sports.
And it forever reshaped sports broadcasting.
North America Stories
18/01/2025
10 Projects to Be Developed at Annual January Screenwriters Lab;
10 Projects t...
18/01/2025
BALTIMORE In a move to redefine how it works with advertisers and audiences, Sinclair Broadcast Group has announced the rebranding and launch of new sales and c...
18/01/2025
ATLANTA Gray Media has announced that it will air ten Spring Training Major League Baseball games with the Atlanta Braves on two dozen Gray Media stations, begi...
18/01/2025
Lawo has announced it will be showcasing a variety of IP-based solutions at ISE 2025 in Barcelona (Feb. 4-7) at booth 5H700....
18/01/2025
WASHINGTON The National Association of Broadcasters today released the long-awaited Future of Television Initiative report, written to give the Federal Communic...
18/01/2025
DigitalGlue has announced that its creative.space shared storage solution was selected by the Ryan Seacrest Foundation (RSF) to house, organize and provide remo...
18/01/2025
Starin, a leading distributor specializing in the AV and Broadcast/M&E markets, is proud to announce a new partnership with Absen Inc., the US subsidiary of Abs...
18/01/2025
CVP, one of Europe's leading resellers and providers of professional video and broadcast solutions, will showcase a selection of its extensive range of prod...
18/01/2025
DPA Microphones unveils MicroLock , its new compact microphone connector, which builds on the strengths of the renowned MicroDot connector currently deployed wi...
18/01/2025
Friend MTS, a leading global provider of content protection services, today announced that it is expanding its business intelligence services with a new team he...
18/01/2025
Transforming Visual Collaboration with 5K Clarity and Versatile Design
MAXHUB, a global leader in integrated communication displays and unified communications ...
18/01/2025
Witbe (Euronext Growth FR0013143872 ALWIT), a global leader in test automation and monitoring technology for video service providers, today announced that i...
18/01/2025
Digital Alert Systems, the global leader in emergency communications solutions for media providers, today announced the appointment of Daniel Dillon as a produc...
18/01/2025
Riedel Communications today announced that the prestigious Daegu Concert House in South Korea has upgraded its communications systems with a shift to Riedel'...
18/01/2025
Telos Alliance (stand #4L700), trusted global leader in broadcast audio for more than three decades, announces it will showcase a range of industry-leading sol...
18/01/2025
Grass Valley, the media and entertainment industry's leading technology provider, today announced the appointment of three industry veterans to key position...
18/01/2025
Grass Valley, the media and entertainment industry's leading technology provider, is bringing its media production expertise to ISE 2025 to showcase how bro...
18/01/2025
At ISE 2025, Black Box will showcase its advanced IP KVM solutions, providing systems integrators, control room designers, live event producers, and Pro AV and...
18/01/2025
Back to All News
Lunar New Year Must-Watch: Period Rom-Com Drama Series Perfec...
17/01/2025
Discover how EVO shared storage can add value to your existing cloud and NAS systems, including Avid Nexis, Dell Isilon, and more.
Your team's storage syst...
17/01/2025
Studio Technologies Latest ST 2110 to Dante Bridge and Related Innovations Prese...
17/01/2025
Flying through clouds with no plugins and AI images
Graham Quince January 17, 2025
0 Comments
I've long been wondering about the best way to creat...
17/01/2025
Spectrum The Psychological Reasoning Behind Adobe's Design System!
Colin Smith January 17, 2025
0 Comments
This is a look at the new interface i...
17/01/2025
NEW YORK Despite record-breaking ad revenues in 2024 fueled by massive political spending and the Olympics, a new Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB) survey indic...
17/01/2025
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. In an important move towards making it much easier to bet on live sports, Comcast has added sports betting odds from FanDuel into Xfinity Odds...
17/01/2025
WASHINGTON, D.C. President-elect Donald Trump has nominated Olivia Trusty to serve on the Federal Communications Commission....
17/01/2025
Boston Conservatory at Berklee Presents: Commercial Dance BFA Concert Celebrating the Conservatory's first-ever class of commercial dance students, the co...
17/01/2025
Ratings Roundup: NFL Sees 8% Drop During Wild Card Weekend; ESPN Experiences Mos...
17/01/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Vizrt's Per von Rosen on How Viz Libero Certified Training, Vi...
17/01/2025
Sports Broadcasting Hall of Famer Sean McManus on the Authenticity of September ...
17/01/2025
NFL Playoffs 2025: FOX Sports Puts New Tech Through Paces To Ensure Super Bowl L...
17/01/2025
Unrivaled Revealed, Part 2: TNT Sports' Studio Show Revels in Behind-the-Sce...
17/01/2025
Unrivaled Revealed, Part 1: At Mediapro Facility, TNT Sports Operations Team Dev...
17/01/2025
SVG Rewind: Producer Katie Halter, Director Amanda Smerage Reflect on PWHL Takeo...
17/01/2025
FloSports Elevates Production Plans for UCA & UDA College Cheerleading and Dance...
17/01/2025
Back to All News
Go on a Journey of Love and Healing this Valentine's Day w...
17/01/2025
Back to All News
Netflix Announces Release Date and First Look of Upcoming Roma...
16/01/2025
MELBOURNE, Fla., Jan. 15, 2025 - L3Harris Technologies (NYSE: LHX) Co-founder, C...
16/01/2025
MONTREAL, CANADA - January 16, 2025 - Grass Valley, the media and entertainment ...
16/01/2025
MONTREAL Grass Valley, a provider of end-to-end live entertainment and media technology, has strengthened its North American sports and live production expertis...
16/01/2025
NEW YORK Fox Sports said will be streaming the Feb. 9 Super Bowl for the first time via free streaming service Tubi, as well as providing coverage of the big ga...
16/01/2025
Dalet Appoints Erik Holt as Senior Vice President, Global Channels
Brie Clayton January 16, 2025
0 Comments
Dalet, a leading technology and service pr...
16/01/2025
Post Completed with DaVinci Resolve Studio for The Stargate Music Video
Brie Clayton January 16, 2025
0 Comments
Hit band Blood Incantation uses DaVin...
16/01/2025
Laowa Sets the Stage for a Zoom Probe Lens with an Ultra-Wide 15mm Perspective, ...
16/01/2025
TEL AVIV, Israel AI-powered voice solutions provider Deepdub today launched its AI Audio API enterprise-grade platform designed to deliver Hollywood-vetted audi...
16/01/2025
NEW YORK and BALTIMORE Sinclair and NBUCniversal said they have struck a major multiyear agreement renewing all 21 of Sinclair's owned and/or operated NBC a...
16/01/2025
STAMFORD, Conn. Charter Communications' Spectrum brand has announced that it is now accepting applications for Spectrum Scholars, the cable operator's a...
16/01/2025
Dalet has hired Erik Holt as senior vice president, global channels, responsible for the media technology and service provider's global partner strategy....
16/01/2025
NEW YORK While local media outlets have been approaching this year with some trepidation after the massive political spending that boosted results in 2024, the ...
2024 Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame: Jim Delany, Daring Leader and Architect of Modern College Athletics By Brandon Costa, Director of Digital 
