WSU, Oregon State, Pac-12 announce game times and partnership with The CW and Fox for 2024 season

It’s possible that all 13 of the conference’s home games will be broadcast on free, over-the-air-TV in the 2024 football season

Washington State, Oregon State and the Pac-12 conference have taken a lot of punches over the past couple of years. But this week, they were able to make an exciting announcement that allows their games to be more available than ever before.

On Tuesday, WSU and OSU officially announced their long-rumored media deal with The CW and Fox Sports. The deal means that all 13 home games from both schools will be broadcast on major, nationally available TV Networks. 11 of the games (six from OSU and five from WSU) will be broadcast on The CW, an additional home game from each program (Texas Tech at Washington State and Oregon at Oregon State) will be broadcast on either Fox or FS1. The games broadcast on The CW will be produced by Pac-12 Enterprises, the conference’s production arm that was formerly known as the Pac-12 Networks.

The move is seen by many as a best case scenario for the two schools. After nearly a decade of playing most of their football games on either the Pac-12 Network, an outlet with well-publicized distribution issues, or late at night on a major cable outlet (or both late at night and on the Pac-12 Network) the Cougars and Beavers will now play the majority of their home games on The CW, a network that is available over-the-air in major markets and reaches every TV in the country and have their share of favorable kickoff times. Their other two games have the possibility of being played on Fox, but could also end up on FS1. This means that the two programs will be available to more college football fans then ever before.

WSU’s road games against Mountain West teams will fall under that media deal, meaning those games will air on either CBS, CBS Sports Network, Fox, FS1 or will stream on the Mountain West website.

One scheduling oddity for WSU is a Friday night game against San Jose State on September 20. That one will kickoff at 7 p.m. on The CW. Outside of that, all of WSU’s home games will be played on Saturdays and have the opportunity to kickoff in the afternoon. Their season opener against Portland State on August 31 will start at noon and their season finale against Wyoming will kickoff at 3:30 p.m. in Pullman. Their games on October 19 against Hawaii and November 9 against Utah State will either kickoff at 12:30 p.m. or 7 p.m. on The CW, with Oregon State’s games filling the other timeslot. WSU’s matchup with Texas Tech on September 7 does not have a kickoff time yet. Fox will announce that, along with an FS1 or Fox network assignment, in the coming weeks.

Financial details have not been released, but John Canzano speculates it will fall into the range of $5 million to $9 million per school. In the end, however, this deal isn’t about the money, it’s about the accessibility. The teams likely could have signed a deal with ESPN or an exclusive deal with Fox, but it likely would have meant that their games would have been buried on a streaming service or played at 8 p.m. PT to fill a timeslot. This deal allows them to play on national TV in plenty of early timeslots. They also get the benefit of other sports lead-ins on the CW, with most of the noon or 12:30 kickoffs following an ACC matchup and a lot of the later kickoffs following either LIV Golf or NASCAR Xfinity Series races. WSU’s Friday night game will air after the network’s first ever NASCAR broadcast and is sure to get a lot of promotion behind it.

Of course, there are a lot of question marks with this deal. The biggest one for me centers on streaming. While it’s nice to be available in every home with cable, cord-cutters are still a growing part of society. While The CW does have a free app on smartphones and smart TVs, the Pac-12’s release does not mention anything about streaming. It’s also notable that the ACC games that air on The CW are not streamed on their app. It’s hard to believe that these games won’t have a streaming home… The question is where will they end up?

The other question is how many casual fans will find these games on The CW. While the network is working to build their sports portfolio by adding live ACC football, NASCAR, LIV Golf, WWE as well as NFL studio and highlight shows, they’re still not a national name in that market. The Pac-12 brags that this deal brings them “true national exposure” and that “The CW reaches 100% of U.S. households,” there is a major difference between being available to access and having access while also knowing where to find it.

The Seattle market, obviously a major piece in the puzzle for WSU, is the perfect example of this. After nearly 20 years as a CW/UPN affiliate, KSTW 11 dropped The CW on September 1, choosing to become independent after CBS bought the station. Instead, The CW jumped to KUNS 51, a station that was formerly exclusively a Spanish language Univision affiliate and is listed as channel 112 for Xfinity customers.

Of course, there are plenty of other questions about this media deal and WSU’s future as a hole, but it’s nice to finally have a answer. Overall this deal is likely a best case scenario for WSU and OSU and the best option they have on the table. It keeps both teams in the national consciousness for a little longer, keeping them front of mind in case the winds of realignment come blowing once again.

Cougar Football Featured Nationally Across the CW Network & FOX Sports in 2024
Cougar Football Featured Nationally Across the CW Network & FOX Sports in 2024
For the upcoming 2024 season, home Pac-12 football games will be televised for national audiences across The CW Network and FOX Sports, the conference and both networks announced today.

Canzano: Pac-12 releases TV details
All 13 games are carried by linear providers and are available in every TV household. That provides maximum exposure for the two schools.

Analysis: In new TV deal, Washington State, OSU smartly prioritized exposure over revenue
“It’s the best-case scenario,” said a source familiar with the negotiations. “It allows them to stay relevant.”

Veteran Sports Broadcasting Producer Michael Molinari selected to lead Pac-12 Enterprises
In addition to producing live events and content for Pac-12 member universities, Pac-12 Enterprises now offers award-winning production services to the broader world of sports and entertainment with its state-of-the-art facility.