Just now, scarab527 said:

I'm sure Kelce and Reid respect each other, and more importantly, they couldn't care less about the pearl clutching of internet Karens. 

A player screaming into the face of his head coach is not a sign of respect.   

7 minutes ago, scarab527 said:

Well yes, his job is quite literally to win football games, not protect his own hurt ego. Thankfully Andy Reid is not insecure. 

The Chiefs didn't lose though. They won, a large part of that owing to the fact Kelce got going in the second half and wasn't benched because he hurt his coach's feelings. And now the only conversation that matters is that the Chiefs are a dynasty and Andy Reid is one of the greatest coaches of all time. The only thing the Kelce outburst mattered for was the memes its spawned. Benching him would have turned this into a bigger deal than it even was. 

It is not about feelings.  It is about respect.  Sorry that you don't get that.

38 minutes ago, scarab527 said:

Well there's a reason Andy Reid has won 3 Super Bowls and everyone here hasn't lol. 

This is an emotional game played by emotional men. He'd be insane to bench one of the best players on the team because he hurt his feelings. KC doesn't come back in the second half if Reid was as mentally weak as some here. 

Victory.  At all cost.

If the Chiefs had lost you bet there would be a lot more scrutiny around Mr. Kelse's boorish actions toward Mr. Reid in that moment.

No. 23 Indiana State ranked for first time since 1979 : https://apnews.com/article/ap-top-25-indiana-state-3c6c79d5075264f525c5b78b4148db2c

Quote

Indiana State’s balanced scoring, free-flowing offense and its goggle-wearing big man have the program off to one of its best starts in years.

Now the Sycamores have something that hasn’t happened since Larry Bird played in Terre Haute: a spot in the AP Top 25.

Riding a nine-game winning streak, Indiana State debuted at No. 23 in The Associated Press men’s college basketball poll Monday, the Sycamores’ first ranking since reaching No. 1 in 1978-79.

“It’s a group that the community can really wrap their arms around and I think they have. That’s just great to see,” Indiana State coach Josh Schertz told reporters recently. “I know Terre Haute. They love basketball. I know there’s a great history and tradition, from Larry Bird to John Wooden to Clarence Walker.”

.....

Schertz took over the Indiana State program during the pandemic, inheriting a depleted roster with no chance to get players to visit campus. Schertz cobbled together a team that won 11 games his first season and the Sycamores improved to 23-13 last season.

Indiana State (22-3) has been on a roll in Schertz’s third season, winning all 11 home games while taking a two-game lead over Drake in the Missouri Valley Conference at 11-1.

The Sycamores have five players scoring in double figures, led by dynamic 5-foot-10 guard Isaiah Swope’s 17.7 points per game. Big man Robbie Avila has become a fan favorite with his goggles, averaging 16.4 points and 7.4 rebounds.

Indiana State is fifth nationally in scoring at 85.6 points per game, ninth in 3-point percentage (39%) and is No. 1 in adjusted field goal percentage, according to KenPom. The combination has the Sycamores eyeing their first NCAA Tournament berth since 2011.

“Our goal is we want to get to the NCAA Tournament and advance,” Schertz said. “You never want to put ceilings on yourself. You want to get to the tournament and win games and go as far as you can. You saw what happened last year with Florida Atlantic and San Diego State playing in the Final Four — there’s nothing outside of your reach.”

Go Trees.

1 minute ago, gonzoron said:

Reid is just another one of those Bro Coaches that are all the rage nowadays.

Here's what should have happened:

 

Guaranteed the likes of a Tom Landry, Mike Ditka, or maybe even Bill Belichick would not stood for Kelce's antics.

1 hour ago, Gipper said:

Fun game to watch, other than all of the cuts to Taylor Swift.  I know she's America's Sweetheart, etc., but still...

Meh, I more enjoyed the pictures of Blake Lively, who was usually right next to Ms. Swift. 

The Bears may keep Justin Fields — and draft Caleb Williams: https://deadspin.com/chicago-bears-nfl-justin-fields-caleb-williams-usc-1851247152

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The Chicago Bears offseason centers around one major question: What to do at quarterback? Should the team draft for need, or trade Justin Fields and select Caleb Williams?

