On weekday mornings, Nevada Sports Net will recap three big headlines of the day in its Morning Download. Read below for today’s topics.
1. Pac-12 teams sign new grant of rights
The Pac-12 has received signed grant of rights and membership agreements from its six new members plus holdovers Oregon State and Washington State, a conference spokesperson told Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger on Monday. These documents are the strongest binding agent for conferences and typically tie each schools’ media rights to the league through the duration of the contract. This pact is expected to run through 2032, the same length as the Mountain West’s grant of media rights, which was signed by all members in December (full details on that contract here). Details from the Pac-12 grant of rights have not been shared (NSN has filed multiple public-records request for the contract). This comes on the heels of the five departing MW schools giving official exit notice to the conference on May 31. Those schools include Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Utah State. The next major step in the Pac-12 reformation is expected to be the release of the media-right deal, which could quicken the addition of a necessary eighth full member that has a football program, which is a requirement to hit the FBS standard.
2. Boise State expected to add private-equity money
Boise State athletic director Jeramiah Dickey told Front Office Sports he expects the Broncos to add money via a private-equity firm in the next six months. College conferences and schools have discussed potential revenue infusions via private-equity firms, a risky long-term play that would provide money for these leagues or schools in the short term. Sportico reported UCLA and Penn State had agreed to private-equity deals with sports consulting firm Elevate, but athletic directors from both schools quickly denied that. Dickey, however, seems bullish on a private-equity deal. “Ultimately, I need to create more assets for my institution and state,” Dickey told Front Office Sports, adding Boise State doesn’t have as large a revenue base as Power 4 schools. “I have to get that much more creative, which means I have to take that much more risk, and appropriately so.”
3. Vegas Golden Knights Road Trip to hit Northern Nevada
The Vegas Golden Knights Road Trip this summer will make two stops in Northern Nevada. The tour runs from July 12-17 and will visit South Lake Tahoe and Reno before four stops in Arizona to visit Chandler, Scottsdale, Tempe and Phoenix. Each are cities where fans can watch locally broadcast VGK games with NSN being the Northern Nevada home for Vegas Golden Knights games. Vegas has visited the Northern Nevada area over the last three summers, making stops between Tahoe and Reno. The VGK Road Trip will feature members of the Golden Knights organization participating in a series of on-ice hockey clinics and meet-and-greets with fans in each city. Mascot Chance, members of the VGK Cast and team broadcasters will be among those on the trip. The Tahoe stop will be July 12 from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. at South Lake Tahoe Ice Arena with the Reno stop July 13 from 9:15-11:15 a.m. at Reno Ice.