Houston Chronicle exclusive: Texas, Oklahoma reach out to SEC about joining conference.

[whalerfan]

Random thoughts....

RE SEC and Texas-OU...

....there is a scene in Jurassic Park where Jeff Goldblum's character says re recreating dinosaurs..."you were so preoccupied with whether they could that you didn't think about whether you should."

The SEC is already the dominant force in the sport. It has the most marketable programs, soon the best TV deal, the largest fan bases and the most pro level talent. Now, that conference will poach two of the most storied programs in the country to add to what it already has.

The Big Ten and the SEC already make so much more money than the rest of the conferences that you could legitimately refer to them as the Power 2. The Big Ten brought in $782 million in 2020, according to a recent article in USA Today. The SEC, of course, was well over $700 million as well.

The playing field, never level, has now tilted drastically. We know who has a chance, a real chance, to win a national title. And it's about 10 to 12 teams total. And most of those are in the South. And most of those are in the Southeastern Conference. Which is about to get even stronger with the addition of two giant football powers. If it isn't Ohio State..it will be an SEC team as champ.

I have always thought that if you want to compete..recruit and play better. But with the creation of what amounts to two (really 1 1/2) superconferences splitting the money, there may be less opportunity to build a program.

The Big 12 is no more...the PAC hasn't been relevant for a while...the ACC can't compete in their own area with the SEC.

The college football world wonders how they can compete...I wonder if ESPN really wants them too.....Because judging by the numbers on those TV deals, it would appear ESPN is perfectly content with being SEC-PN every fall Saturday for the rest of our lives.

I love college football. The pageantry, mascots, traditions...I grew up as a fan...And have followed college ball for longer than most.

And, even in my optimism, I see the velociraptors running wild, with no way to get them back in the cage.

Rant off...I'll feel better when season starts.

While I agree with what you've said I would point out one fact that many seem to forget. There are so many more colleges/universities out there than the forty of so institutions in these conferences. We're here in the northeast. We have 18 pro teams (not including soccer) all within a 7 hour drive of Hartford. Nobody in Boston cares about BC athletics except for a week in February.

Our (Syracuse) friends in Bristol have had a field day with helping to destroy UConn despite getting incredible tax breaks.
This could come back to hurt them.

I am not likely to spend any time watching college football if it's not UConn. Nothing much more than stopping by to see what a score is and if Syracuse of BC is getting their butts whipped I'll stick around a bit. And that will go on when I move out of Connecticut as well.

I will however carve out an entire Sunday to watch NFL football.

That's my rant.

 

[Pudge]

"I love college football. The pageantry, mascots, traditions...I grew up as a fan...And have followed college ball for longer than most."

Look. My first view was UNION COLLEGE in Schenectady. My professor dad took me when there were no women students on campus; and pageantry, mascots, traditions ... and male cheerleaders + mud was a big thrill from my first viewing. We can still be a solid cfb program at UCONN and we still have little in common with Alabama; we don't recruit against them; we don't normally work with them on Wall Street or in the accounting/engineering/investment firms of New England; we aren't neighbors - until some of us retreat to Florida. We are now as separate as we are to the NFL. When I first saw Homer Jones, I knew he had nothing in common with the Union Dutchmen of my 5 year old eyes.

David Benedict has proven the value of Independent life. Our distress as the B12 implodes is virtually non-existent. We understand how Tulane feels; we feel the yearning of UCF and Cincinnati. We probably will get to play Temple and Navy more; a net benefit to our Program. I think the SEC sees more money. I think they are gonna lose a chunk of the country as this moves along. Particularly if NIL becomes a recruiting nightmare of corruption.

 

[Storrs South]

 

[billybud]

I guess it is regional...college ball vs NFL

Since, when I was a boy, there were no NFL teams in the south (Washington and St. Louis were the closest), we watched college football. And I watched college ball with my son who watches college ball, like dad and grandad did.

Even today, the only NFL game that I watch is the Superbowl.

I do now drive over to watch a West Carolina game once a year...Cullowhee is beautiful in the fall. After holding season tickets for 40 years to FSU, I gave them up. I spend most falls in North Carolina.

It reminds me of football when I was younger, when most teams weren't on TV. It was a game for fans in the stands.

