Minnesota prep tournaments get $8.8 million TV deal extension

Securing a long-term broadcast partnership worth $8.8 million puts the Minnesota State High School League in rare company, executive director Dave Stead said Thursday.

An extension of the league's deal with Hubbard Broadcasting means that 45TV will televise the Prep Bowl as well as state tournaments in boys' and girls' hockey and boys' and girls' basketball though the 2030-31 school year. The contract was set to expire in 2021.

The league's board of directors approved the extension by unanimous voice vote Thursday at its Brooklyn Park office. Stead said the new contract is valued at $8.8 million, plus $1.3 million annually for related services and support.

"No other high school association or small college in the country has this kind of deal," Stead told board members.

The league lowered its rights fees to secure a long-term deal. Stead said the league will lose $1.8 million initially but will see a net gain over the life of the contract.

"This ensures at the end of each year, there will be dollars to return to member schools," Stead said.

The station, the league's partner since 2004, also streams games through its website.

Missed calls during the football state tournament has associate director Kevin Merkle looking into instant replay.

"None of them, I don't think, made a big difference in the game," he said. "But you worry that might cost a game. So going to replay, we do it in basketball and hockey because we can. I think we can in football without a lot of cost. That's what I want to explore."

The scope of instant replay could be limited to verifying touchdowns and turnovers, with a final decision quickly made by two officials upstairs in the replay booth. Merkle said the seven Prep Bowl games, played at U.S. Bank Stadium, would be the focus and added the semifinals are a possibility.