Apple TV or Bust for the Pac-12? New Clock Rules? Anthony Richardson as the No. 1 Overall Pick?

Author

Ty Hildenbrandt
February 23, 2023

Happy National Chili Day! I love that we live in a world where someone wrote out a heading of "How to Observe National Chili Day." The first bullet: "Make some chili." Sometimes the simplest answer is best.

CONFERENCE MUMBO JUMBO

APPLE TV OR BUST?

Nothing gets the blood pumping like potential media deals and doomsday scenarios!

Per Andrew Marchand, "Apple TV+ is emerging as a potential landing spot for Pac-12 college football rights." The scoop follows a handful of other new items related to the conference, ranging from potential expansion to include San Diego State and SMU to the prospect of the whole thing imploding. It's... a lot. For its part, the conference is telling everyone to just be cool; however, the range of possible outcomes over the next 12 months leaves a lot to the imagination.

Does a deal with Apple make sense for the Pac-12? Well, that depends. The name of the game in 2023 is money. Apple has more than anyone else and is apparently willing to spend it on sports. Most recently, it won the exclusive rights to Major League Soccer to the tune of 10-years and $2.5 billion. A huge windfall would go a long way towards stabilizing the Pac-12, which is still reeling from the impending departure of USC and UCLA in 2024.

On the flip side, this deal wouldn't address the conference's biggest challenge over the last several decades: Having more of a national presence. Though the fine print would likely allow some games to be nationally televised, the majority would be paywalled off for a smaller group of very passionate Pac-12 fans. Commissioner George Kliavkoff may frame this as a way to future-proof the product. Cord-cutting continues to accelerate, and viewers in the 25-34 age range overwhelmingly access their content via the internet. He wouldn't necessarily be wrong, but being out of sight, out of mind in a sport ruled by subjectivity feels like a risk.

That said, Kliavkoff may be forced to take the Apple deal. Marchand also reports that ESPN, Amazon and Fox Sports are "lukewarm" on the league. Without a bidding war, Apple could potentially win the Pac-12 media rights without paying enough to comfort schools like Oregon and Washington. And that's when things could get interesting. There continues to be chatter in college football media circles about this possibility, which could trigger another round of conference realignment very soon.

Stay tuned...

ON THE CLOCK

ARE GAMES TOO LONG?

Norm Hall/Getty Images

The average FBS football game lasted 3 hours, 21 minutes (3:21) in 2022. That's longer than the averages for both the NFL (3:10) and MLB (3:03), and five minutes longer than college games in 2018.

With trendlines pointing in the wrong direction for game length, college football bigwigs are considering changes to clock rules that would reduce game time and improve player safety. In particular, four proposals are being considered:

  • Prohibiting consecutive timeouts (i.e., icing kickers)

  • Eliminating untimed downs at the end of the first and third quarters

  • Keeping the clock running after first downs, except inside the last two minutes of each half

  • Starting the clock once the ball is spotted after an incompletion

Our friend Ross Dellenger went into much greater detail about how we got to this point and what the process looks like moving forward. Notably, there's no specific proposal involving instant replay, which might be the biggest reason games have taken longer. It's widely assumed that college football would eventually like to go the route of the NFL with its challenge system, just not yet.

The proposals are expected to be brought before the NCAA Football Playing Rules Committee at their meeting next month in Indianapolis. It's expected that some of the them will pass. By a show of virtual hands (via the poll below), do you like these proposed changes?

Do you like these proposals to shorten games?

Login or Subscribe to participate in polls.

🧐 FACTOIDS THAT MAY ONLY INTEREST ME

THE VERBALLERHOOD

WHAT'S GOOD IN THE VERBALLERHOOD?

It was Q&A week at SV HQ. We put out a call for questions on Monday morning and were inundated with enough to make three episodes out of them. The first two, linked below, are publicly available on our podcast feed. The third was a Patreon exclusive and included in our weekly bonus episode, known as the Brew & A.

Listen to the podcast by clicking here or check out our individual episodes below. You can also view full episode videos and smaller clips on our YouTube channel.

THIS WEEK'S PODCAST EPISODES:

Q&A: Part 1 - Are Games Too Long? More Conference Realignment? Optimal SEC Schedule Format?

Ty and Dan put out a call to the Verballerhood for burning questions in the cold months of the college football offseason. Are college football games really too long and are there any proposals that would actually help? What exactly is the Pac-12's next move? Do you prefer 8 or 9 SEC conference games? What's the deal with Dino Babers at Syracuse? What's a realistic season for Luke Fickell's first season at Wisconsin? Will Georgia take a step back with Mike Bobo running the offense?

https://www.solidverbal.com/episodes/qa-part-1-are-games-too-long-more-conference-realignment-optimal-sec-schedule-format/

Q&A: Part 2 - Hating on Dabo Swinney, Ferentzified Contracts, Video Game Worries

Ty and Dan go back to the well for another round of Verballer questions. Is the media too critical of Dabo Swinney at Clemson? How would you structure a Brian Ferentz-style contract stipulation? Will the upcoming EA Sports video game add to your enjoyment of college football?

https://www.solidverbal.com/episodes/qa-part-2-hating-on-dabo-swinney-ferentzified-contracts-video-game-worries/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=qs02232023

JOIN OUR EXCLUSIVE VERBALLER COMMUNITY

And now, a poem generated by our AI overlords:

College football is a thrill, But sometimes, you just can't chill. No one to share your joy and zeal, A lonely fan, no one to feel.

But fret not, for we've got a place, A community of fans, a saving grace. The "Verballerhood", we call it,An exclusive club, with no limit.

Join us for college football, Share your views, your highs, and all. With bonus episodes and Discord chat, Your passion will never fall flat.

No more shouting into the void, No more being solo overjoyed. Join the Verballerhood and you'll see, A community of fans, just like thee.

Thanks for reading. Until next week, stay solid!-Ty Hildenbrandt