OT: The Future of FOX and The Big East

[gampelcrazies]

Would there be interest in Memphis? I know they are a football school but they are in a similar place as us.

 

[UConnSwag11]

How does adding mid majors help the league and UCONN?

 

[UConnTrumbull]

1. Gonzaga is not a candidate - Ackerman has said the presidents are not on board.
2. Unless a network pushes for an extra member, it's probably not happening. A-10 schools do not add value to a contract.
3. Fox needs to give assurances on game clearance (e.g., not relegating BE to FS2) in the media rights negotiations.
4. ESPN is overextended on its other CBB contacts to offer a significantly higher bid than what Fox would offer.
5. If a Fox deal doesn't take place in the exclusive window, streaming services like Netflix and Peacock will bid.

Number 5 is an interesting point. A lot of college football/basketball content is now on Peacock. I’m surprised Netflix hasn’t gotten into the live sports arena yet. Big East basketball is one of those niche leagues that may get a good contract from streaming. But you can’t afford too much displacement from linear Tv. That being said, both the Big 12 and Big 10 already utilize streaming. Especially Peacock is not afraid to put bigger games on their service versus NBC. The breakup of NBCSN was definitely a sign of that coming. Does FOX even use streaming?

 

[Storrs South]

Would there be interest in Memphis? I know they are a football school but they are in a similar place as us.

Moot point; Catholic 7 would never go for it. Memphis is viewed as nuclear level toxic by many University Presidents.

 

[UConnSwag11]

Moot point; Catholic 7 would never go for it. Memphis is viewed as nuclear level toxic by many University Presidents.

They’re not wrong

 

[Drew]

The BE offers UConn fans several things that shouldn't be discounted. MSG for both the tournament and games against St. Johns, geographical proximity with many of the teams, and a long and successful history that would end with a conference change.

That has to weighed against the changes in college sports that are reaching a climax in the near future. With that climax there is a strong possibility that UConn will find its sports, including basketball, relegated somewhere between the Power 3 and Division 2.

It's difficult to argue against an excited fan base that is contributing massive amounts of money, money that somewhat reduces the deficit of our conference inequity. Even more difficult given the success our basketball teams have had recently with the Big East especially given our struggles in the AAC. Plus the accurate observation that most of the former BE members are currently struggling in their new homes.

I lean ever so slightly that if we get an invite to the B12 we take it. I hate the idea of leaving the BE but I feel the outcome of the future I'm portraying is too likely. The glory days of the BE will be nothing more than a fond memory. And the ACC is not much safer if my predictions are correct.

I mean this very respectfully, but you don’t base what league you’re going to put your athletic department in based off of being able to potentially play 3 men’s basketball games at MSG in March. In the same vein, you don’t base it off where you are playing any of the championship events for any of your sponsored sports. UConn can (will) still play games at MSG regardless of the league they call home.

It’s really not that complicated of a choice, the athletics administration has a financial duty to the university and state to maximize their revenue potential for the entire athletic department. There is no rational world in which an administrator would ever turn down a potential 10x revenue increase for it’s department for nostalgia/feelings- they would be nuking their entire career by doing so.

This is evidenced by numerous different efforts from UConn over the years, including being left at the altar last year (yet again) by the Big 12. If the invite came last August, they were gone. We would’ve been playing in the Big 12 starting in July of this year along with Colorado and anyone else. The school has spent years and years and millions of dollars trying to move up- they aren’t turning that opportunity down (and shouldn’t turn it down) if it ever comes to them.

 

[Fishy]

I disagree with the schools you listed.

What they should do is wait until the ACC implodes and extends offers to Syracuse, BC, and Pitt. Then put together a football coalition with those 4. But whatever you do don’t dilute basketball with 16+ teams. Regardless the Big East is very picky about who they add. Not as easy as other conferences.

I’ve only heard Dayton in any seriousness discussion tho, I keep my ear to the wind.

The Big East has no money to expand. They don’t have a television contract.

You’re hearing nothing and making up nonsense.

 

[superjohn]

The BE offers UConn fans several things that shouldn't be discounted. MSG for both the tournament and games against St. Johns, geographical proximity with many of the teams, and a long and successful history that would end with a conference change.

That has to weighed against the changes in college sports that are reaching a climax in the near future. With that climax there is a strong possibility that UConn will find its sports, including basketball, relegated somewhere between the Power 3 and Division 2.

