Few in college sports know more about both Maryland and the Big Ten than Andy Geiger, who spent more than three years as the Terrapins?athletic director in the early 1990s followed by an 11-year stint in the same position at Ohio State.
Geiger said Tuesday morning that the move by Maryland, a charter member of the ACC, to the Big Ten will pay great dividends for the Terrapins and their cash-strapped athletic department.
?Having spent time at both Maryland and Ohio State, I know the kind of horsepower the Big Ten has,? Geiger said in a telephone interview. ?I think of all the football games that will now fill Byrd Stadium because the Big Ten travels so well and they have so many alumni all over the country. When Ohio State comes, I think you are looking at a guaranteed sellout.?
Geiger said he believes that will drive Maryland?s fan base to get more active in terms of fundraising and ticket buying. In recent years, Maryland has struggled mightily in season ticket sales and selling luxury suites in renovated Byrd Stadium as the football team has endured mediocre results on the field.
?I think this is exactly the type of transfusion they need ?? Geiger said. ?You have to live in Big Ten country to know how important the Big Ten Network is. It is going to be huge for Maryland.?
Geiger made clear that he is not a proponent of the nationwide conference shuffling that has existed in recent years but added that ?it?s way too late to complain about that. If there was something good to happen for Maryland, this is it. If all those traditions and all those things were so important in the ACC, why wasn?t the stadium filled Saturday? I don?t think there is empirical evidence to say that the rivalries that Maryland (football) had in the ACC were all that big of a deal. And the potential for them to grow in the Big Ten is much greater.?
