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🎤 QUICK START ✍️

⏰ Deadline extended. ESPN and the CFP committee extended the Dec. 1 expansion deadline to Jan. 23, giving them nearly two more months to negotiate playoff format changes. The Athletic reports no agreement is expected, meaning the 12-team format stays for 2026 while the Big Ten and SEC continue fighting over automatic qualifiers versus at-large bids for a potential 16 or 24-team playoff in 2027.

🦓 Blame the broadcaster. The NFL admitted the Cowboys shouldn't have been flagged for roughing the kicker against Philadelphia, then blamed Fox for not showing the replay angle fast enough. Ryan Flournoy got a hand on the ball before hitting Braden Mann's plant leg, negating the penalty, but officials never saw Fox's enhanced replay until it was too late to overturn the call. Philadelphia converted the 15-yard gift into a touchdown.

🤨 Hard to believe. Mike Vrabel questioned Stephen A. Smith's claim that First Take is the number one morning show. "I find that hard to believe. It's not the SportsCenter that I grew up with," the Patriots coach said on WEEI after Smith called Drake Maye a liar for claiming he didn't know what show Cam Newton was on when criticizing New England.

🌊 Pac-12 regrets. Paul Finebaum believes USC regrets breaking up the Pac-12 after Saturday's 42-27 loss to Oregon. "Who are they anymore?" Finebaum asked on The Matt Barrie Show, arguing the Trojans aren't competing for championships and the Big Ten doesn't even accept them as equals.

🦆 Media blind spot. Joel Klatt says the media keeps overlooking Oregon despite the 10-1 Ducks beating Penn State, winning at Iowa, and surviving the sport's toughest November schedule. "Because of their location, there is a tendency to lose sight of the Ducks," Klatt said after Oregon's win over USC, echoing Kirk Herbstreit's September observation that nobody seemed to be talking about them.

🏈 Group of 5 defense. Scott Van Pelt pushed back on calls to eliminate the Group of 5 automatic bid, arguing "the big guys are going to get their ass kicked by the best, too." Van Pelt pointed to Tennessee's 42-17 first-round blowout loss to Ohio State last year as proof that SEC and Big Ten teams get boat-raced just like Boise State or Tulane would.

🚨 LEADING OFF 🚨

Elle Duncan's hire proves Netflix is serious about sports

Netflix hired its first full-time sports personality, and that tells you everything about where the streamer is headed, even if the company won't say it directly.

The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand reports that Elle Duncan is leaving ESPN after five years hosting the 6 p.m. SportsCenter to become the "face" of Netflix's sports coverage. Her contract reportedly allows appearances on other networks, though there's pessimism that she'll continue with ESPN, where she's anchored WNBA Finals coverage and hosted the women's basketball version of College GameDay. Netflix had also pursued Malika Andrews for a similar role before she signed a multiyear extension with ESPN in September.

Duncan's hire is the clearest signal yet that Netflix isn't just dabbling in live sports. You don't bring on a full-time sports host for Christmas Day NFL games and the occasional boxing match. You bring on a full-time sports host when you're building something permanent.

The move matters because Netflix has spent the past few years being deliberately confusing about its sports ambitions. CEO Greg Peters said earlier this year that a regular slate of NFL games "doesn't really fit our strategy." Chief content officer Bela Bajaria suggested the opposite, hinting at interest in Sunday afternoon packages if they become available in 2029. The company says one thing publicly while doing another behind the scenes.

Look at what Netflix has actually acquired. Christmas Day NFL games. MLB's Home Run Derby, Opening Day, and Wild Card round. Two FIFA Women's World Cups starting in 2027. The Jake Paul-Mike Tyson fight that drew massive numbers despite technical issues. The strategy has been choppy at best, grabbing whatever tentpole events become available without any obvious plan tying them together.

That's where Duncan comes in. She gives Netflix sports an identity beyond one-off spectacles. Networks have become increasingly reluctant to loan out their talent for Netflix events, and for good reason. ESPN isn't going to help a competitor build credibility by sending over its top personalities every time Netflix airs a game. Hiring Duncan solves that problem and signals Netflix is done borrowing.

The approach differs completely from what Amazon and Peacock have done. Amazon pays $1 billion annually for Thursday Night Football, a regular weekly package that made the streamer essential for NFL fans. Peacock acquired exclusive rights to Premier League matches and Big Ten games, building a recurring content calendar. Both went all-in on traditional sports packages.

Netflix keeps insisting it doesn't need that. The company has 300 million subscribers and leads all streamers in total usage. It doesn't need sports to drive signups the way Peacock or Paramount+ do. What Netflix wants is premium advertising inventory and time spent on the platform, and tentpole events provide both without the overhead of covering an entire season.

The risk is that competitors build viewing habits Netflix can't break. Paramount just made itself essential for UFC fans with a massive rights deal. Disney owns championship events across multiple leagues. Peacock has Premier League soccer running from August to May. These are recurring reasons to open the app, and recurring reasons create loyalty.

