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SBJ College: Coaching Search Shows UCLA Has Work To Do


The silent assassin, Brooks Koepka, at it again in Augusta. Why don’t I ever pick him?

We’ve got the story behind the numbers in the Big 12, UCLA’s all-over-the-place coaching search and a look at one of the NCAA’s most successful championships, the Frozen Four. Gimme UMass for the win. Here’s what is cooking on campus.

 

UCLA FINDS ITSELF IN TOUGH SPOT

Guerrero (r) went through several candidates before hiring Cronin (l) as hoops coach
  • We took a deep look at the highly competitive L.A. sports scene during our World Congress of Sports last week with five execs who work in that market. Not once during the 45-minute panel discussion did UCLA come up. Even though the Bruins cling to their status as a storied program, it wasn’t a surprise that the school recently had so much trouble finding a new basketball coach. UCLA’s best days unfortunately are a distant memory. While college hoops is a lot more interesting with the Bruins around, UCLA been replaced by Gonzaga as the premier program on the West Coast.

  • UCLA AD Dan Guerrero got no reprieve from the L.A. Times, as Dylan Hernandez had harsh words for Guerrero's dragged-out coaching search. Hernandez: “While the personable Mick Cronin presented himself on Wednesday as a perfectly reasonable hire, the process of landing him was a public relations catastrophe that made UCLA’s athletic department a laughingstock and further reduced Guerrero’s already-diminished reputation. And UCLA is thinking of extending Guerrero’s contract?”

  • The Bruins’ lengthy search to replace Steve Alford started with John Calipari and routed through Jamie Dixon and Rick Barnes before landing on Cronin. There are plenty of reasons why UCLA -- one of the marquee programs in the Pac-12 with spiffy new facilities -- wasn’t able to land any of its primary targets. Part of the problem falls with the Pac-12. The conference's ability to generate revenue and resources lags the other P5 conferences. Another part of the problem falls with the school’s inability to field a consistent winner.

  • The L.A. market is also an issue. Look at all the alternatives available to L.A. sports fans, not to mention the sun and surf and concerts. The market is home to 20 pro and college teams and on the horizon are big events like the 2022 Super Bowl, 2023 CFP Championship, 2026 FIFA World Cup and 2028 Summer Olympics. At World Congress, the Dodgers’ Tucker Kain said, “We have a rabid fan base that has multiple options and so I think we're all, at some level, competing for mind share, wallet share, all those things.”


BREAKING DOWN THE BIG 12-ESPN MATH

  • The Big 12’s enhanced deal with ESPN is complicated. I heard from several people yesterday wondering about the math. I don’t blame them; it was hard to explain. Let me take another stab at it:

    • In September 2012, ESPN and Fox agreed to a combined 13-year, $2.6 billion deal that averages $200 million annually. ESPN’s part of the payout amounts to $100 million per year.
    • In October 2016, ESPN restructured its deal, paying for the rights to four football championship games at a cost of $30 million per game -- an inflated price that helped get rid of a pro-rata clause that would have forced it to pay a higher rights fee if the conference expanded.
    • This week, ESPN paid $40 million for the streaming rights to a minimum of 50 events per school, plus three football championship games Fox decided not to carry. This figure is well below market value based what ESPN paid in 2016. Together, the 2016 and 2019 deals amount to an average of $22 million per championship game. In all, ESPN now is paying the Big 12 an average of $122 million per year.

  • What are some outlets in Big 12 country saying about the new deal?

    • Tulsa World: “This fortifies the Big 12 in the short term, but doesn’t guarantee stability when the existing media rights deal expires.”
    • Austin American-Statesman: “The Big 12 has found a backdoor way to create its own league TV network without disrupting the Longhorn Network or Oklahoma’s deal with Fox.
    • Dallas Morning News: “While a step forward for the conference, the move will be a major adjustment for fans”
    • West Virginia MetroNews: “Big 12 still doesn’t have its own television network in the mold of the other four power conferences, but it has found a one-stop shop for Big 12 content.”
    • Oklahoman: "Big 12 is the first conference to have an exclusive arrangement with ESPN+, and conference athletic directors say this places the league in a strong strategic position to monitor the digital landscape."

