November 27, 2023

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Thanksgiving Day may be all about the NFL — but college football’s rivalry weekend delivered some classics on Saturday. During the final game of Jim Harbaugh’s suspension, Michigan narrowly outlasted Ohio State. But nothing was more stunning than the Iron Bowl that saw Alabama shock Auburn — and keep their CFP hopes alive — with a game-winning touchdown on fourth-and-31, 10 years after the Tigers upset the Crimson Tide with the famous kick-six.

— David Rumsey [[link removed]]

Schools Owe Fired CFB Coaches A Record $118M In Buyouts (So Far) [[link removed]]

Robert Goddin-USA TODAY Sports

College football’s regular season is over, and the tab for fired head coaches keeps growing at a record pace.

After Indiana finished with a record of 3-9, the Hoosiers fired head coach Tom Allen, who agreed [[link removed]] to a $15.5 million settlement. Houston ended the season with a 4-8 record and is firing coach Dana Holgorsen, who will receive [[link removed]] nearly $14.8 million in buyout money.

Those two figures, which are worth a combined $30.3 million, take this season’s total amount of buyout money owed to coaches to more than $118 million — well past what was believed to be the single-season record of $94 million in 2021, according [[link removed]] to Yahoo Sports.

Of course, the main driver of this season’s insane buyout figures is the $76 million Texas A&M will be paying [[link removed]] to Jimbo Fisher, who was fired just two years after signing a 10-year, $95 million contract extension.

More To Come?

Here’s how all the buyouts shake out for coaches who have been fired so far:

Texas A&M’s Jimbo Fisher: $76 million Indiana’s Tom Allen: $15.5 million Houston’s Dana Holgorsen: $14.8 million Mississippi State’s Zach Arnett [[link removed]]: $4.5 million Syracuse’s Dino Babers [[link removed]]: $4 million (estimate; private school) Boise State’s Andy Avalos [[link removed]]: $3 million New Mexico’s Danny Gonzales [[link removed]]: $400,000

The list could grow even further as the fates of other coaches on the hot seat are determined.

Meanwhile, Michigan State would have owed [[link removed]] fired head coach Mel Tucker $80 million in buyout money, but the school is so far off the hook for that sum because he was let go over allegations of sexual harassment.

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🎙️ They Said What?

“There’s a lot of pressure on this league – as it should be – to turn their attention to building stadiums where they can be the front tenant and not last in line … I think that’s wildly important.”

— Hillary Mandel, IMG executive vice president, on what happens next, following the NWSL’s transformative media rights deals. To hear more about how the media deals were negotiated, listen to Front Office Sports Today.

🎧 Listen and subscribe on Apple [[link removed]], Google [[link removed]], and Spotify [[link removed]].

Despite Lopsided Thanksgiving Games, NFL Continues Its TV Dominance [[link removed]]

Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Food, family, and football.

That’s the NFL’s motto for Thanksgiving, and it lived up to the hype for the 2023 edition of the holiday.

The Dallas Cowboys’ dominating 45-10 victory over the Washington Commanders on Thanksgiving Day certainly grabbed the attention of American football fans, drawing 41.4 million viewers on CBS. That makes Thursday’s matchup the third-most-watched regular-season game in NFL history. It’s the most-watched telecast of any kind since Super Bowl LVII in February.

The figure falls behind [[link removed]] the 42 million viewers that tuned in last Thanksgiving for the Cowboys’ 28-20 win over the New York Giants and a Giants-San Francisco 49ers matchup that drew 41.6 million viewers in 1990.

On Thursday night, the 49ers’ 31-13 victory over the Seattle Seahawks drew 26.9 million viewers across NBC, Peacock, Telemundo, Universo, NBC Sports Digital, and NFL Digital platforms. It was the second-most watched Thanksgiving primetime game ever, just behind the 27.8 million viewers for a Chicago Bears-Green Bay Packers game in 2015.

The Cowboys’ 35-point win over the Commanders was the most-streamed NFL game ever for Paramount+, and 49ers-Seahawks was the most-streamed NFL Thanksgiving night game ever, on Peacock. Fox viewership for the Packers’ 29-22 upset of the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving has not been released.

The NFL Goes Shopping

The NFL action continued with the first-ever Black Friday game on Amazon Prime Video, in which the Miami Dolphins took down the New York Jets 34-13. Viewership has not been released, but “Thursday Night Football” on Prime Video has averaged 12.27 million viewers.

