ACC, PAC-12, and BIG alliance / conference realignment

[Orangezoo]

We’re not going to pull any teams from SEC or B1G. More schools and large geography is going to demand more media $. Let’s do nothing which Is why right now we’re the worst p4 conference in basketball and football. Big east also is stronger in basketball. ACC should have try to own east coast and mid Atlantic but they’ve allowed B12 To grab Cin and WV. UConn won’t always be available. The GOR is the only reason the ACC is still together. Half the ACC schools want Syracuse and BC out of the conference.

Time to take a few steps back from the edge. Then breathe.

Now- literally everything at this moment is speculation even with some smoke in the air. Also lots of posturing. The more teams left at the altar- the more fanbases alienated and the smaller the viewership numbers will trend.

Money talks here and if/when it starts to show that people are turning away from college sports there will be a reckoning of some sort. I doubt everyone is naive to that likelihood even at this point in time such that they press for all of this to happen overnight.

 

[qdawgg]

ACC execs are weak. They get bullied by certain schools. This arrangement with ND is ridiculous.

This is weirdly like the argument people I live around in upstate NY make. “We want to break away from downstate, let them be their own state”. Ok, well 70% of income tax dollars come from downstate counties, that upstaters then benefit from. So yeah, you might not like being outvoted all the time but you’re also stealing a lot of their tax dollars. Same thing with ND, they bring more value to the ACC than if they weren’t loosely affiliated. You might not like the arrangement but you’d like the conference dollars (lack of dollars) a lot less if they weren’t playing 5 ACC teams a year.

 

[shandeezy7]

Fans in those conferences will hate how big they are.

Oh yeah, none of this is for the fans, despite any BS press releases crafted by overpaid PR firms might say.

 

[Gandalf]

This is weirdly like the argument people I live around in upstate NY make. “We want to break away from downstate, let them be their own state”. Ok, well 70% of income tax dollars come from downstate counties, that upstaters then benefit from. So yeah, you might not like being outvoted all the time but you’re also stealing a lot of their tax dollars. Same thing with ND, they bring more value to the ACC than if they weren’t loosely affiliated. You might not like the arrangement but you’d like the conference dollars (lack of dollars) a lot less if they weren’t playing 5 ACC teams a year.

I don’t know if riding the coattails of others is a long term strategy. Syracuse lacks a rivalry. No one cares about BC.

 

[SU94]

ND came into the ACC in 2012 telling everyone loud, often and up front that football would not be included.

Swofford knew it and was quoted in the press saying so. The school presidents all knew this when they voted ND in.

ND told the Big East that in 1995, as well. Same story.

ND will do anything it can to preserve football independence. It is single minded, consistent and unwavering about it.

You forgot consistently conceited/vain. Correct, that’s your right. But it is not a good look, especially when other institutions have on multiple occasions reached out to assist/lift up/support the University of Notre Dame. I am thinking about the Naval Academy and the other 14 ACC institutions during the COVID year.

Believe me, Terry, I get ND’s stance. Independence has served you well to date. Incredibly well. But it is also with diminishing returns in this modern time. And to be overly dramatic on my end, there are 16 or so of your close friends that could stand for some of the same support and flexibility that has been bestowed upon ND in the past. That includes Cal and your second West Coast crush/academic hero, Stanford, who you will now allow you to founder and perhaps suffer significantly for your vanity. Why would you allow for that?

I don’t believe that ND will forever be an independent when it comes to football (has conference affiliation hindered your other sponsored sports? The answer is unequivocally no). It is time. Most sense it. And when it does happen, the story of independence lost it will be in the headlines for about 12 hours. Bevacqua will hold out for a bit, but he is forward leaning. Always has been wherever he’s worked. Check out his record. It will happen on his watch.

If nothing else, ND can help restore some degree of sanity to the entire college football landscape and at the same time, douse the B10’s selfish imperialistic urges that they chose not to control. They think they’ve got you. Don’t give them that pleasure.

This is can be ND’s pivot to a new legacy in modern times: play it forward, help those that helped you. And give the B10 slap diicckk Commish, presidents and (especially) ADs a super-sized middle finger. Remember, yours is a Catholic-based institution (based on giving and service) and this is all about three football games against teams you’ll most likely play with some degree of regularity anyhow (at least the majority of them).

 

[qdawgg]

I don’t know if riding the coattails of others is a long term strategy. Syracuse lacks a rivalry. No one cares about BC.

Riding the coattails makes no sense but ok. You also moved the goal posts a bit.

 

[qdawgg]

ND will do anything it can to preserve football independence. It is single minded, consistent and unwavering about it.

All very Christian like values.

 

[tep624]

Well I mean, the real battle now is for the #3 place. And if the ACC isn’t going to move on these schools I sure hope they have a skeleton in place to dismantle the Big 12 once their media rights contract is up. What we can’t have is no action on expansion/raiding the Big 12 and then losing 3-5 schools once the GOR expires. Then the ACC will be in a really tough spot.

 

[Cusefan0307]

I don’t know if riding the coattails of others is a long term strategy. Syracuse lacks a rivalry. No one cares about BC.

Not many rivals left for anyone if things go as predicted.

 

[kcsu]

I think that the no votes are a combination of lack of value and the 3 primary schools trying to leverage themselves a better take. If the value proposition was clear this would be a done deal.

 

[Sherman20]

This is all so short sighted yet par for the course for big business minds in this country

Totally untrue. Mandel doesn’t get it. Most Giants and Patriots fans aren’t watching college football games unless they’re a fan of college football or a specific team. Nonsense.

