Heck, we’ve all wondered about it.
How long would it take for TV money to destroy college football?
Well, that depends on what your definition of “destroy” is, but college football has always been and will always be a for-profit business. No matter what dredge has been peddled by coaches and athletic directors across the country, it’s always been about the money. And now that some are getting left in the dust, they’ve only chosen now to start caring.
One of those schools is Washington State, which may be a team without a conference pretty soon if this keeps up
Oregon and Washington are reportedly leaving the Pac-12 for the Big 10. And on top of that, there’s already been significant talk of Arizona, Arizona State and Utah all heading to the Big 12. We’ll see if that happens. And we’ll see what happens to the other schools, like Washington State. But all of these moving parts could spell the end for the Pac-12, which has still been unable to secure any reasonable portion of TV money in its search for a new media rights deal.
"The old question how long would it take TV money to destroy college football? Maybe we're here."
Washington State Head Coach Jake Dickert (@CoachDickert) with some powerful words on the state of the Pac-12, with more schools rumored to be departing the conference soon pic.twitter.com/JjqDhStCtd
— Alex Crescenti (@alex_crescenti) August 3, 2023
“It’s one of those things, guys, that we have to control what we control,” Washington State head coach Jake Dickert said regarding the state of the Pac-12, via Alex Crescenti. “It’s amazing to me. The old question is, how long would it take TV money to destroy college football? Maybe we’re here. Maybe we’re here.”
It should be noted that these comments were made prior to reports that Oregon and Washington would be getting out of dodge to join the Big 10, but these have been tangible rumors for some time now. So while a bit surprising, Friday’s news wasn’t exactly what we’d call unexpected.
“To think even remotely five years ago that the Pac-12 would be in this position, it’s unthinkable to think that we’re here today,” he continued. “And to think that local rivalries are at risk, and fans driving four hours to watch their team in a road game rivalry is at risk, to me is unbelievable.”
Dickert presumably understands Washington State’s seat at the table but feels that the Pac-12 conference and brand could be stronger than ever if teams just stuck together. Hate to break it to you, coach, but we’re well past that point. And you have your commissioner to blame.
“At the end of the day, we’ll look back at college football in 20 years and be like ‘what are we doing?’ Let’s let our guys stay regional. Let’s play. Let’s preserve the Pac-12 and what it is. I’ll let the people that make those decisions make those decisions, but at the end of the day we can focus on right here, right now and maximizing this team.”
It seems like those decisions have already been made. And now Washington State has to make a decision on its future as well. By the looks of it, there may not be a future for the Pac-12, no matter how much Dickert wants to “preserve” the conference.
[Alex Crescenti on Twitter]