It's difficult to argue against an excited fan base that is contributing massive amounts of money, money that somewhat reduces the deficit of our conference inequity. Even more difficult given the success our basketball teams have had recently with the Big East especially given our struggles in the AAC. Plus the accurate observation that most of the former BE members are currently struggling in their new homes.

I lean ever so slightly that if we get an invite to the B12 we take it. I hate the idea of leaving the BE but I feel the outcome of the future I'm portraying is too likely. The glory days of the BE will be nothing more than a fond memory. And the ACC is not much safer if my predictions are correct.

The glory days of the Big East were over by the early-mid 90's, it's been UConn doing the heavy lifting since the 90's along with Nova. We're still one of the best conferences in the country but those glory years where the Big East dominated was a long time ago. It's still the ACC and Big East who win most of the championships though. ACC glory days have also been over for a good amount of time.

 

[How Sway?!]

The Big East has no money to expand. They don’t have a television contract.

You’re hearing nothing and making up nonsense.

Same could have been said for the B12.

 

[freescooter]

I mean this very respectfully, but you don’t base what league you’re going to put your athletic department in based off of being able to potentially play 3 men’s basketball games at MSG in March. In the same vein, you don’t base it off where you are playing any of the championship events for any of your sponsored sports. UConn can (will) still play games at MSG regardless of the league they call home.

It’s really not that complicated of a choice, the athletics administration has a financial duty to the university and state to maximize their revenue potential for the entire athletic department. There is no rational world in which an administrator would ever turn down a potential 10x revenue increase for it’s department for nostalgia/feelings- they would be nuking their entire career by doing so.

This is evidenced by numerous different efforts from UConn over the years, including being left at the altar last year (yet again) by the Big 12. If the invite came last August, they were gone. We would’ve been playing in the Big 12 starting in July of this year along with Colorado and anyone else. The school has spent years and years and millions of dollars trying to move up- they aren’t turning that opportunity down (and shouldn’t turn it down) if it ever comes to them.

This is exactly on point. Plus, if you are being honest, the New Big East is really only interested in mens basketball. In a perfect world, we’d be in another league for all our other sports because we care about baseball and football and Womens Bssketball, and others. The rest of the league doesn’t. Maybe Georgetown cares about soccer. If the NBE was a basketball only league it could make sense maybe.

 

[superjohn]

Same could have been said for the B12.

Fishy has been calling for the death of UConn and the Big East for over a decade now.

 

[Luna]

When you think about the reasons to stay in the big east..Hurley, travel, our identity… we just won a national championship and we are the best team in the country right now as member of the big east

 

[freescooter]

The glory days of the Big East were over by the early-mid 90's, it's been UConn doing the heavy lifting since the 90's along with Nova. We're still one of the best conferences in the country but those glory years where the Big East dominated was a long time ago. It's still the ACC and Big East who win most of the championships though. ACC glory days have also been over for a good amount of time.

You clearly have no idea of what you are talking about. Between 1999 and 2013 when it ceased to exist, Big East teams won National championships in 1999, 2003, 2004, 2011 and 2013. But in addition they had Final Four Teams in 2007, 2009 (2), 2010, 2012 and 2013 (2). Plus 6 more Final Four teams. But the glory years were behind it in the mid-90s. Yikes! Yes UConn was the dominant team. But hardly the only national power.

 

[superjohn]

You clearly have no idea of what you are talking about. Between 1999 and 2013 when it ceased to exist, Big East teams won National championships in 1999, 2003, 2004, 2011 and 2013. But in addition they had Final Four Teams in 2007, 2009 (2), 2010, 2012 and 2013 (2). Plus 6 more Final Four teams. But the glory years were behind it in the mid-90s. Yikes! Yes UConn was the dominant team. But hardly the only national power.

No shart. We had another short stretch of dominance when we added teams from other conferences. And the Big East won National Championships in 2016, 2018, and 2023 when you were talking about how badly the Big East and UConn suck before you disappeared again after UConn won it all. As I said the Big East and ACC win most of the championships.

Do you honestly think you know more about the Big East and UConn basketball than I do? You aren't even a fan of either. You're posting verbal diarrhea in other threads about how good BC basketball is.

UConn is dominant right now, you aren't supposed to be here.

