Sports

Why USC sold Coliseum field space to DirecTV: It's 'an adapt-or-die scenario'

Published

1 year ago

September 5, 2024

Why USC sold Coliseum field space to DirecTV: It's 'an adapt-or-die scenario'

When USC fans get their first, long-awaited glimpse inside the L.A. Memorial Coliseum on Saturday night, they’ll be greeted by an unfamiliar sight at the back of both of the century-old stadium’s end zones.

An on-field sponsor ad, painted in black over the field’s white apron, urging them to “STREAM TROJAN FOOTBALL” on DirecTV.

That message might not have landed so well last weekend, after Disney pulled access to DirecTV amid a contract dispute, leaving more than 10 million in Southern California unable to stream USC’s season-opening win over Louisiana State on ESPN. But by Saturday, DirecTV will be front and center for all to see in the Coliseum end zone — assuming, of course, you have Big Ten Network.

USC will be among the first in college football to take advantage of the NCAA’s new rules allowing schools to sell on-field sponsorship ads as new means for revenue. Even fewer have sold on-field ad space to a second sponsor like USC, which will display the logo of crypto investment platform, iTrustCapital, along one sideline boundary of the Coliseum’s end zone.

But as athletic departments across the nation brace for revenue sharing and other costly changes to the landscape of college athletics, most stakeholders agree on-field corporate sponsors are just the beginning of college football’s march toward commercialization.

“There’s a lot of pressure to maximize their commercial revenue in a way that hasn’t really existed before,” said Christy Hedgpeth, president of PlayFly Sports Properties, which holds the multimedia rights to USC athletics and many other top college sports programs. “They’re being forced to consider things they might not have otherwise.”

The question, as schools seek out new sponsors and fresh creative revenue streams, is where that line should be drawn.

At USC, that conversation began long before the NCAA changed its rules in June. In 2018, the university struck a 16-year, $69-million deal with United Airlines that would have renamed the stadium the “United Airlines Coliseum”. But that deal came under intense scrutiny, when Janice Hahn, the president of the Coliseum Commission, spoke out fervently against it, suggesting that it “insults the memories of [World War I veterans] the Coliseum was intended to honor.”

The backlash nearly sunk the deal, which USC desperately needed to fund the stadium’s costly renovations. Ultimately, though, the two sides decided on a new alternative. Instead of naming the stadium, USC struck a 10-year deal with United for the naming rights to the field, which has since been named “United Airlines Field at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum”.

“United Airlines Field” has since been displayed prominently on both 25-yard lines, the most valuable on-field real estate that athletic directors can sell. Selling more of that real estate, without overwhelming fans with ads, is a delicate balance that many in the space are still trying to strike.

At USC, with its rich history and deeply entrenched traditions, officials have tried to be especially cognizant of where that line could be. USC football coach Lincoln Riley said Thursday that he’d “battled with” that balance himself.

But even Riley agrees a more commercial approach is inevitable, considering where college football is headed. He called it “an adapt-or-die scenario.”

“We do have so much history and tradition here at USC, and that’s never going to go away,” Riley said. “But we also have to understand that the world around us is changing, and we can’t just sit there and only live on everything that’s happened in the past. It’s on us to find those balances, to honor that, but also not doing anything that would hamper our ability to climb, not just as a football program, but a whole athletic department.”

That approach aligned with DirecTV’s own intentions in the space. Josh Stern, DirecTV’s associate vice president of brand strategy and investments, said the goal was to be “organic” and “non-invasive”, so as to catch fans’ attention, but also not upset them.

There’s no “one-size approach” that fits all schools in determining that balance, Stern says. But he believes that fan tolerance is much higher than it once was.

Still, some schools remain reluctant amid concerns over that tolerance.

“I don’t think schools have carte blanche yet,” Hedgpeth, the president of PlayFly Sports Properties, said. “Old habits die hard, and traditions are really sacred. These college programs, they’re older than most pro teams. You have such fervent loyal, passionate, engaged fans. There’s definitely a segment of fan bases at some schools that have some pause.”

Those holdouts, however, are dwindling, just as athletic departments grow more desperate for new revenue streams. Hedgpeth, who worked with the NBA when it first welcomed corporate logos on jerseys, believes college football isn’t far off from allowing similar jersey patches.

According to valuations released in June from Elevate, a sports business consultancy firm, upper-tier college football programs could command as much as $6 million per year for stitching a corporate logo to their school’s jersey.

That’s no small chunk of change, considering the costs to come in college sports. But at what cost could that come to tradition?

Riley thinks it’s possible to balance both.

“You see it happening in professional sports all over the place, at some of the most storied, successful franchises and organizations,” Riley said. “They’ve been able to have all the history and tradition you want, but also be able to adapt to a new world.”

