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Is there any more interesting corporate relationship in college football than the symbiosis between Alabama and ESPN? Alabama has been the absolute beneficiary of ESPN’s desire to drive ratings, while also manufacturing its own visibility by both being excellent and by having the most media-friendly (and savvy) program in collegiate athletics.
“There is a want for Alabama,” said Lee Fitting, ESPN vice president of production. “There is an intrigue about Alabama. People like success. People like seeing really good teams lose. And people like learning about really good teams. When a team rates, it’s like, ‘Why not do more?