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MHver3

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The difference is that each of them can claim a Heisman winner, and for Pitt an NC too. Those things do matter to some people. It's like old money and newly rich.
Then what difference would beating OU have made?
 
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Things in Syria are not going well either. I have a man in Damascus. He told me this.

I could report that ... and I wouldn't have to get any closer than Beirut.
 
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Then what difference would beating OU have made?
Notoriety. Was Calhoun a better coach ten minutes after Trajan Langdon traveled? You win big, you're a winning program, you lose, there's no participation banners. SU and Pitt, though a while back, have big wins, they've proven their program can do it. We do not have that track record other than some semi-notable regular season victories and one mid-level bowl win. We don't have the signature win in the big time bowl over the big name program that builds a fanbase and attracts eyeballs. Boise has it, but they've got other drawbacks, notably location, poor other sports, and poor academics. UConn has a good location, remarkably good other programs, and solid academics, but a medicore at best football program that few people know about across the country. If you ask a casual sports fan on the street in the Midwest what comes to mind when you hear UConn, I guarantee football is at best #3 behind both basketball teams.
 
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We will never know for sure, but IMO the result of the Fiesta Bowl had no bearing on our fate today. It's been reported tht the ACC/Swofford wanted UConn and Cuse and we were cock blocked by Flipper. We may never know how true tht really is, but IMO there is some truth to it.
 
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We will never know for sure, but IMO the result of the Fiesta Bowl had no bearing on our fate today. It's been reported tht the ACC/Swofford wanted UConn and Cuse and we were rooster blocked by Flipper. We may never know how true tht really is, but IMO there is some truth to it.

I think Pitt was selected to help pull ND into the ACC as Pitt is a historical football rival. Seems like the strategy worked. In addition, adding Pitt could entice a 16th school to the ACC in the future, Penn State. Penn St always wanted an eastern all sports conference and now there is one with historical football rivals Pitt, Syaracuse, BC, and Maryland. It won't happen in the near future, but it could in the long run.
 
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I know a lot of people will disagree with you about the Fiesta Bowl and downplay the significance of only 1 game, but I'm not one of those people.

I think that game would have been our West Virginia over Georgia in the Sugar Bowl or Boise State over Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl moment.

Winning big games against big brand name teams is the only way to earn respect in college football.

It wasn't a game we should have won or could have reasonably expected to win, but at the same time it would have done wonders for our profile as opposed to now being the (unjustly so) poster child for why the BCS system was broken.

Totally. Uconn in the Fiesta told the world the system was badly broken. It didn't matter whether we won or lost. Being in it was the message to the world that this model had to end. Some day there will be a book about it. Boise sent the same message. The football gods do not want Boise playing, and possibly beating, a Georgia, or an LSU, or a Michigan, in a major bowl. That spells broken. When Uconn gets in, that's dysfunctional, the proverbial straw. It was over right then and there.
 

HuskyHawk

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The difference is that each of them can claim a Heisman winner, and for Pitt an NC too. Those things do matter to some people. It's like old money and newly rich.

Some people? Try almost everyone. Recent success matters little. Michigan is Michigan even with two losses. I remember Tony Dorsett and Dan Marino. I recall actually eating at Pizza Hut in Florida on vacation while the Pitt team was there (in the restaurant) for the Tangerine Bowl. Now Syracuse and Jim Brown are further back still.

Namath was a long time ago at Bama too, but who is #1 now? History and success over long stretches are the most important thing you can have going for you. It allows you to remain relevant and bounce back from bad stretches.
 
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Totally. Uconn in the Fiesta told the world the system was badly broken. It didn't matter whether we won or lost. Being in it was the message to the world that this model had to end. Some day there will be a book about it. Boise sent the same message. The football gods do not want Boise playing, and possibly beating, a Georgia, or an LSU, or a Michigan, in a major bowl. That spells broken. When Uconn gets in, that's dysfunctional, the proverbial straw. It was over right then and there.