 

[Gburyhusky]

I am glad that the doomsayers have weighed in today to confirm for all of us that the athletic department is on the road to ruin and irrelevance. For a minute I thought things were kind of going ok, what with the men a unanimous number 1, coming off a national championship,
the women playing at a sold out arena on national TV, with one of the games great stars recently announcing her intentions to return for another season. But if you read some of these posts you'd think the Big East is a junk conference and we are hanging on by a thread. If you can't appreciate our current success you are living in a fantasy land driven by the false narrative that football determines all. For UConn that is not the path to success.

 

[HitDog]

Do you honestly think you know more about the Big East and UConn basketball than I do? You aren't even a fan of either. You're posting verbal diarrhea in other threads about how good BC basketball is.

UConn is dominant right now, you aren't supposed to be here.

No he didn't did he? And I am curious why he poked his head out recently withthis run.

 

[zls44]

I want to renew with FOX. All games are on linear cable. As long as we keep that deal and increase from 4-6 million per year, that will be good.

The Big 12 has streaming-only games, the SEC has streaming-only games, the Big Ten has streaming-only games, the ACC has streaming-only games- the Big East will too.

 

[CTBasketball]

The Big East has no money to expand. They don’t have a television contract.

You’re hearing nothing and making up nonsense.

FOX would want the Big East to expand slightly, using a new contract as incentive.

Big East personally doesn’t want to expand.

 

[champs99and04]

I wouldn’t mind going back to ESPN. We would get ESPNU at worst, doubt we would ever get put on ESPN+.

Playing second fiddle on ESPN is the single worst place to be - just ask hockey fans. You'll be immediate filler content, crammed into the worst imaginable timeslots with the lowest possible production value just like you were in the AAC.

I'm the type of dinosaur who will die in front of the cable box before I try streaming, but even I would think long and hard about linking up with a streaming service - especially if its a brand like Apple - if FOX doesn't offer a representative deal. This league is playing from behind and must to be forward-thinking and quick on its feet to thrive long-term.

 

[ctchamps]

I mean this very respectfully, but you don’t base what league you’re going to put your athletic department in based off of being able to potentially play 3 men’s basketball games at MSG in March. In the same vein, you don’t base it off where you are playing any of the championship events for any of your sponsored sports. UConn can (will) still play games at MSG regardless of the league they call home.

It’s really not that complicated of a choice, the athletics administration has a financial duty to the university and state to maximize their revenue potential for the entire athletic department. There is no rational world in which an administrator would ever turn down a potential 10x revenue increase for it’s department for nostalgia/feelings- they would be nuking their entire career by doing so.

This is evidenced by numerous different efforts from UConn over the years, including being left at the altar last year (yet again) by the Big 12. If the invite came last August, they were gone. We would’ve been playing in the Big 12 starting in July of this year along with Colorado and anyone else. The school has spent years and years and millions of dollars trying to move up- they aren’t turning that opportunity down (and shouldn’t turn it down) if it ever comes to them.

No disrespect received. Your argument is logically sound.

I'm arguing three things. The sentiment of the majority of this forum. The fiducial responsibility and necessity for the university. And my personal feelings. I think I have been gracious in considering the fiducial responsibility of the university in my final decision but as an individual with a 5-15 year life expectancy I certainly have to take into consideration my personal happiness. I don't have much time remaining for the football program to become relevant again. And that's my optimistic view with that program. I don't know why but the majority of basketball programs that have left the BE are struggling. Conferences are like cultures. Not everyone from the south can move to the northeast and be comfortable and vice versa. Money is the most important factor without a doubt for the university. I won't argue against what they have to do. But the last thing I want to see is UConn becoming BCU in basketball.

There are a number of fans in this forum who, for their own personal reasons, love those "meaningless" games at Storrs South and the cache it brings to the program. They have no allegiance to the football program. Some don't even care about the university. I assume many make contributions to the university either by purchasing season tickets or sending money to the alumni association. Those contributions are obviously small relative to a much better media contract and the reason for my lean and your response to my prior post but I want to respect their viewpoint.

Let's face it. An argument can be made that universities should abandon sports altogether and do what their primary focus should be - education. That would be the most fiduciary responsible thing of all. I'm sure some of the P3 schools ADS are not in the black even with their grandiose media contracts. I have no love for Texass, Duh Ohio State and Blama. There's a strong part of me that would love the whole system to collapse just to bring back some sanity to higher education. But selfishly I'm not ready for that to happen as long as the mens and women's programs are giving me satisfaction.

