Other than spite, why wouldn't the AAC keep UConn football on a reduced payout?

[StunningSteve]

shouldnt you be haunting a temple message board by now.

it’s an opposite constanza.

we are breaking up with you - because of you. it’s you.

I'm rooting for you Whaler11. I've got no hate in my heart.

At the end of the day its about the guys who wear the blue. It's not about the fans.

 

[John]

The men's basketball fanbase is estatic with the move. In general we hate the AAC and the AAC seems to hate us.

This could not be simpler.

Listening to what politicians say publically may be the silliest thing I’ve read yet.

 

[Dream Jobbed 2.0]

Whaler, I think you'll find that not to be the case. Now I have no doubt you loathe all those people and then some.

And that's probably why you feel that hateful gaze is aimed back... But it not.

Maybe you want it to be, but it's simply indifference. Just like Scott Frost's reaction to the rivalry trophy.

I think the conference has been very appreciative of UConn.

NO ONE really WANTS TO BE THERE

 

[John]

shouldnt you be haunting a temple message board by now.

it’s an opposite constanza.

we are breaking up with you - because of you. it’s you.

Actually breaking up because basketball and football couldn't carry the AAC water so we've decided to leave a big boy conference and run for cover.

 

[WrenchFan69]

Because each of the AAC teams will make more money under the TV deal without UConn (1 less mouth to feed). UConn was a very valuable BB member. FB - not so much. The travel costs are significant with very little payoffs. Most AAC teams would do better financially by scheduling an OOC game against a local CUSA team (Rice, UNT, UTSA, UAB, Marshall, etc).

Plus - the AAC is tied into ESPN. UConn is now a Fox property. Unless ESPN tells the AAC to keep UConn (unlikely), the AAC will probably stay at 11 just like the Big 12 stayed at 10.

If the AAC expands, look for them to target Colorado State, Army, or BYU (scheduling agreement)

One less mouth to feed and a contract to be negotiated down. Seeing how competitors are giving us ~$6m for non-football content, I'd say our all-in value to ESPN is probably somewhere similar. There's no way ESPN lets them keep the money. 12 years of AAV is $84m.

 

[Madmannsucks]

Pretty simple to me. They took all the sports that have any value from the conference. The football team has no following(attendance or TV). Who wants to broadcast a 59-27 loss in a 40000 seat stadium with between 3000 to 12000 fans?

 

[jrazz12]

Actually breaking up because basketball and football couldn't carry the AAC water so we've decided to leave a big boy conference and run for cover.

Yeah "big boy conference."

UCF's 25-0 record getting shunned from playoff consideration would like a word with you

 

[MustangMan]

One less mouth to feed and a contract to be negotiated down. Seeing how competitors are giving us ~$6m for non-football content, I'd say our all-in value to ESPN is probably somewhere similar. There's no way ESPN lets them keep the money. 12 years of AAV is $84m.

UConn took all the valuable content (BB). If ESPN gets a discount, it will be for the loss of basketball games. Football has little to no value.

Why would the AAC (or ESPN) pay anything to keep UConn FB?

 

[UConnRock]

How much will SNY or some other entity pay for full control of UConn football broadcasts as an independent? That is likely a discussion that has already occurred. Is there any value? Is there a package with UConn women and potentially other sports? We are not BYU, buy there is certainly more interest than other independent schools such as UMass or Army.

I refuse to believe that SNY was not a player in this decision. They had a cash cow in the women's program that was eliminated by the AAC contract.

 

[John]

Yeah "big boy conference."

UCF's 25-0 record getting shunned from playoff consideration would like a word with you

If it's not all-sports then it's not big time.

 

[whaler11]

Yeah there are 8 people mad. No offense to you - but most of them aren’t exactly the top brass.

 

[John]

Yeah there are 8 people mad. No offense to you - but most of them aren’t exactly the top brass.

I guess its 8 people with half a clue then

 

[pepband99]

It would have been close before the addition of UConn. I wonder if it will be more now, without football. Agree re SNY side deals. I wonder about the impact on our Nike and IMG deals but we've just renegotiated them.

Hmmmmm.

Perhaps this actually answers the timing question (i.e. why "now"), right @Excalibur and @Fishy ?

 

[StunningSteve]

NO ONE really WANTS TO BE THERE

Don't mistake rubbing one out to Playboy to being unsatisfied with your wife.

Sure, who wouldn't want to be with Pam Anderson.. but, at the end of the day, no one is trading a spot in the 6th richest conference for anything short of a winning lottery ticket, unless their school is in utter financial ruin.

 

[StunningSteve]

Yeah "big boy conference."

UCF's 25-0 record getting shunned from playoff consideration would like a word with you

Auburns undefeated record got shunned in the SEC in 2004. That's a political game.

 

[Dream Jobbed 2.0]

Don't mistake rubbing one out to Playboy to being unsatisfied with your wife.

Sure, who wouldn't want to be with Pam Anderson.. but, at the end of the day, no one is trading a spot in the 6th richest conference for anything short of a winning lottery ticket, unless their school is in utter financial ruin.

The Pam Anderson reference shows you are super in touch.

 

[StunningSteve]

The Pam Anderson reference shows you are super in touch.

