ESPN Will Carry the Sugar Bowl ESPN announced Wednesday that it will carry the Sugar Bowl from 2015 to 2026, much as it recently announced renewals of the Rose Bowl and the Orange Bowl. Under terms of the deal, ESPN will pay the Southeastern and Big 12 conferences $1.02 billion over 12 years - $80 million during the eight years when it is not a semifinal game in the new postseason playoff system and $95 million in the four years when it is. The financial terms are similar to what ESPN is paying for the Rose Bowl, said a person familiar with the contracts. Each Sugar Bowl game will be played Jan. 1 in prime time. "Given the history of excellence by teams in the SEC and Big 12, we recognized the value in securing long-term rights to the Sugar Bowl," said John Skipper, the president of ESPN.