The power of words can be an interesting thing, especially when an opinion someone has can cause them to rethink things. College Gameday is where the fan goes to get a preview of the Saturday games as well as hear thoughts from the panel on the state of college football, but does it have an influence on some of the decision-makers in the sport and what kind of power does the show actually have? 

On the College Gameday podcast, Rece Davis talked about how he was asked on a show how much power he thinks the show has. He does think what someone like Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard, or Pat McAfee says can make them rethink their opinion, he doesn’t think it can sway the playoff committee for example. 

“I was asked a while ago — I forgot what show it was on and they asked if I thought if we as a show, we as commentators who have been covering the sport being part of the growth and popularity through television of the sport — if I felt that we have any power. My response was ‘Define power.’

“If you mean do I think that someone says something on College GameDay, whether it’s me and certainly if it’s Kirk, Desmond, Pat, or Stanford Steve (all of whom played), if we say something on there, does it give the power breakers or decision-makers something to think about and go hmm? I would say the answer is yes, there is power.” 

Davis says he thinks an opinion can make people re-evaluate their stance on an issue, but he also doesn’t think people will completely change their thought on a key issue in the sport based on what someone says on television. 

“If you mean by power that we make phone calls, dictate to somebody, or have such influence over grown, successful human beings that they are going to align themselves with whatever opinion was offered on GameDay or any other ESPN platform, then no I don’t think we have that power.

“Do we have the power to make people evaluate their stance? I think so. I think that’s probably fair, but I also think that all of those people in the committee room and all the conference commissioners are accomplished human beings. They didn’t rise to the level of where they are by being so weak-spined that they are going to listen to Mr. Television Announcer and decide that’s where they are going to align themselves.” 

Flutter, the parent company of FanDuel, has revealed the date in which it plans to start being listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

Trading on the stock will begin on January 29, the day after the AFC and NFC Championship Games, which will reveal the matchup for Super Bowl LVIII. The company will be found on the ticker as FLUT.

Flutter plans to delist from the Euronext Dublin exchange and keep a separate listing on the London Stock Exchange, according to Front Office Sports.

95% of FanDuel is owned by Flutter.

TNA Wrestling has announced it has entered into a new deal with Endeavor to launch a streaming service.

While previously utilizing the Impact Wrestling brand, Anthem Sports & Entertainment has revived the TNA Wrestling brand as part of a relaunch ahead of the new streaming service which will debut on Friday, January 5th.

“This is truly an incredible opportunity for us as we forge into an exciting new chapter of the TNA legacy,” said TNA Wrestling President Scott D’Amore. “We are proud to partner with Endeavor Streaming on this initiative, and we look forward to continuing to provide our fans with the absolute best in new, classic and exclusive professional wrestling content, available to them anywhere, anytime, on their favorite devices, when TNA+ launches on January 5.”

“Wrestling fans are some of the most passionate in the world of sports and entertainment and TNA+ is the perfect ‘always-on’ personalized OTT service to help TNA build a deeper relationship with its global audience,” added Endeavor CCO Pete Bellamy. “We’re looking forward to working with TNA to deliver the best streaming experience for wrestling fans.”

Price points are $9.99 per month or $95.99 per year for subscribers. An additional tier is available for $219.99 per year which will include the four “tent-pole” pay-per-view events.

The announcement comes as a bit of a surprise in the wrestling world. Impact Wrestling previously held partnerships with the AEW and New Japan wrestling promotions. Meanwhile, Endeavor recently completed its merger of WWE and UFC in a more than $20 billion deal.