Do they still have Playmates? You choose your analogies and you live with their associations.

 

[CL82]

no one is trading a spot in the 6th richest conference for anything short of a winning lottery ticket, unless their school is in utter financial ruin.

Lol, Steve, I'm not a cheerleader for this deal, but the American's status as the G5 conference with the best gross media deal really doesn't justify lumping it in with the P5. FWIW, on a net basis particularly, I think the next NBE deal will be better than American's deal, and that's without football. UConn will bemuch better off financially when you add in the likely T3 rights sale to SNY.... and we still will won't be close to the P5 schools.

That doesn't make the move the right choice, necessarily. Respectfully, your attempt to equate the American with the P5 is silly.

 

[Madmannsucks]

The Pam Anderson reference shows you are super in touch.

Even LOUIE Anderson is more relevant than Pam.

 

[Pudge]

Pretty simple to me. They took all the sports that have any value from the conference. The football team has no following(attendance or TV). Who wants to broadcast a 59-27 loss in a 40000 seat stadium with between 3000 to 12000 fans?

You're just Mad because OUR GIRLS are worth more than your damnable "like-every-other" Football team in the south. Truth is ... it is a pittance.

 

[Dream Jobbed 2.0]

Even LOUIE Anderson is more relevant than Pam.

I’ve been seeing ads for his upcoming special. I loved “Life with Louie” as a kid.

 

[WrenchFan69]

UConn took all the valuable content (BB). If ESPN gets a discount, it will be for the loss of basketball games. Football has little to no value.

Why would the AAC (or ESPN) pay anything to keep UConn FB?

ESPN will want a conference championship game. If the NCAA says they need divisions to have one, they're going to add someone. There is no better option that would join than us. And we'd take a reduced payout on top of that fact. Not only is whoever else they'd consider a worse value, they also would probably want a path to a full payout down the line.

 

[Pudge]

Lol, Steve, I'm not a cheerleader for this deal, but the American's status as the G5 conference with the best gross media deal really doesn't justify lumping it in with the P5. FWIW, on a net basis particularly, I think the next NBE deal will be better than American's deal, and that's without football. UConn will be financially better much better off when you add in the likely T3 rights sale to SNY.

That doesn't make the move the right choice, necessarily. Respectfully, your attempt to equate the American with the P5 is silly.

Exactly right.

The economics - short term - clearly favor the Big East for us. It just is that simple no matter what someone from Memphis or Dallas wants to intuit. We need to make this move - IMHO - because our Fanbase were tired of soulless games against most of a league we don't care about. Indy is going to suck; we won't have any path to P5 (even though our Athletic Excellence is better than about 55 of those schools). We bit the bullitt. And it isn't easy. But it is not for whatever you think the economics will be. If Memphis with Penny is top 4 in the country, we still are going to prefer going to Philly to see UConn play Villanova or MSG to see a handful of these BE.

 

[StunningSteve]

Lol, Steve, I'm not a cheerleader for this deal, but the American's status as the G5 conference with the best gross media deal really doesn't justify lumping it in with the P5. FWIW, on a net basis particularly, I think the next NBE deal will be better than American's deal, and that's without football. UConn will be financially better much better off when you add in the likely T3 rights sale to SNY.

That doesn't make the move the right choice, necessarily. Respectfully, your attempt to equate the American with the P5 is silly.

Sure, its easy to claim "status" but what does that mean? It's always going to be an arms race. Once access was negotiated into the NY6, the objective was to separate financially in the race for that bid (so its as close to a defacto New Years Day bowl as possible).
On top of that, negotiating a bowl slate with primarily autonomy teams was important, and achieved for the most part.
Increasing linear coverage on ESPN with payouts that approach 10 million with all of the revenue streams included, is pretty decent.

I don't think anyone knows what the landscape will look like by the time the NBE's 12 year deal runs out. Right now UConn's addition is a Hail Mary pass from Fox to try and bolster ratings to justify the current 4 million.

That's not a good sign for what's to come of Catholic basketball on that fledgling channel. There are many reasons why it hasn't gotten Old Big East like ratings for the watered down version.

 

[CL82]

Sure, its easy to claim "status" but what does that mean? It's always going to be an arms race. Once access was negotiated into the NY6, the objective was to separate financially in the race for that bid (so its as close to a defacto New Years Day bowl as possible).
On top of that, negotiating a bowl slate with primarily autonomy teams was important, and achieved for the most part.
Increasing linear coverage on ESPN with payouts that approach 10 million with all of the revenue streams included, is pretty decent.

I don't think anyone knows what the landscape will look like by the time the NBE's 12 year deal runs out. Right now UConn's addition is a Hail Mary pass from Fox to try and bolster ratings to justify the current 4 million.

That's not a good sign for what's to come of Catholic basketball on that fledgling channel. There are many reasons why it hasn't gotten Old Big East like ratings for the watered down version.

Missing the point Steve. It is dumb to treat the American and P5 leagues as equivalent. They aren't. But UConn will make more money in year 1 of joining the NBE, with the existing contract, than it will make in the American. Remember that the $7.2M is the figure for the the end of the deal and is before each school paying for its own production costs. It was hardly a windfall.