Is this the end of the pac?

[sc85sis]

There’s no TV deal because today was the deadline to sign. I think it’s more likely WSU, OrSU, Cal and Stanford will have to find a new conference.

 

[RiverDog]

There’s no TV deal because today was the deadline to sign. I think it’s more likely WSU, OrSU, Cal and Stanford will have to find a new conference.

I saw a rumor floating around that Cal and Stanford could end up in the Ivy League.

There's not many good options for WSU and OSU. It really sucks for Coug fans as they're lots more dedicated than any other fan base in the (formerly) Pac-12.

 

[CPHawk]

There’s no TV deal because today was the deadline to sign. I think it’s more likely WSU, OrSU, Cal and Stanford will have to find a new conference.

Wonder if half the MWC left and joined those 4, would there still be a buyout?

 

[IndyHawk]

Screw the Pac..They had years to do this right and always were slow in action
they worked about as good as the refs they hired.

 

[Shaz Magoon]

Yes and good riddance. They didn't take any of this seriously, treated their 4 biggest programs (USC/UCLA/WA/OR) the same as OSU, Cal and AZ State then put up the worst media deal in American sports history and refused to expand with 2 National brands in Texas and Oklahoma.

**** 'em. They did it to themselves.

 

[Sgt. Largent]

They never said how long the unequal share structure will last. I mean, it can't be a forever thing. Does anyone know the answer to that? Couldn't seem to find it.

I think I read through this iteration of the tv contract that the Big 10 signed last year. So another 3-4 years?

But that's why it was a no brainer for UW and Oregon to jump ship, that next tv deal where they'll get a much larger share is going to be insane.

 

[SoulfishHawk]

Good points. Sure they "settled" on 50 mil. But that's still a lot more than they would get from the Crack 12. And like you said, the next deal will be insane.

 

[Sgt. Largent]

Good points. Sure they "settled" on 50 mil. But that's still a lot more than they would get from the Crack 12. And like you said, the next deal will be insane.

I'm an old school Pac 10 fan, watched every home game of the 1991 national champ Huskies in person. My daughter went to Wazzu, so saw a bunch of Cougar games in four years, which was awesome to experience.

So I'm super bummed that they couldn't figure out a way for the Pac 12 to remain a viable profitable power 5 conference. Which they COULD have done under Larry Scott's regime, but he and the other school Presidents were criminally arrogant and naive to think their brand and power would remain the same without doing what the Big 10 and SEC were doing at the time, snatching up power schools to add to their power and influence signing mega tv contract after mega tv contract.

Unfortunately with NIL and ESPN and Fox throwing billions at these conferences? There was NO other alternative for Oregon and UW, other than to remain stupidly loyal to a dying conference and becoming irrelevant.

 

[SoulfishHawk]

Yep. My grandparents were season ticket holders over 60 years. Then it was passed on to my uncle. Overall, tickets in our family well over 70 years. I miss the days of the 12:30 starts all the time. So many great memories over the years.

 

[NoGain]

Yep. My grandparents were season ticket holders over 60 years. Then it was passed on to my uncle. Overall, tickets in our family well over 70 years. I miss the days of the 12:30 starts all the time. So many great memories over the years.

Yeah, that was really the true college and community experience with those predictable and fan friendly start times and the opportunity to get out and enjoy some nice fall weather while it lasted there by the water's edge.

 

[RiverDog]

Good points. Sure they "settled" on 50 mil. But that's still a lot more than they would get from the Crack 12. And like you said, the next deal will be insane.

I think you're making a big assumption about the next deal being 'insane'. The trend for Gen Z is away from live football and towards gaming:

Michael Lewis, a marketing professor at Emory University, conducted a survey to assess the evolving state of sports fandom in America and found that Gen Z, defined as ages 25 and below, was far less interested in sports than previous generations were.

Only 23 percent of Generation Z said they were passionate sports fans, compared with the 42 percent of millennials (defined as 26 to 41), 33 percent of Generation X (42 to 57) and 31 percent of baby boomers (57 to 76) who identified themselves as passionate.

More striking was that 27 percent of Gen Zers said they disliked sports altogether, compared with just 7 percent of millennials, 5 percent of Gen Xers and 6 percent of boomers.

“If sports fandom is formed by early experiences, these results suggest that fandom for major American sports will crater in the decades ahead,” Lewis said.

Pro Sports Leagues Are Chasing Gen Z Where It Plays (Published 2022)

Here’s what sports marketers are doing to win back a lost generation and save the future of fandom.

www.nytimes.com

 

[NoGain]

I think you're making a big assumption about the next deal being 'insane'. The trend for Gen Z is away from live football and towards gaming:

Michael Lewis, a marketing professor at Emory University, conducted a survey to assess the evolving state of sports fandom in America and found that Gen Z, defined as ages 25 and below, was far less interested in sports than previous generations were.

