Four takeaways from Pac-12 Media Day

 

Pac-12 Media Day is Christmas for sports reporters.

Looking for a chair? Herm Edwards will spend an uncomfortable amount of time trying to get you into his.

Heading to the bathroom? Chip Kelly will pull up to the urinal right next to you.

Wondering why there are more black head coaches in the Pac-12 than any other Power 5 conference? David Shaw will drop knowledge in a BSN exclusive interview.

(These are all 100 percent true stories.)

Before I leave Los Angeles and start writing the stories I’ve heard today I want to briefly break down the big news from 2019 Pac-12 Media Day.

PAC-12 PRESEASON HONORS ARE OUT

The Pac-12 announced the preseason media poll and All-Conference rosters Wednesday morning. There were highs and lows for the Buffs.

Here’s the headlining story in Boulder: Laviska Shenault is the only unanimous preseason All-Pac-12 nominee.

Oregon quarterback Justin Herbert was close, earning 31 of 33 first-team votes. Stanford cornerback Paulson Adebo earned 32.

But nobody, other than Shenault, received all 33.

Junior linebacker Nate Landman, who was the other Buff at Pac-12 Media Day with Shenault, earned second-team honors. Defensive lineman Mustafa Johnson rounded out the trio of preseason All-Pac-12 Buffs with a first-team nod.

Offensive lineman William Sherman received honorable mention.

That’s a solid haul, but Colorado didn’t fare as well in the media poll.

The Buffs were picked last in the South Division and only received more votes than Oregon State, of the Pac-12 North. Utah was picked to win the South Division and Oregon was picked to win the North.

THE PAC-12 CHAMPIONSHIP IS HEADED TO VEGAS

The biggest news of the day came during Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott’s speech.

The Pac-12 Football Championship is moving to Las Vegas in 2020 and 2021. The game will be held in the Raiders’ new stadium after a six-year run at the San Francisco 49ers’ stadium in Santa Clara.

Las Vegas is also the home of the Pac-12’s men’s and women’s basketball championships.

The new stadium will also be the site of the Las Vegas Bowl, which is set to host a Pac-12 team and a team from either the SEC or Big Ten.

The Los Angeles bowl will be held in the Los Angeles Rams’ new stadium, beginning in 2020. This could be a potential site for the Pac-12 Championship, following the conclusion of the Las Vegas contract, according to Scott.

The Pac-12 also announced it was extending its contract with the Alamo Bowl, where it will continue to send its top team outside of the New Year’s Six bowls to take on a Big 12 opponent.

LARRY SCOTT ADDRESSED PAC-12 UNREST

The Pac-12’s TV deal lags behind most other Power 5 conferences but Scott made some solid points in the deal’s defense.

The commissioner noted that in 2012, when the deal was signed, it was the largest deal ever for a college athletic conference. Ever since, media deals have ballooned, making the Pac-12’s look smaller in comparison. In 2024, when the deal expires, it will be the Pac-12’s turn to set the market.

This point is often overlooked, but Scott also made a couple of head-scratching comments.

“While we recognize during these changing times and paradigm shifts, we’ve faced headwinds on distribution with the Pac-12 Networks, as a whole when it comes to media, we’ve got strategic patience and we’re going to be able to take advantage of these positive media trends, new players in the marketplace, and the increasing value that we see in our rights, especially as these new players from technology and media come in and are aggressively bidding for sports rights,” Scott said.

First of all, that is an insanely long sentence. Second, it’s full of bureaucratic speak. For example, Scott says “headwinds” instead of failures, when refering to the conference’s media problems.

One of the most interesting phrases is “strategic patience.” Scott says the five remaining years on the media deal give the conference a chance to be selective in their decision-making. They may try to alter the current contract or they may just wait it out and start fresh.

But “strategic patience,” means the conference is doing nothing, but it wants outsiders to know it considers doing nothing the correct use of its power.

CHEV IS PROMOTED

Mel Tucker opened his statement by announcing a change in his staff.

Tucker promoted recruiting coordinator Darrin Chiaverini to assistant head coach. Chiaverini is one of just three holdovers from the MacIntyre coaching regime, so Tucker’s trust in a guy he didn’t bring in himself is a valuable co-sign.