Warner Bros Discovery is reportedly interested in acquiring rights to the expanded college football playoffs. Plus: Big 12 eyes Gonzaga; NBC announces broadcast crews for college basketball on Peacock.
Warner Bros Discovery interested in college football playoff
Warner Bros Discovery is a potential contender to pursue rights to the expanded College Football Playoff, the New York Post reported Monday. Starting next year, the college football postseason will expand from four teams to twelve, meaning eight additional games of inventory are available compared to the current format. ESPN has exclusive rights to the playoff — excluding the new first round games — through the 2025-26 season, but the CFP is expected to split rights among multiple partners in its next deal.
ESPN and FOX remain frontrunners for the additional inventory given the substantial media rights contracts they hold with the preeminent college football conferences (FOX with the Big Ten and ESPN with the SEC). ESPN is also the incumbent, currently holding rights to the semifinals and final. However, Warner Bros Discovery sees few other opportunities on the horizon to expand its sports rights footprint. After new NBA deals are reached next year, each major North American professional sports league will have its rights deals secured through at least 2028 — leaving properties like NASCAR and WWE as the biggest deals remaining on the table.
Warner Bros Discovery recently announced the launch of a Bleacher Report branded live sports add-on to its MAX streaming service. The add-on grants access to sports that Warner Bros Discovery broadcasts on its linear channels TNT and TBS — including NBA, MLB, NHL, and the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. Adding college football playoff games would undoubtedly increase the profile of live sports on MAX. (NYP, 10.9)
Big 12 resumes talks with Gonzaga
Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark is reportedly pushing for the conference to add Gonzaga, resuming a pursuit that had appeared dormant, according to The Messenger. Prior to the Big 12’s addition of the “Four Corners” schools — Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado, and Utah — Gonzaga was seen as an expansion possibility for the conference. Gonzaga does not have a football program, but would join the Big 12 for all other sports.
With no football team, Gonzaga would not receive any of the media rights fees associated with the Big 12’s football agreements. As such, the university would be banking on basketball-specific media rights agreements and revenue from the Big 12’s NCAA tournament shares to fund its athletic department.
Should Gonzaga make the move, it would have to forego NCAA Tournament shares allotted to the West Coast Conference. This is important because the West Coast Conference reallocates its NCAA Tournament shares disproportionately — rewarding the universities that advance further in the NCAA Tournament. As these shares are paid out to the conferences over a period of six years, Gonzaga would be forfeiting revenue from its past six years of tournament success, but would hope to make up the deficit by joining a conference that will earn more tournament shares overall.
Should the deal be finalized before year’s end, Gonzaga could join the Big 12 for the 2024-25 season. However, Yormark remains open to adding Gonzaga at a later date if a deal takes longer to reach. (The Messenger, 10.9)
Eagle, Collinsworth, Gannon, to call Big Ten on Peacock
NBC revealed the broadcast crews for its new Peacock-exclusive Big Ten college basketball package earlier today. Headlining the announcement are play-by-play announcers Noah Eagle, Jac Collinsworth, and Terry Gannon, who will call the majority of the men’s games. As previously reported, former Purdue standout Robbie Hummel will serve as a game analyst, as will Stephen Bardo who has recently worked with Big Ten Network and FOX.
On the women’s side, Zora Stephenson, Cindy Brunson, and Sloane Martin will handle play-by-play duties. Current Big Ten Network and ESPN college basketball analyst Meghan McKeown will serve as a game analyst along with Julianne Viani of YES Network’s New York Liberty coverage.
As for the studio, host Ahmed Fareed will be joined by former Georgia Tech head coach Josh Pastner and Jordan Cornette, who has worked the past six years for ESPN and ACC Network. The women’s studio show will be anchored by Carolyn Manno who will be flanked by WNBA star Aliyah Boston in her broadcast debut. Boston, a two-time National Player of the Year at South Carolina, was the number one overall pick in the 2023 WNBA Draft.
In related news, Big Ten Network announced its college basketball broadcasting line-up on Monday, which includes former ESPN analyst LaPhonso Ellis. (NBC Sports PR, Big Ten PR)
