SYRACUSE — Galaxy Communications, L.P., IMG College, and the Syracuse University (SU) athletic department on April 30 finalized the renewal of a five-year contract for broadcast rights to Syracuse University football, basketball, and lacrosse. It’s been a great relationship for Galaxy and all the parties involved, says Edward (Ed) Levine, president and CEO of Galaxy […]
SYRACUSE — Galaxy Communications, L.P., IMG College, and the Syracuse University (SU) athletic department on April 30 finalized the renewal of a five-year contract for broadcast rights to Syracuse University football, basketball, and lacrosse.
It’s been a great relationship for Galaxy and all the parties involved, says Edward (Ed) Levine, president and CEO of Galaxy Communications.
Galaxy, which operates radio stations in both Syracuse and Utica, is headquartered at 235 Walton St. in Syracuse.
“I’m very proud of the fact that we delivered what I said we would deliver when we first did this contract …We’d give more coverage to SU than it’s ever had before,” Levine says.
Galaxy’s WTKW-FM (TK99/TK105) serves as the flagship station for both Orange football and men’s basketball broadcasts. Its sister-station, ESPN Radio 97.7 FM/100.1 FM (which also transmits at both 1200 AM and 1440 AM), broadcasts men’s lacrosse and women’s basketball games.
“Overall … it’s been great for the SU fan for the last five years,” Levine says.
Levine declined to release financial terms of the newly signed contract.
The original agreement was very specific because “we didn’t know each other,” but now SU and IMG know “what we are and who we are and what we do and I know them very well,” so the broadcast formats will continue as fans know them, Levine said.
But Levine says the latest discussions involved some ideas that would be good for the program long term, he believes.
“Maybe new entrees, especially with the ACC happening,” Levine says, referencing the school’s jump to the Atlantic Coast Conference this summer.
Levine declined to elaborate on any of the ideas under discussion.
Besides the game broadcasts, men’s head coaches Jim Boeheim (basketball), Scott Shafer (football), and John Desko (lacrosse) also make appearances on Galaxy radio stations, including the in-season shows on which fans can call and ask questions during football and basketball season.
“The theme of Syracuse University runs through, primarily the flagship TK99 and ESPN [Radio], but also all of our stations,” Levine says.
For example, KROCK (WKRL 100.9 FM and 106.5 FM) has produced its own football pre-game show, broadcasting live from the Syracuse University quad before the home games, Levine says.
Besides TK99/TK105, ESPN Radio, and KROCK, Galaxy also operates Syracuse radio stations that include Sunny 102 (WZUN 102.1 FM, 106.1 FM in Oswego) and ESPN Deportes (WSCP 1070AM in Oswego), which is ESPN’s Spanish-speaking network, according to the Galaxy website.
Galaxy’s 96.9 WOUR serves as the network affiliate for listeners in the Utica–Rome area, according to the Galaxy website. Besides WOUR, the company also operates Mix 102.5 (WUMX-FM), KROCK 94.9 (WKLL-FM), and ESPN Radio 99.1 FM and 1310 AM.
There’s a tremendous following for SU in the Mohawk Valley, Levine says.
“When you open the Utica paper the day after a football or basketball game, the SU result is on the front page. Not the front page of sports, it’s on the front page [of the paper],” he says.
Winston-Salem, N.C.–based IMG College is the worldwide rights holder for Syracuse University athletics, according to Levine.
IMG College is a collegiate multimedia, marketing and license/brand management company, representing more than 200 of the nation’s collegiate properties, including the NCAA and its 89 championships, NCAA football, conferences, and many of the nation’s colleges and universities, according to its website.
It contracts with SU directly for the radio rights, and chooses the play-by-play announcing teams. Galaxy subcontracts with IMG, according to Levine, and receives a portion of the commercial inventory to sell during the broadcasts.
Galaxy Communication employs about 80 people between its Syracuse headquarters and the location in Utica. Most of the employees, or between 70 percent and 80 percent, work in the Syracuse location, Levine says.
Galaxy annually generates about $13 million in revenue, Levine says.
Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com