OT: Realignment?

[Jbirdp5]

Flugempire on Twitter who I know is either connected or full of it depending who you ask says 4 to 6 pac 12 teams to the big ten is what fox sports is trying to help facilitate. Usc UCLA are the definites from his “source”

 

[aburks41]

Flugempire on Twitter who I know is either connected or full of it depending who you ask says 4 to 6 pac 12 teams to the big ten is what fox sports is trying to help facilitate. Usc UCLA are the definites from his “source”

This guy pops up every few years and just makes wild predictions hoping one of them will come true. He has no inside knowledge unless he is a cable exec or has the contacts to talk to every university president (which he doesn’t)

 

[Chin Diesel]

Flugempire on Twitter who I know is either connected or full of it depending who you ask says 4 to 6 pac 12 teams to the big ten is what fox sports is trying to help facilitate. Usc UCLA are the definites from his “source”

The concept that Fox would consolidate its strongest assets to counter ESPN consolidating its strongest assets isn't exactly earth shattering.

 

[Vuce]

UNC and UVA are in the Big 10 talks. They would never ever ever go to the SEC. Academics are too important for them. Vanderbilt and UF are the outliers, not the norm.

Except for the academics part where UNC set up fake classes for hoops and football players to stay eligible for a decade or more. Other than that they care

 

[nelsonmuntz]

UNC and UVA are in the Big 10 talks. They would never ever ever go to the SEC. Academics are too important for them. Vanderbilt and UF are the outliers, not the norm.

How are UNC and UVA getting out of their ACC GOR before 2035? Magic?

On the other hand, it appears that the Big 12 GOR is not really a GOR if Texas and Oklahoma can write a check and leave.

 

[Waquoit]

Your premise is off, because the measurement of concern is not national brand recognition, it's size of hardcore fanbase. The two are nominally linked insofar as you can convert some number of fringe aware people into hardcore fans, but local culture plays a much bigger role than casual recognition.

It's also not that our DMA was great, it's that our hardcore fanbase is almost assuredly ranked even worse since our football program generates us basically 0 additional fans.

Your premise is off. UConn fans are why I can still get SNY while NESN and YES have been dropped. With friends like this...

 

[aburks41]

How are UNC and UVA getting out of their ACC GOR before 2035? Magic?

On the other hand, it appears that the Big 12 GOR is not really a GOR if Texas and Oklahoma can write a check and leave.

By paying a $50M exit fee. I’m not saying they’re going anywhere, but it does seem like the Big 10 and SEC are on their way to becoming their own league. Think about it, if UNC and UVA go to the Big 10 and Clemson/FSU go to the SEC, what does the ACC have left? It would basically be the old big east + Duke lol

And then at that point the only programs left to scoop up would be USC, Stanford, UCLA, and Oregon.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

By paying a $50M exit fee. I’m not saying they’re going anywhere, but it does seem like the Big 10 and SEC are on their way to becoming their own league. Think about it, if UNC and UVA go to the Big 10 and Clemson/FSU go to the SEC, what does the ACC have left? It would basically be the old big east + Duke lol

And then at that point the only programs left to scoop up would be USC, Stanford, UCLA, and Oregon.

Is there a $50MM exit fee from the ACC and a team can leave? I honestly have no idea. A Grant-of-Rights means that the league owns a school's media rights to the end of the contract, so I assumed that the ACC and Big 12 schools had no way out of their leagues, but apparently Texas and Oklahoma can pay a $75MM fee and leave the Big 12. I guess all GORs are not really GORs.

 

[aburks41]

Is there a $50MM exit fee from the ACC and a team can leave? I honestly have no idea. A Grant-of-Rights means that the league owns a school's media rights to the end of the contract, so I assumed that the ACC and Big 12 schools had no way out of their leagues, but apparently Texas and Oklahoma can pay a $75MM fee and leave the Big 12. I guess all GORs are not really GORs.

With the amount of money involved, nothing is ever concrete. Lawyers will always figure something out

 

[nelsonmuntz]

With the amount of money involved, nothing is ever concrete. Lawyers will always figure something out

If it is a true GOR, there is not much the lawyers can do. This is like selling your house, and then changing your mind 8 years later and seeing if the lawyers "can figure something out". That is not how it works. UNC and Florida have already sold their media rights. They can't just get them back because they think they can get a better deal somewhere else.

