George Kliavkoff’s biggest mistake as Pac-12 commissioner is beyond dispute
The news on Friday was infuriating and depressing to anyone who cares about the Pac-12 and wanted the conference to survive. The Pac-12 presidents reportedly rejected an ESPN deal which would have paid each member school $30 million per year. That figure would have kept the conference together and alive. The number would have been very competitive with the number the Big 12 eventually arrived at, which was $31.7 million per year.
The Pac-12 getting $30 million per year for every remaining school without USC and UCLA would have been roughly as impressive as the Big 12 fetching $31.7 million per year for every member school with Texas and Oklahoma out the door.
There’s a lot to process here, but we begin with the simple truth that the Pac-12 presidents are more responsible for the destruction of the conference as we knew it (maybe it will survive as the Pac-4 plus some Mountain West members; we will see) than George Kliavkoff is. The deal was there and the presidents shot it down.
However, this doesn’t let Kliavkoff off the hook. In fact, it exposes his biggest and most obvious mistake as Pac-12 commissioner.
It’s actually not that hard to pin down.
Kliavkoff, with that 2022 ESPN deal in hand, needed to tell the Pac-12 presidents, “You must take this deal. It is as good as you can reasonably expect. You wanted me to deliver a media rights deal. This is it, take it or leave it. If you reject it, I will resign my position immediately.”
Leaders need to lead. They sometimes need to speak tough truths and tell people what they need to hear, not what they want to hear. George Kliavkoff was unwilling or unable to tell Pac-12 presidents the truth. He was unable to put his foot down in a moment of great consequence.
Let’s continue to process this story by gathering reactions from across the Pac-12 and the nation, as everyone continues to wonder how Pac-12 presidents could be so shortsighted and out of touch with reality:
WE FINALLY GOT DETAILS
I was told by people in the TV industry that the Pac-12 severely overestimated its worth and that's what allowed the Big 12 to jump the line, but I couldn't get the specific numbers.
John did. Wow. https://t.co/ScXKINlELE
— Andy Staples (@Andy_Staples) August 11, 2023
THIS DEFINITELY WASN'T INEVITABLE
A piece like this is almost comforting.
Yes, it feels CFB’s drifting toward a structure everyone says they don’t want, and yes, it can feel inevitable and terrible … but OTOH, it took SO MUCH incompetence for last week’s events to unfold. Maybe nothing’s inevitable after all. https://t.co/aVadan9875
— Bill Connelly (@ESPN_BillC) August 11, 2023
A SMALLER PROBLEM
Sad thing a great collegiate institution is going away because presidents allowed the commissioner to hire his buddy as media consultant, and the only ones left holding the bag are fans and those who will be let go due to budget cuts. https://t.co/bWU1qlZvuz
— Bryan Fischer (@BryanDFischer) August 11, 2023
PRESIDENTS WORST OF ALL
George Kliavkoff was dealt a terrible hand and proceeded to play it even worse. https://t.co/Q20HmN2xQn
— Tom Fornelli (@TomFornelli) August 11, 2023
ROUGH SCENE
https://t.co/btPTKD3pM0 pic.twitter.com/8KCcN9pmCN
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) August 11, 2023
VERY UNSERIOUS
For reference the ACC got 39, Big 12 got 31.6, SEC gets 50 and the Big Ten got 60… the Pac-12 is so unserious for that https://t.co/3A9UrQrMnn
— Kevin Borba (@Kevin__Borba) August 11, 2023
LEADERS DIDN'T LEAD
Yeah, stop blaming Oregon you Beaver fans. This is ALL on everyone. And the leadership of the PAC-12. Failure after failure after failure. https://t.co/xayT7Jo4XN
— Jason 🌟 (@XLAnimosity) August 11, 2023
VERY BADLY
This offer would have been after USC and UCLA already announced they were leaving too…..the PAC leadership fumbled this so bad https://t.co/zDzFc5yvDQ
— Kevin Sauer (@ksauer55) August 11, 2023
SO TRUE
The 12 Pac presidents failed this conference from every step of the way
Too arrogant to expand in 2016, too arrogant to expand in 2021, too arrogant to fire Larry Scott, too arrogant to accept ESPN 30m https://t.co/nQBGfJLUM9
— Rest in Peace, Pac-12 🙏 (@futurecoug) August 11, 2023
UTTERLY AND COMPLETELY
What a calamity. https://t.co/XdSz41XPdB
— Matt Norlander (@MattNorlander) August 11, 2023
YUP, THEY DID IT TO THEMSELVES
I hate that a conference of over a century is going to be gone, but no one to blame but themselves. https://t.co/SU4fuEn31w
— WarMachine2013 (@WarMachine2013) August 11, 2023
WE ALL ARE
Bill Walton and I are very disappointed in you Pac-12. https://t.co/f4enCbiuLV
— Chris Foster (@mrbigblue1) August 11, 2023
BRUTAL
Sounds like Kliavkoff was just as stupid as Larry Scott. Honestly, good riddance to an awful conference. The Pac-10/12 was always a joke. https://t.co/HgjU2FC1dX
— Kane “The Conqueror” Webb (@FightOnTwist) August 11, 2023
YES
Asking for $50 million after losing USC and UCLA just reeks of arrogance. https://t.co/MRXTWQS52d
— Logan Carney (@Media_Carnival) August 11, 2023
IT WON'T EXIST
Smh Pac12 after dark will never be the same 🥲 https://t.co/YGBvctgPTq
— Terence (@ScottWrites_) August 11, 2023