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Duquesne faces Washington State on USA Network, earning its most credible national TV exposure since its 1994 ESPN2 game against Iona.
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Duquesne will appear on national linear television for just the third time in program history this Saturday. The USA Network will air the Dukes’ game against Washington State this weekend. It marks the first time since 2022 that Duquesne will play on a national linear TV platform. The Dukes played Florida State in Week Zero of 2022 on the ACC Network.
However, that comes with an asterisk since the ACC Network isnot Nielsen rated and instead uses ComScore’s local TV metrics. Notably, the following year, Duquesne was not part of CBS Sports Network’s two-game Thursday Night #NECatNite package. The Dukes should command respectable viewership. Per Manny Soloway of the TV Media Blog, the USA Network’s college football debut featuring Colorado State and Wyoming drew 239,000 viewers.
The USA game presents the Dukes with the most credible national linear television exposure since its national television debut in 1993. In 1994, during ESPN2’s exploratory years, the network aired the Dukes’ Halloween night clash with MAAC (yes, they used to have football) rival Iona.
The game took place on a Monday Night as counterprogramming to the NFL. The MAAC paid $15,000 ($33,722.82 adjusted for today’s inflation) for ESPN2 to air the game. The game represented a significant opportunity for the MAAC, then in the second year of its short-lived football experiment. Duquesne’s Rooney Field, still one of college football’s most picturesque backdrops, was a fitting landscape to showcase the conference. Naturally, 1993 league champion, Iona, who went 9-2, was a logical opponent.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette estimated that ESPN2 reached around 20 million homes in 1994. The Dukes entered the game 4-3, while Iona entered at a disappointing 2-4. The national audience saw Bill Green lead Duquesne to victory with 29 carries for 136 yards. Brian Staines threw the go-ahead 10-yard touchdown pass with 1:48 left in the third quarter.
Duquesne’s USA Network appearance may not seem like much, but it marks yet another showcase for the NEC. 250,000 viewers tuned in for Long Island’s 51-6 loss to Kansas on ESPNU earlier in the year. Despite being heavy underdogs, these appearances give the league a needed recruiting advantage over the CAA, which has most of its games locked away on FloSports.
This weekend, Duquesne will once again have a national linear TV close-up. Fortunately, their conference will not have to pay $15,000 for the opportunity this time.
