Power conferences such as the SEC are closer than ever to overtaking March Madness, though perhaps not quite in the way previously envisioned. 

As conference tournaments begin in earnest this weekend, initial bracketology predictions show the SEC, Big Ten, Big 12, ACC, and Big East are in line to claim a combined 39 of 68 men’s tournament spots. The SEC, which currently has eight teams in the Associated Press top-25 rankings, including No. 1 Auburn, could see 13 of its 16 members reach the tournament—a figure that would beat the current record of 11 bids set by the Big East in 2011. A 14th SEC program, Texas, is additionally a bubble team. 

The Big Ten, with five top-25 teams, similarly has 11 potential March Madness bids in initial projections.

The shifts partly reflect the continued impact of a frenetic wave of conference realignment that dominated college sports in the spring and summer of 2024. In particular, Oklahoma and Texas began SEC play last year; the Big Ten brought in Oregon, UCLA, USC, and Washington; the Big 12 added Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado, and Utah; and the ACC added Cal, SMU, and Stanford. Four of those 13 newly realigned schools are likely March Madness participants, with two more on the bubble. 

Consolidating Power

Such shifts had seismic impacts on the College Football Playoff, and still do. The effects are also reaching basketball. 

For comparison, last year’s March Madness in men’s college basketball included 33 total teams across those five conferences, as well as the Pac-12 Conference before it was gutted to just two members, Oregon State and Washington State, in advance of a subsequent rebuilding to eight schools in 2026.

A year ago, SEC commissioner Greg Sankey openly questioned the merit of March Madness automatic qualifiers for smaller conferences. Fast-forward to today, and that type of radical reformation has not happened—though conversations continue toward a potential expansion or restructuring of the tournament format that would start as soon as 2026. Still, Sankey’s fear of what he viewed as deserving teams being squeezed out of the tournament hardly seems to be happening with the likely historic influx of tournament bids.

Such pull toward the major conferences can also be seen in the NCAA’s NET Rankings. Even the SEC’s last-place team, South Carolina, still holds a No. 88 national ranking despite a 12–18 overall record, 2–15 inside the conference, and 1–9 on the road. 

Last year, each tournament unit—the NCAA’s formula for allocating event revenue—was worth about $2 million, making the financial stakes of March Madness bids large for any involved school. 

In the meantime, there is scarcely an at-large bid foreseeable for mid-major conferences such as the American or Atlantic 10, even with multiple schools there enjoying strong seasons—making the upcoming conference tournaments all the more critical.

When LIV Golf was launching in 2022, Callaway paused its longtime relationship with Phil Mickelson due to controversy surrounding the six-time major champion who headlined the list of defectors from the PGA Tour.

This week, however, the golf equipment manufacturer announced a wide-ranging deal with Jon Rahm and his LIV team, Legion XIII, in a move that shows just how dramatically views of the rival circuit have changed among the sport’s stakeholders.

Callaway is the first company to become the official club supplier of a LIV team. Rahm, Caleb Surratt, and Tom McKibbin were already using Callaway clubs. But it’s not an exclusive deal, as Tyrrell Hatton uses Ping clubs and will continue to do so.

Shifting Stances

Rahm has been a Callaway endorser since 2021, and in 2023 signed an extension that included equity in parent company Topgolf Callaway Brands. 

But when he joined LIV ahead of the league’s 2024 season, Callaway branding stopped appearing on his on-course apparel as the 2023 Masters champion repped his Legion XIII squad at both LIV events and major championships. This season, he’s been wearing a Callaway hat.

Bryson DeChambeau’s LIV team, Crushers GC, recently brought on Reebok as its official apparel supplier. Other brands have signed various endorsement deals with some LIV teams, but none as big as Callaway. Five-time major champion Brooks Koepka is the only Nike golfer currently on LIV, as he reps the Swoosh, and not the gear of his team, Smash GC.

What Once Was

Mickelson, who remains the captain of LIV’s HyFlyers GC, kept using Callaway clubs despite the “pause” in 2022, and the partnership wasn’t officially over until he announced a formal split in January 2024—although the company had largely distanced itself from the golfer before then.

Meanwhile, Dustin Johnson’s longtime TaylorMade contract expired in 2024. The two-time major champion had been under contract to play the manufacturer’s clubs and ball, and represent their logos on his apparel. He also had a long-running deal with Adidas that ended in 2023. This season, he’s still been playing some TaylorMade clubs but sports clothing from his LIV team, 4Aces GC.

Two Pro Bowlers—DK Metcalf and Trey Hendrickson—could be on the move soon.

The Seahawks’ two-time Pro Bowl wide receiver requested a trade Wednesday, the same day the team released Tyler Lockett, another receiver and the longest-tenured player on the roster. 

Seattle is seeking a first- and third-round pick in exchange for Metcalf, according to The Athletic. 

While this is likely the Seahawks’ initial asking price, a first- and third-rounder for Metcalf is similar to the haul the Titans received when they traded A.J. Brown to the Eagles in 2022. However, Brown was 24 at the time. Metcalf is currently 27. 

Just last week, the 49ers traded 29-year-old Deebo Samuel to the Commanders in exchange for a fifth-round pick. Metcalf (6,324 yards and 48 touchdowns) has been a more productive receiver than Samuel (4,792 yards and 22 touchdowns) over the last six regular seasons, especially given the injury-riddled season the former Pro Bowler had last year, but the haul for him was nowhere near the asking price of the Seahawks for Metcalf. 

Another complicating factor in a potential Metcalf trade is his contract. He is entering the final year of a three-year, $72 million deal and has a $31.8 million cap hit—currently the highest in the NFL, per Over The Cap.

The Athletic reported Metcalf is seeking a deal that would pay him $30 million a year, which would put him in a tie with Tyreek Hill and Brandon Aiyuk as the fifth-highest-paid wide receiver in terms of average annual value. His current contract has him 13th in the league—though he tied for sixth when he signed the deal in 2022.

Change Coming in Cincy

According to multiple reports, Hendrickson, the Bengals’ star defensive end, has been permitted by the team to seek a trade. 

The news comes a year after the Bengals narrowly missed the playoffs despite their offense leading the league in passing yards and touchdowns as their defense finished 25th in total defense. Hendrickson was one of their few bright spots on defense, leading the league with 17.5 sacks last season.

The 30-year-old was on a four-year, $60 million deal that ran through 2024, but he signed a one-year extension in 2023 for $21 million. Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby just became the highest-paid non-quarterback in football, signing an extension worth $35.5 million per year. Hendrickson clearly noticed.

The Bengals are facing questions about the future of two other key players, as the team is looking to sign wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase to a record extension while also trying to secure fellow receiver Tee Higgins to a long-term deal after placing the franchise tag on him for the second straight year.