Sports

Deion Sanders mourns loss of Colorado quarterback Dominiq Ponder: ‘One of my favorites’

Published

6 hours ago

March 1, 2026

Press Room

Deion Sanders mourns loss of Colorado quarterback Dominiq Ponder: ‘One of my favorites’

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Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Dominiq Ponder died this weekend, the team’s head coach Deion Sanders confirmed on Sunday with a social media post.

“God please comfort the Ponder family, friends and loved ones,” Sanders wrote on social media. “Dom was one of my favorites! He was Loved, Respected & a Born Leader. Let’s pray for all that knew him & had the opportunity to be in his presence. Lord you’re receiving a good 1. Comfort us Lord Comfort us.”

Ponder was 23 years old.

Details of Ponder’s death are not yet known.

Colorado head coach Deion Sanders watches his team warm up before an NCAA college football game against TCU Saturday, Oct. 4, 2025, in Fort Worth, Texas. (Tony Gutierrez/AP Photo)

Ponder, a 6-foot-5, 200-pound signal caller, joined the Buffaloes and “Coach Prime’s” program in 2024 after spending time at Bethune-Cookman before making his way to Boulder.

Last season, Ponder played just two games for the Buffaloes while serving in his backup role. He recorded two rush attempts and one pass attempt.

The Opa Locka, Fla., native also received tribute from a fellow quarterback with the Buffaloes, Colton Allen.

Bethune-Cookman QB Dominiq Ponder takes a snap during the Wildcats’ spring game Saturday, April 22, 2023, at Daytona Stadium. (IMAGN)

“Dom, you were a blessing to so many people,” Allen wrote on Instagram. “You had a presence about you that just made everything better. You brought so much joy to me and everyone around you. I’m grateful for every lift, every practice, every rep, every conversation we got to share. I’ll carry those with me for the rest of my life.”

Ponder was going to be a part of Colorado’s spring practices, which are set to begin on Monday. It’s unknown if Sanders will postpone the start due to Ponder’s passing.

Ponder also received a tribute from the University of Central Florida.

Colorado head coach Deion Sanders watches his players warm up before an NCAA college football game against Utah, Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025, in Salt Lake City. (Tyler Tate/AP Photo)

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“Our prayers are with Dominiq and the Ponder family along with all in the Colorado football program,” the university’s football account on X wrote.

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Scott Thompson is a sports writer for Fox News Digital.

Sports

No. 2 UCLA women dominate rival USC to finish Big Ten play undefeated

Published

6 hours ago

March 1, 2026

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No. 2 UCLA women dominate rival USC to finish Big Ten play undefeated

Sunday was “Senior Night” for the USC women’s basketball team at Galen Center, but it was the other team’s seniors who stole the show.

Gabriela Jaquez scored 14 points, Kiki Rice had 11 points and four assists and Lauren Betts had 15 rebounds and five assists as UCLA wrapped up the regular season with a 73-50 victory over its rival and finished undefeated in conference play for the first time since going 18-0 in the Pac-10 in 1998-99 under Kathy Olivier.

Having already clinched the regular-season title, UCLA became the first team to navigate the Big Ten schedule without a loss since Maryland in 2014-15.

“These are two elite programs, we knew it would be different tonight, we knew they’d come with fire,” said UCLA coach Cori Close, who improved to 9-4 against the Trojans since counterpart Lindsay Gottlieb started at USC in 2021. “We knew we’d have to do it with our defense, our rebounding and by taking care of the ball.”

It was the Bruins’ 22nd consecutive win, one shy of the record they set last season. Since their lone loss to then-No. 4 Texas on Nov. 26 in Las Vegas, they have won by 20 or more points 17 times.

Ranked second in the nation in both the Associated Press and coaches’ polls behind defending national champion Connecticut (30-0), the Bruins earned the No. 1 seed for the conference tournament in Indianapolis and got a bye into Friday’s quarterfinals.

Charlisse Leger-Walker, nicknamed “X-ray vision” by teammates, equaled her season high with 20 points for the Bruins (28-1, 18-0) while Gianna Kneepkens added 14 points and five assists.

“Anytime we play together we know we can win,” Leger-Walker said. “We did a good job looking into the scout. Every game we just think about going 1-0. People scouting us know that all five players on the court can score the ball.”

UCLA center Lauren Betts, left, controls the ball in front of USC forward Vivian Iwuchukwu during the first half Sunday.

(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

UCLA held USC to 27% shooting in the teams’ first meeting — a 34-point Bruins victory at Pauley Pavilion on Jan. 3 behind Betts’ 18 points. It was USC’s most lopsided loss under coach Lindsay Gottlieb. On Sunday, USC shot 39% and was only three for 19 from three-point range.

