SBJ Unpacks: Can The CFB Season Be Saved?

Tonight in SBJ Unpacks: The college football season is officially in jeopardy, and even President Trump is weighing in on whether players should take the field. 

Also:

• How one MLS club will handle the return to its home market
• The Flyers capitalize on marketing from the Toronto bubble
• Tony Petitti leaves MLB after 12 years for Activision Blizzard
• Elevate Sports Venture's Flavil Hampsten on getting the job done from the home office

IMPENDING DECISIONS ON COLLEGE FOOTBALL DOMINATE NEWS CYCLE

• SI's report on Sunday that the Big Ten and Pac-12 would cancel their college football seasons tomorrow has dominated the news cycle over the past 24 hours, as rumors swirled throughout the day about what was, and wasn't happening. The Big Ten this afternoon eventually said that "no official vote had taken place," denying a report from Dan Patrick that school presidents voted 12-2 to eliminate the season. University presidents reportedly were "expected to meet again" tonight to "formally vote on ending the season."
  
  

• An effort from players to save the season led by Trevor Lawrence caught the attention of President Trump this afternoon, who retweeted the Clemson QB's message about playing. CBS Sports' Barrett Sallee noted that the official Ohio State football account was "retweeting players who want to play," despite the news potentially coming from the conference. Ohio State coach Ryan Day, in response to a question about playing in another conference if the Big Ten shuts down, said: "We need to look at every option. And if that's the only option, we need to explore it and see if that's something we can do." Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh released a statement on "wanting to play the season and why he thinks it can happen."
  
  

• SI's Pat Forde, who helped report Sunday's news of the conferences' thinking, late this afternoon cited sources as saying that ACC ADs "met today and are 'moving forward in an attempt to play.'" However, Forde noted that the presidents' meeting -- which could happen today -- "matters more than the ADs' meeting." Forde: "Buck stops with the presidents, though they will obviously taker input from their ADs." In the SEC, Commissioner Greg Sankey stressed patience in a series of tweets and Tennessee Chancellor Donde Plowman, after meeting with the Volunteers football team, tweeted that she "can’t wait to see them on the field in Neyland Stadium" this season.
  
  

• Outside of the Power Five, Stadium's Brett McMurphy reported that the Mountain West Conference has "canceled its football season this fall." In a vote of league presidents Monday, the Mountain West "became the second" FBS conference to cancel all of its fall sports, joining the MAC. The Mountain West will "consider playing football in the spring," sources said.

SPORTING KC HOPING REDUCED CROWDS PAY OFF IN LONG TERM

• Sporting KC will play in front of limited fans when it returns to Children’s Mercy Park on Aug. 25 against the Dynamo, despite the move not necessarily making sense financially, writes SBJ’s Mark J. Burns. The MLS club will open up its venue with 14% limited capacity, which is around 2,500 fans. “If financial was the driver, this would probably not be a great decision,” said Sporting KC President & CEO Jake Reid. He explained that through fan surveys over the past few months, the team found that a majority of season ticket members would be comfortable and willing to return to matches under safe protocols.
  
  

• Reid: “We feel like we’ve got demand, and ultimately, we just don’t know where this thing goes down the stretch. If it gets into a position where everyone’s got limited capacity, whether it’s throughout this year or as we go into 2021, we want to take baby steps along the way. For us, the real driver was just being prepared, starting small, getting our arms around it, and that way ... we feel like we’ve already got a great plan that we’ve already executed upon.”
  
  

• According to Reid, Sporting KC will check fans’ temperatures upon entry, require people to wear a facemask and provide social distancing guidelines. All concessions and retail shops will be open to prevent any traffic congestion and operate via touchless payments. In addition, fans will have a recommended entry time into the stadium while departures will be staggered by section. 

FLYERS GETTING CREATIVE TO CAPITALIZE ON MARKETING FROM BUBBLE

• The Flyers beloved mascot Gritty was not given access to the NHL’s Toronto bubble when the league resumed play last week. But that did not keep him from finding his way across the border, SBJ's Bill King notes, thanks to the team’s purchase of a billboard along the route players take each day from their hotel to Scotiabank Arena. “Every shot you take. Every save you make. I’ll be watching you,” -- the billboard reads, next to an image of Gritty peering down.
  
