DirecTV (NASDAQ: DTV) has notably turned a cold shoulder to big launches of regional sports networks recently, shunning TimeWarner SportsNet LA, the Pac-12 Network and CSN Houston, for example. Why will things be different for the SEC Network, the new ESPN-backed channel focused on Southeastern Conference sports that launches in August? Well, it can be easily argued that SEC football fans are a lot more rabid than their Pac-12 counterparts, and are lot more likely to migrate pay-TV services to watch Alabama, LSU or Florida games. But TV Predictions goes a little bit deeper, noting the powerful leverage of ESPN's parent, The Walt Disney Company, and DirecTV's soft rhetoric on the matter. The full report is here.