According to ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter, the Bears are considering having both signal-callers on the roster:

“The Bears have talked about the idea, as unlikely as it seems, of carrying both quarterbacks,” Schefter said during ESPN’s Super Bowl pregame coverage. “Taking the guy at 1, and keeping Fields. Now, will they get to that? It’s hard to imagine that, but that is a conversation that’s come up within the organization.”

NFL Network’s Ian Rappoport also reported that the Bears have asked for “a historical haul” to move up to No. 1 overall.

 

“It would take a historic haul, something crazy for the Bears to move off of the No. 1 overall selection,” Rapoport said. “That bit of knowledge contains wide-ranging ramifications. First of all, that is an indication, absent some sort of wild draft compensation for someone trying to move up for Caleb Williams, that is a sign they will likely take a quarterback No. 1.”

Is this just part of the Bears’ plan to up their asking price on both Fields and the No. 1 pick? Most likely, but it’s still a smart move if they decide to go through with it. Fields is coming off career highs in passing yards, completion percentage, and success rate. He is still not a great passer, but he is also continuing to improve every year. Even taking Williams No. 1 overall at least gives Chicago a chance to make a complete evaluation on Fields’ future before moving on.

Sitting rookie quarterbacks is also proving to be a pretty smart strategy at the moment. Both quarterbacks starting in Super Bowl LVIII – Patrick Mahomes and Brock Purdy – began their rookie season on the sideline learning under a veteran. The same goes for this year’s MVP Lamar Jackson, or breakout first-year starter Jordan Love.

It’s not perfect in every case. Josh Allen played through some ugly years before his third-year breakout and started every game. Offensive Rookie of the Year C.J. Stroud immediately tore up the NFL without needing to sit. It’s not necessary for everyone. It’s just smart practice to allow a player out of college get comfortable with the scheme and pro-level timing before getting thrown to the wolves.

Plus, having as many swings at the quarterback position is smart. The Arizona Cardinals weren’t happy with Josh Rosen, so they took Kyler Murray No. 1 the very next year. The New England Patriots have drafted a quarterback in six of the last 10 drafts, with five of them starting games in their NFL careers.

Having an elite quarterback is every team’s dream. Considering the Bears’ only Hall of Fame quarterback retired in 1950, they need every chance they can get to find their guy.

An interesting take.

14 minutes ago, Bash Riprock said:

Nobody has mentioned the Kelce sideline behavior, first throwing his helmet and then screaming and bumping his head coach.  Reid played his cards properly at postgame interviews with his comments, but wondering if he truly feels that way?  I had never seen that before out of a professional player during a championship game.  

Thoughts?

If Reid had a real spine he should have benched Kelce for at least the remainder of the 1st half, maybe longer.  There is no excuse for that kind of tantrum by a grown man and professional athlete.

15 minutes ago, Bash Riprock said:

How do you prove that?  So larger always equals better??  

 

No, it does not.  And neither does smaller always equals better. 

45 minutes ago, Basementbias said:

 Illinois & especially Chicago are trying to reduce the population in the state.

I would like to know what Chicago or Illinois state department or agency is in charge of this "program".   You make it sound like it is something that has come about through legislation, so such information should be publicly available. 

11 minutes ago, Basementbias said:

A local real estate company that owns the housing accepted payment from Chicago to re-home them.

Hmm, thank you.  Sounds like immigrants from "south of the border" that were originally transported to Chicago, then Chicago found a way to offload them out of the state.

Just in time for the Super Bowl:  https://www.avclub.com/best-football-movies-ranked-1850072902

I really can't argue with any of the movies on this list.

53 minutes ago, BTF said:

Does it have to be computer generated? I think you put into the hands of humans. A committee from different areas of the state. If a computer is the determining factor, you'll no longer see good teams taking a knee and the end of the first half. 

I'm sure it it not just a computer, it will be "AI".

29 minutes ago, Basementbias said:

Maybe some, but there is merit to some of the fear. A police officer has mentioned about the happenings & how those move ins are quite fond of weapons & dislike of police or authority in general. One housing area was bad prior to their arrival & it didn't improve with the arrival. There have been many different ethnicities & races in Adams County prior with little to no issues.

