Non-Key Tweets

[whaler11]

Or we could keep playing in front of friends and family with our Tulane/Tulsa/SMU schedules and needing to be 10 RPI slots better than a P5/Big East team to get a bid. In fact, how has seeding gone for the AAC teams in the last two years? UConn got an absurd 7 seed when we should have had a 4 or 5. The conference as a whole is losing 2 seeds a year on Selection Sunday for the teams that go, and each of the last two years, AAC teams have gotten totally screwed over on Selection Sunday.

So cancel football and give up any chance of getting to a league where that doesn't happen. Your face is going to miss your nose.

 

[Husky25]

If your argument is that no conference wants UConn, then why are we maintaining this spending level? It would be nice if someone on this board would have an argument that held together holistically.

Typical Muntz straw man...

I did not say no conference wants UConn. I said the Big East does not want one-off FBS football schools - with monster budgets by comparison - in their basketball only (on a revenue generating basis) conference.

Try comprehending what others are writing for a change instead of twisting opposing arguments into your false narrative. You seem a relatively intelligent person until you morph into Anne Savoy. "Having a conversation with you is like a Martian talking to a fungo."

 

[nelsonmuntz]

I love how you dismiss a years-long negotiating process that involved buy-in from every conference in football, ESPN, University Presidents and even the NCAA as a "technicality."

These are the rules that govern the sport for the foreseeable future.

Also you're completely misinterpreting the ESPN first right of refusal clause in the AAC's contract. Basically ESPN has the first right to MATCH whatever the market value is for the AAC's TV rights. This means that if NBC in a few years doubles our existing deal, ESPN has a right to match that number first.

ESPN is not setting the market rate for AAC broadcasting rights.

We can and will make more money off our television rights in the AAC than we will as an Independent. What sports network is going to pay UConn 2-3 million/year to broadcast our football games right now? Because that's what we would need to clear annually to even get the Independent conversation started.

Depaul's TV $ > UConn's TV $

If you don't think UConn's TV rights are worth $2MM on the open market, then why do you think any P5 league would ever add UConn?

You also keep arguing things I am not arguing. If you want to argue with yourself, i will step out. There are a few schools unhappy with their situation that appear to have alternatives. BYU, Boise, Navy and Army already have separate rights agreements. I will stipulate that we need some friends to do this.

The right of first refusal is a show stopper for anyone looking at buying the AAC TV rights. It was a stupid clause to have agreed to, and discourages any other network from seriously bidding on the property. Why would NBC or CBS go through the trouble of pricing out the Big East and putting a bid in if ESPN can just take it? I would be surprised if there are any other bidders next time around. ESPN will be able to get the entire league rights for $10MM a year if they want to. The AAC is absolutely crippled by this clause. It is a death sentence by itself, and if Aresco had two brain cells he would dissolve the league solely to avoid this clause.

 

[Kolumbo]

There is too much uncertainty now and things are going to likely change over the the next several years. The AAC may not be viable long term but things will change and the AAC is the best place to be today in anticipation of those changes. Don't prematurely pull the rug out by leaving the AAC.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

So cancel football and give up any chance of getting to a league where that doesn't happen. Your face is going to miss your nose.

Making things up. Not what I said.

 

[Husky25]

Show stoppers can be mitigated by poison pills.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Typical Muntz straw man...

I did not say no conference wants UConn. I said the Big East does not want one-off FBS football schools - with monster budgets by comparison - in their basketball only (on a revenue generating basis) conference.

Try comprehending what others are writing for a change instead of twisting opposing arguments into your false narrative. You seem a relatively intelligent person until you morph into Anne Savoy. "Having a conversation with you is like a Martian talking to a fungo."

I suspect each BE Basketball program is more profitable than all but the Top 3-5 G5 football programs. They are not afraid of anyone.

Fox would have to make the call, but as so many on here point out, Fox is not getting great ratings for the Big East so maybe they would like a 4 time NC winner to juice them. PC, SJU, SHU and Georgetown certainly liked selling out arenas for the Huskies.

