Sport & Story Daily March 4, 2024

Stay Ahead of the Game

March 4, 2024

Good morning! As Caitlin Clark beats Pistol Pete’s NCAA scoring record, it’s time to look at another angle—CLARKONOMICS

The Caitlin Clark Economy: Much More Than an Army of Traveling Young Girls
The Codys, who traveled from Williamston, Michigan, for the Iowa-Indiana women’s basketball game and were rotating spots with family members for 7.5 hours before the gates were set to open at 6 p.m., were there to see Caitlin Clark. As Front Office Sports’ Amanda Christovich points out, “They’re not the only ones—“Clarkonomics” is a misunderstood phenomenon. 

Christovich writes, “It’s typically portrayed as thousands of young female fans driving or flying from all over the country with yellow-and-black signs, lines stretching around campuses to get into sold-out arenas, and broadcasts regularly drawing record viewership. 

But the Caitlin Clark economy is powered by much more than adoring young female fans. In the first place, many of her fans are neither young nor female. And the haters drive the economy just as much as the Hawkeyes fans…

Whether you love her or hate her, Clark is bringing the women’s hoops economy to the next level.”
^{frontofficesports.com}

From Caitlin Clark to Lynette Woodard: It’s Time We Embrace the Full History of Women’s Basketball
“She shot and passed and dribbled to prominence in the shadow of Nancy Lieberman and before Cheryl Miller, which is like winning tennis tournaments between Billie Jean King and Martina Navratilova. So how come nobody knows Lynette Woodard the way everybody knows Chris Evert…? Well, that’s how it is in women’s basketball. You remember women’s basketball.”

As SI’s Emma Baccellieri notes, “The sport has long allowed just a handful of stars to shine until they are forgotten. But it doesn’t have to be that way.”
^si.com

Mid-Season Check-In With Olivia Karas
Bridget Sloan—host of the popular Flipping Out podcast on all things college gymnastics—and Big Ten Analyst Olivia Karas Big Ten Analyst discuss all things NCAA Gymnastics in this mid-season check-in edition. 

The pair discuss the current state of the NCAA gymnastics landscape after week eight and provide a preview of what the four seeded teams in each regional would be as of the date of the episode.
^spotify.com

Diamond Sports Files Official Re-Org Plan, Will Cut Ties With Bally’s
As Sportico’s Anthony Crupi reports, “As part of the proposed re-org, Diamond will extricate itself from the legacy naming-rights deal with Bally’s Corp. that its parent company, Sinclair Broadcasting, inked on Nov. 18, 2020. At the time of the transaction, Sinclair received various warrants and options with respect to the common stock of Bally’s, valued at more than $184 million; for its part, Diamond was set up to generate approximately $88 million in naming-rights fees from Bally’s over a span of 10 years.”
^sportico.com

Preakness Reveals Purse Increase, $5M Bonus Pool
The purse for the Preakness Stakes will increase to $2M, up from $1.5M in 2023, and it will become part of a new three-leg series with a potential bonus payout of $5M as part of a move “designed to increase the appeal of Maryland’s signature race.”
^{sportsbusinessjournal.com}

Another Round: Netflix Is Back With More LIV Golf–PGA Tour Drama
As Front Office Sports’ David Rumsey reports, “As uncertainty continues to cloud the PGA Tour’s future alongside rival LIV Golf, the second season of Netflix’s Full Swing docuseries is set to be released Wednesday, shedding new light on the tense relationships at the top of professional golf.

Season 2 wastes no time diving into the drama, documenting Rory McIlroy’s leadership in the PGA Tour’s fight against LIV and the league’s growing threat. Season 1 followed five golfers that would make the jump to LIV in 2022, but Dustin Johnson was the only one to return in full capacity.”
^{frontofficesports.com}

Double T Scoreboard Installed, Provides Familiar Skyline for Texas Tech Football
As Carlos Silva Jr. reports, “The Texas Tech football team is going to enjoy a new skyline when it takes the field in the fall inside Jones AT&T Stadium.

A new Double T scoreboard was put into place, piece by piece, over the past few days. The final piece was set on Saturday.

Fifteen months ago, the original Double T scoreboard was removed from the south end zone in which it stood since 1978 — kickstarting the beginning of the south end zone building inside Jones AT&T Stadium.”
^{lubbockonline.com}

Sam Kennedy Named CEO of Fenway Sports Group
Sam Kennedy was named the new CEO of Fenway Sports Group at the organization's annual in-person partners meeting this afternoon in Bonita Springs, Florida. Kennedy first joined the Red Sox front office ahead of the 2002 season upon the franchise’s purchase by FSG, "rising through the ranks…"
^{sportsbusinessjournal.com}

Could Mountain West Move to Unequal Revenue Distribution in Basketball?
As The San Diego Tribune’s Mark Zeigler writes, “San Diego State’s run to the final last year was worth approximately $10 million to the Mountain West, paid out over the next six years.

The Aztecs will see less than $1 million of it.

That could change in future years, or at least be discussed.

Mountain West Commissioner Gloria Nevarez said she plans to introduce the topic at the conference’s spring meetings, and it figures to get traction with a record six members projected to receive NCAA Tournament berths when the selection committee unveils the 68-team bracket in two weeks.

Most conferences distribute all revenue evenly — bowl money, television money, NCAA Tournament money. Nevarez comes from the West Coast Conference, however, where they don’t.”
^{sandiegouniontribune.com}

Canzano: Pac-12 War Chest Intended for 'Strategic' Use
As John Canzano says of his recent discussion with the Pac-12 Commissioner: “Teresa Gould didn’t get upset when I referred to her conference as the ‘Pac-2’ on Thursday. After all, it’s a quick and easy way to signal that you’re talking about the Pac-12 after 10 members leave this summer.

‘I don’t get mad, but I tell my team never to say that,’ the new commissioner told me in a 1-on-1 interview.

Gould and I spoke in an exclusive interview for 45 minutes after her introductory news conference. We covered several topics, ranging from the Pac-12 Network to the possibilities for the $255 million war chest.”
^usatoday.com

NCAA Abandons NIL Enforcement After Antitrust Court Loss
Per Sportico: In the equivalent of an end-of-week news dump, NCAA president Charlie Baker told his members Friday afternoon that the association’s enforcement staff will “pause and not begin investigations” related to NIL infractions. Even if the NCAA resumes enforcement at a later date, Baker added, any conduct occurring between now and then won’t be penalized.
^sportico.com

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