Now that Southern Miss is officially a member of the Sun Belt, the Golden Eagles are about to see a lot more TV time as conference commissioner Keith Gill announced on Tuesday that media rights with ESPN have been expanded.
The new agreement, which runs through the 2030-2031 academic year, expands upon the Sun Belt and ESPN’s 2021 media rights deal that resulted in a more than 50 percent increase in the number of Sun Belt football games that appeared on ESPN’s linear offerings (ABC, ESPN, ESPN2).
The agreement promises more exposure for men’s basketball, women’s basketball, men’s soccer, women’s soccer, women’s volleyball, baseball, and softball as more than 6,000 additional live events are set to be available on ESPN+.
“This new agreement is a recognition of the growth of the Sun Belt Conference and our commitment to excellence in all sports,” Gill said. “On behalf of the entire Sun Belt, I want to thank Nick Dawson, ESPN Vice President of Programming and Acquisitions, and the college sports team at ESPN for their support of the Sun Belt Conference. I look forward to continuing our long-standing relationship.”
As Sun Belt Media Days continue in New Orleans, Southern Miss head football coach Will Hall is scheduled to take the stage Wednesday afternoon at 2 p.m. CT.
