SAN JOSE, Calif. – The San Jose Earthquakes and Comcast SportsNet have announced their most comprehensive regional television schedule in the team’s history. Comcast SportsNet (CSN) will televise 29 Earthquakes games in 2012 in High Definition. With the five remaining games televised nationally, the Earthquakes will have all of their games on television in 2012 for the first time since the team returned to MLS in 2008.
In addition to the schedule, the Earthquakes also announced their broadcast team for the 2012 season. Jim Kozimor will return to the play-by-play role for his third season and be joined by color analyst and former Quakes defender Kelly Gray. Dan Dibley will return as the sideline reporter for all home matches. Gray replaces long-time Quakes announcer John Shrader, who now is a professor of journalism and mass communication at California State University, Long Beach in southern California.
“We are proud to say that all of our games will be on television this season,” said Earthquakes President Dave Kaval. “We have a great partner in Comcast SportsNet and we made a commitment to provide Quakes fans with the best local television package in team history. We also want to thank John Shrader for his great work since 1996. He will always be part of the Earthquakes family.”
The team also announced that the start time for Saturday, April 7 against Vancouver Whitecaps FC has been moved to 4 p.m. PT and the start time for Wednesday, July 18 against FC Dallas is now 8 p.m. PT.
The Quakes’ telecast schedule begins on Comcast SportsNet California with their home opener against the New England Revolution on Saturday, March 10 at 7:30 p.m. PT.
The 29 matches on Comcast SportsNet will primarily air on CSN California, while some will air on CSN Bay Area and a few on CSN Plus. Along with the locally televised games, the Quakes will appear on national television seven times, four on NBC Sports Network and once on ESPN2. Concurrent with CSN California’s coverage, two matches will appear on Galavision.
Comcast SportsNet California Vice President and General Manager Larry Eldridge added, “The Earthquakes are one of the premier franchises in MLS with one of the most passionate and loyal fan bases in the league. We are pleased to present our most comprehensive Quakes telecast schedule to date along with season-long news and analysis on SportsNet Central and Chronicle Live.”
The partnership will also include appearances by Earthquakes players and coaches on Chronicle Live and coverage on both SportsNet Central and SportsNet Reports.
Gray, who was born in Palo Alto, Calif., begins his first full season as the color analyst for the Earthquakes after appearing on select Quakes radio and television broadcasts the past two seasons. In addition to his work in the booth, he serves in a club ambassador role for the franchise. Gray spent parts of three seasons in the organization as a player; in 2005 after arriving from the Chicago Fire via trade, and then again from 2008-09. He made 41 appearances in a Quakes jersey, drawing 34 starts and providing one goal and two assists as a defender and midfielder. He was an integral part of the Quakes Supporters’ Shield run in 2005. Gray’s playing career spanned eight years after being drafted in 2002 by the Chicago Fire and he appeared in a total of 160 matches for five MLS clubs. He won an MLS Cup with the Houston Dynamo in 2006. Gray was an All-American at the University of Portland.
Kozimor, a veteran sports broadcaster for more than 20 years, begins his third season as the play-by-play announcer for all Quakes broadcasts. One of the most versatile announcers in the industry, he is an anchor/host on Comcast SportsNet’s signature programs SportsNet Central, Chronicle Live, Raiders Postgame Live and Raiders Press Conference Live. He also hosts Xfinity Sports Sunday on NBC Bay Area. His play-by-play duties have included college basketball and football for the Pac-12, college basketball for the WCC, Major League Lacrosse and World Team Tennis. During the 2008 Summer Olympics, he was the play-by-play announcer for NBC Sports’ coverage of badminton. He was a long-time television/radio broadcaster for the Sacramento Kings and Sacramento Monarchs. Before that, he was an announcer with the Philadelphia 76ers, Houston Rockets, Golden State Warriors and Detroit Pistons.
A 16-year veteran of local television and radio, Dibley will again be Comcast SportsNet’s sideline reporter for Earthquakes home telecasts. He is also a co-host on 95.7 The Game’s The Rise Guys morning radio show. Additionally, he is the lead play-by-play voice for high school sports telecasts on Comcast Hometown Network and a play-by-play announcer for the San Jose SaberCats. He spent 12 years as a physical education instructor and youth soccer coach in Marin County.
About Comcast Sports Group
Comcast Sports Group, part of the NBC Sports Group, consists of 14 local networks that deliver 2,400 sporting events annually and breaking news and analysis to more than 50 million cable and satellite homes. Comcast Sports Group’s sports networks are: Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, Comcast SportsNet California, Comcast SportsNet Chicago, Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic, Comcast SportsNet New England, Comcast SportsNet Northwest, Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia, SNY, The Mtn. – Mountain West Sports Network, CSS and Comcast Sports Southwest. Comcast Sports Group also manages NECN (New England Cable News), the nation’s largest regional news network, and The Comcast Network, based in Philadelphia and Washington, which delivers community-oriented programming. For more information, see ComcastSportsNet.com.