Didn't know Decatur was such a hopping place.  

Quote

The city of Chicago has a lot of problems and some causing those problems were booted from Chicago to Adams County to put it politely. It's not out of hand, but it’s not ideal either.

So somehow the city of Chicago government was able to relocate these "troublemakers", for lack of a better term, to Decatur?  What was the mechanism for this?  Did money change hands between the Chicago and Decatur town governments?

50 minutes ago, Basementbias said:

There have been some change in the enrollment at Bellmont due to new move ins from the Chicago area. Many of the rural Bellmont families have not been pleased with this & fear safety concerns.

Sounds like racial animus to me.  Sad.

22 minutes ago, Coach_K said:

I have voted on this proposal and believe it will pass the IFCA, however this is a longer trek than most might realize.  The IFCA has to have a certain percentage of schools vote then of the schools who voted they must be 70% in the affirmative.  That will probably be done.

Then there are football committees who have to discuss the proposal to affirm the IFCA's stance.

Then there is the IHSAA commissioner over football (Robert Faulkens) who must affirm the IFCA's and committee's stance.

Last we get to the IHSAA commissioner (Paul Neidig) who must affirm all those below him.  

So there are many steps to this process.  It might take a little longer than one might expect.

https://www.indystar.com/story/sports/high-school/2024/02/09/ifca-to-survey-schools-on-seeding-ihsaa-football-state-tournament-indiana-high-school-playoffs/72529268007/

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Proponents of seeding the high school football tournament, take heart. There might be something in the works.

Just do not get too excited. Not yet.

Indiana Football Coaches Association executive director Bob Gaddis said the association is in the process of surveying its members on the possibility of bringing a proposal to the Indiana Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association, then the Indiana High School Athletic Association executive board at its meeting in late April.

The proposal, if it generates enough momentum at the IFCA state clinic March 7-9, would call for a two-year pilot program to seed only Class 6A. The proposal would likely seed the north from No. 1 through 16 and the south the same way.

Some background work has already been completed. Gaddis said the IFCA made IHSAA assistant commissioner Robert Faulkens, who oversees football, aware IFCA was surveying its membership. That was shared with IHSAA commissioner Paul Neidig, who said last week he expected a proposal from the IFCA on seeding the tournament.

Gaddis, who won two Class 4A state championships at Columbus East and compiled a 330-143 overall record as a coach before his retirement in 2020, is going on his 11^th year as the executive director for the IFCA and held other offices previously, including assistant director. He said this is “probably the fourth time” seeding has come to a vote within the IFCA.

“Anytime we make a proposal, we want to represent all of our members,” Gaddis said. “We had a group of coaches that formed a committee and asked us what would be the possibility of surveying a proposal about seeding.”

The idea started with the 6A coaches, but though the idea for the pilot program would involve only Class 6A, coaches from all 314 football-playing schools were surveyed. They were asked if they would favor further discussion on seeding the tournament and if they would support a two-year pilot program for seeding in Class 6A only.

 

Gaddis said the answer to the first question was favorable with slightly more than 70% of coaches responding positively to seeding.

“We probably have 12 to 15 schools that haven’t responded but it looks like we’re going to be right about 70% in favor of looking at seeding,” Gaddis said.

The response to the second question on the 6A pilot is slightly below 70%. However, Gaddis said the number is close enough the IFCA is going to have a discussion at its state clinic on the morning of March 8.

“We’re going to invite all the head coaches in attendance into a forum with our committee and we’ll have questions and answers and see where we go with it,” Gaddis said. “If the membership wants it, we’re going to make a proposal. If we don’t, we really can’t (make a proposal). We’re hoping to get a lot of coaches in there and have everybody speak their mind.”

Why just 6A? Gaddis said there are several reasons, including 6A coaches are strongly in favor of seeding as a group. Those schools are largely from Central Indiana (20 of the 32 schools in the current classification), which would limit the travel that could make seeding problematic in other classes. Maybe most important: A scaled-down, simple plan has the best chance of gaining traction.

