Conference Realignment thread

[utenation]

On 11/27/2023 at 3:47 PM, RSF said:

All the new schools are getting partial shares and that combined with the exit fees meant the original schools didnt have to take a hair cut financially.

So this is still in play? And are the newbies locked into partial shares until there is a new media contract?

 

https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Daily/Closing-Bell/2019/03/19/AAC.aspx#:~:text=The American Athletic Conference will,12 years%2C according to sources.

[RSF]

On 11/27/2023 at 5:01 PM, utenation said:

So this is still in play? And are the newbies locked into partial shares until there is a new media contract?

 

https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Daily/Closing-Bell/2019/03/19/AAC.aspx#:~:text=The American Athletic Conference will,12 years%2C according to sources.

Dont know about how long the partials are but, yeah, 12 years.

[Nevada Convert]

On 11/27/2023 at 1:59 PM, 818SUDSFan said:

A reverse merger is nothing more than fool's gold. A Pac-8 or Pac-10 would obviously have been inferior to a USC/UCLA-less Pac-10 but properly composed it could have been the gold standard for non-power or non-autonomous conferences. Instead, the Pacific Mountain Conference is going to be no better than the AAC with the TV money per school continuing to be inferior to what the AAC members get while the highest-ranked groupie school going to the CFP will continue to be divided among five conferences rather than having that slot filled by the PMC almost every year.

Shame on OSU/WSU for thinking they could buy their way into the AAC or the B12 and then just basically joining THE Mountain West Conference when they discovered that wasn't going to happen.

The playoff folks have already notified the twins PAC-8 wouldn’t be eligible for the playoffs. Not sure about 10, but probably so. But I think a PAC-10 is fools gold. You might get a few better schools back east, but the travel cost just canceled out that marginally extra TV money. 

The best model is the reverse merger WITH MANDATORY MINIMUMS. Make schools invest in athletics or get booted. It’s better to develop western schools with more money. We need better western schools and that’s how you do it. SJSU now pays Brennan $1.5 mil per year now which a decent amount above SDSU. That’s amazing for SJSU which was always the worst. 

[utenation]

On 11/27/2023 at 4:04 PM, RSF said:

Dont know about how long the partials are but, yeah, 12 years.

Just a guess but based on who they added, I doubt there is a ramp up before a new contract.  Not a ton of money to go around. 

[Nevada Convert]

On 11/27/2023 at 1:59 PM, 818SUDSFan said:

A reverse merger is nothing more than fool's gold. A Pac-8 or Pac-10 would obviously have been inferior to a USC/UCLA-less Pac-10 but properly composed it could have been the gold standard for non-power or non-autonomous conferences. Instead, the Pacific Mountain Conference is going to be no better than the AAC with the TV money per school continuing to be inferior to what the AAC members get while the highest-ranked groupie school going to the CFP will continue to be divided among five conferences rather than having that slot filled by the PMC almost every year.

Shame on OSU/WSU for thinking they could buy their way into the AAC or the B12 and then just basically joining THE Mountain West Conference when they discovered that wasn't going to happen.

The playoff folks have already notified the twins PAC-8 wouldn’t be eligible for the playoffs. Not sure about 10, but probably so. But I think a PAC-10 is fools gold. You might get a few better schools back east, but the travel cost just canceled out that marginally extra TV money. 

The best model is the reverse merger WITH MANDATORY MINIMUMS. Make schools invest in athletics or get booted. It’s better to develop western schools with more money. We need better western schools and that’s how you do it. SJSU now pays Brennan $1.5 mil per year now which a decent amount above SDSU. That’s amazing for SJSU which was always the worst. 

[SteedLaw]

On 11/27/2023 at 4:10 PM, Nevada Convert said:

The playoff folks have already notified the twins PAC-8 wouldn’t be eligible for the playoffs. Not sure about 10, but probably so. But I think a PAC-10 is fools gold. You might get a few better schools back east, but the travel cost just canceled out that marginally extra TV money. 

The best model is the reverse merger WITH MANDATORY MINIMUMS. Make schools invest in athletics or get booted. It’s better to develop western schools with more money. We need better western schools and that’s how you do it. SJSU now pays Brennan $1.5 mil per year now which a decent amount above SDSU. That’s amazing for SJSU which was always the worst. 

Yep. This is the best model moving forward by far. Full reverse merger. All teams are invited to participate. All teams must meet an AD expenditure minimum each year plus an annual AD expediture increase each year for the first 5 years of conference affiliation. That way, no one is left out and no one gets a “free ride”. 

That way, the conference puts itself in the best possible situation moving forward with expenditures at or at least near the top of the G5. 

It is clean, simple and works. But, OSU/WSU need to move fast. Their stakeholders are bailing as it is. Those schools need to give stakeholders a clear path forward. 

[HawaiiMongoose]

On 11/27/2023 at 11:35 AM, utenation said:

What is the AAC's deal after the departures? If I remember correctly, it was around $6-7 million before. But there's always a void if the conference falls apart.  I'm not positive on the numbers and too lazy to look.

The current AAC media deal with ESPN pays out $83.3 million per year.  It was signed in 2020 and originally set to expire in 2032.  When the AAC lost three of its most valuable members to the Big 12 and backfilled with six less valuable new members, ESPN didn't reduce the annual payout amount, but did make the AAC agree to push the expiration date out to 2034.  In effect, ESPN will get more content for a longer period of time without having to give the AAC a pay raise, while Aresco can claim with a semi-straight face that the AAC didn't take a pay cut.

