Morning Edition
POWERED BY
The absence of a Pac-12 tournament this year has changed a lot—both this week and next, when March Madness begins. We explain how, from ticket revenue to automatic bids.
—David Rumsey, Colin Salao, and Eric Fisher
Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
March Madness is right around the corner as conference tournaments conclude this weekend, and the absence of the Pac-12 is still being felt nearly one year after its collapse.
The biggest spot where the Pac-12 is missed this month is the turnstiles.
Last year, the Pac-12 tournament drew more than 76,000 fans across six sessions at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, where Oregon won its sixth conference title. That attendance number ranked sixth out of the 32 men’s basketball conference tournaments that collectively drew more than 1.1 million fans to games at neutral sites like NBA and NHL arenas, as well as smaller venues and even college campuses.
This year, there is one less conference tournament, as the Pac-12’s former teams are spread out among other leagues. That means there’s also one less automatic bid into the NCAA tournament.
The Pac-12 sent four teams to the men’s NCAA tournament in 2024, and this year, just three former conference members are projected to make it, according to most bracketologists: Arizona in the Big 12, and Oregon and UCLA from the Big Ten. Notably, Oregon’s and Arizona State’s football teams emerged as champions of their new conferences this past season.
Oregon State and Washington State, the lone remaining members of the rebuilding Pac-12, were basketball members this season of the West Coast Conference, which was won by Gonzaga, who is joining the Pac-12 in 2026.
In the women’s NCAA tournament, former Pac-12 schools USC and UCLA are both projected to earn one of their bracket’s four No. 1 seeds, after the Bruins defeated the Trojans in the Big Ten championship game.
Utah, Cal, Oregon, Oregon State, and Washington are also projected to be in the mix for tournament bids.
Stephanie Amador Blondet-Imagn Images
Women’s college basketball may not replicate the viewership drawn by Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese last year—but their effects are seen all over this year’s ratings.
The Big Ten tournament final between archrivals UCLA and USC averaged 1.44 million viewers Sunday on CBS, the second-most-watched iteration of the title game behind last year’s game featuring Clark and Iowa against Nebraska, which drew 3.02 million, according to Sports Media Watch.
South Carolina and Texas averaged 1.3 million viewers Sunday on ESPN, which was also the second-most-watched SEC championship game behind only last year’s battle between the Gamecocks and the Reese-led LSU Tigers that drew 2 million viewers.
The year-over-year dips for the title games are stark (Big Ten down 52%, SEC down 35%), which shows the power that the two stars brought last year. But the numbers are still well above their 2023 versions (Big Ten up 93%, SEC up 50%), indicating the staying power from last year.
ESPN also announced Tuesday that the ACC tournament title game between Duke and NC State drew 833,000 viewers, while the Big 12 final, a nail-biter between TCU and Baylor, drew 759,000—both of which are viewership records. The ACC tournament final is up 23% from last year, while the Big 12 final was up 126%, per Sports Media Watch.
The results come after ESPN announced earlier this week that it averaged 280,000 viewers across 87 regular-season women’s college basketball games this season, a 3% increase over last year and its highest since the 2008–2009 season.
Slightly less impressive was the Big East tournament final Monday that featured the Paige Bueckers–led UConn triumph over Creighton. The game drew 492,000 viewers on FS1, still the second-most-watched version of the event since it moved to Fox networks, but not as high as the potential draw of a name like Bueckers, who has starred in the two most-watched NCAA women’s basketball games of the season.
SPONSORED BY ETRADE FROM MORGAN STANLEY
Michele Kang built her career in medical technology before turning her focus to sports. In 2022, Kang opened up her portfolio by acquiring the NWSL’s Washington Spirit, aiming to elevate women’s soccer and create more opportunities for female athletes worldwide. She’s also the primary owner of two European women’s soccer teams and an investor in the Baltimore Orioles, and made a donation to USA Rugby that the organization called “transformative.”
“On the women’s side, multi-club is a necessity, not luxury or greed. Because we need to invest to professionalize women’s football,” Kang said after her purchase of the London City women’s club.
Kang is among the foremost people redefining sports ownership in the modern era. Get ready for the first episode of Portfolio Players, coming soon and presented by ETRADE.
Kyle Terada-Imagn Images
The Players Championship is no doubt the marquee event on the PGA Tour, boasting a $25 million purse and informally referred to as “the fifth major.”
But heading into the action this week at the iconic TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra, Fla., the PGA Tour is already halfway through its “signature event” schedule, which this season includes eight tournaments with limited fields for the highest-ranked players and $20 million purses—more than double a typical prize fund.
