This article just came out now. Pac-12 Commish George Kliavkoff isn't laying down while schools are exploring their move options. Not saying he can surely save the Pac-12 but he comes off as being proactive (albeit after LA schools left). I posted this in another thread today, but this is worth its own thread.
Canzano: Oregon Ducks make a wish list, while Pac-12 rallies behind the scenes
The geography stinks. The discount would be steep. But Phil Knight apparently wants the University of Oregon to be part of the Big Ten Conference.
Or even, the SEC.
Both options are currently being explored by the Ducks with Knight’s backing, per UO sources. That’s apparently one of the possible plans. Another would be Oregon assuming a tentpole position in a blended, ESPN-backed version of the Pac-12 and Big 12.
Arizona, ASU, Utah and Colorado were reported late last week to be leaning into a possible contingency escape to the Big 12 themselves, but I’m told by a high-ranking official at one of those universities to pump the brakes on that speculation.
“There is no meeting on the books for us with the Big 12,” the source said, “and George is kicking ass.”
George — is George Kliavkoff — the Pac-12 commissioner who was blindsided by the news last week. It was easily his worst day on the job since taking over for Larry Scott. USC and UCLA announced they will leave the Pac-12 in 2024. They’ll join the Big Ten and share in that conference’s $1 billion television deal with Fox.
Former Fox Sports Network president Bob Thompson told me last week that he estimated the Pac-12’s next media rights contract would command $500 million a year before the defection. With the Los Angeles’ television market gone, Thompson says the Pac-12’s media value is reduced to $300 million a year.
That appears to be a 40-percent wholesale discount. But it pencils out to a 28 percent reduction, per university, given that the $300 million would now be split only 10 ways ($30 million each) vs. $500 million being split 12 ways ($41.6 million each).
That kind of media math puts the Pac-12 and Kliavkoff in a tough spot. He and his team are currently exploring expansion candidates. But any potential university (Boise State, Fresno State, San Diego State, etc.) that might be added to the Pac-12 needs to bring more than $30 million in annual media revenue value (or take a steep discount) for the numbers to work.
Notre Dame, for example, works.
It’s why the Big Ten is so busy chasing the Irish.
Boise State? Probably not, unless it takes a deeply discounted cut. There are only 517,000 television homes in Idaho. Currently, Boise State is getting $4 million a year from CBS and FS1 as part of their contract with the Mountain West Conference.
“They probably deserve more than that for what they bring to the MWC,” Thompson said, “but I’d have a hard time ascribing much more than $8 million if they were to join the Pac-12.”
Some other stuff:
• Oregon Gov. Kate Brown may throw a wrinkle into the UO plans. There’s been some speculation that she might step in and attempt to force the Ducks to stay in lockstep with Oregon State. Some lawmakers in Washington have indicated they’d do the same on Washington State’s behalf. I think it’s unlikely that politicians would be successful in blocking potential conference moves by Oregon and Washington.
Canzano: Oregon Ducks make a wish list, while Pac-12 rallies behind the scenes
The geography stinks. The discount would be steep. But Phil Knight apparently wants the University of Oregon to be part of the Big Ten Conference.
Or even, the SEC.
Both options are currently being explored by the Ducks with Knight’s backing, per UO sources. That’s apparently one of the possible plans. Another would be Oregon assuming a tentpole position in a blended, ESPN-backed version of the Pac-12 and Big 12.
Arizona, ASU, Utah and Colorado were reported late last week to be leaning into a possible contingency escape to the Big 12 themselves, but I’m told by a high-ranking official at one of those universities to pump the brakes on that speculation.
“There is no meeting on the books for us with the Big 12,” the source said, “and George is kicking ass.”
George — is George Kliavkoff — the Pac-12 commissioner who was blindsided by the news last week. It was easily his worst day on the job since taking over for Larry Scott. USC and UCLA announced they will leave the Pac-12 in 2024. They’ll join the Big Ten and share in that conference’s $1 billion television deal with Fox.
Former Fox Sports Network president Bob Thompson told me last week that he estimated the Pac-12’s next media rights contract would command $500 million a year before the defection. With the Los Angeles’ television market gone, Thompson says the Pac-12’s media value is reduced to $300 million a year.
That appears to be a 40-percent wholesale discount. But it pencils out to a 28 percent reduction, per university, given that the $300 million would now be split only 10 ways ($30 million each) vs. $500 million being split 12 ways ($41.6 million each).
That kind of media math puts the Pac-12 and Kliavkoff in a tough spot. He and his team are currently exploring expansion candidates. But any potential university (Boise State, Fresno State, San Diego State, etc.) that might be added to the Pac-12 needs to bring more than $30 million in annual media revenue value (or take a steep discount) for the numbers to work.
Notre Dame, for example, works.
It’s why the Big Ten is so busy chasing the Irish.
Boise State? Probably not, unless it takes a deeply discounted cut. There are only 517,000 television homes in Idaho. Currently, Boise State is getting $4 million a year from CBS and FS1 as part of their contract with the Mountain West Conference.
“They probably deserve more than that for what they bring to the MWC,” Thompson said, “but I’d have a hard time ascribing much more than $8 million if they were to join the Pac-12.”
Some other stuff:
• Oregon Gov. Kate Brown may throw a wrinkle into the UO plans. There’s been some speculation that she might step in and attempt to force the Ducks to stay in lockstep with Oregon State. Some lawmakers in Washington have indicated they’d do the same on Washington State’s behalf. I think it’s unlikely that politicians would be successful in blocking potential conference moves by Oregon and Washington.
