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2011 Conference Realignment

Discussion in 'Football: NFL, College, High School' started by RocketManJosh, Sep 27, 2011.

  1. Castor27

    Castor27 Moderator
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    Reports are flying today that Georgia Tech is going to be going to the Big Ten. Could that open the door for the Big12 to fleece some of the football schools from the ACC? FSU, Clemson I am looking at you.
     
  2. MadMax

    MadMax Contributing Member

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    If that happens, it's on. No way FSU stays if GA Tech leaves. The ACC is a thing of the past (at least as a football conference) if GA Tech walks out the door.

    where are you reading the reports??
     
  3. Rocketman95

    Rocketman95 Hangout Boy

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    He's Deep Throat. ;)
     
  4. Castor27

    Castor27 Moderator
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    Sorry posted and meant to put the article in there, and got called away to take care of a big problem. This is the article that was sent to me about GT leaving. It has been revised since I read it this morning. A tweet was put out by a reputable source saying GT had been invited. The guy has since somewhat back tracked but is now just saying it is something that has legs. From what I gather it isn't a wholehearted backtrack more of Oops I wasn't supposed to post that yet kind of thing.

    http://www.landgrantholyland.com/20...tech-approved-by-big-ten-conference-expansion
     
  5. MadMax

    MadMax Contributing Member

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    how classic would that be?
     
  6. Castor27

    Castor27 Moderator
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    I could only claim that if I were trying to be the next MacBeth...

    I actually saw the article because I am keeping tabs on my Alma Mater, who is being rumored to move up to FBS status.
     
  7. MadMax

    MadMax Contributing Member

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    http://dudeofwv.blogspot.com/

    Monday, December 3, 2012

    In Response to Mr. Barron

    Florida State University President Eric Barron has apparently addressed growing rumors of ACC instability by specifically referring to my "nom de plume" (dudeofWV) as an internet rumor-monger spreading "incorrect" information.

    I began writing about conference realignment last January when I postulated the growing concern of Florida State and Clemson over the revenue gap between the ACC and the SEC would lead them to explore options with other conferences.

    It was shortly after WVU and Clemson played in the Orange Bowl that I learned substantial discussions were ongoing between the Big 12 and FSU and Clemson.

    I am guilty of many things as I have tried to cover expansion. I have sometimes jumped to conclusions and let my enthusiasm get the better of me. However I have always been careful to only write what I was certain was true and I learned the hard way to double-check my facts.

    I began posting a blog about WVU and WVU's chances at being invited to the SEC to defend WVU against those who had incorrect assumptions about WVU and West Virginia. My experiences writing about the SEC taught me a valuable lesson – double and triple check facts.

    Contacts within a major university like WVU know the power of social media. They know they can release information via social media that a traditional news outlet, like the Charleston Gazette, could never print. Traditional journalism is about what "has happened" not what "could happen" and social media nicely fills that gap.

    A conference like the Big 12 or a university like FSU could use social media to plant a rumor to gauge fan support for a conference switch or coaching change – the opportunity to shape opinion is there and universities are becoming more adept at using it.

    The danger to bloggers is that information is shared for a reason and that reason always serves the best interest of the university and may or may not be true. I learned that when I was told WVU had submitted paperwork for the SEC. My contact at WVU did not tell me that WVU had only submitted financial information and lead me to believe that WVU had submitted an application for membership.

    I learned my lesson well and when I began writing about FSU and Clemson I was very careful about what I did (and did not) write. I took great pains to verify information and reached out to several media members who confirmed the majority of what I had learned. These helpful individuals had no connection to WV or WVU.

    At every step in the process I freely shared whatever information I had and I was fortunate enough to have others share their information with me. Every piece of the puzzle was verified and although some details remain murky, like the specifics of the ACC contract, I was able to independently verify each and every one of the items I've written about.

    I stand by my assertion that both FSU and Clemson had significant talks with the Big 12 and that both were willing to leave the ACC based on facts collaborated by my media contacts, independent of WVU, who covered FSU, Clemson and the SEC.

    Eric Barron can deflect all he wants and try to reassure his boosters but the fact remains the ACC has problems that that threaten their stability.

    Eric Barron can't change the fact that the ACC is the lowest paid of the major football conferences. He can't change the fact the ACC's reputation harms Florida State chances of reaching the playoffs in 2014. Barron can't change the fact that the Big 10, SEC and Big 12 covet ACC members and even the $50 million exit fee isn't enough to keep the conference whole.

