NHL realignment has absolutely nothing to do with college sports, or...

[upstater]

does it?

The only commonality is that teams like the Dallas Stars complained a lot about having to go to Phoenix to play multiple times during the year. It kills TV ratings to have to play so often two time zones away. The Dallas owner is on record as saying he'd much rather play Winnipeg, even though Winnipeg is much further away.

What does this have to do with anything?

Well, if it's true that realignment is all about television, then you're going to have to try very hard to imagine Texas playing in the Pac-10. It's just not going to happen--and the B12 might not be going away.

Why? It might kill TV for Texas teams. That's why.

 

[HuskyHawk]

does it?

The only commonality is that teams like the Dallas Stars complained a lot about having to go to Phoenix to play multiple times during the year. It kills TV ratings to have to play so often two time zones away. The Dallas owner is on record as saying he'd much rather play Winnipeg, even though Winnipeg is much further away.

What does this have to do with anything?

Well, if it's true that realignment is all about television, then you're going to have to try very hard to imagine Texas playing in the Pac-10. It's just not going to happen--and the B12 might not be going away.

Why? It might kill TV for Texas teams. That's why.

Differnt thread...so here I will absolutely agree. It's why I thought Boise and SDSU to the then NNBE was idiotic. TV ratings would suck on one coast or the other. UConn fans under 50 might stay up past midnight for a game against SDSU, but nobody else will.

 

[SubbaBub]

Forget the A12, ladies and gentlemen, the Eastern Standard Conference.

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[IMind]

I agree somewhat, but it's probably more of a hardship for a moved/small market franchise that no one gives a crap about, like the Stars, than say the Blackhawks.

Hockey's biggest issue has always been over expansion. How many times are they going to put a franchise in Atlanta and have it fail miserably?

 

[upstater]

I agree somewhat, but it's probably more of a hardship for a moved/small market franchise that no one gives a crap about, like the Stars, than say the Blackhawks.

Hockey's biggest issue has always been over expansion. How many times are they going to put a franchise in Atlanta and have it fail miserably?

It's a matter of your biggest demographic (i.e. parents raising small children) having to stay up to watch games that begin at 10 pm. It really is hard to do.

 

[SubbaBub]

Hockey is a need to be there sport. They should be wherever they can sell out arenas. They should try to be the Vegas of sport not stogy like MLB or corporate like NFL or hip like the NBA.

Be what your fan base says you are loud, blue collar, regional, a little drunk and a little Canadian.

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[IMind]

ACC expansion does remind me of hockey. You're taking a northern product and trying to shoe horn it into a market where it doesn't fit. Where just from a cultural perspective the B1G expansion makes more sense. Things might get better for BC with the new schools... but who knows.

 

[Vowelguy]

Well, if it's true that realignment is all about television, then you're going to have to try very hard to imagine Texas playing in the Pac-10. It's just not going to happen--and the B12 might not be going away.

Why? It might kill TV for Texas teams. That's why.

Completely different.

(1) The main college product is football. Games are on Saturday; they'd never schedule a late game. Thus, a non issue for the main sport.

(2) A west coast hockey game will start at 7:30 (so folks can get to the game), which is 9:30 in Dallas. And games are 3 hours long. Given that pro sports have cheapened their regular seasons, yes, expecting someone to stay up until 12:30 where there are 79 other games to watch is a problem.

A west coast basketball game could easily start at 7. Who is not going to watch a 9-11 pm basketball game a few times a year?

(3) Individual teams have more control in pro sports -- they get the money from their TV partner so their interest is in *their* station's ratings, not the opposing team's station. In a conference, the TV revenue is shared, so you want to get the biggest ratings possible.

 

[upstater]

Completely different.

(1) The main college product is football. Games are on Saturday; they'd never schedule a late game. Thus, a non issue for the main sport.

(2) A west coast hockey game will start at 7:30 (so folks can get to the game), which is 9:30 in Dallas. And games are 3 hours long. Given that pro sports have cheapened their regular seasons, yes, expecting someone to stay up until 12:30 where there are 79 other games to watch is a problem.

A west coast basketball game could easily start at 7. Who is not going to watch a 9-11 pm basketball game a few times a year?

(3) Individual teams have more control in pro sports -- they get the money from their TV partner so their interest is in *their* station's ratings, not the opposing team's station. In a conference, the TV revenue is shared, so you want to get the biggest ratings possible.

They play college football games at 8 pm all the time. Pac-10 is always playing late at night.
These concerns about being two different time zones away were voiced heavily by Texas last year.

 

[Vowelguy]

They play college football games at 8 pm all the time. Pac-10 is always playing late at night.
These concerns about being two different time zones away were voiced heavily by Texas last year.

The PAC plays late at night when its two west coast teams. They avoid direct competition with the 8pm games, and hit primetime in the west. It's a win-win. But if Texas were in your league, why would you kill half your audience potential by having a game at 10pm?

Answer: they wouldnt.

 

[pj]

does it?

The only commonality is that teams like the Dallas Stars complained a lot about having to go to Phoenix to play multiple times during the year. It kills TV ratings to have to play so often two time zones away. The Dallas owner is on record as saying he'd much rather play Winnipeg, even though Winnipeg is much further away.

What does this have to do with anything?

Well, if it's true that realignment is all about television, then you're going to have to try very hard to imagine Texas playing in the Pac-10. It's just not going to happen--and the B12 might not be going away.

Why? It might kill TV for Texas teams. That's why.

Interesting point but I'm not so sure. First, it doesn't apply to football, only to evening sports like basketball. Second, when Texas plays at, say, UCLA or USC under a Pac12 umbrella, the game loses audience in Texas but picks up an increased audience in the Pacific Time Zone which has a lot more people. As far as Tier 3 rights retained by the school are concerned, the home games to which Texas has the rights are all in the Central Time Zone. By having games in multiple time zones, the league as a whole covers more time slots and can pick up a larger audience; it is easier for hardcore fans to watch multiple games if they're not all at the same time.

The NHL is a special situation in that its primary distribution is through local team networks. That doesn't apply to most top colleges.

 

[WestHartHusk]

does it?

It does - because Connecticut has been bent over by both.

 

[upstater]

Interesting point but I'm not so sure. First, it doesn't apply to football, only to evening sports like basketball. Second, when Texas plays at, say, UCLA or USC under a Pac12 umbrella, the game loses audience in Texas but picks up an increased audience in the Pacific Time Zone which has a lot more people. As far as Tier 3 rights retained by the school are concerned, the home games to which Texas has the rights are all in the Central Time Zone. By having games in multiple time zones, the league as a whole covers more time slots and can pick up a larger audience; it is easier for hardcore fans to watch multiple games if they're not all at the same time.

The NHL is a special situation in that its primary distribution is through local team networks. That doesn't apply to most top colleges.

I think for Texas the concern is for its own fans, not the fans that it may pick up on the west coast.

 

[Husky25]

I think for Texas the concern is for its own fans, not the fans that it may pick up on the west coast.

Isn't Texas coming up with the Longhorn Network? They are not really like most top colleges. They're special .

 

[upstater]

Isn't Texas coming up with the Longhorn Network? They are not really like most top colleges. They're special .

They already have the LHN. It's already on cable. But Texas gave up its tiered 1 + 2 rights to the B12.