Of course receiving the same annual payout with more members in the conference is a pay cut on a per-school basis.  Assuming Wichita State and Navy taken together receive the equivalent of one full share, the previous annual distribution was $6.94 million per school ($83.3 million split 12 ways) whereas the current distribution is $5.95 million per school ($83.3 million split 14 ways).  However as most folks know, the AAC isn't making equal distributions; instead the holdover schools have been spared from being given a haircut while the six newbies are getting less than equal shares.

[NorCalCoug]

On 11/27/2023 at 4:04 PM, RSF said:

Dont know about how long the partials are but, yeah, 12 years.

50% share TV revenue years 1 & 2, full share everything else.  Year 3 full shares, with the start of the new media deal.

[Brew_Poke]

On 11/27/2023 at 9:38 AM, SteedLaw said:

We can agree to disagree on this. 
 

By the numbers and athletic department revenue and payout, the new “PAC” with OSU and WSU would be, on average, just a hair below the Big XII and would be head and shoulders above the American and the SunBelt. If you could use the momentum of the PAC brand and the addition of OSU/WSU wisely, then you could easily poach at least two of the following 4 schools — UTSA, UNT, UTEP, or Texas State. 

That would allow a renegotiated contract with significantly increased payout rates — causing an even bigger divide between the new PAC and the AAC/SunBelt. 

Again, we can agree to disagree here, but it would be improbable for the Sunbelt or the American to compete with the numbers in this scenario. 

The momentum is the PAC brand is heading into the grave. Who wants to use that?

[RSF]

On 11/28/2023 at 6:47 AM, NorCalCoug said:

50% share TV revenue years 1 & 2, full share everything else.  Year 3 full shares, with the start of the new media deal.

Wrong conference - the AAC deal has another decade to go.

[NorCalCoug]

On 11/28/2023 at 6:55 AM, RSF said:

Wrong conference - the AAC deal has another decade to go.

Ahhh, thought you guys were talking about BigXII newcomers.  My bad…

[lakesbison]

NDSU would forego TV/media money if they can keep their Local TV dollars they are currently making which should finally be attractive for MWC/AAC to pick them up.

$55 million IPF is done

Stadium will be renovated

 

[RSF]

On 11/28/2023 at 8:50 AM, lakesbison said:

NDSU would forego TV/media money if they can keep their Local TV dollars they are currently making which should finally be attractive for MWC/AAC to pick them up.

$55 million IPF is done

Stadium will be renovated

 

[lakesbison]

On 11/28/2023 at 9:07 AM, RSF said:

NDSU makes about $2.3 Million a year on its on media deal. Which is better than most G5 members get in their shares

[RSF]

On 11/28/2023 at 9:43 AM, lakesbison said:

NDSU makes about $2.3 Million a year on its on media deal. Which is better than most G5 members get in their shares

Except the AAC and MWC....

 

 

OTOH...that just indicates that NDSU would bring the value of a new MWC deal down.

[thespywhozaggedme]

Can somebody please explain to me the term “reverse merger“? Because that sounds like a made-up, nonsensical term. If two separate groups are combining into one, it’s a merger. The word “reverse“ means opposite, or backing up. So aren’t we just talking about a merger? 

[OzzyOzz]

Playoffs is a non question only to be answered by a judge.

Write the suit. Start that process. 

The rest continue to be silly questions with the intent to not include wsu+osu+ other worthy programs in an expanded playoffs.

The point of an expansion is to expand. 

If that isn't the point, there is no need for further college fb at all...concentrate on the new med school. Drop football completely and promote the other sports. 

 

[OzzyOzz]

All this opposition for wsu+OSU to be ineligible for the playoffs, even by non playoff eligible teams, is all well and good and fine and dandy but it has 1.5 years now to be decided in the courts. Direct exclusion if imposed and found to be unlawful will come with heavy penalties. Let a judge decide.

If that is the decision, then the NFL needs to be contacted by the MWC like right now. Give them all they want. 

And it's simply self disrespecting and quite embarrassing for those people who don't have their own spine to stick up for their own programs and not figures on a screen and facts on a field...

So stupid. They shouldn't be allowed to make bad faith remarks, or should be flagged...

It's ridiculous, everytime I come to this forum, it's a bunch of children that are making noise. They don't read the news or whatever, I tell them, they change it..I correct it. So just stop. 

I have yet to receive a penny for my efforts and I've helped. You all get paid to not help. You get paid to waste time. 

Fired. 

You will want to be in the playoffs because you aren't spineless cowards.

 

[OzzyOzz]

Next year's expanded playoffs will not and cannot feature a reduction in the size of eligible teams and if you want to test that then you have to remember that you are dealing with real life adults with real life capabilities and the games won't be played without a lot unnecessary grief to many, if at all. 

The stadiums are public land, remember that. And students are politically motivated. 

In any case the correct moral position is inclusion. 

There needs to be a hit list of those culpable because they need to be removed from their positions if this continues. 

I'm going to go figure out who sits on these boards eventually, but trust and believe I know their children. 

What is right will be done as usual. 

[alum93]

On 11/28/2023 at 8:43 AM, lakesbison said:

NDSU makes about $2.3 Million a year on its on media deal. Which is better than most G5 members get in their shares

If NDSU really wanted to move up,  I would think they would have had opportunities.  The Sun Belt expanded.  CUSA lost multiple teams and rebuilt.  Jax State just went 8-4 and was within a touchdown on the road at South Carolina of pulling off an upset in SEC land.  Liberty is ranked #20 playing in CUSA.   I just don't think the powers that be really wanted to leave FCS.  There is nothing wrong with that.  With the additions of WSU and OSU i don't see the MWC as a viable option anytime soon.  With the AAC back filling with CUSA team, i don't see them as an option.  The Sun Belt is a regional conference that has proven to have solid G5 football and will challenge for a playoff spot in the new format.  I'll believe NDSU is serious about wanting to move to FBS when i see it.