Three of those signature events so far had a year-to-year boost in TV ratings for their final rounds. Here are the viewership numbers, according to Nielsen ratings:
The biggest gain came at Pebble Beach, where Rory McIlroy won in February, but that increase was compared to the 2023 tournament because last year’s final round was canceled due to inclement weather (Wyndham Clark was declared the winner after three rounds).
Because of the Los Angeles wildfires, this year’s Genesis Invitational was moved from its traditional home, Riviera Country Club, to Torrey Pines, which had hosted its annual PGA Tour event just a few weeks earlier.
The final four signature events are:
Those will test the stamina of golf viewers around the major championships, as the RBC Heritage will be played the week following the Masters, the Truist Championship the week before the PGA Championship, and the Travelers Championship the week following the U.S. Open.
The Players Championship field includes 48 of the top-50 ranked golfers in the world, 47 of which will be trying to stop Scottie Scheffler from winning the tournament for an unprecedented third straight year.
Last year’s final round, which saw Scheffler narrowly beat three players by one stroke, averaged 3.5 million viewers on NBC, which was down from the 4.1 million who tuned in to Scheffler’s more dominant victory in 2023, when he defeated second-place finisher Tyrrell Hatton by five shots.
Norby Williamson Fires FanDuel RSN Execs, Hires Four Ex-ESPNers
Longtime ESPN exec Norby Williamson has restructured the FanDuel Sports Network, formerly known as the Bally Sports Network, firing about 10 executives and replacing them with four he worked closely with during his time in Bristol. You can read more of Ryan Glasspiegel’s exclusive reporting here.
For all of our sports media news and insights, subscribe to the twice-weekly “Tuned In” newsletter.
Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images
As the Capitals’ Alexander Ovechkin continues his GR8 Chase, franchise owner Monumental Sports & Entertainment and the NHL are making sure the team’s local broadcasters are not left behind in the historic moment.
The Ted Leonsis–led Monumental and the league have completed an agreement in which Monumental Sports Network will produce local broadcasts for four late-season Capitals games slated for exclusive national broadcasts, including traveling with the team. Those local productions will be used for archival and social media purposes, and are in particular aimed at keeping Monumental Sports Network play-by-play announcer Joe Beninati fully involved in the GR8 Chase.
Beninati has called Capitals games since the 1990s, even predating the Leonsis-led purchase of the Capitals in 1999, and his tenure in the booth more than covers the entirety of Ovechkin’s 20-season career.
“After 28 years in our broadcast booth, Joe’s voice has become synonymous with Capitals hockey and he deserves to call these once-in-a-lifetime goals,” said Zach Leonsis, Monumental president of media and new enterprises.
Ovechkin is now just nine goals away from breaking Wayne Gretzky’s NHL record of 894 goals scored, a mark long thought to be untouchable, and the GR8 Chase has become a major late-season storyline for the league. The pursuit continues Thursday night in Los Angeles as the Capitals face the Kings.
If Ovechkin scores a historic goal, such as tying or breaking Gretzky’s record, Monumental Sports Network will immediately release recorded video and audio of Beninati’s call of the moment. The outlet will then be able to run a full game replay 24 hours after the national broadcast.
The broadcast cooperation agreement between Monumental and the NHL covers the following four Capitals games:
Monumental Sports Network will air the other 13 of the Capitals’ 17 remaining regular-season games. In addition to the GR8 Chase, the Capitals have aspirations for their second Stanley Cup in seven years, and are currently tied with the Jets for the league’s highest point total.
It is not yet certain who will be in the booth with Beninati for the historic call. Craig Laughlin has been his longtime broadcasting partner, but he is currently recovering from heart surgery, and Alan May has been filling in for him.
FRONT OFFICE SPORTS LIVE
We’re in a golden age for sports media. Live games are the most-watched programs on TV. Women’s sports are exploding. Giant streamers are joining the party. And sports documentaries have never been hotter properties.
But the landscape is shifting beneath our feet. The cable TV bundle that supported national and local sports TV media rights for decades is under severe pressure. The NFL could opt out early from its $111 billion media deals. And talent like Stephen A. Smith and Pat McAfee are launching their own companies, demanding more autonomy.
Join us in New York City this September for Tuned In, where we’ll sit down with leaders in sports media—from athletes and on-air talent to media moguls and league executives––to discuss where we are heading in the world of sports media.
Register now.
Do you think March Madness will feel different this year without the Pac-12?
Wednesday’s result: 18% of respondents think NFL teams should be required to fully guarantee 75% of player contracts. 24% think they should guarantee half. 11% think they should guarantee a quarter. And 47% think they should not be required to fully guarantee player contracts at all.
If this email was forwarded to you, you can subscribe here.
Copyright © 2025 Front Office Sports. All rights reserved.
460 Park Avenue South, 7th Floor, New York NY, 10016
Subscribe To Our Daily Newsletters