    More importantly Eric Barron can't change the fact that the new BCS playoff system begins in 2013 and the Big 4 are determined that the ACC isn't around to receive their share.

    As for Eric Barron calling me out by name I have a few simple questions for him:

    Have you or anyone acting on FSU's behalf spoken to the Big 10, Big 12 or SEC about conference membership?
    Have you or any agent of FSU retained outside representation to review or prepare financial documents related to Big 10, Big 12 or SEC membership?
    Have you or anyone representing FSU spoken to the Big 12 conference in the past 14 days.
    Have you spoken with senior leadership at Boston College, Clemson, UVA, Virginia Tech Georgia Tech about their plans in regards to ACC membership.
    Barron admitted he has been talking to other university presidents and you can bet those presidents are in the Big 10, SEC and Big 12. So until the ACC either releases details of its TV contract or signs a grant-of-rights it would be foolish not to think Eric Barron isn't fulfilling his fiduciary responsibility to explore FSU's options as the Big 10 plans its next move.

    As for the criticism… I have done all I can do. I have shared what I know, given up my non de plume and used my real name. I don't own a website, I don't charge for information, I don't benefit from anyway from hits to any website. I'm on record with my opinion that greed is ruining college football and that conference realignment is bad for the game we all love.

    And I was warned many, many times not to write about expansion.
     
  8. Anticope

    Anticope Member

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    On the radio here in Austin they were just talking about how Georgia Tech to the Big Ten and Florida State to the Big XII is heating up and could be imminent. I only listened for a few minutes, so that's all I heard.
     
  9. Major

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    FSU's criticism of the blogger seems silly given that they themselves openly admitted they were looking at options, their Regent was the guy who publicly slammed the ACC, and they were the ones that voted against the $50MM exit fee - all indicating they have some internal interest in leaving.

    Not to mention that they can't be thrilled to be playing Northern Illinois in a bowl game that no one has any interest in, with tickets going for $7 on Stubhub. This after tickets for the ACC Championship game were selling for under $4.
     
  10. mleahy999

    mleahy999 Member

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    Isn't that just the selection process of the BCS bowls with the Orange bowl picking last this year? There's going to be some clunkers every year: Hawaii-GA. Uconn-OK. Cincy for a couple years.
     
  11. Major

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    Absolutely. Except the Pac12 and Big10 are guaranteed to match up in the Rose Bowl. And the SEC and Big12 will be guaranteed to match up in the Sugar Bowl starting in 2014. The ACC is left out of the fun.
     
  12. Castor27

    Castor27 Moderator
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    That is unless they cut a deal to match up with the Big East in the Whogivesacrap.com bowl. Precisely why ACC football schools should be looking to get the heck out of Dodge.
     
  13. MadMax

    MadMax Contributing Member

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    http://texas.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1445262

    Chip Brown
    Orangebloods.com Columnist


    There are those in the Big 12, which has the smallest TV household footprint of all the major conferences, who are growing increasingly restless with a wait-and-see approach to expansion when they think it's clear the Big Ten is still shopping around the Atlantic Coast Conference.

    Nothing about realignment makes sense.

    But what makes absolutely no sense to an increasing number in the Big 12 is sitting back and watching the conference with the largest TV household footprint (Big Ten) looking to get even larger with the additions of Rutgers, Maryland and perhaps more, sources say.

    Because the Big Ten requires its schools to be members of the American Association of Universities, considered the nation's top public and private research institutions, increasing speculation has focused on if the Big Ten would go to 16 by trying to lure Georgia Tech and North Carolina, both of whom have denied contact, or possibly even Virginia.

    Florida State is not a member of the AAU. So the thought in the Big 12, it seems, has been the Big Ten won't take Florida State, and the SEC has never expressed an interest in Florida State because of an unwritten agreement that Florida be the only SEC school in the state.


    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.


    MAKING THE RIGHT MOVE: To be perfectly clear, no one in the Big 12 wants to expand simply to expand. The Big 12 commissioned a study on the value of adding schools like Louisville and Cincinnati and decided the value wasn't there.

    But Florida State and a partner out of the ACC - either Clemson, Miami, Virginia Tech or all of them, would be adding real value, three officials in the Big 12 told Orangebloods.com Tuesday.

