Realignment: Would You Be Happy With This?

[sutomcat]

Want to see how the responses are different on each board.

Let's see what happens with the lawsuits the ACC has with FSU and Clemson. I think the ACC wins both. Maybe those schools get the GOR buyout value reduced from $580 to $300 million. Then add on the exit fee of $150 million (or whatever it is when they exit).

That seems best case for those schools.

Don't see them able to raise that kind of money. The buyout gets smaller over time and maybe around 2030 it becomes feasible for them.

I wonder how well the public is going to take to all this roster turnover, massive upheaval, NIL, insta-transfers, etc. My guess is that a significant percentage of fans will or already have become disillusioned by many of the changes.

As the focus for college football focuses primarily on the SEC and B1G, and conferences like the B12 and ACC become increasingly irrelevant, is it going to affect nationwide interest in football? My guess is that it will. Fans of the SEC and B1G will still watch and some fans of all the other schools might switch to following SEC and B1G games. But I think a significant number will still follow their schools or just stop following college sports period.

Cord cutting will continue and cable companies will continue to offer more options that allow customers to have cable and not pay for sports channels they do not want. The number of people who buy cable companies for ESPN and Fox sports channels and SECN, B1GN (and ACCN) will continue to decrease.

So I think it is inevitable that the money the SEC and B1G get from TV will decrease. I think the musical chairs will stop right around the same time FSU and Clemson can finally get out of the ACC GOR.

Maybe they finally get to another conference. Maybe not. Really don't care.

Also think it is inevitable that the conferences end the madness with geography we see today for all sports except football. Clearly a significant amount of the revenue schools are getting is going to go to the athletes starting really soon. Schools are going to make significantly less money than they thought. And then there is the big bill to pay the athletes who never got paid (but apparently should have)/

The most obvious way to keep profits as high as possible is to continue to ignore geography for football only and realign all the other sports back to pretty much the way they used to be, before the chase for TV money screwed everything up.

So the original ACC schools will end up back in a conference that looks very much like the original ACC. I think Syracuse, Pitt and BC will probably end up back in the Big East for everything except football. The Pac12 will be reformed (except for football and except for the members now in the B1G).

Some things probably will change. Miami will probably stay in the ACC for ASEF (all sports except football). Maybe VT.

I would expect that the football schools that do not make the cut with the SEC and B1G are going to play football in a different configuration that they do today as well, one that makes more sense geographically.

So Stanford and Cal return to a new west coast conference for football only, with Washington St, Oregon St, Utah, Colorado, Arizona, Arizona State, filled out with the best programs from other conferences out West (schools like San Diego State, Fresno State, maybe Boise State, Colorado State and Utah State).

All this would dramatically reduce travel costs and make it a lot easier on the student athletes, who suddenly have much more power (they will surely be unionized shortly) and presumably would be very much on board with a dramatic reduction in travel.

And all of this would be much easier on fans, at least the ones that like to travel to away games. We might even see a period of stability for college sports. Maybe.

I expect things will be done in a logical way, The past does not indicate this is going to be the case but maybe all the financial considerations coming will finally drive the decision makers to restore some order to the awful mess that is college athletics today.

 

[Qbobby]

Want to see how the responses are different on each board.

 

[TexanMark]

MHver3 sees Syracuse as just like UConn. But UConn was just a run of the mill 1AA football program that used its BE charter membership to force the league to allow it to move up into BE football.

How bad is the split among UNC decision makers over staying vs bolting to the SEC or B1G?

 

[LeMoyneCuse]

Nobody who understands the business of college football actually thinks Syracuse should have stayed / should be in the Big East.

 

[JRHEETER]

Nobody who understands the business of college football actually thinks Syracuse should have stayed / should be in the Big East.

We needed out of the Big East as much as I loved that conference

 

[OttoinGrotto]

how does a WV fan know how to work the internet?

Their remaining teeth are WiFi enabled actually, fun fact.

 

[GHLF]

Let's see what happens with the lawsuits the ACC has with FSU and Clemson. I think the ACC wins both. Maybe those schools get the GOR buyout value reduced from $580 to $300 million. Then add on the exit fee of $150 million (or whatever it is when they exit).