  

• The Flyers often win the day on social media, thanks in large part to Gritty. Now, with the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs finally here and the team having swept its way to the top seed in the East, the organization is presented with another opportunity, under unprecedented circumstances. On the latest episode of SBJ Unpacks, Flyers Chief Business Officer Mike Shane discusses the team's strategy to connect with fans and fulfill obligations to sponsors as they embark upon what could be a deep -- but certainly will be very different -- Stanley Cup playoff run.
  
  

• “The momentum of the regular season, where teams are typically building to this dramatic climax that is the playoffs, has been completely lost,” Shane said. “August isn’t hockey season. The Stanley Cup playoffs have never had 24 teams before. And so we had to get our fans back to where they were in March, when the team had won nine of 10 and every game was can’t miss, appointment viewing. I’ve likened it to your favorite television show that finishes with this massive cliff hanger.”
  
  

• For more on how the Flyers plan to bring those fans back for the show’s finale, check out today’s SBJ Unpacks podcast.

VETERAN SPORTS EXEC TONY PETITTI SHIFTS FOCUS TO ESPORTS

• Activision Blizzard today named Tony Petitti President of Sports & Entertainment, and SBJ's John Ourand and Eric Prisbell write Petitti's decision to leave his role as MLB Deputy Commissioner of Business & Media is sure to catch some by surprise. In his 12 years with the league, Petitti rose through the ranks to the point where he was a key part of MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred’s inner circle. At MLB, he oversaw everything from marketing and special events to broadcast and digital media. He started at MLB in 2008 as MLB Network president, following a successful stint at CBS Sports.
  
  

• Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick told SBJ: "What Tony’s going to be uniquely able to do is unite what we’re doing in sport, film and television and consumer products, into what we do in our live operations. Tony has a really unique set of skills. He has both vision and the ability to execute.” Petitti said, "When people are engaging and using the content and it means a lot to them, that’s an environment that you want to be in."
  
  

• Petitti also told Forbes that Kotick "reached out to him a few months ago about the global opportunities in the esports space and how his experiences both at a major pro sports league and major sports networks in scheduling, production, media, content generation, special events and postseason play would uniquely help the company grow Overwatch League and Call of Duty League." Petitti: "I love baseball, so we went through a lot to get to that point [to leave] but it was the right decision."
  
  

• In tonight’s SBJ Media newsletter, John Ourand takes a look at who will fill Petitti’s role in the negotiation room, as well as how Petitti can help make Kotick’s vision come to life.

WORKING FROM HOME WITH ELEVATE SPORTS VENTURES’ FLAVIL HAMPSTEN

• Elevate Sports Ventures Chief Commercial Officer Flavil Hampsten, a 2015 SBJ "Forty Under 40" honoree, was used to working on-the-go pre-pandemic, often traveling 4-5 days a week, so he didn’t skip a beat in transitioning to full-time remote work.
  
  

• “Along with the investment into a standing desk and larger screen, the presence of crayons, dolls, action figures and more at my feet throughout the day has been a new addition to my office,” he told SBJ's David Rumsey. Hampsten and his kids usually wake up around 6:00am out in San Jose and enjoy a family breakfast before calls begin around 9:00. That is of course baring any 4:00 or 5:00am meetings with international clients.
  
  

• “Any executive working on the West Coast knows that you begin the day hours behind East Coast news and emails,” Hampsten said. “Mornings are devoted to catching up and getting ahead. When video calls subside around 3:30, the lack of commuting provides a brief intermission for exercise and some special moments with my children.” Hampsten’s days don’t always end there, though. “A bit of a night owl, our Elevate clients and partners can expect emails from me well past midnight,” he said.
  
