MHSAA TV Celebrates 10th Anniversary

August 29, 2018

By John Johnson
MHSAA Director of Broadcast Properties

It was 10 years ago today that the MHSAA began its current television network efforts by broadcasting a season-opening football game pitting local rivals in small-town setting.

Sand Creek High School was hosting Blissfield in what had become a traditional season-opening game at the time, the two schools less than 15 miles apart. The Aggies were celebrating a community effort by debuting new grandstands on the home side of the field salvaged from nearby Michigan International Speedway. Townsfolk gathered across the street in the high school for a fund-raising taco dinner, and the MHSAA Network was there.

In the 10 years since that kickoff game, won by Blissfield 14-6, the MHSAA’s video production efforts have gone from games on cable television to an exclusively online effort powered by the NFHS Network – which produces more than 135 events and 400 hours of MHSAA Championships – and feature a growing School Broadcast Program, which will produce upwards of 2,000 hours of regular-season games at more 80 participating schools in 2018-19.

Here’s this week’s MHSAA.tv schedule of video streams being produced by SBP members and the NFHS Network:

Wednesday, Aug. 29

Thursday, Aug. 30

Friday, Aug. 31

Tuesday, Sept. 4

All sporting events – live or delayed - are available on a subscription basis only for their first 72 hours online. They become available for free, on-demand viewing approximately 72 hours following their completion.

NFHS Network subscriptions begin at $9.95 a month. Subscribers will have access to all live video and streaming statistics across the country. All content becomes available for free, on- demand viewing 72 hours after being shown live. School Broadcast Program participants also will be selling Season and Annual Passes at a discounted rate.  A portion of every subscription sold by a school goes to benefit its program. 

A complete list of participating schools can be found on the School Broadcast Program page of the MHSAA website.

Highlights of games broadcast by MHSAA School Broadcast Program members and the NFHS Network make their 2018-19 debut this week. Featured games are in football with Trenton’s 27-21 win over Allen Park; Zeeland East topping East Grand Rapids, 36-27; and Flint Beecher defeating Flint Southwestern, 24-0.

Highlights can be found each week on the MHSAA.tv website, the home page of the MHSAA Website, and the MHSAASports Channel on YouTube.

MHSAA.tv on NFHS Network Surpasses Decade of Providing Fans Another Way to Watch

By Jon Ross
MHSAA Director of Broadcast Properties

August 30, 2024

The way high school sports fans in Michigan follow their favorite teams changed forever 11 years ago.

MHSAA Championships began airing on the NFHS Network in 2013, and one of the oldest games archived was the season-opening varsity football game between Adrian and Carleton Airport on Aug. 30, 2013. Adrian would go on to win that game 26-7. John Koehn of WLEN in Adrian provided the play-by-play. (Watch the entire game here.)

The second, third, and fourth oldest archived streams were also Adrian football games. The first MHSAA basketball game to air was Cheboygan vs. Newberry on Dec. 10, 2013.

Since that start, more than 172,000 events in Michigan have been broadcast on the NFHS Network. Last school year alone, more than 50,000 events aired. This includes games from all levels – freshman, JV, and varsity. It includes regular-season matchups, all the way through MHSAA Finals. Most games are produced with automated cameras installed in gyms and stadiums. Schools also use student crews to produce broadcasts – providing hands-on learning opportunities for future broadcasters.

More than 600 of the MHSAA’s 752 member schools are partners of the NFHS Network. A monthly subscription to watch is $11.99 – and a portion of that goes back to schools in Michigan. To date, the NFHS Network has shared nearly $1.5 million with partner schools.

If you can’t attend a game in person, watching on the NFHS Network is a great way to support your favorite school.