September 12, 2024

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The Pac-12 was left for dead after 10 schools bolted. It’s reinforcing with four new schools—and plans for more. We break down the conference’s strategy as it reorients itself in a new collegiate era.

— Colin Salao [[link removed]], Eric Fisher [[link removed]], and David Rumsey [[link removed]]

Mountain West Schools Poised to Revitalize a Shattered Pac-12 [[link removed]]

The Coloradoan

The Pac-12 isn’t officially back yet, but it’s almost on its feet.

Four Mountain West schools—Boise State, San Diego State, Colorado State, and Fresno State—are expected to join the Pac-12, which was left with just two members this year following the departure of 10 schools.

“I am thankful to our board for their efforts to welcome Boise State University, Colorado State University, California State University, Fresno, and San Diego State University to the conference,” Pac-12 commissioner Teresa Gould said in a statement. “An exciting new era for the Pac-12 Conference begins today.”

Read more about the news [[link removed]] from Front Office Sports reporter Amanda Christovich.

How we got here: In June 2022, UCLA and USC announced they would be leaving the Pac-12 for the Big Ten in 2024. But the rest of the schools stayed put until last year when the Pac-12 failed to secure a media-rights deal [[link removed]].

Then-Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff attempted to negotiate a new media deal following the departure of the two Southern California schools, but the Big 12 cut the conference off [[link removed]] by securing an extension of its rights deal with ESPN and Fox in October 2022.

The conference was still confident it could secure a media deal, but in July 2023, there was still no agreement [[link removed]]. The uncertainty was too much to bear for many of the schools, and, at the end of the month, Colorado announced it would leave for the Big 12.

That’s when the remaining dominoes started to fall.

Oregon and Washington announced a move to the Big Ten [[link removed]], then just hours later, Arizona, Utah, and Arizona State announced they were headed to the Big 12 [[link removed]]. On Sept 1, Stanford and Cal announced their move to the ACC [[link removed]].

Just over a year after USC and UCLA announced their departure, the Pac-12 was left with just two schools for 2024: Oregon State and Washington State.

While it seemed inevitable the two schools would find new homes, they fought to keep the conference alive [[link removed]]. They signed a scheduling partnership with the Mountain West, then settled an eight-figure lawsuit with the 10 departing schools [[link removed]] that forfeited a portion of their conference revenue distributions for the 2023–2024 season.

In March, Kliavkoff was replaced by Gould, who secured a media-rights deal [[link removed]] in May for the conference’s two remaining schools with The CW and Fox Sports. But there are still some pillars for Gould to reconstruct.

What’s next: To maintain its FBS status, the Pac-12 still needs two more schools to join over the next two years. The conference could eye the disgruntled schools in the ACC, particularly FSU and Clemson, both of which are embroiled in a lawsuit [[link removed]] with their conference.

The rest of the ACC schools, including Stanford and Cal, have signed on to the conference’s Grant of Rights, meaning they are tied to the university [[link removed]] unless they follow Florida State and Clemson and take the conference to court, according to Christovich.

There may be several hoops to jump over for the Pac-12 to get its final two schools, but Oregon State athletic director Scott Barnes believes the overarching theme of uncertainty surrounding college realignment bodes well for the conference’s chances at a revival.

“Chaos is our friend because, ultimately, it can give more optionality than what we’re thinking about,” Barnes said on Canzano and Wilner: The Podcast [[link removed]] last week.

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Chiefs’ Impact on Election, From Endorsements to Activity [[link removed]]

Mike Frey-Imagn Images

Does the road to the White House go through Arrowhead Stadium?

Neither Missouri nor Kansas is a swing state in the upcoming U.S. presidential election. But the two-time defending NFL champion Chiefs are increasingly a focal point of the heated political cycle, in part representing a further sign of the league’s omnipresence and power in the broader culture.

Minutes after Tuesday night’s debate between Democratic nominee Kamala Harris and Republican nominee Donald Trump, global pop music icon Taylor Swift announced her endorsement of Harris. Swift, the girlfriend of Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, cited her desire to be “led with calm and not chaos” in a post on Instagram [[link removed]] that has generated more than 10 million likes.

That, in turn, put a spotlight on Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, arguably the NFL’s biggest star and a close friend of Kelce and Swift, recently attending the US Open together [[link removed]]. Mahomes is refusing to make any political endorsement.

“I don’t want my place and my platform to be used to endorse a candidate or do whatever, either way,” Mahomes said Wednesday.

He later added, “Whenever I’m hanging out with whoever, I’m not thinking about their political views or anything like that. I’m thinking about the people and how they treat other people. And I was with a lot of great people [last] weekend.”

At Home and in the Locker Room

Mahomes, however, has other conservative-leaning elements in his life. His wife, Brittany, has liked several pro-Trump comments on Instagram, and Trump has praised her, saying on Fox News, “I actually like Mrs. Mahomes much better [than Swift], if you want to know the truth. She’s a big Trump fan.”

The quarterback, meanwhile, also came to the defense of teammate and kicker Harrison Butker, now the highest-paid player in NFL history at that position [[link removed]], after he made controversial comments at a Benedictine College commencement address [[link removed]] advocating for women as homemakers and attacking LGBTQ+ causes. The NFL quickly distanced itself from the remarks, but Mahomes said “there’s certain things that he said I don’t necessarily agree with, but I understand the person that he is, and he’s trying to do whatever he can to lead people in the right direction.”

