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Top 10 Most Read is released every Friday afternoon, allowing you to compare the most read stories over the past seven days to your own interest list. Feedback, as always, is welcome to Matt@D1ticker.com.
#10: Florida A&M Deputy AD Charles is headed to Clemson as an Assoc. AD. (link)
#9: The article nearly everyone in sports media was talking about Monday was from SBD/SBJ's Ourand, "Taking the Pulse of ESPN." Overall, an excellent history lesson & forward-looking perspective on decisions that led to a big of unease for the Worldwide Leader & how it should best go forwards. Of note: Former company executive & current Syracuse AD Wildhack was a proponent of the massive $1.4B/year NBA deal a couple of years back that's become the bellwether for what some consider to be an overextended financial commitment to a property. Prez Skipper's mantra: "You have to build a deeper moat." Ourand includes a super useful chart of all of ESPN's rights deals, seems like the NFL & MLB packages, both up in 2021, could provide an understanding of where the broadcast giant is going before the Big Ten, Pac-12, Big 12 & CFP rights come back up for bid. Technology & an OTT play get plenty of coverage, as well. Lots, lots more. (link)
#8: The San Jose Mercury News' Wilner continues his thorough coverage of the Pac-12, inks a deep piece on the financial situation of each league athletic department. An interesting note to start from an unnamed CFO from within the conference, "An athletic department is an investment in exposure, and it comes at a cost." Wilner runs down the expected result of FY17 budgets, plus some other short commentary to produce a "Health Rating." Calls Cal "bed-ridden," likes the muscle of UCLA's profile, notes long-term risk for a major FB facility project for Utah, believes Arizona is developing nicely, notes the debt at Washington State. Lots more, another well done effort by Wilner. (link)
#7: Stanford once again finishes atop the Learfield Directors' Cup standings, one of three Pac-12 universities to occupy a spot in the Top 10 (USC - 4th, Oregon - 9th). The Big Tenalso had three in the Top 10 (Ohio State - 2nd, Michigan - 6th, Penn State - 8th). Floridatops for the SEC at 3rd, North Carolina for the ACC at 5th & Texas leads the Big 12 at 7th. (link); Here are the full standings. Other notables: BYU (31st), Denver (35th), Princeton (48th), New Mexico (61st), Kent State (63rd), Tulsa (68th), Georgetown (73rd) & Navy (75th). (link); USA Today's Berkowitz tweets details on a couple of ADs who will receive bonus pay thanks to their portfolio finishes: Oregon's Mullens ($25K), Kentucky's Barnhart ($80K), UCLA boss Guerrero ($15K), NC State AD Yow ($20K). (link)
#6: Can you name the four schools who had a student-athlete drafted in the NBA, NFL, MLB & WBNA Drafts? (link)
#5: WaPo's Jenkins: "Women’s college athletes don’t need another coddling parent. They need a coach." Jenkins digs in to recent data from the NCAA, which included, "76 percent of all Division I female athletes said they would like to go home to their moms and dads more often, and 64 percent said they communicate with their parents at least once a day, a number that rises to 73 percent among women’s basketball players," suggests legendary Tennessee WBB HC Summit "might get herself fired" in today's landscape. Interestingly, Jenkins makes be a clear connection between the increase in verbal abuse cases & the attitudes of "iGen" student-athletes. "The bottom line is that coaches have a truly delicate job ahead of them with iGens. They must find a way to establish themselves as firm allies of players who are more easily wounded than ever before yet demand they earn praise through genuine accomplishment." More. (link)
#4: Also on the branding/identity front, after switching from Nike to Under Armour, California unveils its new FB uniform design. Hype video & photos inside. (link)
#3: Florida Baseball's Twitter account took the opportunity to troll Stetson, presumably in connection to the tiff between the two during the season after a weather-impacted game. Puzzling move. (link)
#2: Eastern Michigan introduced Mississippi State Deputy AD/Chief Revenue Officer Wetherbee as the new AD in Ypsilanti during a 1p announcement Monday. Sounds like Wetherbee was one of four finalists for the opportunity to replace new Pittsburgh AD Lyke. Wetherbee, a Kalamazoo native, has overseen the external portfolio in Starkville, as well as relationships with Adidas & Gatorade & prior to his run with the Bulldogs, spent 10 years at East Carolina. (link)
#1: UNLV has unveiled its new mascot/spirit mark which the university says celebrates its rich history and tie to Las Vegas. Prez Jessup: "We have incredible momentum on campus, and this strong, modern mark highlights our evolution while also maintaining its tie to our rich tradition in athletics." Designed by Adrenalin, the new look modernizes Hey Reb! while incorporating the region's mountains and iconic Welcome to Las Vegas sign. It will be phased into digital communications, field markings, publications and later on uniforms and in athletics facilities. (link)
