Fox Sports has brought in sports media vet David Katz to run its digital business, which includes FoxSports.com. Katz was named Exec VP/Digital and will report to Fox Sports National Networks President Mark Silverman. A formal announcement is expected later today. Katz will also be responsible for overseeing digital content and distribution. Last year, Fox Sports Digital shifted its strategy away from printed articles and toward more video. It is not clear whether that strategy will shift.

For the past decade, Katz has run an independent digital media company called ThePostGame.com, which expanding recently to syndicating news stories and features -- as well as video clips -- to news organizations and sports companies. Earlier this year, it started selling global media rights for Canadian Soccer Business. Prior to ThePostGame, Katz was the head of Yahoo Sports, Entertainment & Studios.

Tiger Woods' Tour Championship win yesterday at East Lake Golf Club resulted in "one of the most unforgettable scenes of 2018," as "everybody wanted to be a part of Tiger's 80th PGA Tour win" (GOLFDIGEST.com, 9/23). The victory "brought a new version of Tigermania." After Woods hit his second shot on the par-5 18th, the crowd "came through the ropes and followed behind in a chaotic celebration" (AP, 9/23). Only Woods "could have created a ruckus like the one at East Lake Sunday" (ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION, 9/24).

Social media was "abuzz in the aftermath of Woods' walk-off" (GOLFCHANNEL.com, 9/23). Nike's "post-win celebration" included a "pair of photos" posted on the official Nike Golf Instagram page. Put together, they "made for a perfect #brand victory lap" for Woods' longtime sponsor (USATODAY.com, 9/23).

 

View this post on Instagram

 

Never stop chasing your crazy dreams. #justdoit

A post shared by Nike Golf (@nikegolf) on Sep 23, 2018 at 2:59pm PDT

A carriage battle between Fox and Altice went public over the weekend, with Fox running a 30-second spot during college football games warning viewers that their channels might go dark in a week. Fox' Altice deal, which expires at the end of the month, encompasses Fox, FS1, FS2 and a handful of RSNs in the N.Y. area. Fox’ “TNF” games, which begin this week and will be simulcast on NFL Network, would be blocked out on both channels, a source said.

The two sides emailed competing statements about the dispute on Friday. Fox: “We are disappointed that despite our repeated efforts to reach a deal over the past several months, Altice refused to engage in any substantive discussion until just last week and is now asking for preferential treatment that’s totally out of step with the marketplace.” Altice: “We are currently negotiating with 21st Century Fox and are disappointed that they have started threatening to black out certain channels in an effort to extract hundreds of millions of dollars in new fees from us and our customers. Programming costs are the greatest contributor to rising cable costs, and we urge Fox to stop its threats and instead focus on negotiating an agreement that is fair for consumers.”

Pelicans C Anthony Davis is officially with agent Rich Paul of Klutch Sports after "signing paperwork over the weekend." Davis, who recently parted ways with Wasserman's Thad Foucher, indicated that the agent switch is "part of an effort to improve his overall game." A star player switching agents "sometimes can create the implication that he wants to change teams." But Paul, who represents more than 20 NBA players, said that "that is not the case and he plans to meet with Pelicans officials soon." Davis is eligible to sign up to a five-year, $235M extension with the Pelicans next summer (ESPN.com, 9/23).

The 76ers today will announce a new China-focused partnership with Temple Univ., as both the NBA team and the school are "looking to expand their footprint there." This comes ahead of the 76ers' two preseason games in China against the Mavericks. Temple is "leveraging this partnership" with a "special pregame reception in Shanghai." The 76ers-Temple relationship "will continue in February, when the Sixers host their annual Chinese New Year Celebration game" (PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS, 9/24).

Architecture firm Populous is opening a new eight-person office in Dallas that will focus on sports and entertainment venues, as well as airports, hotels and interior design. It will be led by designers Byron Chambers and Jonathan Kelley, who were previously with rival Gensler. Their prior work includes AT&T Stadium and Lucas Oil Stadium, as well as projects for Texas A&M, TCU and Texas Tech. This comes after K.C.-based Populous recently picked up the $175M end zone renovation project at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium.

“Having a physical presence in the Texas market has been on our radar for many years; it is indicative of our desire to continually adapt to changing market needs,” said Populous Managing Dir & Senior Principal Earl Santee. In addition, Chambers and Kelley hope to grow Populous’ footprint in Mexico and Latin America. The firm also has offices in N.Y., Boston, Pittsburgh and S.F.

The Penguins yesterday hosted their Free Game for Kids for the eighth time, "filling" PPG Paints Arena with "18,000-plus mostly youth hockey players from around the region, plus other young fans." They were "accompanied by relatively few parent and coach chaperones" for the preseason game against the Red Wings. Entire teams of youth players "came and sat with other teams from other hockey associations." The Penguins "don't say what all those tickets are worth," but team management "knows that these are the season ticket buyers of the future" (PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE, 9/24).

This probably wasn't what Mom meant when she said, 'remember to floss'...

Today's Free Game for Kids was much more than a 18,000 person floss-fest. Read more: https://t.co/BvZHajzcaS pic.twitter.com/xF0YBir3dj

— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) September 23, 2018

The Lakers today will kick off their '18-19 season with media day, formally introducing LeBron James to the market for the "first time." Starting tomorrow, practice "will begin for one of the most anticipated Lakers seasons in years" (L.A. TIMES, 9/23).

Major League Rugby "will add Atlanta and Boston when the league begins play" in the '20 season, the third season for the league. The two new franchises, "plus Rugby United New York, which begins play in '19, will solidify the league's presence throughout the East Coast's largest media markets" (BIZJOURNALS.com, 9/24).

Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett has declared today "Scott Dixon Day" to honor the IndyCar driver's accomplishments (IndyCar).

MiLB revealed an expanded roster of 72 teams set to participate in its "Copa de la Diversion," or "Fun Cup," a season-long Hispanic and Latino fan engagement event series in '19 (MiLB).

"It’s probably the dumbest thing ever" -- Rams RB Todd Gurley, on the NFL playing Thursday night games. The Rams play the Vikings this week on "TNF" (USA TODAY, 9/23).

"It’s different now because the art of clapping is gone, right? You can’t clap when you’ve got a cellphone in your hand, so people yell" -- Tiger Woods, on the energetic crowd at East Lake over the weekend as he won the Tour Championship (N.Y. TIMES, 9/24).

"We are not going to the United States. We do not know who this interests, surely not the clubs or the fans. We are vehemently against it" -- Real Madrid President Florentino Perez, on his opposition to La Liga's plan to play a regular-season match in the U.S. (AP, 9/23). 

"You have to make it an event. It has to be a social experience. You have to have something before the game, at halftime or even after the game that will bring people in" -- Conference USA Commissioner Judy MacLeod, on the pressure of improving the fan experience at football games (CHARLESTON GAZETTE-MAIL, 9/23).

"The winner Thursday was the NFL. The Browns are absolutely must-watch" -- FS1’s Colin Cowherd, on Browns QB Baker Mayfield leading the team to its first victory since the '16 season (“Fox NFL Kickoff,” 9/23).

The L.A. TIMES goes with, "From Super Agent To Disney Castoff, Michael Ovitz Recounts His Epic Fallout With Michael Eisner." Ovitz' new memoir, out tomorrow, traces his "remarkable career as co-founder" of CAA and his "brief, ill-fated tenure as president of Walt Disney Co." Eisner handpicked Ovitz in '95 to "be his lieutenant at the Burbank-based company." But their partnership was "doomed from the start."

Also: 

• K.C. STAR: NCAA "should allow KU, MU to raise hurricane relief funds."
• How the Ryder Cup wound up in France.
• Can the CWHL "teach China to love hockey?"
• Latest niche baseball product? Display cases for bobbleheads. 

Saw it first hand at Tampa.. @TigerWoods has been back for awhile.. He just likes being dramatic!! Awesome to watch that walk up 18.. And thank you Tiger.. My family thanks you. ..Every PGA Tour player thanks you.. Look forward to No 81!!

— Brandt Snedeker (@BrandtSnedeker) September 23, 2018

Few thoughts after watching Tiger win from 30,000 feet:

1) Tour’s reasoning for switching East Lake format clear as Rose (justifiably) celebrates with family on 18 after salvaging a T-4 finish with TW waiting in the fairway. Little awkward for the season’s biggest moment.

— Will Gray (@WillGrayGC) September 23, 2018

93,584 people attended the Laver Cup over 3 days in Chicago.

Can’t argue with that turnout. pic.twitter.com/c8Gfe31D9Z

— David Law (@DavidLawTennis) September 24, 2018

The live event production value for #JoshuaPovetkin is pretty excellent.

As for DAZN, my feed is buffering a bit. It didn't last night when watching #Bellator205.

I have blazing fast internet, for those wondering, and a hardline connection.

— Luke Thomas (@lthomasnews) September 22, 2018

Just realized this for 2018: No Mack. Likely no more Garoppolo.

Severe Bay Area NFL star shortage.

— Tim Kawakami (@timkawakami) September 23, 2018

If you see a tweet we will not want to miss, send it to us at editorial@sportsbusinessdaily.com.

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Long Beach State’s Prospector Pete mascot "will soon be no more." The school will now "disassociate itself" from "all aspects that 'glorify' the Gold Rush," with a statue of the mascot being moved to a future alumni center (San Jose MERCURY NEWS, 9/22).

Some of the top news items from yesterday's edition of Weekend Rap:

• NBA memo outlines culture recommendations after Mavs issues.
• Comcast wins bidding for Sky, property's key sports rights.
• NC Courage win NWSL title before sold-out crowd in Portland.
• White Sox' Hawk Harrelson, Tigers PA announcer Vergiel work farewell games.

This week is the Power Players issue, a look at 48 execs from 39 companies using the power of sports to build and define their brands.

• Keep an eye on cannabis being a future sponsorship category.
• CBS confirms commitment to sports following departure of Moonves.
• Alliance of American Football, XFL compete for players before launch.

Get a jump on the big stories in this week's SBJ in the First Look podcast.

Friday night’s “Final Jeopardy!” category was “Color Etymology.”

“This word for a gem and a shade of blue derives from the name of a Eurasian country from which gems came to Western Europe.”

CBS’ Stephen Colbert said, “Last weekend, there was an unfortunate injury suffered by University of Colorado mascot Chip the Buffalo. Chip was going to fire a t-shirt cannon into the crowd when instead he shot it into his crotch. Now, in case you did not catch that, let's watch it three more times.” The broadcast aired the unfortunate video three times, with Colbert noting “it’s important to note he tweeted that he’s fine, which is what you say if you just sterilized yourself with a t-shirt cannon.” Colbert: “Also, if you’re curious, here’s the t-shirt he was firing” (“The Late Show,” CBS, 9/21).

CBS

Friday night’s edition of NBC’s “The Tonight Show” featured the recurring segment “Thank You Notes." Host Jimmy Fallon: “Thank you, LeBron James, for signing on for ‘Space Jam 2,’ though I'm assuming you'll only sign on for a year or so and then switch to a different movie” (“The Tonight Show,” NBC, 9/21).

“What is turquoise?”  

The word turquoise comes from the French for Turkish, as the gem was originally imported from Turkey.