“Going undefeated [in conference] is a great step in the right direction towards what we want to accomplish,” said Jaquez, who appreciated the flowers she received before the game from USC. “I love this rivalry. It’s super fun to play against them and it was nice that they honored us too.”

UCLA jumped out to a 14-4 lead in the first five minutes and carried a 19-11 advantage into the second quarter. The Bruins widened the gap to 18 points by halftime, holding the Trojans scoreless for the last 3:08.

USC (17-12, 9-9) opened the second half on an 11-2 run but gave up 14 second-chance points and allowed 22 offensive rebounds.

UCLA guard Kiki Rice, front, and forward Angela Dugalic celebrate as USC guard Kennedy Smith walks away.

“If we get more possessions than our opponent we’re most likely going to win,” Close said. “We didn’t allow one basket on an out-of-bounds play and they lead the conference in that.”

Freshman guard Jazzy Davidson, USC’s leading scorer, got into early foul trouble but still finished with 12 points. She was held to 10 points on four-for-15 shooting in the first meeting.

“It was a great crowd, we were in the fight but we didn’t rebound or shoot well enough,” Gottlieb said. “We wanted to keep them out of our paint. We swarmed Betts, double-teamed her and got it out of her hands but other people scored.”

Londynn Jones, who spent three seasons in Westwood (playing in 108 straight games) before transferring to USC for her senior year, was held to six points in the team’s first meeting and nine points (on four-of-10 shooting) in the rematch. The Trojans’ other senior, Kara Dunn, was held scoreless in the first half and finished with eight points.

“I love Londynn,” Close said. “We think she looks better in blue, but we love her and I told her that. I appreciate all she gave to our programs.”

Asked if this is the best team she has ever coached, Close had a one-word answer.

“Yes.”

Sports

Israeli national gymnastics team suspends all activities after Iranian counter-attack

Published

18 hours ago

March 1, 2026

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Israeli national gymnastics team suspends all activities after Iranian counter-attack

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Israel’s national gymnastics team has suspended all training and team activities amid the recent Iranian counter-attack on the country following the U.S.-assisted strikes on Iran.

The Israel Gymnastics Federation (IGF) provided a statement to Fox News Digital announcing the violence has caused “unavoidable disruptions.”

“The current security situation in our region has resulted in unavoidable disruptions to our regular training schedule and has created significant uncertainty regarding the national teams’ professional plans, particularly as we are at the outset of the international season,” the statement read.

“At this time, all training activities have been temporarily suspended, pending approval from the relevant authorities to safely resume operations. Naturally, the suspension of training and the closure of airspace are causing considerable stress and concern. However, the safety and well-being of our gymnasts and professional staff remain our highest priority. We sincerely hope for safer and calmer days ahead, when we can focus solely on sport.”

A source within the team told Fox News Digital on Saturday that the gymnasts have been moving between bomb shelters since Iran’s counterstrikes began.

Israel’s gymnastics team is considered one of nation’s strongest Olympic programs alongside its Judo and sailing teams. The team is only a week removed from a successful trip at the Artistic Gymnastics World Cup in Germany, where the country’s star Artem Dolgopyat won the gold medal in floor gymnastics.

Now, the team will have to seek safety until the attacks are over.

The U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem has directed all U.S. government employees and their family members to continue to shelter in place either in or near their residences as Iran continues to fire missiles at Israel.

Additionally, the embassy announced that due to the security situation, it would be closed on March 2, and did not give an estimate on when it would be reopening. The closure includes consular sections in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.

The embassy also said it is “not in a position at this time to evacuate or directly assist Americans in departing Israel.” It noted that Ben Gurion Airport remains closed and there there are neither commercial nor charter flights operating from the airport.

On Friday, ahead of the launch of Operation Epic Fury, the embassy gave all non-essential workers permission to leave Israel, with reports that U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee urged those looking to leave to do so as soon as possible.

Iranian airstrikes killed at least eight Israelis on Sunday as Tehran’s latest missile barrage landed just miles from Jerusalem.

The strikes landed in the Israeli city of Beit Shemesh. Initial reports said four people were killed when missiles landed in a residential area on Sunday, but that death toll rose to eight, according to Israel’s national emergency service.

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Iran’s military has carried out counterattacks against Israel and U.S. bases in the Middle East after a joint U.S.-Israeli strike killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday.

The strikes also killed several other top Iranian leaders, including the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps.

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Jackson Thompson is a sports reporter for Fox News Digital covering critical political and cultural issues in sports, with an investigative lens. Jackson’s reporting has been cited in federal government actions related to the enforcement of Title IX, and in legacy media outlets including The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Associated Press and ESPN.com.