“It’s tough to do,” Gaddis said of gaining consensus for seeding. “My personal opinion is we’ve tried with all classes before. If we can hone in on one class and it’s something that fits us and we can work hand-in-hand with the IHSAA, maybe that works for us. Whether we hit the marks, I don’t know. Our tournament is in great shape. But if this is what our membership wants and we have the numbers to support it, let’s take a look and see if we can make it better.”

The timing of the proposal is important as the IHSAA will reclassify football and other team sports this spring for the next two-year cycle. It would be another two years before the IFCA would be able to make another proposal on seeding. The last time the IFCA proposed seeding six years ago, it called for the top two teams in each sectional in Class A, 2A, 3A and 4A to be seeded by the Sagarin Ratings. The idea in Class 5A and 6A was for each four-team sectional to be combined into an eight-team regional (for example Sectional 5 and 6 together) with the top two teams seeded by Sagarin and rest determined by the traditional blind draw.

Gaddis said that proposal did not get enough traction to move forward. “It was just over 50%,” he said.

The current idea is closer to hitting the numbers to move forward. For the sake of conversation, here is what a 6A tournament seeded No. 1 through 16 in the north and south might have looked like this year (using the final Sagarin Ratings retroactively):

North

No. 1 Hamilton Southeastern vs. No. 16 Portage

No. 8 Carroll (Fort Wayne) vs. No. 9 Zionsville

No. 4 Crown Point vs. No. 13 Lake Central

No. 5 Penn vs. No. 12 Lafayette Jeff

No. 2 Westfield vs. No. 15 Fort Wayne Northrop

No. 7 Carmel vs. No. 10 Warsaw

No. 3 Fishers vs. No. 14 Elkhart

No. 6 Noblesville vs. No. 11 Homestead

South

No. 1 Ben Davis vs. No. 16 Tech

No. 8 Lawrence Central vs. No. 9 Avon

No. 4 Cathedral vs. No. 13 North Central

No. 5 Lawrence North vs. No. 12 Perry Meridian

No. 2 Brownsburg vs. No. 15 Jeffersonville

No. 7 Franklin Central vs. No. 10 Columbus North

No. 3 Center Grove vs. No. 14 Southport

No. 6 Warren Central vs. No. 11 Pike

Change is coming.

15 hours ago, Basementbias said:

That will be fought tooth and nail to prevent it. All 3 districts would have factions that would not support it. The services would not be better in certain areas. There is a reason why Adams Central is gaining enrollment and North Adams (Bellmont) is declining. There are many factions that do not get along in the three communities outside sports & extra curricula. Just add that variable in as well. Why would we want to become Jay County and the issues they have?

Please elaborate on the reason behind both increasing and declining government school corporation enrollments in Adams County.  And exactly what issues goes a one government school county like Jay County have?  One wonders if Blackford County and Warren County have the same issues?

If Chicago can’t exploit Washington’s obvious desire for Caleb Williams, somebody needs to be fired: https://deadspin.com/caleb-williams-josh-fields-nfl-chicago-bears-commanders-1851235854

Quote

There are enough patsies in need of a quarterback that Chicago Bears GM Ryan Poles would be foolish to not take the many godfather offers that will come his way before the NFL Draft on April 25. Chief among them are the Washington Commanders, who have a new owner, new GM and new coach desperately trying to reset the culture. With the hire of Kliff Kiingsbury as the offensive coordinator, Washington might as well write “Mark” on its forehead.

A year ago, the Bears fleeced the Carolina Panthers for a No. 1 receiver, this year’s No. 1 pick and more because David Tepper has the patience of a billionaire. It was the kind of move that can expedite the trajectory of a franchise, and they can do it again. It’d be one thing if Justin Fields was unable to take advantage of the assets Pole provided him, but D.J. Moore surpassed 1,300 yards and endorsed his QB in the process.

All Chicago has to do is convince Washington that other suitors for Williams are eager and willing to part with real draft capital in order to draft the best quarterback prospect since Andrew Luck. New England and Atlanta could put together offers. Hell, what is Adam Schefter’s rate to leak nonexistent trades? It can’t be much more than a retweet and a Chipotle gift card.