Only 23 percent of Generation Z said they were passionate sports fans, compared with the 42 percent of millennials (defined as 26 to 41), 33 percent of Generation X (42 to 57) and 31 percent of baby boomers (57 to 76) who identified themselves as passionate.

More striking was that 27 percent of Gen Zers said they disliked sports altogether, compared with just 7 percent of millennials, 5 percent of Gen Xers and 6 percent of boomers.

“If sports fandom is formed by early experiences, these results suggest that fandom for major American sports will crater in the decades ahead,” Lewis said.

Pro Sports Leagues Are Chasing Gen Z Where It Plays (Published 2022)

Here’s what sports marketers are doing to win back a lost generation and save the future of fandom.

www.nytimes.com

This kind of dovetails with a recent study that found only 23% of young Americans could pass the physical to get into the armed services without a waiver, due to being overweight, using drugs, and/or having physical and mental health problems. It seems that growing up sitting on your arse playing with your devices and interacting on social media isn't so healthy after all.

 

[fenderbender123]

This kind of dovetails with a recent study that found only 23% of young Americans could pass the physical to get into the armed services without a waiver, due to being overweight, using drugs, and/or having physical and mental health problems. It seems that growing up sitting on your arse playing with your devices and interacting on social media isn't so healthy after all.

I completely agree

(Sent from my smart phone while sitting on my couch and playing video games at the same time)

 

[RiverDog]

This kind of dovetails with a recent study that found only 23% of young Americans could pass the physical to get into the armed services without a waiver, due to being overweight, using drugs, and/or having physical and mental health problems. It seems that growing up sitting on your arse playing with your devices and interacting on social media isn't so healthy after all.

Yeah, I always have to temper my frustrations with succeeding generations. Every generation has a bitch about the succeeding generation. With my parents, their parents were worried about their kids spending too much time sitting in front of the radio. With me, my parents were worried about us spending too much time in front of the TV. With Gen X, it was too much time at the video arcade. Now, it's too much time on social media.

But back to the point of my comment. Entertainment changes, and we can't assume what we do with our free time is going to be the same thing that our kids and grandkids will do. In 10 years, this realignment we're going through could look like the stupidest idea ever created by man.

 

[NoGain]

Yeah, I always have to temper my frustrations with succeeding generations. Every generation has a bitch about the succeeding generation. With my parents, their parents were worried about their kids spending too much time sitting in front of the radio. With me, my parents were worried about us spending too much time in front of the TV. With Gen X, it was too much time at the video arcade. Now, it's too much time on social media.

But back to the point of my comment. Entertainment changes, and we can't assume what we do with our free time is going to be the same thing that our kids and grandkids will do. In 10 years, this realignment we're going through could look like the stupidest idea ever created by man.

Yeah, I'm always careful about making broad statements and generalizations about the succeeding generations. There's just a couple, however, that seem to have passed my own self-critical assessments. The first I'd say was this: Once upon a time authority was respected and given the benefit of a doubt from the start. They could surely lose it, but, generally speaking, they had it from the start.

Today, or over the years, there seems to have been a subtle shift. It's like one's authority has to be earned from the start, rather than having it from the start to be reinforced or lost. I've been working with kids in one form or another for years, and this is one I stand by, the good, bad, or whatever of it, knowing it's just a very broad generalization that cerianly doesn't apply everywhere.

The second is that youths are growing up in an increasingly more isolated and sedentary fashion. In many ways they are exposed to so much more than, say, I was growing up. But there's just too much temptation and easy access to avenues of mental and emotional involvement and stimulation that require nothing more than the ability to manipulate your fingers on some access device.

I'll leave that at that now. It's a huge and complicated topic that leaks into those reasons for youth not being able to pass that physical exam for the armed services because of issues like being overweight, drug use, and having physical and emotional problems. Being a sedentary sponge for every conceivable thing is not too good of a thing.

 

[sc85sis]

Not to take this too much further off topic, but I found this article (podcast transcript I believe) very interesting.

Why our attention spans are shrinking, with Gloria Mark, PhD

Gloria Mark, PhD, talks about how the internet and digital devices have affected our ability to focus, why multitasking is so stressful, and how understanding the science of attention can help us to regain our focus when we need it.

www.apa.org

 

[RiverDog]

Back to the original topic.

Realignment might not be over with. The ACC is rumored to be considering expansion in order to avoid a Pac 12 style implosion. Several high profile schools, ie Florida State, Clemson and North Carolina, are rumored to be contemplating leaving the conference:

The ACC is on edge during the current wave of conference realignment, as Florida State is exploring all its options. Also happening in the conference realignment world is the potential end of the Pac-12.

ESPN's Pete Thamel joined the Pat McAfee Show and stated that "there has been some Stanford to the ACC smoke that has emerged."

"All four teams in the Pac-12 are still together, but they are exploring other options," Thamel added on the show.

Florida State making their departure from the ACC would cause a domino effect that would likely see North Carolina and Clemson following suit. If the Seminoles are able to find a legal way to exit the conference while paying the $120 million exit fee, the ACC would be on thin ice.

