The Big 12 expansion groundswell

[Uncle Ted]

I find it interesting how the math has changed when it comes to a Big 12 CCG. Back when the Big 8 expanded, or the Big 12 was formed, depending on your point of view; the push was for 12 teams in order to hold a CCG. Why didn't the Big 8 just add Texas and Texas A&M, renegotiate their TV contract, and call it quits? Did the additions of Texas Tech and Baylor justify the extra revenue from a CCG and having to divide the pie two more ways? Further, it was Nebraska that voiced concerns about the CCG harming a school's chances of playing for a national championship (and that concern proved accurate in the inaugural Big 12 CCG in 1996).

Forbes on the SEC championship game...

With the first SEC Championship 1992, pitting Alabama and Florida at the rather rinky-dink Legion Field in Birmingham, Alabama, a beast was born. The SEC, the first major conference with 12 members, became the first major conference to host a championship game. That first game generated an estimated $6 million, which was shared equally among the 12 teams.

Soon afterwards, other conferences and schools followed suit, chasing the dollar. There are now conference championships in the Big 12, Big 10, Big East, ACC, Pacific-12 and even the MAC and Conference USA. All of the inter-conference moves of late—Maryland and Rutgers to the Big Ten, Louisville to the ACC and East Carolina and Tulane to the Big East were the most recent—were all done for money, an indirect response to the original SEC Championship.

The SEC Championship Game has helped turn the SEC into a revenue monster. In 1992, the first year of the SEC Championship Game, the conference had $27.7 million in major sports-related revenues. Last year, the conference hauled in $241.5 million in revenues. Nearly 70% of that revenue ($166.1 million, to be exact) came from football (television deals with ESPN and CBS, the championship game and bowls). Each conference member received $20 million last year.

It’s not that hard to see why other schools and conferences have followed suit.

So if the ratios are the same and the 1992 SEC championship game was worth $6MM (which more than paid for the additional two members in 1992) then last year's SEC championship game was worth over $52MM.

Edit: This Forbes author is definitely not from Big 12 country.

[All-American]

Pac16 solves that by putting Oklahoma schools in the North and Texas Schools in the South and switch them every 4 years so every one of the 16 gets to play them. Then have an arrangment like the Cali Schools in which the Texas Schools always play the Oklahoma Schools.

Pac 16 North
Oklahoma
Ok St
Wash
Wash St
Oregon
Oregon St
Cal
Stanford

Pac 16 South
Texas
Tex Tech
Utah
Colorado
Ariz
Ariz St
USC
UCLA

This reminds me why I really don't miss the WAC.

[Color Me Badd Fan]

Forbes on the SEC championship game...



So if the ratios are the same and the 1992 SEC championship game was worth $6MM (which more than paid for the additional two members in 1992) then last year's SEC championship game was worth over $52MM.

Edit: This Forbes author is definitely not from Big 12 country.

When you have guys like Eddy Curry making $15 million a year (or somewhere around there) in the NBA and then you look at how paltry the television and BCS payouts were, then you know big conference college football was significantly undervalued. The television payouts have mushroomed and the Big 10 and SEC have the biggest brand names out there. To a certain extent, I believe the SEC has eclipsed the ACC and is in the process of doing the same to the Big 12 in that wide swath of the country. They're the NFL of college football.

[Flystripper]

This reminds me why I really don't miss the WAC.

Boy, I don't know. As an outsider that looks pretty awesome to me.

[YOhio]

There are a lot of rumblings amongst the usual suspects on Twitter about the Big 12 adding Florida State.

[Uncle Ted]

There are a lot of rumblings amongst the usual suspects on Twitter about the Big 12 adding Florida State.

Chip sez...

FLORIDA STATE LOOKING AROUND: But it should be getting more and more clear after Maryland's departure from the ACC, Florida State is not sitting around playing solitaire.

According to Warchant.com, the Florida State site on the Yahoo!/Rivals network, FSU officials are now exploring conference options and have put out feelers to the Big Ten.