I tend to agree that the outcome of the game was irrelevant. The simple fact remains that UConn at that time was not a good team. It won the Big East, but was not a highly ranked opponent. One game does not change all that. You can't really compare that team to Boise State playing Oklahoma either, since Boise State was highly ranked (and I believe undefeated) at the time. Hell, it took Boise State years and it has beaten some big name programs in that time, including Georgia (who you mentioned) last year. The problem isn't really about a non-name program beating a big name one. Sure, the big name schools would prefer big name opponents to sell tickets. But in the end they want good games, high ratings, and national appeal. They don't want "scrubs" crashing the party. A no-name, but undefeated Boise State still has appeal. A mediocre UConn team does not. And once enough schools consolidated into the other 5 conferences, the Big East was not needed to get a majority vote on things (and the fact all the former Big East teams have left except for Rutgers did not hurt).

I agree that recent success does not matter. Notre Dame is a prefect example of this. They remain a brand, despite no real relevancy in 20 years (until maybe now?). UConn has no real football history, which has always been it's hardest sell. If the ACC does want a 16th at some point, UConn should be right at the top of the list. But the only way to really sell the school is through football. That's the only thing that will likely force someone's hand.
 
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Then what difference would beating OU have made?
I didn't say it would make any difference. They were talking about SU and Pitt going to the ACC. Whether we won or not wouldn't have mattered.
 

pj

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Is getting $11 million from NBC vs $8 million from ESPN really worth it? When people were talking about large chunks of money it was a different story but going with a new network, talking NBCSN not NBC, is not worth the $3 million difference. I'd rather our basketball still be featured on ESPN and remain strong so we have something to offer the ACC when/if they want to go larger or lose a member or two.

ESPN has so much inventory, we wouldn't be featured there. That's why $8 mn from NBC is better than $8 mn from ESPN. There is a chance for exposure and growth on NBC.
 
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ESPN has so much inventory, we wouldn't be featured there. That's why $8 mn from NBC is better than $8 mn from ESPN. There is a chance for exposure and growth on NBC.
NBC Sports Network has virtually no exposure. No one watches it except for NHL fans. They have a contract with Hockey East for goodness sakes. If games would be primetime on NBC, that's one thing (no chance it would during the week), but games being shifted to NBC Sports Network would be like not being on TV at all.
 
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I'm not sure what the right answer is. But initially if I made the decision I'd lean towards being a big fish in a small pond then a small fish in a big pond. The Big East on ESPN would get pushed to the background. The hope with ESPN is that being on the network at all brings more viewers. But if the conference is pushed into the secondary channels andin poor time slots, it likely does little good. At least with NBC it should be one of their big items. One would just need NBC to grow.

The NHL was in similar situation a few years ago. They went with NBC. Were they right?
 
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I'm not sure what the right answer is. But initially if I made the decision I'd lean towards being a big fish in a small pond then a small fish in a big pond. The Big East on ESPN would get pushed to the background. The hope with ESPN is that being on the network at all brings more viewers. But if the conference is pushed into the secondary channels andin poor time slots, it likely does little good. At least with NBC it should be one of their big items. One would just need NBC to grow.

The NHL was in similar situation a few years ago. They went with NBC. Were they right?
The NHL ratings on NBCSN have been very poor for the most part. On NBC they've been pretty good considering the sport has a small following. The problem is, unless NBC commits to putting BE football games on at noon and/or 8 every Saturday on NBC, it's not worth it. Signing a deal with them where the vast majority of programming is on NBCSN is not worth it, better to go with ESPN and be on ESPN2 and ESPNU.
 

nelsonmuntz

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NBC Sports Network has virtually no exposure. No one watches it except for NHL fans. They have a contract with Hockey East for goodness sakes. If games would be primetime on NBC, that's one thing (no chance it would during the week), but games being shifted to NBC Sports Network would be like not being on TV at all.

NBC SN is right next to ESPN on every cable lineup. I think viewers would find us.
 

UConnDan97

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NBC SN is right next to ESPN on every cable lineup. I think viewers would find us.

For those of us with DirecTV, it's much different. The ESPN channels are 206-209, while NBCSports is in the low 600's (603?). Pretty much as far as you can get. It doesn't mean that I don't think NBC could work, but it isn't necessarily one click away on a channel guide...
 
