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The Homecoming football game against Amherst, which will take place Saturday, Oct. 21, marks the first time Wesleyan football will be broadcast live on a non-cable-access television station. The game is the ECAC Game of the Week, and will be broadcast live on the New England Sports Network (NESN). 

NESN is carried by almost every cable network in the state of connecticut and by the vast majority of systems throughout New England. The 12 o’clock game can be seen on Channel 59 in the Middletown area and is also available to Direct TV subscribers throughout the world as Channel 623. 

The live broadcast was made possible by the Cardinal Club. This alumni organization dedicates itself to enrich the experience of the Wesleyan student-athlete, and specifically to football players. The Cardinal Club, founded in 1994, consists of approximately 1,250 football alumni and 250 parents and friends of former players.

In the history of Cardinal football, only two games have been televised. In 1988, a Wesleyan-Coast Guard game was broadcast live on a New London cable-access channel and a Wesleyan-Trinity game, also in 1998, was televised on tape-delay on Comcast Cablevision. Amherst, on the other hand, has been televised every one of the last five years on both NESN and ESPN2 in their annual season-ending clash against Williams.

The Amherst-Williams game is traditionally the only Division III ECAC game that NESN covers each year. NESN has a contract with the ECAC to cover a game every week, and usually covers Division I or IA schools such as Boston College or the University of Massachusetts. 

According to David Bagatelle ’86, a director of the Cardinal Club, NESN has been looking to do more Division III games.

"We had to prove to NESN that we were serious about the committment," Bagatelle said. "Other Division III schools have expressed interest to the ECAC to be broadcast on NESN, but we followed through."

Ordinarily, the two schools split the 17 minutes of the commercial airtime NESN distributes. However, for Saturday telecast Amherst chose not to co-sponsor the game.

"They told me they didn’t have any promotional material prepared," said Matt Pechinski ’90, a founder and president of the Cardinal Club. Pechinski was also a member of the 1988 team who played on television against Coast Guard. 

"This can’t be true, because they use the same bit every year for the Williams game. I think they just weren’t interested. They already co-sponsor a game a year, and I guess they didn’t want to participate in two events," Pechinski said.

The Cardinal Club contacted the ECAC last July. Since then, the organization has concentrated on ironing out details, such as filling the 17 minutes of commercial time. The largest contributors are the Cardinal Club, the Wesleyan Administration, Southwest Airlines, and Coca-Cola.

"We feel it [Saturday’s televised game] will help promote the school, as well as give the players an experience that they might remember years from now," Pechinski said.

The Cardinal Club supports the football program throughout the year. It sponsored the lights on the team’s practice field, coordinates an annual post-season awards-luncheon, and provides funds to assist in recruiting.

"The Cardinal Club affects the football program in a lot of ways," said Football Coach Frank Hauser. "The lights and awards-luncheon are great. They also allow us the ability to pay some of the people who do jobs like stuffing envelopes in the recruiting process."

Pechinski formed the organization because he felt a lot of alumni were still interested in the success of Wesleyan football. He said that in his playing days he cherished Little Three rivalries more than anything, and hopes to do whatever possible to help the current Cardinals win these games. 

"Wesleyan has so much to offer," Pechinski said. "It’s a diverse, creative, and free-thinking environment. But playing football here isn’t like at other places. It’s a unique experience. As alumni, we understand this." 

Saturday is a crucial point in the Cardinals’ season. It will break-up a four-way tie for first place in the NESCAC between Wesleyan, Amherst, Colby, and Middlebury and will help determine this season’s Little Three Champion. 

"It’s obviously a big game," Hauser said. "As long as I’ve been here, we’ve never come out flat in a Little Three game. The fact the game is on TV doesn’t make any difference in how we’re preparing. It’s a nice plus, but it won’t be a factor for the guys on the field."

Wesleyan players recognize the efforts of the Cardinal Club, and are excited for the opportunity.

"The team is really appreciative that the Cardinal Club is getting this for us," said offensive lineman Brian Moloney ’01. "It will add to excitement all day long. It’s something we’ve all wanted to do, to be on TV. We’ll all look pretty."

For Pechinski, Bagatelle, and other proud alumni, Saturday is a landmark for Wesleyan football.

"We’re hoping that Wesleyan will be a fixture on NESN in years to come," Bagatelle said.