THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, December 6, 1994 TAG: 9412060508
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JIM DUCIBELLA, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Short : 44 lines
NFL officials say it would take hours to determine the last time a Washington Redskins' regular season game wasn't televised in Hampton Roads.
It's been that long.
But if not for a sudden change of plans by Fox Network programmers in Los Angeles on Monday, the answer would have been much easier to ascertain.
Last week, a Fox Network programming official informed Mark Hudgins of the WTVZ programming department that they probably were not going to beam Sunday's 4 p.m. contest between the Redskins and Arizona Cardinals into Hampton Roads.
Instead, Fox told WTVZ, it would show the game between San Francisco and San Diego.
The 49ers have won the NFC West; the Chargers led the AFC West heading into Monday night's game against the Los Angeles Raiders.
Only after WTVZ officials made it clear they wanted to keep the Redskins broadcast did the Fox Network announce Monday that it had changed its plans.
Washington-Arizona will be televised on WTVZ at 4, immediately following a 1 o'clock game between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.
Hudgins said WTVZ never considered dropping the Redskins. He admits the station has received calls from viewers who want Redskins games replaced with those of more successful teams. Washington is 2-11 this season, its second in a row with 10 or more losses.
But Hudgins said he also knows that Washington has been Hampton Roads' favorite team for decades, and that there would be at least an equal number of irate viewers if the Redskins were dropped.
Nancy Behar of NFL headquarters/Broadcast Division in New York said that affiliates located more than 75 miles from an NFL city - in this case, Washington - have the right to discuss with the network which games they will carry.
That's why WTVZ was able to persuade Fox to alter its plans.
And because of that, Sunday's quarterbacks will be Heath Shuler vs. Jay Schroeder instead of Steve Young vs. Stan Humphries. by CNB