That seems best case for those schools.

Don't see them able to raise that kind of money. The buyout gets smaller over time and maybe around 2030 it becomes feasible for them.

I wonder how well the public is going to take to all this roster turnover, massive upheaval, NIL, insta-transfers, etc. My guess is that a significant percentage of fans will or already have become disillusioned by many of the changes.

As the focus for college football focuses primarily on the SEC and B1G, and conferences like the B12 and ACC become increasingly irrelevant, is it going to affect nationwide interest in football? My guess is that it will. Fans of the SEC and B1G will still watch and some fans of all the other schools might switch to following SEC and B1G games. But I think a significant number will still follow their schools or just stop following college sports period.

Cord cutting will continue and cable companies will continue to offer more options that allow customers to have cable and not pay for sports channels they do not want. The number of people who buy cable companies for ESPN and Fox sports channels and SECN, B1GN (and ACCN) will continue to decrease.

So I think it is inevitable that the money the SEC and B1G get from TV will decrease. I think the musical chairs will stop right around the same time FSU and Clemson can finally get out of the ACC GOR.

Maybe they finally get to another conference. Maybe not. Really don't care.

Also think it is inevitable that the conferences end the madness with geography we see today for all sports except football. Clearly a significant amount of the revenue schools are getting is going to go to the athletes starting really soon. Schools are going to make significantly less money than they thought. And then there is the big bill to pay the athletes who never got paid (but apparently should have)/

The most obvious way to keep profits as high as possible is to continue to ignore geography for football only and realign all the other sports back to pretty much the way they used to be, before the chase for TV money screwed everything up.

So the original ACC schools will end up back in a conference that looks very much like the original ACC. I think Syracuse, Pitt and BC will probably end up back in the Big East for everything except football. The Pac12 will be reformed (except for football and except for the members now in the B1G).

Some things probably will change. Miami will probably stay in the ACC for ASEF (all sports except football). Maybe VT.

I would expect that the football schools that do not make the cut with the SEC and B1G are going to play football in a different configuration that they do today as well, one that makes more sense geographically.

So Stanford and Cal return to a new west coast conference for football only, with Washington St, Oregon St, Utah, Colorado, Arizona, Arizona State, filled out with the best programs from other conferences out West (schools like San Diego State, Fresno State, maybe Boise State, Colorado State and Utah State).

All this would dramatically reduce travel costs and make it a lot easier on the student athletes, who suddenly have much more power (they will surely be unionized shortly) and presumably would be very much on board with a dramatic reduction in travel.

And all of this would be much easier on fans, at least the ones that like to travel to away games. We might even see a period of stability for college sports. Maybe.

I expect things will be done in a logical way, The past does not indicate this is going to be the case but maybe all the financial considerations coming will finally drive the decision makers to restore some order to the awful mess that is college athletics today.

I must admit, I am a bit of a homer, this is a dream scenario. I would dream of this if integrity reigned suupreme as to challenge a situation that seems to be completely lacking in integrity. I do not have this belief at the present time unfortunately

 

[SWC75]

They won't protect anything but themselves. ND does not have any partners, they have pawns. As long as there are enough pawns for them to build a castle, they will remain independent in FB.

It's like a certain politician whose supporters will always vote for him, no matter what. It allows him to constantly land on his feet through all the crises. Notre Dame hasn't won a natty since 1988 and they lost a top coach to LSU because he wanted to win one but couldn't there. But they have the best and most loyal fan base so they want all deals to tilt in their direction - and they get it.

 

[David332]

ACC is the third most lucrative conference, not sure why people think B12 will be poaching us. I think the ACC will survive and will remain our best option outside of the P2.

 

[Cusefan95]

We can all have our preferences of how the future will look. But it really is impossible to predict, even for someone like ADJW who will be more informed than anyone.

One thing is possible to predict with close to near certainty - there is no chance Syracuse would have basketball in a basketball only conference and football somewhere else. ZIP. ZILCH. ZERO.