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I'm not sure what the right answer is. But initially if I made the decision I'd lean towards being a big fish in a small pond then a small fish in a big pond. The Big East on ESPN would get pushed to the background. The hope with ESPN is that being on the network at all brings more viewers. But if the conference is pushed into the secondary channels andin poor time slots, it likely does little good. At least with NBC it should be one of their big items. One would just need NBC to grow.

The NHL was in similar situation a few years ago. They went with NBC. Were they right?

Interesting, but the real question is what would the ratings be on ESPN? By the end of the NHL's time with ESPN, they rarely did NHL2Night (a daily highlight program) and basically relegated the NHL to the second tier networks. And it was largely ignored in cross promotion and SportsCenter. So it may or may not have been any better.
 
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I'm not sure what the right answer is. But initially if I made the decision I'd lean towards being a big fish in a small pond then a small fish in a big pond. The Big East on ESPN would get pushed to the background. The hope with ESPN is that being on the network at all brings more viewers. But if the conference is pushed into the secondary channels andin poor time slots, it likely does little good. At least with NBC it should be one of their big items. One would just need NBC to grow.

The NHL was in similar situation a few years ago. They went with NBC. Were they right?

Do you pick your games by what network they are on, or what network you watch by what game they show. I pick a game, and that draws me to the network. You are welcome to do it the other way, but why would you?
 
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Channel placement (subservient to tier placement, obviously) is a HUGE deal during carriage negotiations. If content providers pay a premium for better channel placement, there has to be a reason, and common sense provides the answer.
 

whaler11

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Do you pick your games by what network they are on, or what network you watch by what game they show. I pick a game, and that draws me to the network. You are welcome to do it the other way, but why would you?

Yes, big sports fans do. A lot of people just watch what is on ESPN.

To make a move you need to believe the audience is going to look for you. Jim Rome went to CBS and lost more than 90% of his audience.
 

Fishy

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On Cablevision, ESPN and ESPN2 are 35 and 36.

NBC Sports is 146, right between the Golf Channel and NBA HD. (I had to look it up.)

Right now, on NBC Sports, people with mullets are shooting deer. At 9:30, someone else will shoot more deer. At 10 pm, someone mixes it up a bit and shoots an elk on a show called "Elk Fever".

The conference will fall off a table putting their content on NBCS.
 

UConnDan97

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On Cablevision, ESPN and ESPN2 are 35 and 36.

NBC Sports is 146, right between the Golf Channel and NBA HD. (I had to look it up.)

Right now, on NBC Sports, people with mullets are shooting deer. At 9:30, someone else will shoot more deer. At 10 pm, someone mixes it up a bit and shoots an elk on a show called "Elk Fever".

The conference will fall off a table putting their content on NBCS.

Wait a minute, wait a minute.....Elk Fever is on at 10pm now??
 

Fishy

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I'm not sure how it works - I think they practice with the deer and then work their way up to the elk.

I watched for a few minutes and am now pretty proficient at hunting. You sit behind a bush and whisper for a while and then blast the deer when it stops to nibble some clover.

Then you yell, "BLAM! Pancreas shot!" and fluff your mullet until the deer either dies or finds a way to return fire.

Not sure how elk hunting works - I will get back to you at 10:06 with a full report.
 

UConnDan97

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I'm not sure how it works - I think they practice with the deer and then work their way up to the elk.

I watched for a few minutes and am now pretty proficient at hunting. You sit behind a bush and whisper for a while and then blast the deer when it stops to nibble some clover.

Then you yell, "BLAM! Pancreas shot!" and then fluff your mullet until the deer either dies or finds a way to return fire.

Not sure how elk hunting works - I will get back to you at 10:06 with a full report.

I still can't stop laughing at "BLAM! Pancreas shot!"....:eek:
 
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NBC SN is right next to ESPN on every cable lineup. I think viewers would find us.
Nope. Comcast Boston - ESPN = 849, NBCSN = 865, between CMT and the SciFi channel.

Had RCN here for three years too, wasn't near ESPN at all.
 

RMoore1999

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Nice...at least there's a chance for Cablevision customers to stumble upon SMU @ UCF during Big Break commercials.

For COX subscribers like me, it's buried between NHL and tennis (1130's -- no where near espn/espn2/yes/nesn.

Petrova took 1st set 6-0 foe keeping score at home...
 
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