Big 12 expansion - maybe not.

[Kolumbo]

It's good to be the king.
Texas is in a win-win-win situation. Texas can go independent, hang on in the Big 12 as long as possible, or get an invite at the drop of a 10-gallon hat. This makes the Big 12 conference very susceptible. I have to believe the lower half of that conference is clamoring for some changes because it would make no sense for them to keep the status quo which could eventually leave them in the G5 lurch. It just does not make sense.
And I am sick of coming to this board and finding nothing newsworthy. What is wrong with you people? Give me something!

 

[CL82]

ZLS loves to suggest that UConn has zero value because it justifies UConn being left behind. Better to promote that narrative than for people to remember that ESPN funded the dismantling of Big East. It's his shtick, probable due his cognitive dissonance over being a part of the institution that gutted the best basketball conference of all time and left Connecticut with a very difficult path toward maintaining a big time athletic program.

 

[Kolumbo]

ZLS loves to suggest that UConn has zero value because it justifies UConn being left behind. Better to promote that narrative than for people to remember that ESPN funded the dismantling of Big East. It's his shtick, probable due his cognitive dissonance over being a part of the institution that gutted the best basketball conference of all time and left Connecticut with a very difficult path toward maintaining a big time athletic program.

It's amazing that Disney continues to pour $millions into the Bristol campus with new digital buildings and satellite farms and so forth. Perhaps espn's proximity to NYC and Boston have something to do with that. Interesting. F espn.

 

[zls44]

UConn has less value because the market has determined that. By your idiotic logic, why didn't Fox demand the Big East keep UConn BB as an anchor in some capacity when they split off? Maybe because every market measurement shows that it's not nearly as big a player as you think? Why was the NBCSN offer so bad?

Rejected by the ACC, Big Ten, BigXII but go ahead and blame everyone else without looking in a mirror.

 

[Kolumbo]

UConn has less value because the market has determined that. By your idiotic logic, why didn't Fox demand the Big East keep UConn BB as an anchor in some capacity when they split off? Maybe because every market measurement shows that it's not nearly as big a player as you think? Why was the NBCSN offer so bad?

Rejected by the ACC, Big Ten, BigXII but go ahead and blame everyone else without looking in a mirror.

You do understand that the Catholic 7 split off, right? Fox had no place in demanding UCONN jump ship. And your use of the term "market" in this context really has no relation to supply and demand. This is strictly a money grab by the greedy networks. UCONN has been rejected by nobody.

 

[pj]

If the ACC had taken UConn instead of Louisville, would it be UConn that had a value of $20 mn/yr and Louisville that had a value of $2 mn/yr?

In markets with small numbers of properties and bidders, and various constraints like requirements of even numbers of members, and strategic maneuvering/games, there can easily be 10-fold discrepancies between actual value and market income.

 

[DarthGrumpy]

It's amazing that Disney continues to pour $millions into the Bristol campus with new digital buildings and satellite farms and so forth. Perhaps espn's proximity to NYC and Boston have something to do with that. Interesting. F espn.

CT also gave some serious money to NBC Sports to move/centralize it's sports campus in Stamford.

 

[huskyniner]

Guys it's simple, just give me about 20 years to move up to the top of the company and I'll fix everything for UConn. Hope we can squeeze out that Catholic 7 exit money for that long.

 

[Fishy]

UConn has less value because the market has determined that. By your idiotic logic, why didn't Fox demand the Big East keep UConn BB as an anchor in some capacity when they split off? Maybe because every market measurement shows that it's not nearly as big a player as you think? Why was the NBCSN offer so bad?

Rejected by the ACC, Big Ten, BigXII but go ahead and blame everyone else without looking in a mirror.

How much is the Syracuse market worth? Does Syracuse even have a market? I can't find it. Wait! There they are at #84.

Or Pittsburgh? They share a market with Morgantown, West Virginia - that's a must have! Louisville's market is about the size of Memphis - what could that possibly be worth? Was ESPN trying to lock up the 50th biggest market there? I was under the impression that they already had the entire state locked up already. What was Fort Worth's addition worth to the Big 12? My guess is +/- $0. Or Morgantown? Okay, so they don't even have their own market, I'm sure they are still mega-valuable.

