ESPN, which plans to broadcast 13
college football games in stereoscopic 3D on its new ESPN 3D network this fall,
has named the first three games it will broadcast in 3D. The initial 3D
telecasts feature three of the top five ranked teams in ESPN.com's early
preseason Top 25 poll.
The 3D coverage, which is being
sponsored by Sony, will begin on Monday, Sept. 6 at 8 p.m. ET with No. 2 Boise
State facing No. 5 Virginia Tech at FedEx Field, home of the Washington
Redskins. Next up, on Sept. 11 at 3:40 PM ET, is defending Big Ten Conference
champion No. 3 Ohio State versus host No. 19 Miami of the ACC. The third 3D
game of the season features Clemson of the ACC versus host Auburn of the SEC on
Sept. 18, with a 7 p.m. kickoff.
ESPN 3D's college football coverage
will conclude with the Tostitos BCS National Championship Game on Monday, Jan.
10 at 8:30 p.m.
ESPN has been experimenting with
several new camera systems for college football to get dynamic 3D shots without
conflicting with traditional 2D camera positions or creating too many expensive
"seat kills" in stadiums, says VP of Event Operations Chris Calcinari. One
innovation is MastCam, a robotic 3D camera rig mounted on a 20 to 25-foot high
pole that will be placed on a cart and moved up and down the sideline.
"It's really difficult to utilize
traditional camera positions for high-quality 3D," says Calcinari.