 

[CTMike]

GUYS ITS BAD FOR US IF WE STAY IN THE AAC! WE SHOULDNT KEEP DOING THAT!

Thanks for that clarification, Nelson. Nobody is happy to be here and nobody wants to be here a minute longer than absolutely necessary. But every single alternative you propose is as bad or worse. Repeatedly saying we should do something about our situation doesn't make you the smartest man in the room. Of all our options (and they are all very ), the AAC is the least at this time.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Show stoppers can be mitigated by poison pills.

Aresco had a window to take a poison pill and as far as I know it never even came up. NBC put in the dogspit bid, ESPN matched it, and everyone shrugged their shoulders and Aresco said "now pay me $1 million".

The AAC should have dissolved when that happened, because that TV deal is the league's biggest problem, by far.

 

[whaler11]

Making things up. Not what I said.

Yes because you pretend this idiotic independence scheme is something other than ending the football program. It's the exact same thing.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

GUYS ITS BAD FOR US IF WE STAY IN THE AAC! WE SHOULDNT KEEP DOING THAT!

Thanks for that clarification, Nelson. Nobody is happy to be here and nobody wants to be here a minute longer than absolutely necessary. But every single alternative you propose is as bad or worse. Repeatedly saying we should do something about our situation doesn't make you the smartest man in the room. Of all our options (and they are all very ), the AAC is the least at this time.

You are describing inertia. That is a terrible reason to do anything.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Yes because you pretend this idiotic independence scheme is something other than ending the football program. It's the exact same thing.

Staying in the AAC = ending the football program. Why do you hate football so much?

 

[Husky25]

I suspect each BE Basketball program is more profitable than all but the Top 3-5 G5 football programs. They are not afraid of anyone.

Fox would have to make the call, but as so many on here point out, Fox is not getting great ratings for the Big East so maybe they would like a 4 time NC winner to juice them. PC, SJU, SHU and Georgetown certainly liked selling out arenas for the Huskies.

You can't even remotely prove this since most school in the Big East are private and do not have to publicize financials. Your speculation is not fact, and I will not be compelled to take it as such on this topic.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

You can't even remotely prove this since most school in the Big East are private and do not have to publicize financials. Your speculation is not fact, and I will not be compelled to take it as such on this topic.

It is easy to prove that almost all G5 football programs lose mountains of money.

 

[HistoryMajor]

The right of first refusal is a show stopper for anyone looking at buying the AAC TV rights. It was a stupid clause to have agreed to, and discourages any other network from seriously bidding on the property. Why would NBC or CBS go through the trouble of pricing out the Big East and putting a bid in if ESPN can just take it? I would be surprised if there are any other bidders next time around. ESPN will be able to get the entire league rights for $10MM a year if they want to. The AAC is absolutely crippled by this clause. It is a death sentence by itself, and if Aresco had two brain cells he would dissolve the league solely to avoid this clause.[/QUOTE]

Nelson - right of 1st refusal was indeed a death sentence for the AAC getting a good TV contract. No argument. BUT unless I've missed something, the current TV contract has no such Right of Refusal. Did I miss something?

Regarding staying in AAC vs exiting, no one is arguing AAC is great. The argument is that AAC is the best place for us at this time. In addition to the bowls, etc. , being in AAC maximizes our potential to get into a P5.

Nothing is forever. Your arguments do make sense but I believe your timing is off.

 

[noeynox]

The right of first refusal is a show stopper for anyone looking at buying the AAC TV rights. It was a stupid clause to have agreed to, and discourages any other network from seriously bidding on the property. Why would NBC or CBS go through the trouble of pricing out the Big East and putting a bid in if ESPN can just take it? I would be surprised if there are any other bidders next time around. ESPN will be able to get the entire league rights for $10MM a year if they want to. The AAC is absolutely crippled by this clause. It is a death sentence by itself, and if Aresco had two brain cells he would dissolve the league solely to avoid this clause.