And I think I must have missed some of those markets when I looked through the ratings you were touting. Surely, you're holding those schools in their predominantly dinky markets to the same standards that you're holding UConn? Surely, Syracuse should be able to deliver big ratings in their little pond just like Louisville. (Wait....do you think that maybe, just maybe, Kentucky is driving those ratings?!)

Anywho, if you think markets and whatever vague definition of value you're bandying about was the be all and end all, well, no. Nice try.

 

[Adios]

How much is the Syracuse market worth? Does Syracuse even have a market? I can't find it. Wait! There they are at #84.

Or Pittsburgh? They share a market with Morgantown, West Virginia - that's a must have! Louisville's market is about the size of Memphis - what could that possibly be worth? Was ESPN trying to lock up the 50th biggest market there? I was under the impression that they already had the entire state locked up already. What was Fort Worth's addition worth to the Big 12? My guess is +/- $0. Or Morgantown? Okay, so they don't even have their own market, I'm sure they are still mega-valuable.

And I think I must have missed some of those markets when I looked through the ratings you were touting. Surely, you're holding those schools in their predominantly dinky markets to the same standards that you're holding UConn? Surely, Syracuse should be able to deliver big ratings in their little pond just like Louisville. (Wait....do you think that maybe, just maybe, Kentucky is driving those ratings?!)

Anywho, if you think markets and whatever vague definition of value you're bandying about was the be all and end all, well, no. Nice try.

National markets. Syracuse, Pitt, West Virginia, TCU, etc have name recognition. Louisville has more history at the top tier than we do, which also helps them in name recognition. But we're catching up very fast.

 

[Stinger92860]

How much is the Syracuse market worth? Does Syracuse even have a market? I can't find it. Wait! There they are at #84.

Or Pittsburgh? They share a market with Morgantown, West Virginia - that's a must have! Louisville's market is about the size of Memphis - what could that possibly be worth? Was ESPN trying to lock up the 50th biggest market there? I was under the impression that they already had the entire state locked up already. What was Fort Worth's addition worth to the Big 12? My guess is +/- $0. Or Morgantown? Okay, so they don't even have their own market, I'm sure they are still mega-valuable.

And I think I must have missed some of those markets when I looked through the ratings you were touting. Surely, you're holding those schools in their predominantly dinky markets to the same standards that you're holding UConn? Surely, Syracuse should be able to deliver big ratings in their little pond just like Louisville. (Wait....do you think that maybe, just maybe, Kentucky is driving those ratings?!)

Anywho, if you think markets and whatever vague definition of value you're bandying about was the be all and end all, well, no. Nice try.

Wait unti ESPN gets hacked like Sony. It will make for a fun read.

 

[upstater]

National markets. Syracuse, Pitt, West Virginia, TCU, etc have name recognition. Louisville has more history at the top tier than we do, which also helps them in name recognition. But we're catching up very fast.

I've been around the country. I think WV is known for football. But Syracuse and Pitt are an afterthought for football. They really are. I can only speak from the perspective of midwesterners on this, but they consider those two schools to be slightly above the MAC. I can imagine how underwhelmned southerners are.

Back when the BE was more formidable (Miami, VT and WV), the perception of the rest of the conference was overwhelmingly negative.

I don't think some cornball in Muskegon is going to be tuning into Syracuse-NC State on any given night.

 

[1husky]

Guys it's simple, just give me about 20 years to move up to the top of the company and I'll fix everything for UConn. Hope we can squeeze out that Catholic 7 exit money for that long.

Going to work at 2 am should help you/all of us get there quicker. Keep up the good work! Unless you are just coming in from the bars??

 

[Adios]

I've been around the country. I think WV is known for football. But Syracuse and Pitt are an afterthought for football. They really are. I can only speak from the perspective of midwesterners on this, but they consider those two schools to be slightly above the MAC. I can imagine how underwhelmned southerners are.

Back when the BE was more formidable (Miami, VT and WV), the perception of the rest of the conference was overwhelmingly negative.

I don't think some cornball in Muskegon is going to be tuning into Syracuse-NC State on any given night.

The cornball might tune into Cuse-NC State basketball. The B1G does emphasize basketball in it's portfolio.

 

[Deleted]

I think the formula, if the B1G ever decides to utilize it, is: Kansas > Oklahoma > Texas > UConn.

Pick off Kansas and Oklahoma, and then Texas will have no choice except to migrate out of the B12; there being no other anchor school left. To keep its most important association alive, Texas follows Oklahoma into a very nice, prestigious league. Then here comes UConn to get the B1G to 18.