The Big 12's GOR doesn't appear to be quite a GOR as much as a very high buyout. We will see.

 

[WestHartHusk]

Or, counterpoint, we should not waste our time on things that have no change of happening.

What else have we got going on?

 

[CL82]

ACC is getting raided next.

Unlikely. They still get north of $30 million per school immediate money, I believe. And, they’ve got the longest GOR. I’m not saying a GOR is unbreakable, but the longer the term the more expensive breaking it would likely be.

 

[CL82]

What else have we got going on?

Conference realignment speculation has been a godsend during the off-season.

 

[borninansonia]

Latest conference realignment rumor states SEC in 'serious contact' with UM, OSU

Latest conference realignment rumor states SEC in 'serious contact' with UM, OSU

Could you picture a Big Ten that doesn’t include Michigan and Ohio State? That is apparently a possibility if you believe this latest rumor on conference realignment.

spartanswire.usatoday.com

 

[TRest]

Latest conference realignment rumor states SEC in 'serious contact' with UM, OSU

Latest conference realignment rumor states SEC in 'serious contact' with UM, OSU

Could you picture a Big Ten that doesn’t include Michigan and Ohio State? That is apparently a possibility if you believe this latest rumor on conference realignment.

spartanswire.usatoday.com

Do it. Dooo ittt.

 

[WestCoastHusky]

Latest conference realignment rumor states SEC in 'serious contact' with UM, OSU

Latest conference realignment rumor states SEC in 'serious contact' with UM, OSU

Could you picture a Big Ten that doesn’t include Michigan and Ohio State? That is apparently a possibility if you believe this latest rumor on conference realignment.

spartanswire.usatoday.com

Anything is possible at this point with the new NIL and 12 teams playoff format. SEC is collecting teams to form a truly P1. It will be basically NFL lite. Will OSU and Michigan listen? They have to be paying attention if money is right. I doubt Fox Sports will let ESPN steal 2 of its biggest assets though. I think B1G will raid the PAC-12 for 6 teams to form a 20 team super conference of its own. Since PAC-12 media rights is about to be expiring, the timing works. It is not hard to imagine a super B1G adding USC, UCLA, Cal, Stanford, Washington, and Colorado/Oregon. It will get those 6 PAC-12 schools up to B1G payout level while ditching leeches like Washington State, Oregon State, and Utah. The leftover PAC-12 schools can combine with leftover B12 to form a second tier conference.

 

[Tiamat7]

The argument that it’s irrelevant is as outdated as worrying about cable media markets. A colleague of mine moved to the Boston area from Austin. Her 11 year old daughter is a huge UConn basketball fan. From Texas. First thing she wanted to do was go to Storrs to see them. I really don’t think there is a college sports team aside from maybe Notre Dame football that has a broader fan base. Are they rabid? No, they are casual and that’s the downfall. But in a national streaming format, which is where we are headed, the sheer volume matters. The UConn women would outdraw over half the men’s teams nationally. Easy.

No idea how this shakes out. But I think they are a relevant advantage in this climate. Need football to be semi ok and need Hurley to get us into the top 25.

Good points. It might be helpful to frame this from the B10 or ACC perspective. Ultimately, they will weigh the forecasted incremental revenue (and non-pecuniary benefits) from adding a UConn vs the incremental costs (i.e., sharing the pot of gold with more members; increased travel; brand perception etc.).

The key issue here is not UConn Women's BB, which is unequivocally robust. Rather, it's the costs I referenced and most importantly the downward trend (to put it mildly) of the UConn football team.

 

[Brochacho]

Anything is possible at this point with the new NIL and 12 teams playoff format. SEC is collecting teams to form a truly P1. It will be basically NFL lite. Will OSU and Michigan listen? They have to be paying attention if money is right. I doubt Fox Sports will let ESPN steal 2 of its biggest assets though. I think B1G will raid the PAC-12 for 6 teams to form a 20 team super conference of its own. Since PAC-12 media rights is about to be expiring, the timing works. It is not hard to imagine a super B1G adding USC, UCLA, Cal, Stanford, Washington, and Colorado/Oregon. It will get those 6 PAC-12 schools up to B1G payout level while ditching leeches like Washington State, Oregon State, and Utah. The leftover PAC-12 schools can combine with leftover B12 to form a second tier conference.