Warchant.com has also reported there appears to be a movement in the SEC led by Alabama to make the conference rethink its stance against adding Florida State and/or Clemson.

Big 12 sources told Orangebloods.com last summer the priority list of potential expansion targets would be Notre Dame's Olympic sports, followed by Florida State and Georgia Tech - if those schools reached out to the Big 12.

But according to multiple sources, Florida State did not even come up at a Big 12 athletic directors' meeting in New York on Tuesday when new commissioner Bob Bowlsby gave his realignment update.

BIG 12 ON THE SIDELINES? With Texas leading the courtship of Notre Dame, the rest of the Big 12 began to think the Irish would place their non-football sports in the Big 12.

But the ACC, led by self-preservation commissioner John Swofford, changed its previous stance on full membership or no membership. Suddenly, Notre Dame's Olympic sports and five annual football games against the Irish were in the ACC.

Swofford also made sure the exit fees from the ACC were raised to $50 million, and a lawsuit has already been filed against Maryland by the rest of the ACC demanding every penny.

The raised exit fees and lawsuit don't seem to be a deterrent for Florida State at the moment.

THE TEXAS INFLUENCE: Because Texas has always been a founding voice in the Big 12 and is seen as the anchor that saved the league by sitting tight in 2010, the Longhorns have continued to drive conference policy. And Texas continues to be the loudest voice favoring a 10-team league because it makes for easier scheduling with 9 conference football games (everyone plays everyone) and round-robin scheduling in basketball; no conference title football game to potentially derail an undefeated team from the national title picture; and fewer schools to share TV revenue with.

But sources in the Big 12 tell Orangebloods.com there is increasing disagreement about these positions.

Those sources argue it's actually easier to get to a national title game in a league with divisions because there's an increased chance the best teams won't always play each other and knock each other off.

Look at the SEC this year.

Alabama didn't play the best teams from the SEC East - Florida, Georgia or South Carolina - during the regular season. And Georgia didn't play the best teams from the SEC West - Alabama, LSU or Texas A&M - during the regular season. And those two played for the right to be in this year's national title game.

[OSUCougar]

Chip sez...

WHAT???? NO BYU???!!!!!!

[Uncle Ted]

Iowa State joins the elite...

Cyclones.tv, Iowa State's 24/7 online broadcasting channel, is expanding to cable television.

On Wednesday, Cyclones.tv came to a five-year agreement with Mediacom for the formation of a television channel dedication to ISU athletics — considered an uncommon feat in collegiate athletics at this point.

"Coaches can go out and recruit now and say we're one of three programs in the country that have their own sports channel — Texas, BYU and Iowa State," said ISU Athletic Director Jamie Pollard.
[...]

[Uncle Ted]

The top 70 wealthiest athletics departments in 2011-12.

How does BYU rank against other possible/probable/inexcusable Big 12 targets?

14. Notre Dame
17. Louisville
25. Florida State
42. Clemson
44. NC State
45. VA Tech
54. GA Tech
63. BYU
69. Cincinnati

Cool. BYU beat Cincinnati (and Utah).

Of course, the Big 12 isn't going to expand and BYU will never give up its independence.

[Scratch]

The top 70 wealthiest athletics departments in 2011-12.

How does BYU rank against other possible/probable/inexcusable Big 12 targets?

14. Notre Dame
17. Louisville
25. Florida State
42. Clemson
44. NC State
45. VA Tech
54. GA Tech
63. BYU
69. Cincinnati

Cool. BYU beat Cincinnati (and Utah).

Of course, the Big 12 isn't going to expand and BYU will never give up its independence.

Interesting. Utah's just a couple of slots behind even though Utah got no P12 media revenue last year. Tack on an extra 20-30M in media money and they'll shoot up. Not to mention a lot more in playoff money once that starts. Will be interesting to see how the U shakes out with the rest of the conference once all the $$$ kicks in.