And we would listen on the radio if we were not at the game...I can hear my boy now.."dad, don't bore people with talk about the way things were."

 

[gioff2323]

PAC12 Media Day Opening Address:

Someone queue up mountain west conf commish …..

 

[huskymedic]

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

Pete Thamel: Names for Missouri AD: ..........

Note, Mizzou President Chun Y Moi, ex-UConn Provost, EVP, and Dean of Engineering. Ideally, Moi was a PITA to work with during his UConn tenure.

 

[RSTuthill]

Note, Mizzou President Chun Y Moi, ex-UConn Provost, EVP, and Dean of Engineering. Ideally, Moi was a PITA to work with during his UConn tenure.

Materials guy, right?

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

Materials guy, right?

Nano stuff IIRC

 

[BlueDogs]

A little car wash info - I heard from a guy who knows a guy that the B1G move could be Kansas and UConn. Both teams suck in FB but are BB powerhouses and both offer nice markets. Gives Neb. a rival to beat on and also give Rutgers a playmate for some regional rivalry. Info Reliability scale unknown. Doesn’t seem to square with the mantra that any add must bring $50 M in revenue contribution, but the logic is pretty strong.

 

[uconndogs]

A little car wash info - I heard from a guy who knows a guy that the B1G move could be Kansas and UConn. Both teams suck in FB but are BB powerhouses and both offer nice markets. Gives Neb. a rival to beat on and also give Rutgers a playmate for some regional rivalry. Info Reliability scale unknown. Doesn’t seem to square with the mantra that any add must bring $50 M in revenue contribution, but the logic is pretty strong.

I think I have a pretty good idea of what the "info. reliability scale" is........

 

[MilliniumPrince]

BIG adds Connecticut and Colorado. Why? Because it would make me incredibly happy. Plus, they get to piss on the Pac 12. That's all i got.

 

[John]

A little car wash info - I heard from a guy who knows a guy that the B1G move could be Kansas and UConn. Both teams suck in FB but are BB powerhouses and both offer nice markets. Gives Neb. a rival to beat on and also give Rutgers a playmate for some regional rivalry. Info Reliability scale unknown. Doesn’t seem to square with the mantra that any add must bring $50 M in revenue contribution, but the logic is pretty strong.

Is this Basic Wash or Deluxe Supreme Wash level info?

 

[noeynox]

A little car wash info - I heard from a guy who knows a guy that the B1G move could be Kansas and UConn. Both teams suck in FB but are BB powerhouses and both offer nice markets. Gives Neb. a rival to beat on and also give Rutgers a playmate for some regional rivalry. Info Reliability scale unknown. Doesn’t seem to square with the mantra that any add must bring $50 M in revenue contribution, but the logic is pretty strong.

I know this is a joke, but they should make a play for Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas and UConn. The latter two wouldn't command full shares and you grab the last 4 land grants that matter/ draw viewers. Bypass 16 go straight to 18.

 

[Stinger92860]

A little car wash info - I heard from a guy who knows a guy that the B1G move could be Kansas and UConn. Both teams suck in FB but are BB powerhouses and both offer nice markets. Gives Neb. a rival to beat on and also give Rutgers a playmate for some regional rivalry. Info Reliability scale unknown. Doesn’t seem to square with the mantra that any add must bring $50 M in revenue contribution, but the logic is pretty strong.

Car wash? A guy, who knows a guy, who knows a guy? I’m in. We ask for 10M a year. UConn to the BIG!!!!!!

Thanks for sharing. Wouldn’t this be nice. I thought Rutger’s rivals were Maryland and PSU, no?

 

[hardcorehusky]

WVU AD Shane Lyons could jump ship to the SEC, too

Glad to see Benedict's name NOT on that list!

 

[huskymedic]

#monitoring:

 

[huskymedic]

#moremonitoring:




-> Boise State hired MRJ Advisors in November 2020, according to the documents, and the group visited Boise State’s campus and began gathering comparative information later that month. After Dickey and Avalos were hired in January, the firm presented its findings to the athletic department in February, using data collected from fiscal year 2019.