The Patriots haven’t replaced Bill Belichick as GM, and that always makes for good entertainment and potential misplays, especially for an ownership group intent on proving itself post-Hoodie. Although the Pats don’t have a skill player the caliber of Moore to push Fields’ supporting cast to league-best status, they have their own first- through fifth-round picks this year and the next.

The Atlanta Falcons have Drake London and Kyle Pitts, and hold the rights to their most valuable picks this year and the next. Just gin up some interest, make rookie Commanders GM Adam Peters sweat from the pressure of rookie owner Josh Harris, and wait out the best offer. The Commanders have Terry McLaurin, Jahan Dotson and Antonio Gibson, and the rights to their best picks in 2024 and ’25.

The Bears went through this last year, so Poles should be familiar with how it works. Chicago doesn’t even have to take on veteran salaries if they don’t want to. Trading either Fields or the pick for Williams should net a nice haul, but the return for the No. 1 pick is probably better than a known, and likely undervalued, quantity.

Fields is on his rookie deal for another year, and even if he elevates his play to All-Pro status in 2024, his fifth-year option is an estimated $23 million, which is far below what other quarterbacks — franchise or Danny Dimes — are getting paid. Grab a bunch of picks and draft cheap talent to avoid future cap pratfalls.

Chicago is in a win-now-or-win-later situation. How Poles handles it will speak to the confidence he has in the job he’s done thus far. Punting on Fields to draft Williams guarantees him a few more years at the helm, but trading the pick is much riskier because the expectations carry over, and he still has to do the job of hitting on those picks. The reward for winning sooner, with a guy the city has already embraced, is likely an extension and even greater trust.

That being said, if you’re a GM and can’t see the obvious dynamism Fields possesses, or the leap he made when given a No. 1 receiver, maybe it’s you who the franchise should part with.

16 hours ago, oldtimeqb said:

Yes it's corporation enrollment, at least the original article was referencing that. 

Here are the first three schools from the DOE database:

Adams Central: 1,360

North Adams: 1,579

South Adams: 1,308 

I would love to be a fly on the wall at a board meeting where the folks of Adams County discuss the ONE school corporation that will exist after all 3 consolidate. 

Adams County would be a prime candidate for the consolidation that Mr. Hicks is talking about.   Much cost savings could be realized, and overall better services for the students.

Black-only swim times, Black-only lounges: The rise of race segregation on Canadian universities: 

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/canada/black-only-swim-times-black-only-lounges-the-rise-of-race-segregation-on-canadian-universities/ar-BB1hzS8z

Quote

Twice a week, the University of Waterloo athletic centre suspends its usual calendar of mid-morning swim lessons, and reserves its 25-yard pool for the exclusive use of a demographic that, in their words, does not have a good “relationship with water.”

“The aim is to get more Black Folx into a space where they haven’t always been welcomed,” reads the official description for the “Black Folx swim,” a 60-minute Black-only pool time. Users can swim lengths, practice diving or sign-up for a lesson. But they — and all the instructors — must be “Black folx.”

“This time is dedicated to building a better relationship with water for the Black community,” reads a bolded statement on the Black Folx Swim webpage.

The University of Waterloo is home to more than 30,000 international students. Many Canadian newcomers lack basic swimming skills and are at an outsized risk of drowning. This is why many lifesaving societies specifically target new Canadians for swim lessons.

But aside from a weekly trans-friendly swim and some scattered women’s only events, the Black Folx Swim is the university’s only demographic-specific swim time, and the only one targeting students of a particular ethnic heritage.

And Waterloo is not alone in this. While the idea of explicitly race-segregated spaces at Canadian universities would have been unthinkable only a few years ago, recent months have seen a wave of Black-only lounges, study spaces and events at Canadian post-secondary institutions.

The University of British Columbia recently cut the ribbon on a Black Student Space featuring showers, lockers and even a nap room.  To gain access, students must apply and affirm that they are one of the following: “Black African descent, African-American, African-Canadian, Afro-Caribbean, Afro-Latinx, and Afro-Indigenous.”

