In 2024, USC and UCLA are joining the Big Ten. Those moves helped spur two huge rights contracts for the league from NBC and CBS respectively. One of those networks is getting a jump on the new properties.

Andrew Marchand of the New York Post reports that former USC quarterback Matt Cassel is joining NBC’s Big Ten crew. He will be part of the network’s new studio show that will be hosted by Maria Taylor.

Cassel is an interesting choice for college football coverage. While many know that he turned a successful season replacing the injured Tom Brady into an opportunity to become the starting quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs, his college career was less storied.

He played at USC from 2001 until 2004 and sat behind both Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart on the depth chart. Matt Cassel threw a total of 33 passes at USC. Those resulted in no touchdowns, one interception and less than 200 yards.

Matt Cassel is not the first former player added to the show. He and Taylor will be joined in studio by former Michigan linebacker Joshua Perry. NBC reportedly also wants to add future Pro Football Hall of Fame and former Wisconsin Badger JJ Watt to the team.

Pro Football Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe posted on social media over the weekend for the first time since news broke of his impending exit from FOX Sports and his role opposite Skip Bayless on the FS1 show Undisputed.

Sharpe reached an agreement with the network last week to buyout the remaining time on his contract.

While Sharpe’s future as a sports debate host remain unclear, the Super Bowl champion tweeted that his following should keep an eye out for what’s coming next. The tweet showed Shannon in front of a camera in a gardening setting.

Many in sports media have offered their support of Sharpe, as he exits what had become a strained relationship with Bayless. The two had a series of heated on-air exchanges in recent months before a national audience.

Multiple hosts involved with ESPN have voiced publicly that they’re rooting for Sharpe to join The Worldwide Leader. Pat McAfee last week said he was “hoping like hell” Sharpe would show up to ESPN when he and his show debut on the network in the coming months. First Take host Stephen A. Smith also said he would make room for Sharpe on his show if he wanted to appear.

As the writers strike carries on, the NBA and NHL and their broadcast partners have been pleasantly surprised by the steady flow of advertising as their championship series take center stage.

The NBA Finals began last Thursday, and the Stanley Cup Final in the NHL started on Saturday. With the writers strike impacting many in the entertainment industry, advertisers are flocking to these major sporting events.

“The Finals have historically been a high-demand area for the studio business based on time of year, but we have seen recent growth from the streaming services as well,” ESPN senior vice president of revenue and yield management, Jim Minnich, told Deadline He indicated that TV and cable networks have surpassed beer brands as the top buyers of ad time from the conference finals to now.

The hope is that both the NBA Finals and Stanley Cup Final will go the distance game wise, so both ESPN/ABC and Warner Bros. Discovery can maximize the spike in entertainment advertising. Both series are best-of-seven. The NBA Finals will go at least five games now, after the Miami Heat won Game 2 in Denver on Sunday night. The Vegas Golden Knights lead the Florida Panthers 1-0 in the Stanley Cup Final. Game 2 is Monday night in Las Vegas.