The group concluded that if Boise State can’t land in a Power Five conference, its best bet might be to stay in the Mountain West — in part because of the favorable cut of the conference’s TV money that goes to the Broncos, and also because institutional support and Boise State’s academic ratings lag behind many AAC schools, not to mention those competing at the pinnacle of the sport. <-

-> The Broncos’ main reason to stay — at least when it comes to possibly joining another Group of Five conference — begins with that favorable cut of the TV revenue, according to MRJ Advisors. The latest number available placed the value of Boise State’s extra benefit at $1.8 million, with a total TV payout of about $5.7 million.

“Boise State has a ‘preferred’ revenue share in the Mountain West Conference. We do not believe it is likely that other conferences would incorporate,” the group wrote in its presentation to members of the athletic department. “Also, there is currently not an increase in media revenue associated with the AAC compared to the MWC based upon current media contracts.” <-

 

[BlueDogs]

Car wash? A guy, who knows a guy, who knows a guy? I’m in. We ask for 10M a year. UConn to the BIG!!!!!!

Thanks for sharing. Wouldn’t this be nice. I thought Rutger’s rivals were Maryland and PSU, no?

Yes, I can 100% confirm it’s a guy who knows a guy who knows a guy.

 

[RSTuthill]

A little car wash info - I heard from a guy who knows a guy that the B1G move could be Kansas and UConn. Both teams suck in FB but are BB powerhouses and both offer nice markets. Gives Neb. a rival to beat on and also give Rutgers a playmate for some regional rivalry. Info Reliability scale unknown. Doesn’t seem to square with the mantra that any add must bring $50 M in revenue contribution, but the logic is pretty strong.

Actually this scenario is not so far fetched. A probability of perhaps less than 10%, but not vanishingly small. Not sure about Kansas, but UConn is not an AAU school and not likely to become one anytime soon unless they do something about their overhead rate. So there is that headwind too. Still, interesting.

 

[uconnfan68]

This is just Billy's opinion, but...

In the old days it was about regions and similar culture.

Now everything is driven by getting the best matchups for the available bandwidth on any given Saturday. This is what drives ratings, which is what drives advertising, which brings in the money. ESPN and Fox make the ad money and payout the tv contract money to the conferences.

They don’t care about population base. They care about marquee matchups that drive ratings. The SEC is mostly in small college towns but they have a huge ratings each Saturday because of the quality of the teams. Otherwise big city schools would dominate, but they don’t.

It’s about having top teams playing each other. ESPN doesn’t care if they all are in the same state or thousands of miles apart, as long as the matchups are good. That’s, I think, what’s going to be the catalyst for realignment.

I don’t watch the SEC, B1G, ACC, Big12, or especially ND. My main regret is that I’m not a Nielsen household.

 

[uconnfan68]

You think Texas has better lawyers than Disney?

 

[Rumrunner]

For the teams saying it, all this "monitoring the landscape" tripe is quite comical. I remember when UConn had the all-star monitoring team.

As an aside Utah was granted AAU admission, along with Dartmouth and UC Santa Cruz in 2019. UConn? Well, Herbst's efforts fell about as short as they could be with respect to this. She was as bad at growing research as she was as growing UConn's endowment. And everybody knows that a portion of research grants at UConn goes into the pension kitty, making UConn even more noncompetitive. So UConn is falling further behind other schools.

On a happier note, the also-rans of the Big 12 are soon to be in a worse fate than UConn, if that's possible.

 

[BlueDogs]

For the teams saying it, all this "monitoring the landscape" tripe is quite comical. I remember when UConn had the all-star monitoring team.

As an aside Utah was granted AAU admission, along with Dartmouth and UC Santa Cruz in 2019. UConn? Well, Herbst's efforts fell about as short as they could be with respect to this. She was as bad at growing research as she was as growing UConn's endowment. And everybody knows that a portion of research grants at UConn goes into the pension kitty, making UConn even more noncompetitive. So UConn is falling further behind other schools.

On a happier note, the also-rans of the Big 12 are soon to be in a worse fate than UConn, if that's possible.

We are the original leaders in CR monitoring. Nobody has done it better. Those other poor bastards have no idea how to take the repeated nut kicks we have.

 

[CL82]

When people talk about the American raiding the big 12 I wonder if they realize the big 12 schools will be splitting $160 million in exit fees.