Key tweets, and it's all gone to Hell.

[Exit 4]

The ultimate irony in this entire thing would be St John’s leaving at UConn staying

Some would be happy - sad fact

 

[UConn Dan]

Some would be happy - sad fact

Imagine if Big12 took St John’s, Nova and gtown but not us. What would the pro Big East crowd think then? It’s a dog eat dog world. We got to make this push

 

[CoastAtlantic]

Wouldn't the CW deal make the ACC a player to get UConn? That type of linear exposure for third tier games can only help to enhance their presence in the Northeast.

 

[UConn Dan]

Wouldn't the CW deal make the ACC a player to get UConn? That type of linear exposure for third tier games can only help to enhance their presence in the Northeast.

I don’t think it’s for money to the schools. It was transferred from the old Raycom deal with Fox Regional networks that no longer exist

 

[Dooooooomed]

Interesting last 4:40 with Dusty Dvoracek...

https://post.futurimedia.com/kfaqam/playlist/listen-13075.html

 

[Slasher]

Got a link?

Real Cincy fans are on the 24/7 site. CSNBBS is a cesspool in general.

 

[businesslawyer]

Traditions have to start somewhere.

I remember the days when Alabama played significant home games in Birmingham.

And Arkansas played home games every year in Little Rock.

 

[GoKU]

The best bet is still Colorado and UConn. Hopefully this is done in two weeks or less.

 

[Big Loubowski]

Interesting last 4:40 with Dusty Dvoracek...

https://post.futurimedia.com/kfaqam/playlist/listen-13075.html

Are these guys legit?

 

[UConn Dan]

Are these guys legit?

I can’t vouch for them, but that’s a Tulsa based radio show that covers Oklahoma State and the guy that said something was dropping, Dusty dvoracek, used to play for Oklahoma.

 

[ctchamps]

Virginia and UNC are locks to the big 10 if the acc falls apart. Texas and Oklahoma have shown that being a big fish in a small pond is worth less than 100 million a year.

As for the B12 tv deal, part of it is that they are offering networks 20% more inventory than before. Add in the inflation in sport tv deals since the previous contract was signed, it's not hard to get to the $32 million figure they ended up at.

The real genius from Yormack was getting the contract done before the PAC 12. It removed demand/money from the market and offered certainty to the league.

Thanks for responding. So based on your response who gains by adding UConn or any of the PAC schools and at whose expense? You hypothesize the sale of content was a part of the increase and that the PAC was late to the table and therefore it’s content is devalued. Why is Yormack pushing for more schools?

Fox owns UConn’s content on the cheap. Why would they want to trade UConn in the low ball BE for the B12?

Are they afraid the BIG could someday have their network go independent and want to strengthen a third conference as security against some future possibility as this?

 

[GG]

Thanks for responding. So based on your response who gains by adding UConn or any of the PAC schools and at whose expense? You hypothesize the sale of content was a part of the increase and that the PAC was late to the table and therefore it’s content is devalued. Why is Yormack pushing for more schools?

Fox owns UConn’s content on the cheap. Why would they want to trade UConn in the low ball BE for the B12?

Are they afraid the BIG could someday have their network go independent and want to strengthen a third conference as security against some future possibility as this?

I have heard the networks prefer larger leagues with teams across all time zones. Fox already has the expanded BIG 10. If the Big 12 adds more teams, they may have enough content that there is no need to bid on the PAC, Big East or other content.

 

[Blades]

I have heard the networks prefer larger leagues with teams across all time zones. Fox already has the expanded BIG 10. If the "Big 12 adds more teams" , they may have enough content that there is no need to bid on the PAC, Big East or other content.

Hmmm where have we seen that move before ? Or at least move parts to one conference you own (the ACC), so you can put a low ball bid in on the conference ( the old Big East) who's gonna be a free agent. I'd love to see Uconn moved to a P-5, to get "used " this way for a change ...

Did ESPN Force ACC/Big East Realignment? ​

 

[Exit 4]

Hmmm where have we seen that move before ? Or at least move parts to one conference you own (the ACC), so you can put a low ball bid in on the conference ( the old Big East) who's gonna be a free agent. I'd love to see Uconn moved to a P-5, to get "used " this way for a change ...

Did ESPN Force ACC/Big East Realignment? ​

Of course-

 

[How Sway?!]

Thanks for responding. So based on your response who gains by adding UConn or any of the PAC schools and at whose expense? You hypothesize the sale of content was a part of the increase and that the PAC was late to the table and therefore it’s content is devalued. Why is Yormack pushing for more schools?

Fox owns UConn’s content on the cheap. Why would they want to trade UConn in the low ball BE for the B12?

Are they afraid the BIG could someday have their network go independent and want to strengthen a third conference as security against some future possibility as this?

Adding UConn gets them real east coast presence. Not to mention a national brand comparable to only Kansas. Adding Colorado would get them into a fast growing state with a solid fan base. Easy to see why the B12 would want to bring them on board.

As for fox, in addition to more inventory to sell advertising on, it gives them more high profile games, especially in basketball. For ESPN, it's simple, they need brands and large alumni base for ESPN+. UConn and Colorado or any of the other pac 12 schools tick those two boxes.

 

[Duncan Idaho]

Of course-

Yeah, Flipper was fired soon after opening his mouth. Odd for an Athletic Director that just finished steering them into the ACC

 

[ctchamps]

I have heard the networks prefer larger leagues with teams across all time zones. Fox already has the expanded BIG 10. If the Big 12 adds more teams, they may have enough content that there is no need to bid on the PAC, Big East or other content.

