Bill Rasmussen was told his idea was "television suicide."
Thirty years later, his idea stands as the most-aired program in television history.
Rasmussen, the "SportsCenter" creator and founder of ESPN, gave a speech Wednesday night sponsored by the University Program Council.
UPC selected Rasmussen in part because of the strength of Auburn's business program, said Jessica Howard, junior in international business and theatre.
"Because we had just won the national championship and because Auburn is such a big sports school, we thought it was something the students would really enjoy," Howard said.
At its start, ESPN cost 2.4 cents per subscriber per month; today that cost has grown to $4.02.
Hard work and a little luck gave birth to the creation of a 24-hour sports network, Rasmussen said.
"I believe the harder you work the luckier you are," he said. "That's been my mantra forever."
Rasmussen said his upbringing gave him the positive attitude and confidence to start an entrepreneurial venture.
"Growing up at the end of the Depression and going into World War II ... it was instilled in us that we would be positive and do things," he said.
In the summer of 1978, Rasmussen was fired from his job as communications director for the New England Whalers after the hockey team failed to make the playoffs.
"So there I was on Memorial Day weekend--no job, (and I had) a freshman in college, a junior in high school and a daughter who was in eighth grade, all of whom like to eat regularly," Rasmussen said. "I had no other great resource at that time to feed them, so we had to come up with an idea."
Early skeptics of ESPN said Rasmussen's idea was futile because no one would want to watch sports 24 hours a day.
Despite opposition from potential advertisers and other cable networks, Rasmussen said he always knew ESPN would be a success.
"There is no limit," he said. "People have an appetite for sports."
A $1.38 million advertising contract with Anheuser-Busch--the largest advertising contract in TV history at the time--helped secure the funding necessary to get the network on the air.
ESPN went live for the first time Sept. 7, 1979.
"They really defined what sports media was," said Lauren Smith, assistant professor of public relations. "When ESPN started, it really separated sports news from the rest of the news."
What propelled the network into the success it has today, Rasmussen said, was March Madness in 1980.
At the time, the other networks aired only the regionals, semifinals and finals of the NCAA Tournament. Rasmussen decided ESPN would air all the games.
After that, Rasmussen said, ESPN exploded. In September 1980, 5.5 million subscribers signed up in one month--a feat that no network, even ESPN itself, has matched.
In 1984, Rasmussen sold his equity interest in ESPN. He said he has no regrets about selling when he did.
"I look at it as watching my kids grow up," he said. "Wouldn't you be proud to have your offspring grow up like that?"
Rasmussen encouraged budding entrepreneurs to pursue their ideas, even if they don't understand all the logistics.
"Don't ever worry about facts," he said. "Whatever it is you choose to do, there's always somebody you can turn to to answer your question, no matter what it is."
Rasmussen added that the current economic climate should not be a deterrent to entrepreneurs.
"I am a forever unabashed American. I grew up thinking we could do anything, and I still think we can."
Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman.
