Breaking down the Pac-12, CBS media deal: Big Ten cross-promotion, the hoops factor, MW impact and more

After nine months of negotiations, the rebuilt Pac-12 finally has its media rights agreement in place — well, a portion of its media rights agreement — and the Hotline has plenty of thoughts on the development.

CBS will be the “primary long-term media partner,” the conference announced early Monday, with a five-year deal that starts next summer and runs through 2031.

All eight schools that will compete in the Pac-12 beginning July 1, 2026 agreed to the deal.

Additional distributors — and there could be several — will be revealed “at a later date” as the conference takes a phased approach to disclosing its network partners.

The Pac-12 continues to assess its membership options and must add at least one school for all sports by next summer. The deal with CBS is “inclusive of one additional football-playing, all-sports member of the new Pac-12.”

With those details covered, let’s plunge into the weeds with a seven-part reaction.

Here we go …

— The length of the deal was revealed, but not the valuation. Should the radio silence on the dollar amount be taken as a sign the Pac-12 didn’t get the price it wanted? That’s tricky.

In many instances, conferences don’t formally announce the valuation — they leak that information. But the Pac-12’s unconventional approach to its media package makes leaking the dollars a risky proposition.

If the number is revealed, it could undermine the active negotiations with other networks for the remaining portion of the football and basketball inventory.

Another complication: The number of broadcasts is not known.

The agreement calls for CBS to show the Pac-12 football championship game, the men’s basketball tournament title game and three regular-season games for each sport.

But a package of football and basketball games also will air on CBS Sports Network, with the details “to be announced at a later date,” according to the conference.

That suggests the results of ongoing negotiations with other networks could impact the amount of games on CBS Sports. If so, the value of the deal could be somewhat fluid.

Then again, the Pac-12 was never going to generate shock and awe with its media rights agreement. The total value of the deal, when all facets are complete, is expected to land in the $7 million-to-$10 million range (per school per year).

The valuation should be roughly comparable to the American Athletic Conference’s media deal with ESPN and double what the Mountain West is currently receiving from Fox and CBS.

— Fans who expected the Pac-12 to have the media rights and membership issues neatly wrapped and revealed by the end of the 2024-25 fiscal year might consider resetting expectations.

The announcement Monday morning doesn’t preclude the conference from disclosing the other media partners and its expansion decision by June 30. But the to-do list remains lengthy, and time is running short.

Our hunch: Both matters will seep into July.

That might be suboptimal for any schools — hello, Texas State — that have laddered penalty structures hooked to the fiscal year. (The Bobcats would owe the Sun Belt more in exit fees if they announce their departure after June 30, according to ESPN.)

But as a Pac-12 source indicated, the conference is working on its own timeline.

— One component that has not been disclosed: When the Pac-12 football inventory will air on CBS and CBS Sports Network.

Will the conference schedule games on Thursday or Friday? Could it possibly air games on Sunday evenings after the conclusion of NFL coverage on CBS? Might the Pac-12 move games to Tuesday or Wednesday?

It’s worth noting that the deal represents a second foothold in college football for CBS, which shares the Big Ten’s media rights with Fox and NBC. Each week, CBS airs a Big Ten game in the 12:30 p.m. (Pacific) window.

That timing could create cross-promotional opportunities if the network shows Pac-12 games at 4 p.m., either on CBS itself or CBS Sports Network.

— Another missing piece: The role Pac-12 Enterprises will play in offering production assistance for media partners.

The unit produced Pac-12 football games for The CW last season and will do the same in 2025. (It also handled studio shows for both the Pac-12 and ACC.)

CBS has been in the college football production business for decades through its previous partnership with the SEC, so the network likely doesn’t need an assist.

But don’t be surprised if Pac-12 Enterprises, which is located in the Bay Area, plays a role in upcoming media agreements.

— For all the attention paid to football, which generates roughly 75 percent of the media dollars, the agreement with CBS is a major win for Pac-12 basketball.

The network is, along with Turner, the longtime home of the NCAA Tournament. Its basketball coverage is more influential within the college sports media ecosystem than its football coverage. (ESPN and Fox rule the football world.)

That serves the Pac-12’s purposes well. The conference could be more competitive nationally on the court than on the field with two recent Final Four participants, Gonzaga and San Diego State, carrying the banner.

There’s a case to be made, in fact, that Pac-12 basketball will be closer to power conference status than Pac-12 football.

The partnership with CBS should be an advantage in the media messaging game, especially as March approaches.

— The deal is notable, as well, for the interplay between neighboring conferences.

CBS is one of the Mountain West’s two media rights partners, along with Fox. That agreement ends next summer, when the CBS contract extension with the Pac-12 begins.

Does this mean CBS won’t bid on Mountain West rights? Could it partner with both leagues? Is Fox planning to bid on the entirety of the Mountain West’s inventory?

The answer will reveal itself in coming months, but our initial reaction: It’s not ideal for the Mountain West.

— One ancillary benefit of the CBS deal for longtime Pac-12 fans: Rick Neuheisel, a lead studio analyst for CBS — and one of the best in the business — will be discussing the rebuilt conference on a regular basis.

Neuheisel coached Washington, Colorado and UCLA, used to work for the Pac-12 Networks and is far better versed than most national analysts in the recent history of college football in the western third of the country.

*** Send suggestions, comments and tips (confidentiality guaranteed) to wilnerhotline@bayareanewsgroup.com or call 408-920-5716

*** Follow me on the social media platform X: @WilnerHotline