Anyone proposing that is a clueless idiot, and I wouldn’t trust their prediction on anything - including that the sun will rise tomorrow. Any Syracuse fan pining for such an outcome (for basketball to end up in a conference which has almost nothing in common with our old home other than the name) is completely detached from reality. There is NO WAY Syracuse can sustain a football program without being in a major conference (UConn only does it by running an athletic department at a huge loss, something Syracuse as a private university cannot do). And there is no way a major conference would take Syracuse football while basketball played elsewhere.

And if that particular brand of fan is a basketball-only - how long do you think it would take a university with no or lower level (low attendance) football to look at a big, obsolete football stadium in a prime location on campus before they asked -“Why is this here, exactly?” The death of football at Syracuse would likely have some very negative trickle down impacts on basketball.

 

[HRE Otto IV]

One thing is possible to predict with close to near certainty - there is no chance Syracuse would have basketball in a basketball only conference and football somewhere else. ZIP. ZILCH. ZERO.

Anyone proposing that is a clueless idiot, and I wouldn’t trust their prediction on anything - including that the sun will rise tomorrow. Any Syracuse fan pining for such an outcome (for basketball to end up in a conference which has almost nothing in common with our old home other than the name) is completely detached from reality. There is NO WAY Syracuse can sustain a football program without being in a major conference (UConn only does it by running an athletic department at a huge loss, something Syracuse as a private university cannot do). And there is no way a major conference would take Syracuse football while basketball played elsewhere.

And if that particular brand of fan is a basketball-only - how long do you think it would take a university with no or lower level (low attendance) football to look at a big, obsolete football stadium in a prime location on campus before they asked -“Why is this here, exactly?” The death of football at Syracuse would likely have some very negative trickle down impacts on basketball.

The only exception would be if (as some have theorized) there are FB conferences and non FB conferences. Then everyone is doing it.

But under the current environment I completely agree.

 

[Cusefan95]

It's like a certain politician whose supporters will always vote for him, no matter what. It allows him to constantly land on his feet through all the crises. Notre Dame hasn't won a natty since 1988 and they lost a top coach to LSU because he wanted to win one but couldn't there. But they have the best and most loyal fan base so they want all deals to tilt in their direction - and they get it.

Like John Thompson in the Big East 30 for 30. One minute he was bemoaning the league breaking up saying “we were all in this together!”. Next minute he was saying Syracuse and Pitt football wasn’t his problem, why should Georgetown help solve it. He looked like a selfish imbecile in that documentary.

Which is how this is going to play out for Notre Dame if they aren’t careful - wouldn’t shock me if they are left on the side of the road, even more irrelevant than they are now, asking “how did this happen. We were all in this together!!!!”.

God willing, we won’t be sitting on the curb next to them holding on to a pointless lifeline attach to ND’s hip.

 

[SWC75]

The only exception would be if (as some have theorized) there are FB conferences and non FB conferences. Then everyone is doing it.

But under the current environment I completely agree.

I still don't understand why every team from a school has to be in the same conference. The sports should be de-coupled, with each team searching for the conference that makes the most sense for them. Let football do what it wants. They don't care about the other sports anyway. Let the other teams do what they want.

 

[grepal]

I'll see everyone in Hell.

Might change with a 10 and 2 to 12 and O, especially if we are a playoff team. Football is getting a lot of attention and hoops looks like it will follow.

 

[djorange1989]

The only exception would be if (as some have theorized) there are FB conferences and non FB conferences. Then everyone is doing it.

But under the current environment I completely agree.

This

 

[djorange1989]

I still don't understand why every team from a school has to be in the same conference. The sports should be de-coupled, with each team searching for the conference that makes the most sense for them. Let football do what it wants. They don't care about the other sports anyway. Let the other teams do what they want.

Yep, have football-only conferences and then regionalize everything else including hoops. USC Volleyball shouldn’t be traveling to Rutgers and Syracuse basketball shouldn’t be playing Cal and SMU every year. It’s idiotic and expensive.

 

[HtownOrange]

Can anyone explain why the conferences are driving this? Serious question. ESPN and Fox have driven this monstrosity for 30 years. Now a few others are getting I to the game.

So please explain how the SEC and B1G have all the say in this game.

Too often everyone forgets that the conferences are merely puppets in the puppet masters' hands and the puppet masters are the networks and streamers.

