Changing dance partners

ESPN is out at the Big Ten.

SBJ also reporting that CBS & NBC appear to be frontrunners to pick up packages alongside FOX. CBS would pick up games for the 3:30 ET window, and NBC would carry games in primetime, per @Ourand_SBJ.

This matches what I've been hearing. FOX at noon, CBS at 3:30, NBC at night.

— Nicole Auerbach (@NicoleAuerbach) August 9, 2022

So, CBS is trading a 3:30 slot with the SEC for a 3:30 slot with the Big Ten, eh?  Here’s the weird part:

Worded my last tweet wrong. This is MORE than CBS offered to keep the SEC on CBS package and it isn't even for the Big Ten's top TV rights package https://t.co/6d0g9Z1xp2

— John Talty (@JTalty) August 9, 2022

All I can figure is Mickey told CBS that they would top any offer in order to get exclusive rights to the entire SEC broadcast package.  Damn.

By the way, this has to be good news for the Pac-12, doesn’t it?  ESPN’s got money to spend and the conference has got late night TV slots to offer.  Sounds like a match to me.

Advertisement

Those pesky stats

Which Power 5 QBs were most effective on traditional dropbacks last season?

Ohio State's C.J. Stroud led the way. pic.twitter.com/memL2REARx

— CFB Film Room (@CFBFilmRoom) August 8, 2022

It’s amusing, isn’t it, to see the Bennett narrative versus the Bennett numbers?  I mean, for a bum, he sure keeps some pretty good company.

Opportunity is nowhere.

Rodney Garner, embracing the Tennessee tradition of empty sloganeering…

“We’ve got to take a step forward,” Garner said Monday during a news conference. “I think we exceeded the expectations for everybody except for the guys in the room and probably the coaching staff, but nobody came to Tennessee to say they want to be 7-6. That is not the standard.

“We are moving in the right direction, but everybody, when they look in the mirror, can see where we can get better. If we want to be great, then we’ve got to get comfortable being uncomfortable. That’s what it takes.”

I thought it took scoring more points than the other team, but that’s probably not very inspiring.

Diamond in the rough

Jeez, I may have to revise my opinion of Matt Hayes based just on this one hot take:

22. Who are the top 5 players poised for a breakout season?

• WR Marvin Harrison Jr., Ohio State
• DE/OLB Dallas Turner, Alabama
• MLB Jamon Dumas-Johnson, Georgia
• RB Zach Evans, Ole Miss
• QB Clayton Tune, Houston

I know about JDJ.  You know about JDJ.  But a national pundit?  Props for that.

By the way, don’t miss scrolling down to number 25 on his list.

Bo knows the road.

“But that’s kind of an advantage for us. We can treat it like it’s an away game.”  Wut?