The Morning Stake | 2023.05.22

I was out of town at a conference in San Antonio from Wednesday through Friday and then Yoyo had basketball Saturday and Sunday. I’m catching up as much as the next person.

Texas Tech will face West Virginia in the Big 12 Championship on Wednesday night, first pitch is slated for 7:30 p.m. but that’s a suggestion given that this is a tournament. All games will be broadcast on ESPN+ or ESPNU (PDF) and since this is a double-elimination tournament detailing who and when Texas Tech plays is easier for you to just look at rather than me explain. Texas Tech would run-rule Kansas for the final regular season game, 15-1, after starting the series with a loss on Thursday night, then winning in walk-off fashion with a Gavin Kash bomb on Friday night. I’m embedding that below because that’s the most fun.

On Friday, Eemeli Yalaho announced that he would attend Texas Tech bringing the team to 11 players.

Yalaho is a big-bodied forward who an shoot from deep. He’s got nice handles for a big man and nice bounce as well. Yalaho is currently playing at Western Reserve Academy in Hudson, Ohio. Yalaho was offered by Nebraska, Colorado State, George Washington, Georgetown, Mississippi State, North Texas (makes sense), and Providence, along with a handful of smaller programs. Yalaho is originally from Finland.

There was also an article recently where head coach Grant McCasland mentioned Kerwin Walton by name, which implies he will be back. I don’t expect Justin Jackson or Corey Williams, Jr. to arrive and/or return. I’ll drop the eligibility chart tomorrow.

ESPN’s Pete Thamel reports on the mess that the Big Ten is in regarding their television contracts:

Lastly, Petitti prioritized the official completion of the massive television contract worth more than $7 billion negotiated by his predecessor, Kevin Warren. This issue may have seemed like a mere formality, but complications to the much-celebrated deal arose soon after he accepted the job.

Nearly three months before the season kicks off and those TV deals begin, the Big Ten does not have completed longform contracts, which include the fine print details. Instead, Petitti is engaged in significant “horse trading,” according to multiple sources, to get the NBC primetime deal finished and figure out what the network calls “outstanding issues” in order to uphold as much value as possible.

“These deals aren’t done, and they aren’t what they were represented to be from the standpoint of the NBC deal and the availability of all members to participate in November games in primetime,” said an industry source.

This doesn’t paint former commissioner Kevin Warren in the best light, essentially coming to a framework, but not finalizing details and athletic directors and coaches upset at the times. It also appears the coaches and administrators knew the deal, but don’t like the deal now.

Some miscellaneous notes. Texas Tech track is set for the men’s and women’s regional starting on Wednesday in Sacramento, California, the men have 31 entries and the women have 24 . . . Texas Tech women’s golf missed making the cut in the NCAA Championships, finishing the week in 21st overall.

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