I believe this is part of the story. Equally important is that the universities who control the power conferences have the power to control events. And I believe those events are the continuation of consolidation.

It is really about money. Football was the greatest money maker and easiest sport to consolidate because it was not under the NCAA's control regarding monetary distribution.

Basketball is the next biggest money maker. We have already seen an effort made by the university powers to game this sport to their advantage when they were given a disproportionate number of individuals on the tournament selection committees.

It would be naive to ignore that the next pot of gold is the consolidation of bb. Instead of distributing the basketball tournament"s monetary pie among the current NCAA formula there will be some 40 to some number approaching 100 universities (the number determined by the university power brokers based who is in control and on how they can obtain the most money for themselves) who will hive away from the NCAA and get that equivalent pot. It is not the 6 million vs 50 million vs 100 million dollars conferences are currently receiving that should be our primary focus as observers in this drama. The primary focus, even if we are mens basketball centric only fans, is to decide if we want to be in or out of that consolidated entity.

Yes the networks (or streaming entities) are a factor in this process but any or all of them can be circumvented by the platforms providing the content. The Big 10 network has demonstrated this. The partnerships that we see today are very unlikely to exist in the future.

Even though I support all UConn sports my first love is UConn mens bb and my nostalgic love is absolutely with the BE. But my projection of events and the belief that they will happen sooner than we think forces me to advocate getting into the B12 if offered. The product that even the best coach available could provide will never be as good if UConn finds itself on the outside of the consolidated entity.

Furthermore I do not believe Yormack is a one hit wonder. He's a visionary who has proven himself and probably has a flexible plan to bring those universities associated with him to have the greatest chance of being alongside the SEC and BIG in the whatever form Division 1 sports exists. I don't think I'd bet against him to figure out a way to make the B12 as powerful or more powerful than the SEC or BIG even though it's a long shot.

 

[Blades]

Great listen from a former Husky who lays it out on his research/pet project regarding Uconn-Big 12 talk ( even vs. Big East hoops, future changes in college sports, CT HS FB talent, etc).......Smart guy, starts it off on the CR stuff about half way through.

 

[ScottVib]

Fox owns UConn’s content on the cheap. Why would they want to trade UConn in the low ball BE for the B12?

I think the volume of top-end marketable matchups are higher in the Big XII than the Big East (taking off the nostalgia, UConn fans may value some of the old names, but the struggles of those schools have damaged their brand outside of Big East nostalgists). Right now the top end value is clearly UConn-Villanova (which you get twice currently, but might only get once should they expand). If St. John's were to make a leap forward with Pitino they'd fly up the list as a potential pairing, but outside of that you end up with UConn - Creighton and falling down the tier from there to whatever batch of Marquette, Providence, Xavier etc that is ranked). Within the Big XII you have UConn - Kansas, UConn - Baylor as battles of recent national champions to start on the top end. Your next tier is UConn - Houston, etc; still a matchup of recent final four teams. The relative strength of the Big XII provides a higher number of those second tier matchups with whomever ends up ranked.

I do think that Yormark is likely correct that basketball rights are undervalued and given the concentration of the football brands in conferences with much higher payouts, the easiest place for the Big XII to add value ahead of their next rights deal in 2031 is in basketball (while hoping to incubate some of the G5 football programs they added with the additional funds in the Big XII, UConn potentially included).

 

[drayenob]

 

[jostar1]

This is an interesting interview with the AD of BYU, Tom Holmoe. He talks about the process of being invited to join the Big 12 going back to the 2016 dog and pony show of several teams (including UConn). He talks about expansion starting at 10:19. As he says, he's been on both sides. He says they are getting close to where it will happen or it won't. He says that you can't go through a football season with it up in the air. The window will close before the Fall.

 

[NE Football]

I think the Big 12 is focused on the PAC 12 teams whether it happens this year or in 5-6 years. Also, I wouldn’t be surprised if the Big 12, PAC 12 and the ACC merge into one conference to compete with the SEC and the B1G. A national 36 team conference that controls a ton of content. A lot depends on whether Disney sells off ESPN. Right now ESPN has their hands tied by Disney.

 

[jostar1]

Aaron Torres says that it is Colorado and UConn. I doubt he has any insider info, though.

 

[Jimdish255]

I think the Big 12 is focused on the PAC 12 teams whether it happens this year or in 5-6 years. Also, I wouldn’t be surprised if the Big 12, PAC 12 and the ACC merge into one conference to compete with the SEC and the B1G. A national 36 team conference that controls a ton of content. A lot depends on whether Disney sells off ESPN. Right now ESPN has their hands tied by Disney.

Ever hear of the term "herding cats?"
You're asking to bring a lot of competing interests, ideologies and leaderships together without any evidence as to how this might happen. And also ignoring how their contracts are structured and not at all in sync. It's really hard to see how or why the Big12 would do this if they're in a strong position at the end of the ACC contract. But lot can happen between now and then.

 

[Jimdish255]

Aaron Torres says that it is Colorado and UConn. I doubt he has any insider info, though.

I think he does his homework and is pretty up front about whether a tip is corroborated or just a single source. Aside from that doesn't seem to have a specific agenda but is always honest about his allegiances. Nobody is completely objective though some pretend to be. He doesn't.