Toronto Metropolitan University, formerly Ryerson, opened a Black Student Lounge in 2022. The space is intended as a shelter from “the harms of institutional racism.” In multiple public statements, TMU has referred to itself as a hotbed of colonialist institutional oppression, and the lounge is intended as a place where students can “heal” and “recharge” from said oppression, and “promote Black flourishing.”

The University of Toronto maintains a distinctive office of Black Student Engagement that curates a series of Black-only frosh and orientation events. While there are university-sanctioned “engagement” programs for Latin American and Southeast Asian students, these are mostly limited to mentorship appointments and workshops.

And it’s not just U of T pursuing Black-only frosh events. As noted in a feature by VICE, as recently as 2015 Canada didn’t feature a single Black-only frosh. But after Ottawa universities debuted BLK Frosh that year, the practice soon became commonplace.

Canadian university campuses have always been home to student societies or clubs whose membership is determined via national or ethnic characteristics.

McGill University, for instance, maintains more than 40 on-campus “culture clubs” targeted at student demographics ranging from Tamil to Moroccans to “North American born Asians.”

But the newly-opened “Black spaces” are different in that their explicit purpose is to demarcate Black-only areas in the interest of providing “inclusive spaces.”

When Simon Fraser University announced plans to build a Black Student Centre, administrators said the project was a direct outgrowth of their adoption of the Scarborough Charter on Anti-Black Racism, a 2021 document signed by 46 Canadian universities.

The charter states that Blacks are underrepresented at Canadian universities due to a latticework of institutional anti-Black racism.

As such, it prescribes keeping close tabs on the ethnic characteristics of students and faculty at Canadian universities, and implementing a number of “deliberative processes” to ensure that a representative number of them are Black.

One of these processes is the construction of “affirming, accessible spaces … that foster Black belonging.”

At TMU, the Black Student Lounge was an outgrowth of a 2020 report known as the Anti-Black Racism Campus Climate Review.

Authors concluded that even after 10 years of concerted anti-racism efforts, the university was still awash in anti-black racism, which the report said was primarily manifest in “intuitive” ways such as “a sense of not belonging” and “lack of representation in the curriculum.”

Among its recommendations were a “dedicated Black student space on campus with the necessary resources allocated to it for Black students to feel safe.”

“Universities have historically been an unsafe place for Black students. The lounge is just one step towards dismantling this harmful reality,” Eboni Morgan, a Black student support facilitator, said upon the space’s launch .

1 hour ago, GoodKn19ht said:

Just for my personal clarification purposes, the original article was referencing corporation enrollment correct? I have seen this conversation shift to high schools and consolidation at that level, and it has become a little convoluted for me.  

Yes, it  was corporation enrollment, not just grades 9-12.

Not exactly a college football topic I know, but I thought this was interesting for those of us who enjoy watching live sports and what that entails regards the multitude of streaming services that are out there:  https://arstechnica.com/culture/2024/02/new-streaming-app-from-fox-disney-wbd-is-about-more-than-sports/

Quote

Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), and Fox plan to launch an app together this fall, they announced Tuesday. The unnamed app will unite the sports offerings of the three media conglomerates, including their reported 85 percent ownership of US sports rights. The app could simplify things for sports fans while signaling a bundled future for streaming services—which could ultimately prove good or bad for subscribers.

The new app will give subscribers access to ESPN+ and various linear channels that show live sports, including ABC, FOX, TNT, TBS, truTV, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNEWS, FS1, FS2, SECN, ACCN, and BTN. The companies' announcement promised access to "thousands of events" through the app, including from the NFL, NBA, WNBA, MLB, and NHL, as well as PGA, Wimbledon, UFC, and Formula 1 events, the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup, the FIFA World Cup, and college sports. An anonymous person "familiar with the matter" told Variety that the app won't make original content.

People will be able to bundle the sports app with Disney-owned streaming services Disney+ and Hulu, as well as with WBD's Max streaming app. The upcoming app will particularly target "those outside of the traditional pay TV bundle," the announcement said.