Lol, Utah a leech? They've won multiple BCS bowls and finished the season ranked at least a dozen times. One of the better football programs in the PAC. Solid basketball program - been to 4 Final Fours and won a championship.

Also, FOX isn't raiding one of their own conferences.

 

[bendm]

.

 

[AZHuskiePop]

Oddly, from most of what I'm reading, it isn't Clemson and FSU being discussed. It's Virginia and UNC! Doesn't make sense to me.

As others had said, at least it's nice to watch this madness from the sidelines this time.

Than you really don’t understand the B1G
VA and NC are two of the best schools in the country that play P5 football and are flagship snd research institutions
With apologies to BillyBud they look as FSU as a glorified commuter school
Clemson as a Hick School
My prediction is :
The Big takes Kansas and VA
The ACC backfills with WVA
The only other former Big 12 school with a shot is OSU
That leaves 5-6 in the old Big 12
ESPN
Seizes the day by disband their contract
Also disbanding the AAC
Merging the 5-6 with the top 7 of the AAC into a new league with a contract between $10-20mm
ECU , Tulane Tulsa , Temple get UConn’ed.
They add, BYU as the 14th
They could even expand to 16
UConn would have made the cut and possibly retained Temple

 

[superjohn]

Why is nobody talking/factoring in how a lack of parity is ruining college football? I hardly ever watch anymore and many of my friends who used to be really into it watch much less than they used to. People like competition, they like rooting for their school/state/something they have a connection to, and they like underdogs having a chance. They don't want to watch and cheer for the few "haves" they have zero connection to while everyone else becomes "have nots." I have to imagine people will continue to tune in less and less if it's just a further consolidation with the same few teams being the only ones having a chance of competing for championships and everyone else left out in the cold. I think these people are way overplaying their hand.

 

[Storrs South]

Why is nobody talking/factoring in how a lack of parity is ruining college football? I hardly ever watch anymore and many of my friends who used to be really into it watch much less than they used to. People like competition, they like rooting for their school/state/something they have a connection to, and they like underdogs having a chance. They don't want to watch and cheer for the few "haves" they have zero connection to while everyone else becomes "have nots." I have to imagine people will continue to tune in less and less if it's just a further consolidation with the same few teams being the only ones having a chance of competing for championships and everyone else left out in the cold. I think these people are way overplaying their hand.

I do agree. This argument happened a month ago with the Soccer Super League. In every league there will always be a Rutgers, BC, or DePaul.

Short term it will be a ratings monster (give or take first 5 years). Then it loses its luster, you've alienated fans of all other 100 FBS schools who now presumably play in some lesser version of FBS, and half of the schools in said super league are cashing big checks but not winning many games and you've devalued college football as a whole.

It won't be like the NFL where there's a team for each part of the country so I do think this is all bad long term.

Pigs get fed and hogs get slaughtered.

 

[JMick]

Why is nobody talking/factoring in how a lack of parity is ruining college football? I hardly ever watch anymore and many of my friends who used to be really into it watch much less than they used to. People like competition, they like rooting for their school/state/something they have a connection to, and they like underdogs having a chance. They don't want to watch and cheer for the few "haves" they have zero connection to while everyone else becomes "have nots." I have to imagine people will continue to tune in less and less if it's just a further consolidation with the same few teams being the only ones having a chance of competing for championships and everyone else left out in the cold. I think these people are way overplaying their hand.

I love watching Pac after dark because you never know what's going to happen. it's a fun conference to watch

 

[Dream Jobbed 2.0]

When you have 4 conferences of 16, there’s your basketball tournament.

 

[superjohn]

When you have 4 conferences of 16, there’s your basketball tournament.

I don't think it's going that way and that would be horrendous for the tournament.
It would lose the casual fan and the entire appeal of the tournament.