Nelson - right of 1st refusal was indeed a death sentence for the AAC getting a good TV contract. No argument. BUT unless I've missed something, the current TV contract has no such Right of Refusal. Did I miss something?

Regarding staying in AAC vs exiting, no one is arguing AAC is great. The argument is that AAC is the best place for us at this time. In addition to the bowls, etc. , being in AAC maximizes our potential to get into a P5.

Nothing is forever. Your arguments do make sense but I believe your timing is off.[/QUOTE]
The right of first refusal was negotiated by his heroes at the old Big East.

 

[Exit 4]

Do we play Houston and Tulane in hockey? Can you name any non-revenue sports that would be better off in the AAC than the Big East?

The NCAA BB $$$'s are going to shrink rapidly, and we are in year 2 post Big East. The Big East's BB units are going to outpace ours by a lot going forward. We wouldn't realistically leave for another 2 years, so the exit fees are going to be mostly paid out by that point.

Your argument is pinned on the BE taking us back as a full charter member. I don't see that happening. We no longer fit their profile - small Jesuit schools w/o state backing. All but one is affiliated with a church. Even if we begged and denounced football before the Pope himself, the BE would refuse because we no longer are a match for the long run. And politically would it make sense for a state funded flagship university to be bound to a league of where 9 of 10 schools are catholic? Seems like a misfit and no longer befitting of a state funded institution. Once you accept the fact that the BE ship has sailed and that rebuilt BE ship never really had a seat for us, then what? What conf can we park our sports which are not football (to run independent per your plan) and hockey (has a home).

 

[Husky25]

It is easy to prove that almost all G5 football programs lose mountains of money.

You cannot prove that athletic departments at private schools are "profitable" without subsidy.

Un-provable premises are not evidence.

 

[NYUConn]

You cannot prove that athletic departments at private schools are "profitable" without subsidy.

Though he conveniently omits the fact that G5 school UConn did not in fact lose money last year.

So yeah, when UConn becomes FIU then let's talk.

 

[Kolumbo]

We avoided this Bottom 10, but did not escape the waiting list...
http://espn.go.com/college-football...s-scarlet-knights-move-bottom-10-another-loss

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Though he conveniently omits the fact that G5 school UConn did not in fact lose money last year.

So yeah, when UConn becomes FIU then let's talk.

What was UConn's subsidy, and how much of the revenue was exit fees?

40 years ago, Xerox could have creatively destroyed its business and harvested the incredible innovations coming out of its PARC facility, or it could have focused on selling more toner and paper. If it had done the former, today it would have been bigger than Google, Apple and IBM combined. It chose toner and paper. I see a lot of arguments here that are the realignment version of choosing toner and paper.

 

[Fishy]

So what's your plan, sport?

 

[MilliniumPrince]

Did the B1G designate the whole AAC as P5 qualifiers, or just UConn?

How did that AAC do on selection Sunday last March?

You would think it would be easy to understand.

WHAT?

Again, if independence is so great...nevermind man.

 

[NYUConn]

So what's your plan, sport?

Step 1: Leave the AAC.

Step 2: ???

Step 3: POWER CONFERENCE.

Cue the Underpants Gnomes.

 

[Dooley]

So let me get this straight: UConn's football program is showing a pulse for the first time in 3 years (including a substantial uptick in recruiting), the university is continuing to build academic relationships with other top AAU research universities (latest are Yale and Wisconsin), UConn hoops recruiting is back to elite levels, and now, the B1G just announced that we meet their "P5 profile" for scheduling IN FOOTBALL...and we are discussing crushing football and hoops again?!?!

NOBODY WANTS TO STAY IN THE AAC. NOT ME. NOT NELSON. NOT AACMAN. NOT WARDE. NOT DIACO. NOT HERBST. NOBODY. We are not discussing the benefits of staying in the AAC...we are discussing what is best for UConn to get into the P5. Shuffling around our entire athletic department (and paying unnecessary exit fees) when we're building so many relationships with the B1G is not the answer. Moving football Independent and permanently disabling our hoops program and sentencing it to a mid-major conference is not how to build relationships with the B1G.