ESPN is not going to willing give up a profitable market and valuable properties without some fight. Fox, the alphabet networks and the streamers are going to fight, too. It is more likely that after nearly 10 years of big dogs being mediocre they will want the old system back to have a shot. The networks and streamers may want one deal to rule them all (think pro sports).

If the ACC holds this group until 2030 and beyond, I think FSU and Clemson stay put. Clemson especially. They had their heyday and wotl Daob losing his staff and refusing g to play the portal game, Clemson is probably on its way back to earth, they may not be wanted.

FSU is going to do some hard math at some point. They will realize they cannot force a deal they like and by the time they can afford to jump, the SEC and B1G may be heading back to their origins.

Anyway, just another opinion. Use it accordingly.

 

[FRANKIEFAN]

I'd love to join the MWC schools with whatever is left of the ACC in football only and go Big East hoops. Money aside its best case scenario and the playoff should give that league an auto bid.

I think the Big Ten and SEC are going to want less schools in the future what happens when they have to play a 7-5 loaded LSU team in the first round because they were deemed 5th or 6th best in the league?

 

[OrangeTarheel]

I’d like a chance to compete at the highest level. The Big East is probably not that so not really a preferred option for me.

 

[Hoo's That]

Let's see what happens with the lawsuits the ACC has with FSU and Clemson. I think the ACC wins both. Maybe those schools get the GOR buyout value reduced from $580 to $300 million. Then add on the exit fee of $150 million (or whatever it is when they exit).

That seems best case for those schools.

Don't see them able to raise that kind of money. The buyout gets smaller over time and maybe around 2030 it becomes feasible for them.

I wonder how well the public is going to take to all this roster turnover, massive upheaval, NIL, insta-transfers, etc. My guess is that a significant percentage of fans will or already have become disillusioned by many of the changes.

As the focus for college football focuses primarily on the SEC and B1G, and conferences like the B12 and ACC become increasingly irrelevant, is it going to affect nationwide interest in football? My guess is that it will. Fans of the SEC and B1G will still watch and some fans of all the other schools might switch to following SEC and B1G games. But I think a significant number will still follow their schools or just stop following college sports period.

Cord cutting will continue and cable companies will continue to offer more options that allow customers to have cable and not pay for sports channels they do not want. The number of people who buy cable companies for ESPN and Fox sports channels and SECN, B1GN (and ACCN) will continue to decrease.

So I think it is inevitable that the money the SEC and B1G get from TV will decrease. I think the musical chairs will stop right around the same time FSU and Clemson can finally get out of the ACC GOR.

Maybe they finally get to another conference. Maybe not. Really don't care.

Also think it is inevitable that the conferences end the madness with geography we see today for all sports except football. Clearly a significant amount of the revenue schools are getting is going to go to the athletes starting really soon. Schools are going to make significantly less money than they thought. And then there is the big bill to pay the athletes who never got paid (but apparently should have)/

The most obvious way to keep profits as high as possible is to continue to ignore geography for football only and realign all the other sports back to pretty much the way they used to be, before the chase for TV money screwed everything up.

So the original ACC schools will end up back in a conference that looks very much like the original ACC. I think Syracuse, Pitt and BC will probably end up back in the Big East for everything except football. The Pac12 will be reformed (except for football and except for the members now in the B1G).

Some things probably will change. Miami will probably stay in the ACC for ASEF (all sports except football). Maybe VT.

I would expect that the football schools that do not make the cut with the SEC and B1G are going to play football in a different configuration that they do today as well, one that makes more sense geographically.

So Stanford and Cal return to a new west coast conference for football only, with Washington St, Oregon St, Utah, Colorado, Arizona, Arizona State, filled out with the best programs from other conferences out West (schools like San Diego State, Fresno State, maybe Boise State, Colorado State and Utah State).

All this would dramatically reduce travel costs and make it a lot easier on the student athletes, who suddenly have much more power (they will surely be unionized shortly) and presumably would be very much on board with a dramatic reduction in travel.

And all of this would be much easier on fans, at least the ones that like to travel to away games. We might even see a period of stability for college sports. Maybe.

I expect things will be done in a logical way, The past does not indicate this is going to be the case but maybe all the financial considerations coming will finally drive the decision makers to restore some order to the awful mess that is college athletics today.