Thamel also reported that potential additions of Stanford and Cal could be on the horizon. There are two calls for the ACC to vet, including one for current athletic directors in the ACC and another for the league's presidents and chancellors.

"Could they and maybe California end up in some sort of hybrid ACC, or some sort of ACC West Coast wing? I don't know," Thamel continued.

MSN

 

[SoulfishHawk]

I think you're making a big assumption about the next deal being 'insane'. The trend for Gen Z is away from live football and towards gaming:

Michael Lewis, a marketing professor at Emory University, conducted a survey to assess the evolving state of sports fandom in America and found that Gen Z, defined as ages 25 and below, was far less interested in sports than previous generations were.

Only 23 percent of Generation Z said they were passionate sports fans, compared with the 42 percent of millennials (defined as 26 to 41), 33 percent of Generation X (42 to 57) and 31 percent of baby boomers (57 to 76) who identified themselves as passionate.

More striking was that 27 percent of Gen Zers said they disliked sports altogether, compared with just 7 percent of millennials, 5 percent of Gen Xers and 6 percent of boomers.

“If sports fandom is formed by early experiences, these results suggest that fandom for major American sports will crater in the decades ahead,” Lewis said.

Pro Sports Leagues Are Chasing Gen Z Where It Plays (Published 2022)

Here’s what sports marketers are doing to win back a lost generation and save the future of fandom.

www.nytimes.com

I'm not making any assumption. It's what I've been hearing about on sports radio. Not saying it's fact, just agreeing with what someone else said about it being an insane deal. The way $ is flowing with these TV deals, nothing would really surprise me.

 

[Sgt. Largent]

I think you're making a big assumption about the next deal being 'insane'. The trend for Gen Z is away from live football and towards gaming:

Michael Lewis, a marketing professor at Emory University, conducted a survey to assess the evolving state of sports fandom in America and found that Gen Z, defined as ages 25 and below, was far less interested in sports than previous generations were.

Only 23 percent of Generation Z said they were passionate sports fans, compared with the 42 percent of millennials (defined as 26 to 41), 33 percent of Generation X (42 to 57) and 31 percent of baby boomers (57 to 76) who identified themselves as passionate.

More striking was that 27 percent of Gen Zers said they disliked sports altogether, compared with just 7 percent of millennials, 5 percent of Gen Xers and 6 percent of boomers.

“If sports fandom is formed by early experiences, these results suggest that fandom for major American sports will crater in the decades ahead,” Lewis said.

Pro Sports Leagues Are Chasing Gen Z Where It Plays (Published 2022)

Here’s what sports marketers are doing to win back a lost generation and save the future of fandom.

www.nytimes.com

There's no assumption. The Big 10's new TV deal was for 7 billion with Fox, and another 350 million from NBC and CBS for special rights for big games.

And five power conferences going to 2-3 power conferences means those conferences will have even more power when it comes to future media deals. With the expanded BCS playoffs coming down the pike, the national playoff games will average 10-20 million per game.

Again, no sensible college like UW, Oregon and USC and UCLA before them can say no. As Rick Neuheisel put it perfectly last week on the radio, in the current state of college football? Either you're the one ordering off the menu, or you're the one on the menu. There is no more inbetween.

 

[RiverDog]

There's no assumption. The Big 10's new TV deal was for 7 billion with Fox, and another 350 million from NBC and CBS for special rights for big games.

And five power conferences going to 2-3 power conferences means those conferences will have even more power when it comes to future media deals. With the expanded BCS playoffs coming down the pike, the national playoff games will average 10-20 million per game.

Again, no sensible college like UW, Oregon and USC and UCLA before them can say no. As Rick Neuheisel put it perfectly last week on the radio, in the current state of college football? Either you're the one ordering off the menu, or you're the one on the menu. There is no more inbetween.

The assumption was on future deals in the years to come, not the current ones.

There are some that are forecasting that all sports will see a decline in viewership in the next decade as multiple surveys show a lack of interest in sports amongst the younger generation. Here's one:

An analysis of recent Morning Consult poll results found that Gen Zers currently between ages 13 and 23 are less likely than the general population to identify as sports fans. Fifty-three percent of the 1,000 Gen Zers surveyed considered themselves sports fans, compared with 63 percent of U.S. adults and 69 percent of millennials in a subsequent survey.

The Sports Industry’s Gen Z Problem: Fewer Fans, Lower Viewership

An analysis of recent Morning Consult poll results found that Gen Zers currently between ages 13 and 23 are less likely than the general population to identify as sports fans.

pro.morningconsult.com

The chart goes on to show that 48% of all adults identify themselves as college football fans while just 37% of Gen Z identifies as CFB fans. A similar 10%+ difference is present in college basketball. If that's true, then Gen Z's offspring will show a continuing disinterest in sports.

Therefore, it's very presumptuous to assume that these deals will get richer or even stay as lucrative as they are today.