Good afternoon, here’s what we’re following at SBJ Today:
- GSE, Full Day to host college volleyball event at AT&T Stadium
- Texans’ Cal McNair says team looking to stay in Harris County
- ‘Pablo Torre Finds Out’ podcast wins Pulitzer Prize
- Plus: Top tennis player advocates for boycott, Hurricanes’ sell out of ‘beer skates’ and more
Start your morning with Buzzcast with Joe Lemire: FIFA still seeking World Cup broadcast deals in India and China; PIF affirms support for tennis tourney; Yankees lose a radio legend; profiling John Henry, SBJ’s Lifetime Achievement honoree for 2026. Listen >>
THE BIG STORY
GSE, Full Day to host college volleyball event at AT&T Stadium
Full Day Productions and GSE Worldwide aim to break the record for the highest attendance at a volleyball game with Spikes Under the Lights, a one-night showcase Aug. 27 at AT&T Stadium featuring Nebraska, Penn State, Florida and SMU, reports SBJ’s Irving Mejia-Hilario.
GSE Worldwide and Full Day Productions, equal partners in the property, are backing the concept with a $1 million purse — $800,000 as appearance fees divided evenly among the four programs, with $200,000 reserved as prize money, weighted toward the winner.
GSE Worldwide will oversee the live side of the event, managing in-venue production, stadium operations, marketing and ticket sales. Full Day with focus on the broadcast and studio components, including production of the event for a major network and cable simulcast.
5 STORIES WE’RE WATCHING
1. Texans’ Cal McNair says team looking to stay in Harris County: Texans owner Cal McNair said that the team and the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo will remain in Harris County and at NRG Stadium.
2. ‘Pablo Torre Finds Out’ podcast wins Pulitzer Prize in Audio Reporting: The staff of the podcast “Pablo Torre Finds Out” on Monday received the 2026 Pulitzer Prize in Audio Reporting for its investigation into the Clippers’ payment scandal involving F Kawhi Leonard (Pulitzer Prize Board).
3. Sabalenka: Players should boycott Grand Slams in pursuit of greater revenue share: WTA No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka believes that tennis players “should organize a boycott if they don’t start receiving a bigger share of tournament revenues” at the Grand Slams.
4. Hurricanes’ ‘beer skate’ sells out in playoff opener: The Hurricanes during Saturday’s Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Flyers “sold out of the beer skate” — a skate-shaped beer mug that became a viral sensation — and they “will not have any more for the rest of the postseason.”
5. The Swamp’s Wi-Fi 7 deployment will be college football’s first: Extreme Networks is deploying the first Wi-Fi 7 network in a college football venue at Florida’s Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, known colloquially as “The Swamp,” reports SBJ’s Bret McCormick.
ON THE MOVE
- The Bulls named Hawks SVP/Basketball Operations Bryson Graham as EVP/basketball operations. Prior to joining Atlanta, Graham spent 15 seasons with the Pelicans, beginning as a basketball operations intern and before ascending to become the franchise’s GM (Bulls).
- The Mavericks hired Masai Ujiri as team president in charge of basketball operations. Ujiri, the former Raptors president, will also serve as owner Patrick Dumont’s alternate governor. He replaces former president of basketball operations Nico Harrison (Tom Friend, SBJ).
- NFL SVP/Communications Katie Hill will leave her role for a similar position at the N.Y. Times, the Times and the league confirmed. Hill will become the Times’ SVP and global head of communications and external affairs, a new role that will oversee all communications efforts for the Times’ news and opinion sections, as well as The Athletic and other areas (Ben Fischer, SBJ).
- Saint Joseph’s named La Salle AD Aashwin Puri to the same role, effective May 26. Puri, an SBJ Forty Under 40 honoree in 2017, worked with Villanova and Cal along with stops with the A’s, NBA and NFL (Saint Joseph’s).
NAMES IN THE NEWS
- Chiefs Chair & CEO Clark Hunt spoke on K.C. hosting World Cup matches and said, “The citizens of Kansas City are going to be shocked in a good way by the number of tourists and the celebration that will take place over the course of the tournament” (K.C. Star).
HOT READS
NEWSDAY went with the header, “Tough time to be a sports fan: Costly streaming services can make watching your team a chore.” The explosion of streaming platforms for live sports has “birthed a dizzying array of channels, sites and apps that viewers must navigate — and pay for — to find their favorite teams’ games.” The Yankees “could have games appearing on up to 10 different platforms this season,” and a fan would have to pay “close to $400.”
Also:
- NBA Draft Lottery reform is wonderful and long overdue for the league.