It is true that George Kliavkoff did not make USC an offer for an expanded and uneven cut of Pac-12 television and media rights revenues. It is true that Kliavkoff was caught off guard by USC’s departure to the Big Ten. It is true that Kliavkoff did not put real teeth into the alliance with the Big Ten which might have made it a lot harder for USC to bolt.
Yet, if you followed Pac-12 media day and the reporting which flowed from it, you’re aware that the deck was even more stacked against Kliavkoff than previously thought.
We picked up on the Los Angeles Times’ report that USC President Carol Folt shut down any possible talk of Pac-12 expansion last summer. The Pac-12 might have been able to strengthen its hand and offer USC a lot more TV money in an expanded configuration, but it was USC’s own president who squelched that possibility. We can put two and two together and conclude that Folt was at least thinking about the Big Ten last summer (after the Oklahoma-Texas move to the SEC). A plan might not have been launched, but the idea was certainly being considered.
George Kliavkoff really didn’t have a chance.
We talked about this with Mark Rogers at The Voice of College Football.
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Complete Pac-12 football game predictions for 2022