Netflix is betting its head start is enough. The platform has more content than any competitor and a subscriber base nobody else can match. But time spent matters, and every hour someone spends watching Thursday Night Football on Amazon is an hour they're not scrolling through Netflix.

Duncan's hire suggests Netflix sees the risk. The most likely scenario is the streamer continuing to stack tentpole events across multiple sports while avoiding the long-term commitment of regular-season packages. Boxing matches, tennis exhibitions, international soccer friendlies, all-star games, and championship events can be heavily promoted and aggressively monetized. Duncan becomes the connective tissue, giving Netflix sports a consistent face even when the programming itself is sporadic.

Whether that model works is the question worth asking. Netflix is betting people will tune in for the big moments without needing everything in between. Amazon and Peacock are betting the opposite, that regular programming builds habits that one-off events can't replicate. Both strategies require massive investment. Only one can be right about how audiences actually consume sports on streaming.

The real test comes in 2029, when the NFL's opt-out window opens and Sunday afternoon packages potentially hit the market. Netflix says it doesn't want them. History suggests Netflix says a lot of things before changing course. The company told everyone password sharing was fine before cracking down. It promised never to run ads before launching an ad-supported tier. It kept saying live sports didn't fit its strategy while quietly stacking rights deals.

Hiring Duncan is part of that infrastructure. She gives Netflix credibility it couldn't get by leasing talent from other networks. She provides continuity across events that might be months apart. And she signals to rights holders that Netflix has the capability to do this properly, even if the company claims it isn't interested.

Netflix wants more sports. It just wants them on its terms, structured around tentpole events rather than regular-season slogs. Duncan's hire proves the company isn't experimenting anymore. It's building something designed to last, even if nobody can quite figure out what that something looks like yet.

🎺 AROUND AA 🎺

Sports radio used to have a gatekeeper problem. You'd wait on hold for 30 minutes, get screened by a producer, and maybe get 90 seconds on air before a commercial break cut you off. Most listeners never bothered. The stat floated around every station: less than 2% of the audience would ever pick up the phone.

Social media changed that calculation completely.

Awful Announcing contributor Demetri Ravanos argues that digital platforms awakened the sports radio caller in everyone. Commenting on a Dan Orlovsky video or firing off a reply to a Barstool clip requires none of the effort that calling a radio show demanded — no hold time. No screening. No risk of getting shut down by a host with a devastating zinger while people you know are listening.

The irony is that commenting is actually more permanent and less anonymous than calling ever was. Your take stays posted as long as the video exists. Anyone can click your name and find your profile. But the barrier to entry is so much lower that engagement exploded. Pick any platform, check the comments under any sports video from Barstool or The Ringer, and the replies dwarf what any radio station in any market could generate on any topic.

Radio stations know this. Markets, big and small, have moved away from phone calls toward text messages and social media comments. The format Jim Rome defined as "have a take and don't suck" is adapting to a world where everyone has a take and platforms make it effortless to share it.

Click to read the full piece on how social media turned passive listeners into active participants.

👏 INDUSTRY INSIGHTS 🗣️

• Andrew Siciliano and Lindsay Czarniak will host Olympic coverage on USA Network when the Winter Olympics begin in February, despite USA Network being spun off into a separate company. Trenni Casey, Carolyn Manno, George Savaricas, and Siciliano will all return to host Olympic programming across USA Network and CNBC. Siciliano will also host Gold Zone, the whip-around show that debuted in Paris 2024.

• Fox One is outpacing ESPN Unlimited in subscriber growth three months after launch, according to Antenna data. Fox One reached 2.3 million subscribers by the end of October, while ESPN Unlimited captured 1.7 million. Fox One is $10 cheaper at $20 per month, available through Amazon Prime Channels, which generates about 60% of signups, and offers news and entertainment programming alongside sports.

• Keith McPherson announced his immediate exit from WFAN as the station's full-time night host, catching even Boomer Esiason and Gregg Giannotti by surprise. McPherson joined WFAN in November 2021, succeeding Steve Somers, citing "personal reasons and schedule conflicts with my family." He might still appear as a part-time host, but his full-time run is over after four years.

• Geoff Arnold won't return to the Orioles' broadcast booth after MASN chose not to renew his contract following the 2025 season. Arnold won the 2023 Maryland Sportscaster of the Year award and was recently named one of Front Office Sports' 26 play-by-play announcers to watch. He joined MASN in 2020 after five years calling Frederick Keys games.

• Sinclair made an unsolicited bid for E.W. Scripps at $7 per share, one week after building up a 9.9% stake in the local broadcast owner. The timing coincides with President Trump speaking out against lifting the 39% broadcast ownership cap, which would be required for the deal to receive federal approval. Scripps' Ion network has a sizeable sports portfolio including weekly WNBA doubleheaders, NWSL matches, and local rights for four NHL teams.

• Players Era Festival is in discussions with ESPN, Fox, Netflix, and TNT Sports for a multiyear media rights deal beginning next season, per Sports Business Journal. The NIL-backed tournament is expanding from 18 teams to 32 teams next year and recently secured a 15% equity stake from the Big 12. The tournament guaranteed each participating team $1 million in NIL payouts this season.

