Utah AD Chris Hill came away from last week's Pac-12 meetings "feeling that the conference has 'creative ways' of holding the line financially, particularly in television distribution," according to Kyle Goon of the SALT LAKE TRIBUNE. Over-the-top providers "are a big feature of the conference's push to heighten distribution," and Pac-12 Commissioner Larry Scott will be visiting member schools as he "continues to develop the conference's strategic plan and get input." The revenue gaps between the Pac-12 and "front-runners the SEC and Big Ten are a mounting concern" for the conference, and the "next big thing on ... Scott's plate is to try to narrow that gap." The meetings also "focused on implementing new NCAA legislation that will be more restrictive of student-athlete time demands." Hill said that the conference additionally "worked on Title IX education, as well as instruction for how to properly handle accusations of sexual misconduct." Meanwhile, Hill acknowledged late start times for football and basketball games "has been an issue athletic directors are hoping to address." However, the conference's TV contracts "aren't terribly flexible." Hill said, "There were some sacrifices when we made the deal with ESPN and Fox. We constantly hammer them about start times, but there is a contract. They can do those events at those times" (SALT LAKE TRIBUNE, 5/10).
