Champ Week turns 40 this March, marking four decades since ESPN first transformed a scattered collection of conference tournaments into a unified, must-watch week on the college basketball calendar. The inaugural edition in 1986 featured 27 televised tournament games and a whip-around format that provided live cut-ins to 45 additional games – unprecedented access nationally for events that had previously aired only on regional TV.
That first year also introduced a branded studio show under the name Conference Tournament Central, which helped give the week a cohesive identity. The following year, ESPN reintroduced the coverage under a new name – Championship Week – a title that quickly became synonymous with the start of March’s postseason drama and inspired other themed programming across the network.
“In the early years of Championship Week, when we had ESPN as our only network, we perfected our NCAA Tournament practice of the live look-ins to regional games. ESPN gained great acclaim, while monitoring more simultaneous games than during the NCAAs. When we cut to another buzzer beater live, there was excitement and pride in the control room amidst the cheering!”
– Tom Odjakjian, ESPN’s former Director of College Sports.
Forty years later, Champ Week stands as one of ESPN’s longest-running traditions. The annual programming has now expanded to include expansive coverage of women’s conference championships, in addition to the 25 men’s conference tournaments showcased this week.
Watch a clip of ESPN’s Bob Ley hosting the inaugural Conference Tournament Central below.
-
-
-
-
