Sports & Entertainment Beat

If it’s March, that means I’m ever-confused about what type of outerwear I am supposed to wear outside, my allium bulbs (or as I like to call them: “Bloomgarden’s garden blooms”) are awakening and making their journey up from beneath the ground (I see you, my precocious little beauties) and college sports are front and center. However, while most years, it is not until later in the month that history books are written through the NCAA Basketball Tournaments, this year we have some super important entries.

First, Iowa Hawkeyes basketball star Caitlin Clark broke the NCAA all-time scoring record set by “Pistol” Pete Maravich, and as an encore, entered into an exclusive endorsement agreement with trading card and collectibles company Panini—becoming the first female athlete to do so. On the (digital) football field, EA Sports’ NCAA Football video game—the first of its kind in the NIL era—boasts over 10,000 players who have opted in to appearing in the game (and receiving the modest license fee of $600 for doing so).  And going back to the hardcourt, in a move that could have major implications not just in college basketball, but for the entire collegiate athletic programs landscape (did I mention my bulbs?), as the Dartmouth Men’s basketball team voted to unionize, rendering themselves employees of Dartmouth and allowing them to negotiate the terms of their employment (including wages, hours and benefits). So there you have a few tidbits of trivia as you roll into the cold/coolish/cool/not quite warmish weekend to tend to your respective gardens.    

• • Peyton Manning’s Omaha Productions is said to be courting two football coaches with legendary careers—Bill Belichick and Nick Saban – to host an alternate broadcast of Monday Night Football tentatively called the “GOATcast.” If the production goes forward, it will undoubtedly bring some interesting insights (not to mention confused farmers) into the fold.
    
    
  • A prominent player in music catalog acquisition, Hipgnosis Songs Fund announced that an independent valuation of the fund found its value to be overstated by 26% (about $690 million). Clearly someone in the mix had a pocket watch swinging in their eyes.
    
    
  • LeBron James’ media empire is not only spinning off its “The Shop” television series to launch as a line of men’s grooming products, but is also going to debut a United Kingdom version of the series to be hosted and produced by actor Idris Elba, or as I like to call it, “The Shoppe.”
    
    
  • McDonald’s is nearing a deal to be a title sponsor for France’s top tier football league, Ligue 1. Perhaps that will help temper French arrogance over their cuisine.