*** The Pac-12 Hotline newsletter is published each Monday-Wednesday-Friday during the college sports season (and twice-a-week in the summer). This edition, from Nov. 8, has been made available in archived form.

Succession Plan … Or not

This morning, the Hotline addressed the news of a key executive leaving the Pac-12 Networks.

It’s not an encouraging sign for a network struggling with distribution to lose the head of its distribution unit:

Alden Budill, on the job for all of three years, has decided to move on.

But there’s a second layer to the development:

In a response to the Hotline’s request for comment on Budill’s departure, Pac-12 Networks president Mark Shuken declined to address whether he plans to hire a replacement.

Maybe Shuken has every intention of plunging into a search. But he was given the chance to confirm as much with a direct question on the topic (through a spokesperson), and he declined.

Not even a general statement on the matter.

Which leads us to wonder if the networks will bother replacing Budill … whether they intend to leave her position (Head of Distribution) empty.

That might not be a bad business move if Shuken and commissioner Larry Scott are skeptical of the networks’ prospects for additional distribution before the Pac-12’s media rights are negotiated in 2024.

It would save an executive-level salary.

But if that’s indeed the plan, it would be a discouraging concession for the fans and schools, as well.

A sign that the leadership team is simply waiting … waiting … for 2024.

As always, we’ll pass along whatever information might come our way in the future. — Jon Wilner

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Hot off the Hotline

Busy week on the Hotline. Here’s a recap of the content, categoized by topic:

Pac-12 football: Oregon’s pursuit of conference perfection led off the latest power ratings … We examined the impact of LSU-Alabama on the Pac-12 in the bowl projections … The first CFP rankings generated a reaction on the Hotline (of course) … And the picks against the spread focused on big money on USC this week.

Legislation: California Assembly Bill 7, already approved by voters, would put the state on Daylight Saving Time all year, which could make the late kickoffs in November even later. (Same in Washington and Oregon, by the way.)

Pac-12 basketball: Our three-part season preview began with order-of-finish projections, which include an upside-surprise selection … We took a swing at all-conference teams and postseason award winners … And our crack research staff identified 16 non-conference games that will shape the Pac-12 narrative (with comments from Oregon coach Dana Altman).

Special report: attendance: Hotline contributor AJ Maestas of Navigate Research authored the centerpiece column on attendance declines across college football and offered suggestions for reversing the trend … Maestas also played the role of podcast host and chatted with Oregon State deputy athletic director Zack Lassiter on innovative ways to bring fans back to the stadiums … Finally, the numbers show the drop is much steeper in the Pac-12 than in other Power Five conferences.

Networks: Our news story (again) on Alden Budill leaving the Pac-12 Networks.

• ICYMI: Previous editions of the newsletter are available in archived form

Support the Hotline: Several Hotline articles will remain free each month (as will the newsletter), but for access to all content, you’ll need to subscribe. I’ve secured a rate of $1 per week for a full year or — introductory offer alert! — just 99 cents for the first month, with the option to cancel anytime. Click here. And thanks for your loyalty.

Huddle Up

(Note: The Hotline newsletter includes links to sites that could require a subscription once the number of free views has been reached.)

• We’ll start with tonight’s game: Washington coach Chris Petersen faces his former assistant, Jonathan Smith, in Corvallis.

• The players might have something to do with the outcome, especially UW’s defense.

• In Tempe, it’s strength-on-strength: Arizona’s secondary against USC’s receivers.

• USC defensive end Drake Jackson almost signed with ASU. Now, he’ll be hunting the Sun Devils quarterback Jayden Daniels.

• Stanford looks to build on its past success in Boulder.

• Assessing Washington State’s offense to date: Pretty darn efficient.

• No less an authority than former Cal linebacker Ron Rivera likes what he sees from current Cal linebacker Evan Weaver.

• Grant Gunnell or Khalil Tate? Khalil Tate or Grant Gunnell? The Arizona quarterback situation is all about the numbers.

• Oregon has some decisions to make on redshirts.

• Meanwhile, Oregon State might have some decisions to make on transfers — the incoming kind.

• Gary Barnett is being inducted into Colorado’s Hall of Fame, and he’s not happy with the football program’s performance in recent years. “It’s going to be eight or nine years now in the (Pac-12) where we’re going to finish 11th or 12th in eight of those years, and that is unacceptable, at any level.”

ADs Corner

Coverage of USC introducing Mike Bohn as athletic director …

• Bohn said all the right things Thursday in his first public appearance as AD. His energy was unmistakable: “He will stand on your sideline, he will infiltrate your tailgate parties, he will pose for your selfies, he will never surrender. Mike Bohn won’t just be the face of USC athletics, but the voice,” says the Daily News’ Mark Whicker.

• Bohn needs to tune out the noise on Urban Meyer, writes the L.A. Times’ Dylan Hernandez: “The demands for Meyer will grow louder in coming weeks. But USC doesn’t need Meyer. The thinking that the football team’s success would wipe clean the university’s shortcomings is why USC got into trouble in the first place.”

• It’s a delicate situation, notes Jim Alexander of the Press-Enterprise: “Meyer would be the easy hire, the one that appeases the masses. But it would also be a lazy hire, the college football equivalent of low-hanging fruit. And it would be a terribly risky one as well.”

• Clay Helton is on board with the hire, for what it’s worth.

• A voice from Boulder, where Bohn spent nearly a decade in charge of CU athletics: He was a smart choice for the Trojans.

Looking Ahead

What’s coming on the Pac-12 Hotline:

• Saturday Night Five is scheduled for its regular slot, and we’ll have the Best of the Week column and my AP top-25 ballot on Sunday morning.

• The first AP top-25 basketball poll will be released Monday. My ballot will be published at that time.

• How much are the Pac-12 Networks worth? We spotted one estimate and added some of our own math.

The next newsletter is scheduled for Monday. Enjoy it? Please forward this email to friends (sign up here). If you don’t, or have other feedback, let me know: pac12hotline@bayareanewsgroup.com.

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*** Pac-12 Hotline is not endorsed or sponsored by the Pac-12 Conference, and the views expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the views of the Conference.