 

[sabach]

All very Christian like values.

Let's leave the bashing of Christianity to the OT board

 

[SU91]

Totally untrue. Mandel doesn’t get it. Most Giants and Patriots fans aren’t watching college football games unless they’re a fan of college football or a specific team. Nonsense.

Not so sure. He did just describe the entire NY college football viewership profile. There are more people in NYC who would watch OSU vs USC, for example, than would ever watch even a miscellaneous Syracuse game. It’s just how it is. They don’t watch a lot of college football to begin with, but if they do, it’s about brands. It’s why Penn St is the team of choice in the N.Y. Metro. Always has been. Because they play big time college football and all that nyc cares about it big time.

 

[Bayside44]

Not so sure. He did just describe the entire NY college football viewership profile. There are more people in NYC who would watch OSU vs USC, for example, than would ever watch even a miscellaneous Syracuse game. It’s just how it is. They don’t watch a lot of college football to begin with, but if they do, it’s about brands. It’s why Penn St is the team of choice in the N.Y. Metro. Always has been. Because they play big time college football and all that nyc cares about it big time.

Yeah it's just wallpaper, but it's on all day like the NFL is in a lot of homes.

 

[Hoo's That]

A non-rev sport athlete noted to one of our board's gurus that they already take 5- and 6-hour bus rides to go to games, so a flight that long won't be very much of a difference. (If anything, it will be a lot easier to get up out of your seat and move around.) As a reference, the longest flight now is from Miami to South Bend or Boston and is at least 3 hours plus in the air. Miami's volleyball team will be making both of those flights this season.

For the schools, of course, chartering a plane will be a lot more expensive than chartering a bus.

 

[OrangeDW]

I’m confused on what NC State’s play is here?

They should be clinging to the hope of salvaging the ACC for dear life, as far as I can tell?

They are ensconced as a middle of the pack ACC school in everything, and they would fit poorly everywhere else. Just how I see it.

 

[All4SU]

Not so sure. He did just describe the entire NY college football viewership profile. There are more people in NYC who would watch OSU vs USC, for example, than would ever watch even a miscellaneous Syracuse game. It’s just how it is. They don’t watch a lot of college football to begin with, but if they do, it’s about brands. It’s why Penn St is the team of choice in the N.Y. Metro. Always has been. Because they play big time college football and all that nyc cares about it big time.

Precisely why the marginal and possibly left behind teams - and I include SU in that possible box - need to take every opportunity to emphasize that what we are moving toward is not “College Football.” It’s just an NFL Junior Varsity League.

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

That's not ND's fault. I think it's crap, too. But, they are in a position of power. The other conferences are making sure that ND has enough slack to not have to join a conference right now, because they know it would likely be the ACC. But, the longer it plays out, the more likely it will be the B1G. So, they make the playoffs accessible to ND. ND is a pain in the ass, but they are not the real enemy here, the B1G is enemy #1 and SEC #2. At this point, we've been out maneuvered by the other two conferences severely. I doubt there is any way to catch up. Personally, I just love watching SU and I will do it no matter what league we end up in.

Today on ESPN they had a former ND/NFL guy say the realignment makes ND’s independence better. ND has 8 home games this year. They keep the entire gate, plus don’t pay travel costs. Big schools will always want to play ND, conference or not.

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

I could see that, those west coast teams are insane taking on that travel expense and mental toll.

Probably an anti-trust violation.

 

[Cuse'91]

Not so sure. He did just describe the entire NY college football viewership profile. There are more people in NYC who would watch OSU vs USC, for example, than would ever watch even a miscellaneous Syracuse game. It’s just how it is. They don’t watch a lot of college football to begin with, but if they do, it’s about brands. It’s why Penn St is the team of choice in the N.Y. Metro. Always has been. Because they play big time college football and all that nyc cares about it big time.

I think it’s even worse than that. NE College football viewers would probably watch Ole Miss v Miss State, ahead of a miscellaneous Cuse game.

 

[Chris02M]

We’re not going to pull any teams from SEC or B1G. More schools and large geography is going to demand more media $. Let’s do nothing which Is why right now we’re the worst p4 conference in basketball and football. Big east also is stronger in basketball. ACC should have try to own east coast and mid Atlantic but they’ve allowed B12 To grab Cin and WV. UConn won’t always be available. The GOR is the only reason the ACC is still together. Half the ACC schools want Syracuse and BC out of the conference.

where is uconn going? Big 12 said there done for now, no chsnce the sec or big ten would take them

 

[Bayside44]

I think it’s even worse than that. NE College football viewers would probably watch Ole Miss v Miss State, ahead of a miscellaneous Cuse game.

Nationally Ole Miss was 22, Miss State 36 and we were 48 last season, so probably not.

 

[Cusefan69]

So still no MWC announcements yet about adding schools. My guess is negotiations are ongoing.

 

[Cuse'91]

where is uconn going? Big 12 said there done for now, no chsnce the sec or big ten would take them

Commissioner Yormark is fixated on NYC and dominant basketball conference. Uconn kills both birds; think they will absolutely be plucked up by the Big 12.

 

[HRE Otto IV]

Today on ESPN they had a former ND/NFL guy say the realignment makes ND’s independence better. ND has 8 home games this year. They keep the entire gate, plus don’t pay travel costs. Big schools will always want to play ND, conference or not.

That is false. The bigger the SEC/B18 become the less a need to play ND especially if they go to 10 conference games. If those leagues are at 20 that leaves ND playing mainly the B12 and leftover ACC. Hard to make the playoffs with few if any P2 games. Same for recruiting.