 

[HooperScooper]

I’m surprised Netflix hasn’t gotten into the live sports arena yet.

It's coming.

Netflix, conversely, has more than 260 million global subscribers, tops of any streaming network, and that number is still growing. That large and expanding audience helps explain why there has been so much interest in Netflix’s sports aspirations, even as it previously balked at paying large-scale rights fees.

Netflix Makes Its Big Move Into Live Sports—in Most Logical Way

Netflix will begin its journey into live sports streaming with likely the most natural and favorable set of circumstances.

frontofficesports.com

Does FOX even use streaming?

Yes. Remember our first game this season? The game on FS1 had whip around coverage. The streaming Foxsports app was where you could watch the entire UConn game. I watched the Georgetown game on 2/10 on my phone on a flight.

 

[McLovin]

How does adding mid majors help the league and UCONN?

IMO, adding mid-majors like Gonzaga, St. Mary’s, Wichita St, VCU and Dayton would more be about protection for the league than increased payouts (on a per school basis, at least).

I do think there is a rational argument for getting every single (or as much as possible) top non-football basketball brand into a singular conference in the changing college landscape where the rest of the Power conferences are all expanding to 16+.

Adding those schools would possibly help ensure a stronger voice in any future changes to the NCAA tournament. But I’m not even convinced that would matter lol, and it doesn’t really do anything for UConn.

 

[FearThePups]

The BE offers UConn fans several things that shouldn't be discounted. MSG for both the tournament and games against St. Johns, geographical proximity with many of the teams, and a long and successful history that would end with a conference change.

That has to weighed against the changes in college sports that are reaching a climax in the near future. With that climax there is a strong possibility that UConn will find its sports, including basketball, relegated somewhere between the Power 3 and Division 2.

It's difficult to argue against an excited fan base that is contributing massive amounts of money, money that somewhat reduces the deficit of our conference inequity. Even more difficult given the success our basketball teams have had recently with the Big East especially given our struggles in the AAC. Plus the accurate observation that most of the former BE members are currently struggling in their new homes.

I lean ever so slightly that if we get an invite to the B12 we take it. I hate the idea of leaving the BE but I feel the outcome of the future I'm portraying is too likely. The glory days of the BE will be nothing more than a fond memory. And the ACC is not much safer if my predictions are correct.

Your last paragraph is Nostradamusesqe.

 

[FearThePups]

You clearly have no idea of what you are talking about. Between 1999 and 2013 when it ceased to exist, Big East teams won National championships in 1999, 2003, 2004, 2011 and 2013. But in addition they had Final Four Teams in 2007, 2009 (2), 2010, 2012 and 2013 (2). Plus 6 more Final Four teams. But the glory years were behind it in the mid-90s. Yikes! Yes UConn was the dominant team. But hardly the only national power.

All true facts. But the Big12 or Big10 don’t want our football program. And that’s where the sustainable big money is at. I only wish that if the ACC collapses, perhaps UConn, Syracuse, Pitt and a few decent current ACC programs and a couple of eastern schools join a realigned ACC or form a new conference. But the league would need some blue blood and storied schools.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

The same 10-12 posters have to interject every Big East thread with their miserable "UConn sucks and is going to fail" posts. It is exhausting to be a UConn fan despite the fact that the basketball team is pursuing back to back championships, because there is a loud contingent of posters that would rather we were all miserable.

Spoiler alert: We all get that UConn is not in a great spot right now in conference realignment. How freaking stupid does someone have to be to think that every poster on this board hasn't already figured that out? Some of us may have different estimates of the probabilities of various outcomes, but we all know. That said, the rest of us just have enough self-control not to spray our misery all over the board like some elderly cat with dementia.

We heard the Debbie Downers the first 50 times when they said that UConn will get no money from Fox and will be on public access streaming or whatever they predicted will happen. We don't need to hear prediction #51 if it is going to be the same as the ones before it. Go start a thread on the Realignment Board if you want to talk about how UConn athletics is going to sink into the ground, dragging the school with it, and every UConn fan will die of a bleeding butthole. I would rather not read about it on the basketball board.