Chiefs owner Clark Hunt, meanwhile, has a lengthy history of donating to Republican candidates and causes [[link removed]]. But during a May visit at the White House with U.S. President Joe Biden, celebrating Kansas City’s Super Bowl LVIII victory, Hunt offered a message of unity, saying, “The amazing thing about sports is how they can bring a community together. … There’s a lot that can divide us today, but for so many of us, sports provide a unifying joy that we all need.”

The NFL was also a notable storyline in the 2016 election cycle, particularly as Trump went after then 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick for kneeling during the national anthem in protest of police brutality and racial inequality. Given the unrivaled cultural combination of the Chiefs and Swift [[link removed]], it’s a virtual certainty that political discourse leading up to the Nov. 5 election will continue to flow through Kansas City.

No Safe Haven for Clark

WNBA rookie phenom Caitlin Clark was among those millions of people to like the Swift post on Instagram. In follow-up questioning from reporters, Clark offered a more neutral message of encouraging people to register to vote. But that wasn’t enough to keep her own Instagram comments from being filled with vitriol [[link removed]].

Unlike the more divided political leanings within the NFL, the WNBA has historically had a much more unified voice in favor of Democratic candidates and causes. WNBA players in particular had a notable role in the ouster of former Sen. Kelly Loeffler [[link removed]], Georgia Republican, from that office, and she sold her ownership stake in the WNBA’s Atlanta Dream shortly after losing the 2020 election to Raphael Warnock.

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ONE BIG FIG Buying Low

The Des Moines Register

$4.3 billion

The price that Fox Corporation chairperson Lachlan Murdoch intends to pay for exercising an option to purchase an 18.6% stake in sports betting company FanDuel, which is owned by Flutter Entertainment. The figure is $2.2 billion less than that percentage of the company’s current market value.

Fox acquired the option in 2020 when FanDuel took over The Stars Group, which partnered with Fox to launch the now-defunct Fox Bet. However, Fox will need to be licensed as a gambling operator to complete the deal. The option expires in 2030.

STATUS REPORT Two Up, One Down, One Push

Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

Bucks ⬆ Former NBA player turned business tycoon Ulysses Lee “Junior” Bridgeman is purchasing a 10% stake [[link removed]] in the franchise he played 10 seasons for, according to CNBC. The sale values the 2021 NBA champions at $4 billion, nearly $1 billion more than Forbes’ valuation [[link removed]] in October. Jimmy and Dee Haslam, Wes Edens, and Jamie Dinan each own about a 25% stake in the franchise.

Las Vegas Aces ⬆⬇ The two-time champions and the WNBA filed separate motions Wednesday to dismiss a federal lawsuit [[link removed]] from Los Angeles Sparks star Dearica Hamby, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Hamby filed the lawsuit last month [[link removed]] claiming she was discriminated against by the Aces in 2022, when she was still on the team because she was pregnant. Las Vegas head coach Becky Hammon has denied her former player’s claims [[link removed]].

Curry Brand ⬆ NBA star Steph Curry launched the first store for his brand [[link removed]], which is tied to Under Armour, in Chengdu, China. Kings All-Star De’Aaron Fox, the first signature athlete to sign with Curry Brand, joined the Warriors guard at the store’s opening. Curry is also promoting the launch of his latest signature shoe, Curry 12, while Fox’s first signature shoe, Fox 1, releases later this year.

Manchester City ⬇ The hearing over 115 charges filed against the club by the Premier League is set to begin Monday. The EPL is accusing the winners of its last four titles of breaching financial rules that allowed it to get ahead of the competition. Manchester City could face a penalty as strict as outright relegation [[link removed]]. Man City, however, is moving forward with plans to introduce an Oasis-themed alternate jersey [[link removed]], in collaboration with Noel Gallagher and Puma. The recently reformed band hails from Manchester.

Conversation Starters Kirk Herbstreit is #Globetrotting again this week, which starts with Amazon Prime Video’s Thursday Night Football in Miami and ends with a trip to Columbia, S.C., for ESPN’s College GameDay. Check it out [[link removed]]. Would Stephen A. Smith rather see the Knicks succeed or the Cowboys fail? The First Take host gave his answer to reporter Derryl Barnes at the FOS Tuned In summit. Take a look [[link removed]]. The WNBA averaged 1.2 million viewers on ESPN networks [[link removed]] this year, its most-watched regular season, and up 170% from last year. Editors’ Picks The Next Steps in the Unexpected Pac-12 Rebuild [[link removed]]by Amanda Christovich [[link removed]]The Pac-12 still must add two more members to solidify its future. What Can the Browns Do About Deshaun Watson’s $92 Million? [[link removed]]by Alex Schiffer [[link removed]]Watson is back in legal trouble while playing poorly. ESPN Says Shannon Sharpe Will Cohost ‘First Take’ Monday After Instagram Incident [[link removed]]by Dennis Young [[link removed]]He will return to ESPN’s flagship show without interruption after a social media incident. Advertise [[link removed]] Awards [[link removed]] Learning [[link removed]] Video [[link removed]] Podcast [[link removed]] Written by Eric Fisher [[link removed]], Colin Salao [[link removed]], David Rumsey [[link removed]] Edited by Matthew Tabeek [[link removed]], Or Moyal [[link removed]], Catherine Chen [[link removed]]

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