 

FROZEN FOUR BACK IN WESTERN NEW YORK

Around 14,000 fans are expected to attend each session Thursday and Saturday In Buffalo
  • Beginning tonight, Buffalo is hosting the Frozen Four for the first time in 16 years -- and only the second time since the NCAA men’s hockey tourney started in 1948. Sabres co-Owner & President Kim Pegula told SBJ’s Terry Lefton that getting the opportunity to host the event at KeyBank Center is about “showcasing Buffalo and what we have to offer.” Pegula: “We get a bad rap sometimes ... and if this is the reason for someone’s first trip to Buffalo, we absolutely need to take advantage of that opportunity. College hockey is growing and us having the Frozen Four is a good indication of that.” The Buffalo News notes tickets for the three games "haven't sold out yet, but as many as 14,000 people are expected to attend each session Thursday and Saturday."

  • ESPN's John Buccigross is calling his seventh Frozen Four and spoke to the Buffalo News about how seeing a college hockey game differs from the NHL experience, "If you’ve never been to one before I would definitely take it in for the same reason you go on a sightseeing tour on vacation. To see something and experience something you haven’t had before." One thing he isn't excited about -- conflict with the start to the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Buccigross: "That usually doesn’t happen. That certainly will hurt our ratings."

 

SPEED READS 

  • SI.com's Laken Litman shined a light on the short window that big-time female college basketball players have to declare for the WNBA Draft. Oregon’s Sabrina Ionescu had just 24 hours to make her decision after a Final Four loss to Baylor. She opted to return for her senior year after a hasty family conversation that she called the "most stressed" she's ever been. While interest in women’s basketball peaks around the Final Four, there must be a way to give student-athletes a little more time to make such an important decision, especially when male counterparts get ample time for similar decisions.
  • Utah AD Mark Harlan took the AAF to task over the treatment of its former players, including former Ute Gionni Paul, who broke his arm in the Salt Lake Stallions’ final game and was then on his own for medical expenses. Harlan tweeted, “To all the Utah former players, please DM me to see if there is anything I or Utah Athletics can do to help. Shame on the leadership of the AAF.” Strong leadership from Harlan, who talked about the importance of keeping up with alums during an appearance on Salt Lake City-based KLAA’s “The Bill Riley Show.”

  • I wanted to re-post this podcast in case anyone missed it. While in Tampa, I had a sit-down with NCAA VP/Women’s Basketball Lynn Holzman, who said the game is in a "great place."

  • More good signs for UAB football -- a program that folded following the 2014 season, only to be revived in time for 2017. News broke this afternoon that insurance company Protective Life has landed naming rights to the new stadium that will house UAB. The $174 million venue is expected to be completed in 2021, with Populous handling the design. Houston-based Professional Sports Partners assisted Protective with the negotiations.
    The $174 million venue is expected to be completed in 2021, with Populous handling the design

     

DOING THE MATH

  • 5 million -- Estimated number of game hours streamed on the DirecTV Now OTT platform during the NCAA men’s basketball tournament. The Virginia-Texas Tech championship led all games with 280,575 total hours streamed. Michigan State-Duke was the top game during the second weekend with 204,690 hours (No. 3 overall), while North Carolina-Washington led the first weekend with 163,176 hours (No. 8 overall).

 

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Something on the College Beat catch your eye? A unique sponsor activation or fan engagement? A cool photo? Tell us about it. Reach out to either me (msmith@sportsbusinessjournal.com) or Austin Karp (akarp@sportsbusinessdaily.com) and we'll share the best ones. Also contributing to this newsletter is Thomas Leary (tleary@sportsbusinessdaily.com).