NBC UNIVERSAL GETS “BACK TO FOOTBALL” WITH UNPRECEDENTED KICKOFF COVERAGE

TODAY, Nightly News, Tonight Show & Others Report From New Orleans

NEW ORLEANS, LA. – Sept. 8, 2010 – NBC Universal is getting “Back to Football” with NFL-themed programming all week and unprecedented coverage from New Orleans on Thursday highlighted by the 2010 NFL season kicking off with the Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints hosting the Minnesota Vikings in a rematch of last year’s NFC Championship Game. Coverage begins at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBC.

Rivaling NBC Universal’s presence at the Olympics and Super Bowl, NBC Universal will be on site in New Orleans covering the annual NFL Kickoff celebration in the city of the Super Bowl Champion. Pre-game coverage will features a Mardi Gras-style “Back to Football” parade and performances by the Dave Matthews Band and Taylor Swift live from New Orleans’ Jackson Square. The parade route through the French Quarter is expected to be packed with Saints fans from the region celebrating the team’s first Super Bowl in the 43-year history of the organization.

“For so many fans, the start of football season is always special. We are working closely with the NFL to build upon the momentum when our country gets “Back to Football,” said Mike McCarley, Senior Vice President, Strategic Marketing, NBC Sports and Olympics.  “The celebration in New Orleans is expected to have unique resonance this year as the Saints’ Super Bowl victory, was very special for Saints fans across the country and especially for those here in the Gulf region.”

Highlights of NBC Universal’s “Back to Football” Week:

Tuesday & Wednesday

Minute To Win It: NFL players compete

Late Night with Jimmy Fallon: NFL-themed content (all week)

Thursday (all reporting from New Orleans)

TODAY: Matt Lauer and Al Roker Live from various sites in New Orleans

Nightly News: Brian Williams from the Lower Ninth Ward

Access Hollywood: Tony Potts on-site

The Weather Channel: Wake Up with Al

CNBC: Reports all day

MSNBC: Reports all day

Telemundo: Titulares y Mas

Friday

TODAY: Sugarland to perform a Football-themed concert in Rockefeller Plaza

The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Correspondent Jim Norton reports from New Orleans

Saturday

Saturday Night Live: Peyton Manning Hosts (reair)

Additional NBCU programs not on-site in New Orleans will get “Back to Football” with their own unique content. In primetime, “Minute To Win It” NFL-themed episodes featuring Vikings and Saints players and cheerleaders air Tuesday and Wednesday. “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” is incorporating NFL content all week, Tuesday featured Fallon’s popular ‘Pros and Cons’ segment with Justin Tuck of the New York Giants Even Universal Orlando is also going “Back to Football” by hosting NFL Kickoff parties at CityWalk.

Once Thursday’s game is complete, NBC’s coverage of the start of the 2010 NFL season continues with a football-themed Sugarland concert on TODAY on Friday morning in Rockefeller Plaza in New York. Additional NFL-themed programming continues throughout the weekend leading up to the first “Sunday Night Football” game of the season, the NFC East rivalry between the Dallas Cowboys at Washington Redskins. Coverage begins with “Football Night in America” at 7 p.m. ET.

Follow NBC Sports PR on Twitter at Twitter.com/NBCSportsPR

Follow “Sunday Night Football” on Twitter at Twitter.com/SNFonNBC

Become a fan of “Sunday Night Football” on Facebook at: Facebook.com/SNFonNBC