Amazon paid [[link removed]] the NFL $100 million for the rights to the Black Friday game, which was a look into the future of shopping during sports broadcasts. QR codes were rampant [[link removed]] on-screen during the game broadcast, and ad breaks as Amazon and other brands looked to capitalize on the biggest shopping day of the year.

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Red Bull-Dominated Formula 1 Season Ends With Expansion Unsettled [[link removed]]

Red Bull Racing/X

The 2023 Formula 1 season concluded on Sunday in Abu Dhabi as Red Bull and Max Verstappen finished off the most dominant single-year run in the sport’s history.

Verstappen won his record 19th race of the season, finishing first in all but three grand prix. Verstappen’s Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez easily finished second in the drivers standings — with a 51-point gap between him and third place.

Red Bull earns an estimated [[link removed]] $140 million for the constructors’ championship.

Mercedes — with third- and ninth-place finishes from George Russell and Lewis Hamilton, respectively — secured second in the constructors’ championship and an estimated $131 million. Ferrari’s third-place finish will likely be good for about $122 million.

Current prize money figures are based off last season’s revenue and could vary slightly.

More The Merrier?

With some on-track changes set to come in 2024 — like a new [[link removed]] sprint race format — the biggest question for the sport is whether an 11th team will be permitted to join the grid come 2026.

General Motors has agreed to build engines for a team [[link removed]] led by Michael Andretti and Cadillac. That bid has received approval from the FIA but is awaiting the final green light from F1 parent company Liberty Media.

German Soccer’s $1B Stake Sale Could Have Multiple Bidders [[link removed]]

DFL

The German Football League is advancing further on its developing effort [[link removed]] to sell part of its media rights to private investors for as much as $1.1 billion, reportedly inviting five suitors to submit bids.

The governing body of German professional soccer has informed the 36 clubs in the top two divisions that potential strategic partners being considered are Advent International, Blackstone, Bridgepoint, CVC Capital Partners, and EQT, according [[link removed]] to Reuters.

At least four of these entities are expected to submit preliminary bids by early December. A general meeting is scheduled for Dec. 11, during which clubs are expected to vote on whether to hold an auction for the rights. A two-thirds majority is required to continue.

The latest plan is designed to help bring in outside investors and much-needed cash, particularly as the DFL attempts to keep up with heightened competition from European powerhouses such as the Premier League and La Liga. To that end, the DFL letter to the clubs discusses “securing the sporting and economic competitive position of the federal leagues.”

This is the third attempt to sell part of the DFL media rights to private equity, and several of the firms being considered, including CVC, Blackstone, and Advent, previously showed interest in investing. A prior effort in May failed [[link removed]] to win sufficient support, and the DFL discontinued a similar initiative in 2021.

The latest attempt is said to be structured as a reverse auction in which private equity firms would be asked how big an equity stake they would seek in return for the investment up to $1.1 billion — with the likely condition that stake remains below 10%.

Conversation Starters Liberty’s football team defeated UTEP to go 12-0 on the season. Take a look [[link removed]] at how the team celebrated its perfect year. What is the reward for making the game-winning field goal in the final Apple Cup of conference play? Watch [[link removed]] as Washington kicker Grady Gross finds out. NFL players tallied nearly $15.4 million in fines over the entire 2022 season. But through the first 11 weeks of this season, player fines have already surpassed that number. Check out [[link removed]] the amount. Editor's Picks Sports Apparel Giants Looking For Holiday Season Turnaround [[link removed]]by Eric Fisher [[link removed]]Once-surging category enters the critical selling period mired in a slump. The Pac-12 Plays Its Final Regular-Season Game. Then A Court Decides Its Fate. [[link removed]]by Amanda Christovich [[link removed]]The conference's future rests with a court decision. Wembanyama Spurs Debut Jersey Fetches Record Auction Price [[link removed]]by Doug Greenberg [[link removed]]The jersey sold for $762,000 — the most ever for an NBA rookie. U.S. Sports Betting On Pace To Hit $100B In Wagers [[link removed]]by Eric Fisher [[link removed]]Sports wagering activity accelerating to unprecedented levels. Question Of The Day

How many times per month do you eat dinner at a restaurant?

0 [[link removed]] 1-3 [[link removed]] 4+ [[link removed]]

Wednesday’s Answer

64% of respondents try to set health/wellness goals in the new year.

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