Aug. 18, 2009 BY JEREMY COTHRAN
SEATTLE - On a barnstorming tour of Pac-10 Conference schools, new commissioner Larry Scott made a pit stop at the University of Washington on Tuesday afternoon to meet with athletic department officials and members of the local media. Scott took over for the retiring Tom Hansen, who stepped down from his post after leading the conference for 26 years. Scott brings with him a wealth of experience and demonstrated success, most notably as the Chief Executive Officer of the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour, where he signed the largest deal in the history of women's tennis. During a 20-minute conversation, Scott discussed some of the Pac-10's goals in the upcoming months. Perhaps foremost, Scott wants the Pac-10 to increase revenue streams and expand its television footprint nationally for football and men's basketball, as well as the rest of the Olympic Sports, which the new commissioner called one of the hallmarks of the conference. The current television deal for the Pac-10 runs through the 2011-12 season, so Scott said any further discussion of future endeavors would be tabled until the future. But during his short tenure, Scott has changed the bowl landscape for Pac-10 football. Recent newspaper reports have linked the conference with the Alamo Bowl, which comes with an increased payout for the participating teams. "The economic issues are hugely important these days," Scott said. "There's a lot of pressure on schools and athletic departments. And there is a lot of opportunity. College sports have been undervalued. That the (Southeastern Conference) and the Big Ten (Conference) have had an uplift is a major indication." Scott was speaking directly about the new television contracts for those two conferences. The Big Ten manufactured a $2.8 billion deal for their own TV network, which the SEC recently signed a $3 billion contract with ESPN and CBS. Given his background in negotiating television and marketing deals for the WTA, Scott recognized the untapped potential for one of the NCAA's most successful conferences to increase their national presence. "We want to develop a strategy for how to handle those discussions when they come up," Scott said. As far as the perceived "East Coast bias" that some feel exists with television networks, Scott said the Pac-10's location should be considered an asset. He trumpeted the close access to Hollywood, as well as ESPN's decision to build an office in Los Angeles, across the country from their Bristol, Conn., headquarters. "We'll be in line to position the conference in our own unique way," Scott said. Other topics on the table include the possibility of a championship game for football, but the issue is not a "slam dunk," as Scott noted. Doing so would require expansion within the conference, which Scott is open to having a "fresh dialogue" about when the appropriate time comes. Scott said the conference would not expand at the expense of the "academic integrity" of the conference. A former tennis player at Harvard University, Scott has experience with a school that has to balance their academic/athletic interests. These were important sticking points when Scott met with presidents of the Pac-10. "It's what differentiates the Pac-10 from the other conferences," Scott said. "We're best in breed with both." These are all conversations Scott has had extensively with UW athletic director Scott Woodward, who sat in on the meeting at Graves Hall. Woodward said the biggest area where he connects with Scott in terms of their philosophical agreements is their commitment to putting academics on par with athletics. "With everything said about money in college sports, the facts are that we are a very principled academic conference," Woodward said. "We have values and goals and Larry understands that." |
