ESPN 2's SportsNation hosts Michelle Beadle and Colin Cowherd discuss the best defender in the Big Ten Tuesday afternoon at Hubbard Park in Iowa City. The popular television show is touring four Big Ten campuses this week including Wisconsin, Michigan, and Penn State. (Clark Cahill/The Gazette)

An hour long delay and a seemingly never-ending downpour of rain was not enough to stop ESPN 2′s popular television show SportsNation from presenting a live taping in Iowa City Tuesday afternoon.

But maybe most impressive was the perseverance of the crowd who only cheered louder as the rain fell harder.

“We’re not leaving,” the crowd of several hundred people chanted each time the show went to a commercial break.

The show was scheduled to begin at 3 p.m., but a thunderstorm which began around 2:30 pushed the start time back until 4. Crowd members retreated and took cover at the Iowa Memorial Union, located on the other side of the park, during the delay.

The rain had stopped around 3:30, but it was only proved to be a tease as rain drops began to sprinkle minutes before the show was to begin and eventually turned into a steady downpour which lasted the entire taping.

“The rain only made the show better,” Iowa senior Trent Wilson said. “Once the rain starts there isn’t really any other option other than to enjoy the atmosphere.”

Temperatures were humid in the lower 80′s as a crowd began to form around the stage at 1 p.m. By the time the show ended, it was a cool 65 degrees.

“When we first got here, it was insanely hot out,” Iowa senior Ryan Feld said. “I had no idea it was going to turn into what it did.”

Once SportsNation hosts Michelle Beadle and Colin Cowherd took the stage, they displayed why the show has continually gained in popularity since it began in July 2009.

The majority of the show’s content is generated from viewers and fans including online polls, internet videos, and messages they receive from Twitter. In other words, the show’s success relies on audience participation.

The raucus crowd cheered and booed accordingly to each topic that was presented ranging from Iowa football to dorm room golf.

Iowa was the show’s second stop in a tour of four Big Ten conference schools. The show was at Wisconsin on Monday and will also travel to Michigan and Penn State.

It is the first time the show has ventured on the road as it has traditionally been shot in a studio in Bristol, Conn.

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