Such an expansion gets the B1G that strenghened league on the gridiron while simultaneously bringing the B1G even more major television markets in the East, finishing off the north end of the NE Corridor.

But there's even more: Excellent new football recruiting ground, massive basketball upgrade with UConn and Kansas, shuts out the SEC from state flagship schools in the West, two additional AAU schools with one near-AAU (UConn). Grand slam, if you'll pardon the mixed metaphor.

Maybe the B1G is cultivating such a scenario, idk. It seems obvious enough to me, but there's a whole lot of moving parts, as they say. The most difficult moving part, from Texas' pov, is what happens to its beloved LHN? Texas folks who get it do like the LHN. So who knows?

This would be worth waiting for and getting kicked in the nads time after time. If this were to ever happen, does anyone think the B1G would ever vote out Rutgers and vote in Cuse? That would be a pretty amazing Easter pod with UConn, Cuse, PSU, and UMD. I can dream can't I?

 

[btstimpy]

Pure and utter poppycock. The more "we're content at 10 / there is nobody that adds value" garbage that Bowlsby and other B12 mouths spurt out, the more I think this is a dead man walking conference. Texas throwing around some muscle to keep their short-term revenue as lucrative as possible until their eventual move.

You have to take into account the Big XII television contracts. They are sized for 12 members now. The Big XII has 10 members and a contract for 12 members. If they add two more members, they get the exact sum that they get for 10. So these comments are not a judgement on the value of the candidates as much as the Big XII realizing that they are currently overpaid, and if they add more members they might be paid appropriately, but each member would receive less than they do now. The Big XII was told by FOX and ESPN that only Notre Dame as a full football member would increase their contract value.

The Big XII likes to claim to be a highly paid conference, but it's fool's gold. They have 10 members splitting a 12 member pot. You should not take this as judgement of UConn's value. It is more hoarding of the pot while they can because it is time limited. All of the other issues like too small a footprint, lack of population, etc. will all come home to roost as that contract nears its term.

 

[pj]

This would be worth waiting for and getting kicked in the nads time after time. If this were to ever happen, does anyone think the B1G would ever vote out Rutgers and vote in Cuse? That would be a pretty amazing Easter pod with UConn, Cuse, PSU, and UMD. I can dream can't I?

No. Rutgers >> Cuse.

 

[huskyniner]

Going to work at 2 am should help you/all of us get there quicker. Keep up the good work! Unless you are just coming in from the bars??

Nope, you were close. I usually work the night shift from 6p-4a.

 

[buddy]

This would be worth waiting for and getting kicked in the nads time after time. If this were to ever happen, does anyone think the B1G would ever vote out Rutgers and vote in Cuse? That would be a pretty amazing Easter pod with UConn, Cuse, PSU, and UMD. I can dream can't I?

And they say that I'm crazy.

 

[dayooper]

The cornball might tune into Cuse-NC State basketball. The B1G does emphasize basketball in it's portfolio.

Being a cornball from Michigan (East side), no one in our area cares about Syracuse unless we are playing them. Could care less that bball is in our portfolio (apparently not Michigan's this year), 'Cuse does nothing for us. NCST? Even less. If they were in our conference, that might be different, but not by much.

 

[Fishy]

You have to take into account the Big XII television contracts. They are sized for 12 members now. The Big XII has 10 members and a contract for 12 members.

This....is an excellent point.

 

[zls44]

Wait unti ESPN gets hacked like Sony. It will make for a fun read.

Berman has a pretty funny auto reply since he doesn't check his email ever.

 

[Waquoit]

Berman has a pretty funny auto reply since he doesn't check his email ever.

Does it have to do with leather?

 

[WestHartHusk]

Does it have to do with leather?

It's probably something about the pills from Canada.

 

[huskymedic]

UCFSports5:24pm via TweetDeck
Is UCF on the Big 12's lips? Commissioner Bob Bowlsby was put on the spot by Mike Bianchi. http://ow.ly/GcGaP

UCFSports5:29pm via TweetDeck
While Bowlsby said the Big 12 has no plans for expansion, he added - unprompted - they would look east and not west because of West Virginia

UCFSports5:31pm via TweetDeck
So while Bowlsby says they don't have a "list of prospects," Big 12 has clearly identified direction they'd want to go when the time comes.