Is the Pac-12 really this bad? Why the league has no TV deal without USC and UCLA

The Pac-12 logo in Rice Eccles Stadium before the Utah-BYU game in Salt Lake City.

(George Frey / Getty Images)

Conversations with two well-placed sources in the media industry not authorized to speak publicly about negotiations chalked up some of the Pac-12’s struggles to strike gold as unfortunate timing. There are much bigger issues at play than the lack of buzz about Pac-12 football when you remove Lincoln Riley and the train of five-star quarterbacks he will bring to L.A. from the equation.

For one, the country’s greater economic situation has even the biggest spenders examining their margins a little more. In the media space, that’s true, too, with Disney telling ESPN that it has to be more selective than it’s been in the past. The expanded College Football Playoff, for instance, is going to be up for grabs in the coming years. Getting a piece of the marquee events is paramount, and saving up for those just means there’s less to offer for one Pac-12 “After Dark” game per week. As one person said, the Pac-12 is a “nice-to-have,” not a must-have.

Fox can fill its Saturday late slot with Mountain West games on FS1 and not have to spend any extra on the Pac-12.

Kliavkoff has said from the time he took over as commissioner that the Pac-12 would consider streaming platforms such as Apple TV and Amazon Prime Video, but streamers are losing hundreds of millions of dollars a year right now and aren’t going to overpay for the Pac-12. Even if Prime Video or Apple did come through with favorable financials, either would lead to an extreme drop in exposure compared to the Pac-12’s peers whose best games are all over the air.

What good is a couple extra million per year if recruits and fans aren’t able to easily access your product?

There are no easy answers for Kliavkoff, which is why his schools have no choice but to keep an open mind about their future conference affiliation.

In the short-term, Kliavkoff has to make sure whatever final offer he brings forward keeps the Pac-12’s top football programs relevant, even if the money isn’t what he or his predecessor, Larry Scott, promised. That means ESPN or Fox has to remain a partner.