Coach Firings Running Rampant

Saints + Raiders Cuts; Yahoo Sports ⇢ This Election Could Affect College Sports

November 5, 2024

Good morning! Last week was the WNBA coach firings; this week, it’s football

Saints Fire Coach Dennis Allen After Seventh Loss in Row
The New Orleans Saints have fired coach Dennis Allen after losing their seventh straight game Sunday, the team announced Monday. Special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi has been named the interim coach.

The Saints won their first two games this season but haven't won since, with their latest loss coming to the Carolina Panthers in a 23-22 defeat. As ESPN notes, this is the first midseason firing for the Saints since the late Tom Benson purchased the team in 1985.
^ESPN

Boise State AD Jeramiah Dickey Joined On the Fly Podcast Host Gene DeFilippo to Discuss Leadership and the Ever-Evolving College Athletics Landscape
First and foremost, Dickey pointed out that “college football is on this fast track to potentially breaking away from the current model.”

On moving to the Pac-12 in July of 2026, Dickey said, “It was important for all 18 sports I represent to be represented and, for us to, to plan the work, work the plan. This is just the next step of many, and we still have a lot ahead of us over the next year and a half, two years. I'm really excited for what the future holds.”

On phenom Ashton Jeanty, he said, “We have a Heisman candidate in Ash, and Ash is just a tremendous man on and off the field. Quite honestly, we probably love him more for what he does off than what he does on it. He represents us at the highest level.”

Fox Sells Out of Super Bowl Ad Inventory
Fox CEO Lachlan Murdoch told investors the company is sold out and at “what we believe are record pricing,” four months ahead of the game in New Orleans. Last year, a 30-second spot clocked in around $7M.

In 2023, the last time Fox had the Super Bowl, the company pulled in nearly $600M in advertising revenue. Paramount surpassed that record last year. Overall, Fox reported $832M in net income, with overall revenue of $3.56B for the quarter.
^{Sports Business Journal}

Bud Light, UFC Say Partnership is Paying Off For Both
While beverage industry analyst Bump Williams said it’s difficult to say exactly how much the UFC sponsorship is helping stem the bleeding, Bud Light is “going back to the playbook—they’re injecting humor and relevance [into its marketing], and identifying areas where consumers that they may not have been reaching before are watching or engaging—and trying to reach them that way.”
^{Sports Business Journal}

Saban's Preparation Helping Him Become Hit on 'College GameDay'
Former Alabama football coach Nick Saban's new role this season on ESPN's "College GameDay" has been a “hit with TV audiences” for his "insights and his odd couple-dynamic” with Pat McAfee, according to Laine Higgins of the WALL STREET JOURNAL via SBJ. Coordinating producer Matthew Garrett said Saban “calls me every week—the first thing he asks is ‘What can I do better’?”
^{Sports Business Journal}

Sports Drive Fox Corp.’s Revenue Despite Election Ad Overload
FOS’ Eric Fisher reports: “The Fox Sports parent said it generated $3.56 billion in revenue during its fiscal first quarter, up  11% from the comparable period last year, with sports playing a significant role in that lift. The company in particular credited its ‘Summer of Soccer’ coverage during the July to September period that included its airing of the UEFA Euros and Copa América tournaments and aided both advertising and sublicensing revenue.”
^{Front Office Sports}

Raiders Fire OC Luke Getsy, Two Other Coaches Amid Five-Game Losing Streak
SI’s Kurt Rasmussen reports: “With the Raiders' offense struggling of late, the team announced Sunday evening that offensive coordinator Luke Getsy has been fired, in addition to quarterbacks coach Rich Scangarello and offensive line coach James Cregg. Las Vegas has scored no more than 24 points in a single game throughout the duration of their losing streak. They've averaged 18 points during their last five games, and just 18.6 points throughout the season.”
^{Sports Illustrated}

Donald Trump, Jared Kushner and the Race to Host the 2026 World Cup
The Athletic’s Adam Crafton writes that the media outlet “has spoken to numerous sources involved with the bidding process on either side, all of whom wished to remain anonymous to protect relationships and owing to the sensitivity of their discussions. During our conversations, we learned:

“Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law, became the key contact in the White House for the United bid and, even as recently as this year, he remained key in securing the World Cup final for MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. Officials within the U.S. bid sought to actively downplay concerns about Trump’s inflammatory rhetoric, attempting to persuade voters that either he did not reflect the bid, or that he did not mean exactly what he had said, or to reassure them by saying it was unlikely he would be president in 2026.”
^{The Athletic}

College Athletes are Getting Paid and Fans are Starting to See a Growing Share of the Bill
AP News’ Eddie Pells reports: “At Tennessee, they are adding a ‘talent fee’ to the price of sports tickets. At Arkansas, they will charge 3% more at the concessions stands. At Michigan and Michigan State, athletic directors sent letters alerting boosters that winning is going to start costing more. And, in a first, Clemson is going to start adding an athletic surcharge to tuition bills.

“Winning at big-time college sports has never been free, but in a rapidly changing era in which players are allowed to earn money and be paid by their own schools, it has never been clearer that fans will be picking up a bigger part of the tab.”
^{AP News}

Why This Could Be the Most Consequential Election in College Sports History
Yahoo! Sports’ Ross Dellenger writes: “Control of the chambers is paramount to both a bill’s passage and its contents. Is the bill broad or limited, pro-NCAA or athlete-skewed? Sommer, an attorney and expert on these issues, sums up each party’s contrasting approach in this way: Republicans want to limit employment status and give protection to the NCAA and power leagues to grant them oversight and regulation; Democrats emphasize more rights of athletes, express an openness (some of them) to employee protections as well as health, educational access and gender equity rights.”
^{Yahoo! Sports}

Sources: Big 12 Sharing NIL Agreement Template With Schools
League sources told Sports Business Journal the Big 12 circulated a name, image, and likeness agreement template to its schools in recent weeks that effectively spells out, among other things, terms, services, payments, and the timing of payments to athletes. The template was also created to allow each school to format it according to its varying needs, such as whether athletes would sign over their NIL rights exclusively or non-exclusively to the university.
^{Sports Business Journal}

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