ESPN reaches extension with the Rose Bowl at $80M per year

[Dan]

This includes the 4 times that the Rose Bowl will serve as a national semifinal in the new playoff format.

One important step: maintaining the Rose Bowl's traditional time slot at 5 p.m. ET (2 p.m. PT). The kickoff time fits in perfectly to New Year's Day plans (or New Year's Eve hangovers), and because no game can go against the Rose, people always tune in.

Adam Rittenberg

ESPN has reached a 12-year extension with the Pasadena Tournament of Roses, the Big Ten Conference and the Pac-12 Conference to continue the company’s long-standing relationship with the Rose Bowl Game, one of college football’s most popular events. The agreement, which begins in January 2015, will include rights to the annual Rose Bowl Game across ESPN’s platforms through 2026. Each year, the game will be played January 1 at 5 p.m. ET/2 p.m. PT (or on January 2 in years when January 1 is a Sunday) and will feature the champions from the Big Ten and Pac-12.

http://www.bigten.org/sports/m-footb...062812aaa.html

[Sure Shot]

The value, as reported by The Sports Business Journal, represents a 167 percent jump from the $30 million deal currently in place.

The revenue goes exclusively to the Big Ten and Pac-12 except in years when the Rose Bowl is played as a national championship semifinal game.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports...,6481570.story

People wondered how Mike Thomas could offer all that money to Shaka Smart. This is how.