The companies announced that they “have reached an understanding on principal terms to form a new Joint Venture (JV) to build an innovative new platform to house a compelling streaming sports service.” Each company will own a third of the JV and license their content non-exclusively. The app's creation is still "subject to the negotiation of definitive agreements amongst the parties.”

The companies said they'd share the price and other details for the app "at a later date." An anonymous person "familiar with current discussions" claimed to Variety that the app will likely cost more than $20 -$40 per month but less than $75-$80. Paolo Pescatore, an analyst at the UK's PP Foresight, is expecting around $50 per month, "with promos and discounts," per The Hollywood Reporter.

As streaming got bigger, watching sports got harder

News of the app brings the same type of trepidation that typically comes with mega corporations embarking in business together like this. But the app could also address a pain point impacting many streaming subscribers, which is that live sports have become harder to follow. With streaming services increasingly acquiring rights to sporting events, keeping up with your favorite team can feel like a chase.

For example, in 2019, after a yearslong hiatus from watching Yankees games, I heard the team made it to the playoffs. I didn't have any TV-related subscriptions: I didn't have cable or an account with any streaming services at the time (password sharing was alive and well then). Yet, that night I was easily able to watch the Yankees beat the Astros. After work, I bought a cheap antenna from RadioShack and watched the game broadcast on my local Fox affiliate. With my Yankees interest rejuvenated, I used that same sub-$20 antenna in 2020 to access a couple of cable channels (primarily the Yankees-owned YES) to watch pretty much every game in that season that I wanted.

Jump to the 2023 season, and accessing the bulk of Yankees games meant subscribing to numerous streaming services: Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+, and NBCUniversal's Peacock. And my antenna, believe it or not, no longer got me access to any live Yankees games.

A unified sports app would help address such struggles, especially for people who watch a lot of sports. It also comes as streaming services are more aggressively seeking rights to sporting events (see: Netflix spending $5 billion on WWE Raw) and as media outlets like The Information report that sporting entities, like the NBA, are looking to increase the amount of revenue received from TV channels. A team effort like the one we're seeing from Fox, WBD, and Disney could help companies manage increasing licensing costs alongside declining revenue from traditional TV.

Live sporting events are one of the last things preventing people from cutting the cord. While people are rapidly moving from things like antennas and cable subscriptions, there's still interest in accessing live TV, as demonstrated by YouTube TV announcing this week that it has surpassed 8 million subscribers; it's the only cable TV service actually growing. The new WBD-Disney-Fox app could pave the way for evolving sports-viewing in an undoubtedly streaming future.

This doesn’t solve all the problems

There are many uncertainties around the newly announced sports app. As noted by the announcement, the app isn't finalized, and plans could change. But based on what we know so far, there are reasons to worry that there will still be confusion for streamers after the app launches.

For one, this doesn't signal the end of new streaming apps. Disney still plans to make a dedicated app for streaming ESPN, The Information reported this week. Variety reported that companies like Paramount Global and Comcast weren't contacted for this deal because WBD, Fox, and Disney "control approximately 85% of the US sports rights market" and thought that "bringing in more partners would make the structure unwieldy and make the price of a subscription too high." There have been no reports of this yet, but it's a possibility that companies left out of the deal could concoct their own subscription-based response.

Also unclear at this stage is the impact that heightened focus on bundling streaming services will have on customers. For example, the upcoming sports app bundles various media giants' offerings, and the app can be bundled with other apps owned by the upcoming app's owners. That could be convenient; it could also feel bloated and confusing.

As companies seek to bundle their services with other streaming services and subscriptions, like cell phone service, customers stand the risk of ending up back in a cable-like conundrum centered on complicated plans that make it hard to understand how much money you’re wasting on stuff you don’t actually watch, have confusing payment structures, and are hard to get out of.

It's a pivotal time as the shift to streaming continues relentlessly. Live sports is one of the last pieces of the puzzle for streaming services to figure out. Of course, there's a chance that Big Media will mess it up. But there's also still hope that streaming can ultimately make sports more accessible and simple. But if successful, the new WBD-Disney-Fox app could help finally push traditional TV over the edge, making my TV antenna more useless than it already is.

Personally I'm skeptical, but we'll have to wait and see.