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Pac-12 title game headed to new 49ers stadium

By WTOP Staff

ANTONIO GONZALEZ
AP Sports Writer

The Pac-12 is moving its conference championship game to the San Francisco 49ers’ new stadium in Santa Clara for the next three years.

Pac-12 Commissioner Larry Scott, 49ers owner Jed York and team President Paraag Marathe announced the plans Thursday outside Levi’s Stadium. The first three conference championships had been held at the home of the division champion with the best conference record — Oregon in 2011, Stanford in 2012 and Arizona State last year.

Scott said the conference didn’t go through a bidding process for the title game now but did when it expanded the league with Colorado and Utah before the 2011 season, eventually settling on a home-hosted site. He mentioned Seattle, Glendale, Arizona, Denver and Los Angeles as possibilities at that time.

Scott said the “excitement and demand” surrounding the opening of the $1.2 billion stadium, located about 45 miles south of downtown San Francisco, is a unique opportunity for the conference. He compared it to the high level of attention the opulent Dallas Cowboys stadium received.

The commissioner also cited the 68,500-seat venue’s central location in the conference, the luxurious amenities and the corporate dollars in Silicon Valley as reasons to take the championship game to the neutral site. The winner will be in line for a Rose Bowl berth or a spot in the new four-team College Football Playoff.

“The importance of this game continues to increase. And with this new agreement, we’re going to be playing on one of the most exciting stages in all of football,” Scott told reporters outside the stadium in Santa Clara.

As part of the conference’s previously outlined television agreement with FOX and ESPN, the game will alternate being played on Friday night and Saturday. FOX will broadcast the game this season on Dec. 5, ESPN will show it on a Saturday next year and FOX will televise the game on a Friday night again in 2016.

The Pac-12 is following a model similar to that of other major conferences that hold championship games. The SEC, Big Ten and ACC stage their title games at neutral sites. The Big 12 no longer has a championship game.

Attendance has been good at two of the three Pac-12 title games, with nearby Stanford being the exception — partly due to rain, a rematch of the game between Stanford and UCLA played six days prior in Los Angeles and a 5 p.m. Friday kickoff that gridlocked traffic on the San Francisco Peninsula.

“A lot of events conspired against us,” Scott said in a conference call with reporters.

Marathe, the 49ers president, said he is not concerned about traffic for the Friday night games, though the Santa Clara site has not been tested with a big crowd yet.

In previous years, Scott noted the challenges of staging the championship game at a host school when the site — not to mention the teams — often isn’t known until a week before the game.

He also had acknowledged concern from some school presidents about the travel demands that fans would face if teams in the far-flung conference — which stretches from Washington to Arizona — would have to travel to Santa Clara, which is about 15 miles from the Stanford campus and just across the bay from Berkeley. But having a neutral location also has big benefits, Scott said, notably giving the conference time to plan logistics and sell tickets locally.

For the 49ers and the city, it’s a major victory as they have been trying to fill dates at the new stadium.

The NFL already has awarded the site the 50th Super Bowl to be played in February 2016. The stadium will open with a Major League Soccer game on Aug. 2 between San Jose and Seattle.

It also will serve as the new home for the upgraded Fight Hunger Bowl, which had been played at AT&T Park in San Francisco, home of Major League Baseball’s Giants. And Cal will host Oregon in a regular-season game at Levi’s Stadium on Oct. 24.

York said about 80 percent of the 49ers’ ticket base has some Pac-12 connection, and he expects the conference championship game to be a sellout.

“When we were selling suites, when we were selling seats,” York said, “this was hands down the No. 1 event people were asking about.”

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
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