    Published reports have said Maryland stands to make $100 million more in its first five years in the Big Ten than it would have made in a new TV agreement between the ACC and ESPN.


    INCREASING THE BOTTOM LINE: In the Big 12, new, TV contracts with ESPN and Fox totaling $2.6 billion as well as a $960 million ESPN TV contract for a bowl game with the SEC - all through 2025 - are providing nice bottom lines of roughly $28 million annually for Big 12 members - in addition to third-tier TV deals (Texas makes $15 million annually from ESPN for the Longhorn Network).

    But the only way for schools in the Big 12 to grow in TV revenue is by expanding its footprint. And the only way for a league with one-third the population (36.6 million) of the Big Ten (103.9 million) is by adding the Seminoles in a state with 19 million people, those sources say.

    Basically, those sources want new commissioner Bob Bowlsby to make Florida State his top priority, whether Texas agrees or not. Sources at Texas say UT does not have an iron-clad stance against expansion but definitely favors 10 schools.


    MOVE IT OR LOSE IT: There is increasing fear in the Big 12 that if the league doesn't get proactive on expansion, Florida State could get away - either to the SEC or, God forbid, the Big Ten if Delany could convince his schools to make an exception to its AAU membership requirement.

    Talk about TV market domination by one conference.

    Florida State would need a partner in the Big 12, most likely Clemson or Miami. Or the Big 12 could get really aggressive and go after Florida State, Clemson, Miami and Virginia Tech.

    There would be a touch of irony in all of that considering the ACC rejected Texas and its Longhorn Network as a potential expansion target last September when Oklahoma and Oklahoma State flirted with the Pac-12. Instead, the ACC grabbed Syracuse and Pitt.

    "If you rely on the rules in other conferences as they are written or someone's word in times like this, you get left behind," one official at a Big 12 school said. "We learned that lesson with Notre Dame going to the ACC."

    And one source said if the Big 12 took the Big Ten's approach by shopping around the ACC, it might come with Notre Dame's Olympic sports after all.

    Stay tuned.
     
  14. SamFisher

    SamFisher Contributing Member

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    The 10 team league round-robin thing does make sense from a pure competitive standpoint, having 6 or 7 10 team leagues wouldn't be a horrible idea., leading to a 6 or 7 team playoff with maybe a wild card team or 2 thrown in

    It's too bad the "4 16 team superconf" idea has taken root in the imagination of the NCAA Dons, though it's unsuprising that in an enterprise as sordid as the NCAA/BCS etc, the greediest most winner-take-all-iest solution would be the one that is pursued.

    Rest assured, the big losers will continue to be the athletes under any scenario. So cheer up everybody!
     
  15. Major

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  16. sealclubber1016

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    The big east has always been a hoops conference, in their single minded focus to on football they just basically said f baskeball.

    So these schools, which don't even play football said f this conference. I'm expecting an Atlantic 10 basketball only superconference.

    Now the big east sucks at everything.
     
  17. mleahy999

    mleahy999 Member

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    If the CYO also keep the Big East name and autobid, they essentially just booted all the riff raffs from joining. Now all the hobos will get together and find the best card board box for shelter.
     
  18. DonnyMost

    DonnyMost not wrong
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    They want to leave, but they won't be able to take the Big East name or tournament rights with them, nor get out of paying the exit fee. That is going to be a huge stumbling block for them. The A10 may take them, but it's not going to be a painless process.
     
  19. Rocketman95

    Rocketman95 Hangout Boy

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    They will get to keep tourney rights since all 7 schools have been in same conference for five years. At least that's what I heard last night. And per the article above, no exit fees if they give 27-month notice.
     
  20. DonnyMost

    DonnyMost not wrong
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    UConn, Cincinnati, and South Florida would have to vote to let them keep the Big East name and associated tournament rights. Otherwise, the 7 defectors would have to start their own league and negotiate and plan their own tournament. And yes, there's always the waiting period option, but very few schools ever end up staying that full term.

    I don't really mind if they leave, because it will allow the league to go ahead and have a truly dedicated Western division by adding programs like UNLV, Fresno, AFA, or CSU. This whole competing interests thing is really annoying and getting old quick. But if they do leave, you don't let them take the best assets with them unless they're paying you a fortune.
     

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