"May you live in interesting times." - ancient Chinese curse.

Big time football and basketball are going to get very interesting.

 

[Orangepace]

how does a WV fan know how to work the internet?

They still have AOL dial up out there.

 

[All4SU]

Let's see what happens with the lawsuits the ACC has with FSU and Clemson. I think the ACC wins both. Maybe those schools get the GOR buyout value reduced from $580 to $300 million. Then add on the exit fee of $150 million (or whatever it is when they exit).

That seems best case for those schools.

Don't see them able to raise that kind of money. The buyout gets smaller over time and maybe around 2030 it becomes feasible for them.

I wonder how well the public is going to take to all this roster turnover, massive upheaval, NIL, insta-transfers, etc. My guess is that a significant percentage of fans will or already have become disillusioned by many of the changes.

As the focus for college football focuses primarily on the SEC and B1G, and conferences like the B12 and ACC become increasingly irrelevant, is it going to affect nationwide interest in football? My guess is that it will. Fans of the SEC and B1G will still watch and some fans of all the other schools might switch to following SEC and B1G games. But I think a significant number will still follow their schools or just stop following college sports period.

Cord cutting will continue and cable companies will continue to offer more options that allow customers to have cable and not pay for sports channels they do not want. The number of people who buy cable companies for ESPN and Fox sports channels and SECN, B1GN (and ACCN) will continue to decrease.

So I think it is inevitable that the money the SEC and B1G get from TV will decrease. I think the musical chairs will stop right around the same time FSU and Clemson can finally get out of the ACC GOR.

Maybe they finally get to another conference. Maybe not. Really don't care.

Also think it is inevitable that the conferences end the madness with geography we see today for all sports except football. Clearly a significant amount of the revenue schools are getting is going to go to the athletes starting really soon. Schools are going to make significantly less money than they thought. And then there is the big bill to pay the athletes who never got paid (but apparently should have)/

The most obvious way to keep profits as high as possible is to continue to ignore geography for football only and realign all the other sports back to pretty much the way they used to be, before the chase for TV money screwed everything up.

So the original ACC schools will end up back in a conference that looks very much like the original ACC. I think Syracuse, Pitt and BC will probably end up back in the Big East for everything except football. The Pac12 will be reformed (except for football and except for the members now in the B1G).

Some things probably will change. Miami will probably stay in the ACC for ASEF (all sports except football). Maybe VT.

I would expect that the football schools that do not make the cut with the SEC and B1G are going to play football in a different configuration that they do today as well, one that makes more sense geographically.

So Stanford and Cal return to a new west coast conference for football only, with Washington St, Oregon St, Utah, Colorado, Arizona, Arizona State, filled out with the best programs from other conferences out West (schools like San Diego State, Fresno State, maybe Boise State, Colorado State and Utah State).

All this would dramatically reduce travel costs and make it a lot easier on the student athletes, who suddenly have much more power (they will surely be unionized shortly) and presumably would be very much on board with a dramatic reduction in travel.

And all of this would be much easier on fans, at least the ones that like to travel to away games. We might even see a period of stability for college sports. Maybe.

I expect things will be done in a logical way, The past does not indicate this is going to be the case but maybe all the financial considerations coming will finally drive the decision makers to restore some order to the awful mess that is college athletics today.

Love your optimism, Tom. Wish I could see it the same. I don’t.

As an aside, I do not want to see the Government stick their noses in. But I believe any responsible governor should help state schools to realize their states do no support on ongoing arms race in college football.

 

[All4SU]

"May you live in interesting times." - ancient Chinese curse.

Big time football and basketball are going to get very interesting.

I don’t find it interesting. I find it pathetic and sad.

 

[Hoo's That]

I don’t find it interesting. I find it pathetic and sad.

It won't take much more to happen for a significant number of fans to decide not to watch anymore.

 

[baggerbob]

It won't take much more to happen for a significant number of fans to decide not to watch anymore.

And that's why the SEC, and Big in a few years when the bubble bursts will be in trouble.
They are both living on borrowed time, and being used to all the reckless spending.
When everyone goes to streaming, and they have cut out 70% of the population, the big money will no longer be there.
College lite won't stand up to the NFL.