  

• Elevate has done its best to keep employees connected while working remotely, getting creative with what technology can offer. Hampsten: “We have added a number of new, developmentally-focused video calls for our employees to continue to build culture. From virtual training sessions in ticket sales, customer service, corporate partnership sales, negotiations, time management and media training to Elevate Executive Chalk Talks featuring executives such as Tod Leiweke, Tim Leiweke, Scott O’Neil, Jared Smith and Peter Luukko.”
  
  

• Away from work, Hampsten has been making sure his kids get to stay active, with so many youth sports leagues on hiatus. Hampsten: “My 10-year-old daughter, who normally spends her time at the gymnastics studio, has taken to swimming and we go to the pool together every evening before dinner to swim laps. My 8-year-old son, who plays on three separate travel baseball teams, recently fell in love with golf.  … Two to three times a week (we) play nine holes together and generally have the first tee time. I can appreciate how special these days are, when I can play golf in the morning with my son and be at my desk by 9:00.”

• Want to share what your work-from-home setup is like? Reach out to SBJ's David Rumsey.

OUTSIDE CONTRIBUTORS: LOOKING BEYOND THE MASKS

• Tonight's op-ed contribution is from The Montag Group President Steve Herz, who writes under the header, "A Fun History Lesson For Our 2020 Reality: Chico And The Mask."
• "Beyond the technical differences required to communicate with a mask, sometimes the gesture itself wins the day. The mere act of wearing one in this moment (or not wearing one) is also a gesture and a statement. Often, what you wear makes a powerful statement about yourself. In rare moments, what you wear makes an equally powerful statement about others."
• To read the full contribution, click here. 

SPEED READS

• The upcoming Cardinals-Tigers doubleheader that was scheduled for Thursday "has been postponed because of the Cardinals' COVID-19 outbreak." This is the fifth series in a row "to be affected for the Cardinals, who have played just five games this season."
  
  

• Golf Channel's first three days of U.S. Amateur coverage this week (Wednesday through Friday) will each be preceded by a bonus hour of coverage that will stream exclusively on Peacock, marking the first live golf coverage on the service. The tournament from Bandon Dunes in Oregon will air live in primetime on Golf Channel Wednesday through Sunday.
  
  

• CBS saw a year-over-year viewership increase for yesterday's final-round telecast of the PGA Championship. The network drew 5.15 million viewers for Collin Morikawa's win, which aired in primetime from S.F.'s TPC Harding Park, up slightly from 5.0 million viewers last year, when the event aired in May on the East Coast (Bethpage Black).
  
  

• The NHL’s clean record of COVID-19 testing results from inside both the Edmonton and Toronto bubbles continued today, notes SBJ's Mark J. Burns. In the league’s latest reported batch of testing, 7,245 tests administered between Aug. 2-8 returned zero positive results. All clubs’ 52-member traveling parties have been tested daily since arriving in both cities. 

NEWS YOU NEED FROM SPORTS BUSINESS DAILY

• During this crisis impacting the sports business, we want everyone to be up-to-date on the latest news and information. Select stories from Sports Business Daily are free, outside the paywall, for the foreseeable future. Below are today's headlines:
   
  
  • Report: Big Ten, Pac-12 Expected To Cancel Football Seasons Tomorrow
  • Top College Football Players Unify To Try And Save '20 Season
  • Source: NFL Could Move Games To Saturday If CFB Is Canceled
  • NBA Aims For 82 Games With Fans Attending When Possible For '20-21

SBJ UNPACKS -- THE ROAD AHEAD

• Check out the most recent editions of our "SBJ Unpacks" podcasts around COVID-19:
  
  
  
  • Flyers Chief Business Officer Mike Shane on the No. 1 seed’s plans to keep fans engaged through the Stanley Cup playoffs.
    
    
  • NBC Sports analyst and part-time IndyCar driver James Hinchcliffe on what to expect from a fan-less Indy 500.
    
    
  • Octagon's Alastair Garland on the inaugural, Top Seed Open WTA event and much more.
    
    

Something related to coronavirus and sports business catch your eye? Tell us about it. Reach out to Austin Karp (akarp@sportsbusinessjournal.com) and we'll share the best of it.