[wapiti]

I don't see any reason for an ACC school to go to the Big 12 unless the ACC falls apart. What are the dominoes required for the ACC to fall apart? I don't see the B1G growing past the current 16 teams. The SEC, however, could go 16 and the two candidates would likely come from the ACC.

It doesn't really matter who the SEC takes. Say the ACC loses Florida State and Clemson. Would adding UCONN and Cincinnati be enough to keep the Big 12 from enticing Miami and Georgia Tech from coming on board?

The only chance BYU has of getting into the Big 12 is if the ACC can stabilize and leave the Big 12 with no choice but to look west to get to 12 teams.

Kansas St. would have been left out of the 4 team playoff this year. I think the Big 12 will feel the need to get to 12 soon enough.

[Uncle Ted]

Interesting. Utah's just a couple of slots behind even though Utah got no P12 media revenue last year. Tack on an extra 20-30M in media money and they'll shoot up. Not to mention a lot more in playoff money once that starts. Will be interesting to see how the U shakes out with the rest of the conference once all the $$$ kicks in.

Utah doesn't need any more money. They are the "rich" in the PAC-whatever so the conference needs to give them less. It's the "poor" PAC members that need more money like Cal-Berkeley to help make ends meet. The rich has enough for their needs. For goodness sake, Cal had to cut 5 of its athletic programs and put 163 of its student-athletes and 13 of its full-time coaches on the streets. They had to cut their 25 time national championship rugby team! It's teams like poor Cal that are hurting and need the money. The PAC needs to give the Utah's less and the Cal's more.

[Scratch]

I don't see any reason for an ACC school to go to the Big 12 unless the ACC falls apart. What are the dominoes required for the ACC to fall apart? I don't see the B1G growing past the current 16 teams. The SEC, however, could go 16 and the two candidates would likely come from the ACC.

It doesn't really matter who the SEC takes. Say the ACC loses Florida State and Clemson. Would adding UCONN and Cincinnati be enough to keep the Big 12 from enticing Miami and Georgia Tech from coming on board?

The only chance BYU has of getting into the Big 12 is if the ACC can stabilize and leave the Big 12 with no choice but to look west to get to 12 teams.

Kansas St. would have been left out of the 4 team playoff this year. I think the Big 12 will feel the need to get to 12 soon enough.

The B1G is only at 14 (played this year at 12, adding Rutgers and Maryland will push it to 14). If they do only go to 16, they would take 2 of 3 of GTech, UNC, and UVa. The SEC would presumably take VaTech and either UNC or NC State. Suddenly, if you're the ACC you're starting to look a lot like the old Big East. If you're Florida State and Clemson, you're looking at a lot more money and much better competition in the B12.

Not predicting it will happen, just saying that's how it could come down. Now, if the SEC and/or B1G decide to go to 18, then the ACC will be completely devastated.

[Scratch]

It looks like the B12 isn't going anywhere anytime soon. Here's the B12's grant of rights through 2025.

All 10 schools signed it, and, while so far I just skimmed it, it looks like all 10 schools have granted their rights to all of the games covered by the ESPN/ABC and Fox TV contracts to the B12. It also looks like there's no real way out of the grant of rights, so the good news for Utah fans is it looks like we won't be playing in a division with Texas and Oklahoma schools for a while, if ever.

www.scribd.com/doc/116756116/Grant-of-Rights-pdf

[Jacob]

It looks like the B12 isn't going anywhere anytime soon. Here's the B12's grant of rights through 2025.

All 10 schools signed it, and, while so far I just skimmed it, it looks like all 10 schools have granted their rights to all of the games covered by the ESPN/ABC and Fox TV contracts to the B12. It also looks like there's no real way out of the grant of rights, so the good news for Utah fans is it looks like we won't be playing in a division with Texas and Oklahoma schools for a while, if ever.

www.scribd.com/doc/116756116/Grant-of-Rights-pdf

What is the logic behind your last statement? They don't have to get out of the grant of rights to add new teams to the conference. The grant make it more likely, not less, that we'd have a shot at joining the B12, IMO. Still not a great shot, but a better one.