ESPN’s SportsCenter to Broadcast Live From Fargodome Saturday

FARGO, N.D. – ESPN will broadcast from Fargo for the third straight year when “SportsCenter on the Road” visits for a live show Saturday airing 6-8 a.m. CDT from Gate City Bank Field at the Fargodome in advance of North Dakota State’s homecoming game with Northern Iowa.

Anchors Matt Barrie and Sara Walsh will host the telecast, which will include highlights and analysis of Friday night's sports and a look ahead to the weekend's key matchups. The show will also have interviews and segments regarding NDSU, its football program and student-athletes.

The event is free and open to the public Saturday morning.  Details for parking, tailgating and stadium entrance will be announced Monday.

The SportsCenter on the Road bus will arrive in Fargo on Thursday and SportsCenter will air a live segment Friday from Fargo during the 5 p.m. show.

NDSU previously attracted ESPN’s “College GameDay” to broadcast its three-hour show live from downtown Fargo preceding home games in 2013 against Delaware State and 2014 against Incarnate Word.

“NDSU has enjoyed a great working relationship with ESPN the past several years,” said director of athletics Matt Larsen.  “We are excited to have another opportunity to feature our university and athletic program in front of a national television audience.  Our fans are a big part of our success, and we want as many of them as possible to be part of this special event.”

The SportsCenter on the Road bus is a mobile production facility that carries the equipment needed for doing a SportsCenter broadcast at a remote location. It also contains production facilities for an on-site producer, director and sound engineer, and equipment for feeding signals via satellite to ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Conn.

The Fargo appearance is part of the SportsCenter on the Road series, which takes the program out of the studio to events and fans. The show visited Notre Dame, Michigan, Boston College, St. John’s (Minn.) and Clemson earlier this season.  It has also originated in the last year from the NBA Finals, NFL Draft, Super Bowl and the College Football Playoff.

SportsCenter debuted on ESPN’s launch day (Sept. 7, 1979) and is the network’s first and flagship show. Viewership averages up to 115 million viewers a month.