PAC-12 Consumed By Chaos As Conflicting Media Deal Reports Emerge

The PAC-12 appears to continue to be in serious trouble.

George Kliavkoff and the conference are currently attempting to land a new media deal, but to say things haven't gone well would be the understatement of the year.

It was believed Apple might be the leader for the rights. That would mean PAC-12 games would move to streaming, which would be a disaster from a PR standpoint.

Now, conflicting reports have emerged about what might happen.

The PAC-12 appears to be in serious trouble. (Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images)

The PAC-12 faces down the barrel of more issues.

However, that might not be the case. Brett McMurphy, who is one of the best reporters in America, reported Friday that "Apple still has not made formal offer for Pac-12’s media rights, but ION television has emerged as a potential Pac-12 partner."

Have you never read of ION Television before? Don't feel bad. Most people in America probably haven't either.

However, not too long after McMurphy's reporter, Stewart Mandel reported that his sourcing indicated ION was not involved with negotiations.

That's right, folks. We have a classic reporter duel.

What will happen with the conference?

It's also important to note Arizona State's AD indicated that while a new media deal might not pay much, it would be enough to keep the PAC-12 together.

That was less than 48 hours ago Ray Anderson provided that update. Now, if McMurphy's report is accurate, it would seem Anderson was provided faulty information.

While it's impossible right now to say whether Mandel or McMurphy is accurate, I will say that I'm not sure I can ever think of a time Brett McMurphy broke major news and wasn't correct.

He's an incredibly talented and sourced up reporter. If he says Apple hasn't made an offer and ION Television is in the mix, I'm inclined to believe him. At the very least, the claim needs to be taken seriously.

Will the PAC-12 land a new media deal? (Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images)

All we know for sure is the PAC-12 continues to be engulfed by chaos. The conference just can't seem to draw any serious interest. Apple seemed bad enough. Would a deal with ION Television be worse? Your guess is as good as mine, but right now, the situation continues to be speeding towards a bad ending.