Realignment Update

[Webmaster]

"The Pac-12 expects to release details of its highly anticipated media rights deal in the "near future," a league source with knowledge of the conversations told ESPN on Tuesday.

The deal will not be announced at Pac-12 football media day on Friday in Las Vegas, said the source."

https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/38031370/source-pac-12-media-rights-deal-expected-future

"...However, because the expanded, 12-team College Football Playoff will reward the six-highest ranked conference champions in 2024, some schools in the league believe there will be a benefit to being in a conference of 10 as opposed to 16."

[WordUpBU]

"The Pac-12 expects to release details of its highly anticipated media rights deal in the "near future," a league source with knowledge of the conversations told ESPN on Tuesday.

The deal will not be announced at Pac-12 football media day on Friday in Las Vegas, said the source."

https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/38031370/source-pac-12-media-rights-deal-expected-future

"...However, because the expanded, 12-team College Football Playoff will reward the six-highest ranked conference champions in 2024, some schools in the league believe there will be a benefit to being in a conference of 10 as opposed to 16."

The odds of the Pac 12 adding 2 schools right now is probably around 60%. Economics breaking either way could make them add or stay at ten.

Lose 2 schools and that shoots to 100% IMO. They'd need minimum inventory.

[EastStang]

I saw an article in the USC website quoting an article in Sports Business which indicated that the hold up had to do with ESPN and its capital. Apparently, to swing the deal it needed a media partner either Comcast, Apple, Amazon, or others. They apparently have found such a partner and things are in the final stages. The article was silent on expansion.
https://sports.yahoo.com/possible-reason-pac-12-super-161606375.html?fr=sycsrp_catchall

[1983 Cotton Bowl]

At this point I just want to see SMU go at least 10-2 and make a good bowl game. Come on Ponies!!

[peruna81]

At this point I just want to see SMU go at least 10-2 and make a good bowl game. Come on Ponies!!

Aye. ^This^.
Is it too early for the dreaded and despised Annual Prediction Thread ?

[SMU Pom Mom]

... I'll simply add, thank goodness we aren't Northwestern this week...with all sympathy to and for our lone Wildcat rooter/mom.

Thanks for that. It's horrible. I'm even thinking of getting rid of my NU CATS license plate. This season I am officially all in for SMU.

[Red Dragon Coog]

Loooooool Kliavkoff is getting hounded about the lack of media rights deal.

[mtrout]

"Our schools are committed to each other and to the Pac-12," Kliavkoff said. "We'll get our media rights deal done, we'll announce the deal. I think the realignment that's going on in college athletics will come to an end for this cycle. The truth is we've got bigger fish to fry. There are incredible opportunities and also challenges in front of college athletics, and I need to be able to work with all of my colleagues in Division I and particularly in the A5, and we'll do that. We'll move past all the bitter squabbling of the last year, and we'll work together to make college athletics better."

Uhh...

[max the wonder dog]

Sportskeeda, an India-based sports website, has two major stories on PAC 12 Realignment. (The Indian subcontinent is not the first place I look for NCAA football updates, but let's face it, can it be any worse than Big 12 trolls?) Per Sportskeeda --

1. Oregon is opposed to expansion because they fear it will reduce their changes of making it to the national championships. (I read earlier this year that playing for a national championship is Phil Knight's priority, so they may be on to something,)

https://www.sportskeeda.com/college-football/is-oregon-opposing-possible-pac-12-expansion-cfb-insiders-drop-major-update-amid-pac-12-media-rights-drama

2. The gang of rich alums that pushed for the hiring of Coach Prime are pushing Colorado to realign with the Big 12.

https://www.sportskeeda.com/college-football/is-colorado-finally-moving-big-12-ditching-long-wait-pac-12-media-rights-deal-latest-rumors-insider-news

[mtrout]

lol Oregon is afraid of SMU and SDSU getting in the way of their national title! That's the softest thing I've heard in a while.

Their source is Greg Swaim who says on his website
So Tuesday has nearly passed without any schools leaving one P5 conference for another, despite a lot of talk that the Big 12 are not only talking to Utah, Colorado, Arizona State and Arizona, but that Oregon and Washington might also join in the move to the Big 12.

[max the wonder dog]

If the Phil Knight report is true, I don't see OR getting into a position to play MI, OH ST, PA ST, USC etc. on a regular basis. Then again, maybe that's less frightening than facing the Ponies

[SMUstang]

Remember who gets to vote. I don’t see any college president choosing the Big12 over the PAC.

[Webmaster]

Today, Greg Swaim (who seems rather biased against the P12) confirms (on the platform formerly known as Twitter) that the Pac12 has been offered a deal by the CW for a Tuesday and Wednesday evening broadcast game each week.

The upside to that obviously is that anyone with a set of rabbit ears or basic cable can tune into the games.

Prior to this news, Swaim stated that the best media deal on the table was $12M less (in total or per school he didn't say) than the Big12, of which only 20% was linear/broadcast.

https://twitter.com/GSwaim

[mtrout]

ACC just did a deal with The CW. ESPN is broke. Pac12's only hope is that LIV or Apple somehow magically saves them Steve Jobs 1997 style.

https://theacc.com/news/2023/7/13/gener ... -fall.aspx

[EastStang]

The ACC has long had relationships with small sports broadcasting networks. I used to see their games all the time on UHF stations growing up. So a deal with the CW is not unthinkable for them.