📣 NOTABLE QUOTABLES 🗣️

"I'm more annoyed about how good he's gotten and how quickly. I'm like, come on. Do you do everything well?" - Erin Andrews praising Tom Brady's improvement as a broadcaster in his second season with Fox, calling his year-to-year growth "night and day" after watching him in Week 4 of last season compared to now.

"So hold on. A guy's making his first start. A guy that you didn't really want to start. And that's all he gets? A 'great job?' He don't get no game ball?" - Shannon Sharpe criticizing Kevin Stefanski for not giving Shedeur Sanders a game ball after the rookie quarterback's first NFL start, a 24-10 win over the Raiders in which Stefanski only had one game ball to give out and chose Myles Garrett instead.

"It just doesn't take anything nowadays. It just takes hearing something somewhere." - Paul Finebaum torching the "pathetic state of sports reporting" after reports linked Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer to the Penn State opening despite no concrete evidence supporting the speculation.

"We're not answering anything that doesn't have to do with the game, the team, or the season." - Lane Kiffin repeatedly declined to answer questions about his future at Ole Miss during Monday's press conference, limiting discussion to the Egg Bowl against Mississippi State while speculation swirls about Florida and LSU interest.

"There's been some stuff that's been unfortunate." - Saints coach Kellen Moore defending the team's decision to bring in Justin Tucker for a tryout after the kicker completed his 10-week suspension for violating the NFL's personal conduct policy, minimizing the sexual misconduct allegations that led to Tucker's release from the Ravens.

️‍🔥 THE CLOSER 🔥

Jordon Hudson's defamation case won't work

Jordon Hudson revealed Monday why she's suing Pablo Torre, and if this is the best she's got, Torre shouldn't lose any sleep.

Hudson posted screenshots of text messages with UNC Athletics Chief of Personnel Emily Muse, showing that the university's system initially guessed her birth year as 2000, but Muse corrected it to 2001 after Hudson confirmed the correct date. Hudson claims this proves Torre defamed her by reporting the discrepancy as evidence that she was trying to obscure her true age.

"One of MANY inaccurate and materially defamatory reports about me by Pablo Torre," Hudson wrote. "I did not fill out any UNC internal documents or forms pertaining to the family directory."

The problem with Hudson's case is that Torre likely obtained a copy of the UNC directory when her age was incorrectly displayed. He reported what the document said. That's not defamation. That's journalism. Hudson would need to prove Torre acted with actual malice in his reporting to succeed in court, which requires showing he knew the information was false or had serious doubts about its accuracy before publishing it.

Torre reporting what an official university document said, even if that document contained an error Hudson didn't create herself, doesn't come close to meeting that threshold. The clerical error explains the discrepancy without implicating Torre in any wrongdoing.

Hudson's post implies this is one of "many" instances in which Torre published inaccurate information about her, suggesting she may have additional examples to support her case. But if a clerical error in a university directory is what she's leading with, the rest of her complaint probably isn't much stronger.

David Samson certainly isn't worried. Torre's Meadowlark Media colleague welcomed the lawsuit on Monday's Nothing Personal, telling Hudson to "bring it" and joking about which "law firm of Dewey Cheatham and Howe Inc." would represent her. Samson said he spoke to Torre about the threat, which Torre "literally laughed off."

Torre has dedicated multiple episodes of Pablo Torre Finds Out to examining Hudson's relationship with Bill Belichick and her alleged influence within the North Carolina program. He obtained footage from Belichick's Underdog Sports show in which Hudson exerted unusual editorial control despite not being a producer, criticizing everything from graphics to how Belichick and Matt Patricia should explain football concepts.

Hudson's influence over Belichick has been a storyline throughout UNC's 4-7 season. She's pushed back publicly, posting a picture of her all-access badge while wearing a necklace reading "banned" in response to Torre reporting her facility access had been restricted. Last week, she claimed credit for Pablo Torre Finds Out being named one of Apple's best podcasts of 2025.

Torre responded to Hudson's lawsuit announcement by joking that she was declining his invitation to appear on the podcast. The exchange suggests neither side is taking the legal threat particularly seriously, which is probably the right approach, given that defamation cases against journalists face extremely high bars.

Public figures suing journalists for defamation rarely works unless the reporter fabricated information or published something they knew was false. Reporting what an official document says, even if that document contains an error, doesn't qualify. Hudson would need to prove Torre knew the birth year was wrong before he reported it, which seems unlikely given the information came from UNC's own system.

If Hudson follows through with the lawsuit, it will generate more publicity for Torre's podcast and keep her name in the news cycle she claims to want out of. Samson already promised that "14 other episodes of Pablo Torre Finds Out that are even more exciting" are coming.

The smarter play would be to ignore Torre and let the story die naturally. Instead, Hudson keeps engaging, which only guarantees Torre has more material to work with. Threatening a lawsuit based on a university clerical error just gives him another episode.