truTV’s “NFL Full Contact” goes behind scenes

For football fans, the excitement of watching two teams give it their all in head-to-head competition is a weekly ritual. But what they see on the field is actually the result of countless hours of hard work.

Debuting at 9 p.m. Monday, truTV and NFL Films will provide unprecedented, exclusive access to what really goes on behind the scenes of professional football in the new series “NFL Full Contact.” The series will follow the action from draft day to the Super Bowl, showing football fans what happens beyond the playing field.

The show pulls the curtain back to show the people called upon to pull off the biggest live NFL events. From providing security to coordinating halftime performances, jobs are on the line.

The premiere looks at a Steelers home game. Subsequent episodes will follow the NFL draft, the opening game of the new Cowboys Stadium in Dallas, the third annual NFL International Series game at Wembley Stadium in London and, finally, the Super Bowl and the Pro Bowl, both held in South Florida this year.

Short takes

 — NBA TV’s Tuesday Fan Night will feature the Oklahoma City Thunder for the fourth time this season whey they play Portland at 9 p.m. The game received 43 percent of the fan vote on NBA.com. NBA TV host Matt Winer will be joined by analyst Kevin McHale and Chris Webber for the pregame show at 8:30 p.m. The telecast is blacked out in Oklahoma.

— Fox’s “Saturday Baseball Game of the Week,” which debuts April 10, will feature prime-time interleague games on May 22 and June 26. The St. Louis Cardinals are featured eight times and the Texas Rangers seven times.

— ESPN has announced two college football for its third annual Kickoff Week: Arizona at Toledo at 7 p.m. Sept 3 and Boise State vs. Virginia Tech from Landover, Md., at 7 p.m. Labor Day Monday, Sept. 6.

— The second annual Chris Paul PBA Celebrity Invitational, which benefits the CP3 Foundation, will air at 1 p.m. Sunday on ESPN. Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward and Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio are among the celebrities.

— Showtime’s “Inside NASCAR” debuts at 9 p.m. Wednesday. Host Chris Myers will be joined by analysts Randy Pemberton, Brad Daugherty and Michael Waltrip.

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