Should ESPN tell the American to make a football only deal with UConn? | Page 2 | The Boneyard

Should ESPN tell the American to make a football only deal with UConn?

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Those games were scheduled in the past. In the future, you're not going to see P5 home-and-homes.

No but I do believe we can still schedule 2 for 1’s and honestly I think we could pull off H&H’s with schools like Indiana, Illinois and Virginia
 
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Assuming both Aresco and ESPN have telephones or other way since to communicate i would find it hard to believe ESPN would sit by while Aresco has been so adament about UConn not being allowed to play just football in the AAC.

You have to believe ESPN and Aresco have had this conversation.
If it turns out UConn football stays in the AAC it will be incredible embarrassing for Aresco.
 
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Assuming both Aresco and ESPN have telephones or other way since to communicate i would find it hard to believe ESPN would sit by while Aresco has been so adament about UConn not being allowed to play just football in the AAC.

You have to believe ESPN and Aresco have had this conversation.
If it turns out UConn football stays in the AAC it will be incredible embarrassing for Aresco.

You’re giving way to much credit to Mike Aresco (not mad)
 

CL82

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If it turns out UConn football stays in the AAC it will be incredible embarrassing for Aresco
Yes, yes it would.

44702
 
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You’re giving way to much credit to Mike Aresco (not mad)


I would agree if he said it once right after but this has been a 2 week campaign for Aresco. ESPN would have put a stop to it earlier if they had any intentions of allowing UConn to stay. They know more than anybody UConns value. It would seem ESPN has already decided to cut bait.

Hope I am wrong because it would be the best of both worlds in my opinion.
 
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Stay with me; it's not a dumb as it sounds at first blush.
  • This last media deal for the American was built to get ESPN + subscribers.
  • Keeping UConn in the American means that UConn football fans will still need to sign up to see games.
  • Since the bulk of media contract is based upon football, ESPN could reduce the contract less if UConn stays put.
  • Down the road there would less resistance for UConn fans toward + because fans would have already have been using it.
  • Finally it earns ESPN some goodwill in their state of residence. Not a stand alone reason for making a deal but definitely a plus.

Think you're overrating how much ESPN cares about UConn football fans.
 
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Think you're overrating how much ESPN cares about UConn football fans.

I don’t think ESPN cares about UConn fans but they definitely care about the *~1 billion dollar investment*~ they just made in the conference.
 

CL82

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Think you're overrating how much ESPN cares about UConn football fans.
They don't give a rat's patootie about UConn football fans. They do care about subscribers though. If they feel Connecticut is a good source for them they'd tell Aresco to reverse himself without a second thought of how bad it would make him look.
 

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Thing is, it would seem to me the only one that doesn't want us to stay is Aresco (not mad). Everyone else is probably indifferent to slightly favorable for us to stay for Football only....because its easy and less messy.
 
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Thing is, it would seem to me the only one that doesn't want us to stay is Aresco (not mad). Everyone else is probably indifferent to slightly favorable for us to stay for Football only....because its easy and less messy.

I could picture the Florida schools being (not mad) about it, since they probably view our absence as a way to strengthen their overall SOS. But otherwise, yeah, you’re probably right.
 
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They don't give a rat's patootie about UConn football fans. They do care about subscribers though. If they feel Connecticut is a good source for them they'd tell Aresco to reverse himself without a second thought of how bad it would make him look.

That's the same thing though. We won't move the needle with subscribers because we have comparatively no football fans.
 

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Remember the Big12 expansion hoax when fans of places like UCF or Houston were whining like “you just know ESPN is going to force the Big12 to take their buddies UConn” (or they probably spelt it Uconn). Why would ESPN ever help UConn?
 

pj

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That's the same thing though. We won't move the needle with subscribers because we have comparatively no football fans.

But the football fans we do have are influential in a sizable cable market, so ESPN might want to own the content. As opposed to SNY, their competitor, owning it.

UConn football is kind of a funny beast, more valuable to a regional cable sports channel like SNY than to a cable network that has to show nationally or a streaming service that depends on number of fans.
 
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That's the same thing though. We won't move the needle with subscribers because we have comparatively no football fans.

They move the needle more than most AAC teams
 

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There is a lot of soft analysis that will go into the decision here from ESPN and the fellow AAC University Presidents. In the end, just like we dont know the exact math behind the $1B media deal, we wont know the exact math (same hard, some soft) used to decide our AAC exit.

For myself, I dont know if I want to stay or go. I think I can make myself happy with either.

My issue today is that nobody should be scoffing at the notion that UConn just might pull off the Navy deal and stay as a football only member with a partial split of the media $$. Its certainly possible despite any of the public posturing we read. Again, the reason is because its so simple to keep us and actually more cumbersome to jettison us.

I think we win either way, as a football only member or as an independent. I'm ready for either....but dont want the former if the partial $$ deal isn't reasonably on par with what we could do as an independent.
 
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HuskyHawk

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Not a full switch, but they have been investing heavily in it. I have had espn+ since it came out, mostly because I am a big boxing fan and I am very happy with it. They have added more content but definitely need to add more.

It's a platform for the future that the have to build out and make profitable in advance of that future. The AAC deal was important to ESPN because they need to build that ESPN+ subscriber base to offset what will be a massive decrease in cable revenue. It looks like double dipping now, but eventually it will be the primary platform, probably with offshoots like the ACC Network as add-ons.
 
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I look forward to the UMass game. No FBS schools in New England have a longer history playing against one another.

I can see that. But it does not mean fans will think it is the "big time."
 

McLovin

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Yesss!!

I said this on the football forum the night the big east move was announced;

If you walk into Rentschler and you don’t see the AAC logo on the field; if you squint and believe hard enough it’ll almost feel big time.

The AAC will always make people in CT think “mid-major” and “relegated”; the brand was an anchor around the entire athletic department’s neck.

Calling UConn football a "mid-major" is a massive compliment for the program at this point lol
 

CL82

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Yes. Great idea. Let's make ourselves feel better by pushing out a corporation that employs thousands of Connecticut residents. We can afford to do that because it will make you feel better.
You realize that "pushing out" is different than "not subsidizing" right?
 

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