kirklandduck

Well that's an interesting one. ION is on multiple streaming platforms (like YouTube TV as you mention) but also available on the cable networks like Xfinity, DirectTV, and Dish Network. I have Sling so I've seen ION in passing as I flip through the channels. It's also available free over the air if you have an antenna. So they have mass distribution all over the place, the question for me would be what their viewership numbers look like? The few times I've looked at ION I've only ever seen re-runs of tv shows. If ION decides to throw a ton of money at the Pac12 and market the heck out of it then it could work.

Admittedly I'm a little more traditionalist when it comes to the Pac12 and so would rather Oregon remain there. I think if whatever media contract gets finalized, if it's within the ballpark of Big12 payouts (between 28 and 32 million) then it's fine. But I do agree with others that the Pac12 needs to evolve and by that I mean expand....aggressively. As it stands right now, I would put the Pac12 at #4 of the 5 power conferences between the Big12 and ACC. California is still an enormously rich recruiting area but the conference absolutely needs to expand its footprint to Texas, which is why I'm on board with pulling in SMU. Oregon's 2023 recruiting class has the highest percentage of Texas recruits in the program's history so far and I would like to see that continue. So having a home-and-home with a Dallas-based team can only be a benefit to both the Ducks and the conference in that regard. Yes I know SMU as it stands currently doesn't pull much local viewership since it competes with multiple professional and other college teams in the area. But you can bet that those media numbers instantly improve with teams like Oregon and Washington visiting at least every other year. Not to mention the possibility of expanding to other available teams in the area after the conference gains a stable foothold in DFW. The Big12 understood early on that expansion is survival which is why they pulled in BYU, Cincy, etc. They're better off as a 14 team league with 4 mid-majors replacing the two big powers than being a milquetoast 10 member organization.

Bottom line for the Pac-12: Does it choose dollars or exposure? WWW.ON3.COM Interviews with prominent TV industry sources paint the picture of a weakened Pac-12 facing a pivotal decision: Maximize dollars or exposure? Interesting article that just went up today talking about this very subject. One passage caught my eye: The first line probably explains why Apple is gaining steam in the race lately, they may be willing to let go of some of the better games to a linear partner in exchange for broadcasting all of the rest. There's obviously a ton of back-and-forth going on behind the scenes between all these potential partners that we're not privy to so it's useless to make any hard predictions as to what will happen. One thing I will disagree with the article's author on is his discounting of the intelligence of school alumni. He makes it sound like we're old fogies unable to navigate the streaming landscape and will avoid being relegated to watching games on laptops and phones....as if smart tvs haven't been a thing for the last 10+ years 🤦‍♂️

Apple TV+ needs content to keep growing, they're far behind the other streaming services in that regard. This means GK should be able to get better terms or at least leverage it for higher payouts from Amazon/ESPN.

Not surprising since Harbaugh coaches the Ravens.

San Diego State Joining New Conference, According To AD WWW.OUTKICK.COM San Diego State has apparently made the decision to join the PAC-12, according to the program's AD. When... I don't know if this is really confirmed or not but they're saying it's coming directly out of the mouth of the Aztecs AD.

https://tulsaworld.com/sports/college/ou/ous-peyton-bowen-i-should-be-at-oregon-right-now-if-not-for-paperwork-snafu/article_82bd2542-aedd-11ed-a4c1-9793f1adeb51.html#tracking-source=home-top-story Now this is one of the weirder things I've ever heard when losing a recruit...

I'd be still open to a Pac12-ACC alliance. You'd get media markets on both sides of the country and they can figure out a travel schedule where each team does a single cross-country road game each year to minimize the logistical issues but still keep an interesting slate of games each season plus a cross-conference championship game at a neutral site.

I wouldn't be surprised if there were character morality clauses of some sort in these agreements.

So much for that. Next man up!

Oregon hires A'lique Terry as its new offensive line coach 247SPORTS.COM The University of Oregon football program has hired its new offensive line coach and the new coach is a familiar name to the Ducks.Oregon head football coach Dan Lanning Keeping with the same hiring rhythm: younger/hungry coach with past relationship. Spent the last year in the NFL coaching defensive linemen despite being an offensive lineman player/coach in college. It'll be interesting to see how he does.

Love these articles, thanks Coach!

I'm not adverse to adding SMU and the article makes some good points to add them despite the obvious logistical challenges of team travel. At this point, GK needs to start being aggressive (many may point out that he should have been aggressive last year). Instead of just adding SDSU and SMU, add in Fresno St. and UNLV. Fresno doesn't add much in terms of media (though it adds to the game inventory) equation but it keeps any other conferences out of N. Cali. UNLV has a decent media market and given that the Pac12 championship is played there already, this just makes sense. SDSU for obvious and much discussed reasons regarding S. Cali. SMU for DFW and becomes a test for further expansion in Texas. If the numbers work out, you can definitely pull in UTSA and Tulane (Texas Tech made more sense geographically but that ship has sailed).

It always struck me as strange that they would try and negotiate a media deal BEFORE expansion. That just means you're trapped in a weak position during the talks. Expansion should have happened first and very quickly last year IMO.

Oh definitely! Having to fly across the country for almost every road game is going to get old real fast. Other teams will absolutely point this out when recruiting against these schools.

It will depend on the performance of the defense. If it can be average (maybe top 50), Oregon has a good shot at a CFP appearance. If it remains terrible like last year then the ceiling is the Pac12 championship game.

In other news I just won the Powerball and Natalie Portman agreed to divorce her husband and accept my marriage proposal. Oh and my dog just discovered time travel.

We all knew the sheer delirium that the Trojan fan base swims in, equalled by no one except perhaps Fuskie fans. This is just more evidence to toss onto the heap.

The defensive line is what I'm watching for next season.

I think it'll be important for the conference to expand back to a minimum of 12 teams (I'd argue 14 would be even better). Getting into a 12 team playoff isn't enough, we need to also think about seeding. Higher seeding for a Pac12 champion helps get them further into the playoff instead of a first round knockout.

They'll need multiple years of that to recover from the extreme drought over the last two decades.

I'd be inclined to agree that keeping Klemm on staff might have been the biggest win. He's such a great recruiter and development coach, it would've been a pretty big hit to Oregon if he had left.

Or Utah!

"If not, we will be a version of what Oklahoma was under Riley in the Pac-12/Big 12." One (or many) could argue that USC is already there. They'll get to the conference championship or sneak into the CFP but never get any further. Once the team moves to the B10 which has become a meat grinder, they'll be Wisconsin v2.0.

It'll be interesting if Pleasant somehow becomes a legit Olympic hopeful while Harbour twiddles his thumbs on the couch at SC while giving his mom and girlfriend the side eye...