Commish still hopes to bring Pac-12 to DIRECTV

By Brent Stecker

One question has weighed on the minds of college sports fans since the Pac-12 Network hit the air — when will it be brought to DIRECTV?

Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott addressed that issue when he joined “Brock and Salk” Friday, and while there doesn’t appear to be any progress between the two sides, Scott was adamant that the conference is determined to make a deal.

“Well I can’t give you an exact date, but what I can tell you is it’s priority No. 1,” Scott said of striking a deal with DIRECTV, which he noted is the only one of the country’s top five television distributors that isn’t carrying the channel. “We won’t be satisfied until we get DIRECTV, but right now they’ve dug their heels in. They won’t take it on the same terms that everyone else is taking it. I don’t see any movement at the moment, (but) what I do know is we’ve got great content.”

Scott believes DIRECTV is feeling the anger of Pac-12 fans that can’t access the network.

“I’m hearing loudly from fans how badly they want it. I’m sure DIRECTV is hearing it, and I’m sure we’ve got fans switching when their contracts come up,” he said. “They’ve gotta be feeling that, so I’m very confident long-term we’ll get it, and we’ll do everything that we can.”