Some interesting comments from Brock Huard in the first ten minutes here. He says that the major networks seem to have lost trust that Pac 12 administrators are sufficiently invested in football to make it worth their while paying for rights to those games at the level the Pac office is trying to negotiate for. Then he goes on to say that Colorado's administrators are stuck in a game of chicken not wanting to get the blame for the Pac dying entirely.
Is this the week we finally get some answers on this? Kliavkoff can't hide any more come Friday: he either gets public and specific about the deal or else it becomes obvious that the money isn't there.
That said, this thing has dragged on so long at this point that your safest bet is to anticipate it dragging on further.
A couple of things he said ring true to me:
- Networks don't trust PAC 12 investment in major collegiate athletics. I feel this is very true, and is one of the key reasons why Colorado would leave for the Big 12 organically.
- Big 12 Presidents don't want to be seen as breaking up the PAC by taking Colorado or Arizona, and are wanting Colorado/Arizona to be seen clearly as the ones who made that choice. Colorado feels the same way, in reverse, and is seeking a trusted partner (Arizona most likely) to leave with them and absorb the blame. In addition, blaming a bad TV deal and bad league economics is a beautiful cover story.
Big game of chicken being played all around.
I was told this past weekend to my question, "Could the B12 even get Colorado or Arizona in to start the 2024-25 FY" that the answer was "probably not" and that it would be "very difficult." Yormark is telling the President's it's possible, and I think some ADs are on board with trying to make it happen, but it would be very, very hard logistically.
Re: PAC, not giving any "update" as you can't trust anything but I continue to believe folks should keep an eye on NBCU as a potential landing spot, they continue to sniff around the PAC. Apple, YouTube, ESPN, Nexstar media, etc. are all continuing to be discussed too but I can't say if that's of any real significance.
As I said before, I can't wait to find out the story of what's been happening behind the scenes for the PAC the past year. Something tells me the answer is going to be "nothing." Maybe CGK was just trying to run out the clock so Colorado and Arizona had no choice but to sign a crap deal and GOR for 3-5 years?