The Pac-12 begins its expansion process. Plus: Warner Bros. Discovery and Charter reach a carriage deal; The Ringer loses Kevin O’Connor, looks to add Todd McShay.
Pac-12 targets Mountain West for expansion
The two-member Pac-12 — consisting currently of Oregon State and Washington State — will expand to include Mountain West schools Boise State, San Diego State, Colorado State and Fresno State starting in the 2026-27 season, it was announced Thursday. The conference will need to add at least two more teams to meet the NCAA’s minimum requirement of eight, as the grace period allowing it to bypass that rule expires after next season.
The move coincides with the expiration of the Mountain West’s TV deal, which pays out approximately $6 million annually to each school. The departing members believe they can earn more money by consolidating the conference’s bigger brands and abandoning some of the lower-profile schools. Per The Athletic, the four departing schools will owe a $17 million exit fee and forfeit their annual league payout.
For 2024, the Pac-12 and Mountain West reached a scheduling agreement that sees Oregon State and Washington State play six games each against the Mountain West. No such agreement was reached for next season. The two remaining Pac-12 schools also secured a TV deal with The CW for this season, while next year is seemingly up-in-the-air. Reports indicate that the Pac-12 could again look to the Mountain West to fill out the rest of the conference. (The Athletic, 9.12)
WBD and Charter reach deal; no change to price of TNT
Warner Bros. Discovery and Charter Communications announced a multi-year carriage agreement on Thursday that will see no reduction in TNT’s fee despite the likelihood that the channel will lose the NBA following the 2024-25 season. In addition, the new deal will bundle WBD’s streaming services with traditional linear offerings for Charter customers. The agreement is similar to that of the Disney-Charter deal from last year, which saw Disney’s streaming services included in certain Charter packages.
Per release, the deal was reached a year before the previous agreement was set to expire. It will include WBD’s Max and Discovery+ streaming services for all Spectrum TV Select subscribers at no extra charge. That bundle will now include Max, Discovery+, Disney+, ESPN+, Paramount+, and more, in addition to a full suite of linear channels. Notably, Spectrum plans to offer direct-to-consumer video packages to its broadband subscribers starting in 2025. (WBD, 9.12)
The Ringer loses O’Connor, looks to add McShay
In a couple of high-profile talent moves, The Ringer is losing one of its most prominent NBA voices, Kevin O’Connor, while perhaps adding former ESPN NFL analyst Todd McShay. Per the New York Post on Thursday, O’Connor is departing The Ringer for Yahoo Sports, while McShay is in serious talks to join the Spotify-owned sports and pop culture outlet.
O’Connor had been with The Ringer since the year it was founded in 2016. He signifies another prominent sports media hire for Yahoo, who recently came to terms with top combat sports reporter Ariel Helwani.
As for McShay, a deal has yet to be finalized, though fellow Ringer personality Ryen Russillo hinted at the possibility on his podcast. McShay was part of the widespread talent layoffs at ESPN last year. (NY Post, 9.12, 9.12)
