MT, prior to the PAC-12 network, I saw roughly 3-4 Stanford games per season: our (used to be) regular OOC game against UConn, our OOC game against Tennessee, and a few NCAA games, depending on how high we were seeded and if we made it past the first two rounds. Unlike football, there are far more games to pick from for ESPN/ESPN2 scheduling, women's basketball has always taken a backseat to men's basketball, and the major networks don't usually play college basketball games out of season. Football games are on numerous major networks every weekend and there are far fewer games in total to schedule.
The teams you mention, UConn and Tennessee, are the exceptions when it comes to ESPN-type coverage, a result of their combined 20+ national championships, ESPN's Connecticut home base, and the SEC's deep roots with ESPN. Prior to the Staley championship-level teams of the past 2-3 seasons, I can't remember U (other) SC having many (or any?) nationally televised games. I can think of a few UND games (mostly from when they were still in the Big East and had two showdowns per season with UConn), and a few Baylor games that have rounded out what I tend to see nationally televised.
So I guess I just never had the expectation many football fans had that we should see our women's team on ESPN every weekend. It'd be lovely, but it didn't happen and it won't be anytime soon. So in that universe, if I can get every single game on PAC-12 network, I'll gladly take it. My basketball fandom (men's and women's) has grown exponentially since the PAC-12 gave me access to approximately 95% of Stanford's basketball games.
And I should add re: online, I use Sling, which is awesome. $25 per month, another $5 to add sports package that includes ALL the PAC-12 networks (so Mountain, Washington, Oregon, Bay Area, Arizona, SoCal, etc.), and another $5 per month to add DVR capabilities. For $35 per month I can stream and record all the Stanford sports I can watch from September when football starts to April when basketball ends. Monthly charge with no cancellation or sign-up fee, so I switch it off during the summer. For me, it's been the rare experience in life of getting exactly what I want, how I want it, for a very low price. So I guess my assessment of Scott's negotiating skills are skewed as a result.
The teams you mention, UConn and Tennessee, are the exceptions when it comes to ESPN-type coverage, a result of their combined 20+ national championships, ESPN's Connecticut home base, and the SEC's deep roots with ESPN. Prior to the Staley championship-level teams of the past 2-3 seasons, I can't remember U (other) SC having many (or any?) nationally televised games. I can think of a few UND games (mostly from when they were still in the Big East and had two showdowns per season with UConn), and a few Baylor games that have rounded out what I tend to see nationally televised.
So I guess I just never had the expectation many football fans had that we should see our women's team on ESPN every weekend. It'd be lovely, but it didn't happen and it won't be anytime soon. So in that universe, if I can get every single game on PAC-12 network, I'll gladly take it. My basketball fandom (men's and women's) has grown exponentially since the PAC-12 gave me access to approximately 95% of Stanford's basketball games.
And I should add re: online, I use Sling, which is awesome. $25 per month, another $5 to add sports package that includes ALL the PAC-12 networks (so Mountain, Washington, Oregon, Bay Area, Arizona, SoCal, etc.), and another $5 per month to add DVR capabilities. For $35 per month I can stream and record all the Stanford sports I can watch from September when football starts to April when basketball ends. Monthly charge with no cancellation or sign-up fee, so I switch it off during the summer. For me, it's been the rare experience in life of getting exactly what I want, how I want it, for a very low price. So I guess my assessment of Scott's negotiating skills are skewed as a result.