“SportsCenter” and “Friends” junkies living in the directional halls have been denied their nightly television fixes after moving into the newly renovated dorms this semester.

Residents in Northeast and Southwest Halls have had no cable television since the halls opened Aug. 15.

But university officials say they expect service to be up any day, now.

Brian Kuster, director of Housing and Residence Life, said it is hard to place blame on anyone for the lack of cable television in the dorms.

“This is not what we wanted when people came back in, not to have cable,” Kuster said.

Fishel Technologies, the firm responsible for installing the approximate 100,000 feet of cable in the buildings, cited supply problems for the holdup.

John Shields, operations manager for Fishel, said Western’s new cable supplier “dropped the ball” when it came to delivering the proper equipment.

Crews now have all the equipment to complete the installation of cable, Kuster said, but some equipment wasn’t calibrated correctly and will have to be reset.

Kuster said he did not know when cable service would be fully operational in the buildings.

“It could be any day now,” he said.

He said cable lines have been installed in both buildings, except for the basement on the west side of Southwest.

Not all students have gone without cable, Kuster said.

Residents on the first two floors of Southwest and Northeast have cable. Workers hooked up all the rooms they could before they ran short on equipment.

Pat Hall, construction manager for the Student Life Foundation, said the two-week delay is uncommon for such projects.

“This has been an extreme case,” Hall said. “It’s fairly unusual to have this level of delay.”

Unusual or not, the delay has put a dent in the daily television habits of students like Bowling Green sophomore Javen Roberson.

Roberson heard of the cable debacle before moving into Southwest, so he didn’t bother bringing a cable hookup wire to school.

“It’s a big inconvenience,” Roberson said. “I have to find other things to do.”

The “SportsCenter” and “Golden Girls” fan said he just “roams around” when he gets tired of playing seven hours of video games.

Roberson said he has found himself spending more of his cable-free time in Downing University Center and exercising in Preston Health and Activities Center.

When he heard his cable had been installed recently, Roberson still couldn’t enjoy his favorite show.

He didn’t have his hookup wire.

Bowling Green sophomore Jennifer Carter said missing “Friends” has been a drawback for her, but she has made friends of a different sort – the real kind.

Carter said she and the other residents on her hall swap movies from each other’s private collections to stay entertained.

“We’ve definitely bonded on the halls,” Carter said.

The ribbon-cutting ceremony for Northeast and Southwest has been postponed until 3 p.m. Sept. 24 so crews can finish work on the plaza between the two buildings, Kuster said.

Reach Hollan Holm at [email protected].