Big Ten and other Conference Expansion

[jlb1705]

Of course not. The Big Ten isn't going to come out and acknowledge in any way that Texas is under consideration. If you swing and miss it's bad PR. If the conference denies that they're even under consideration they can plausibly deny they ever seriously considered Texas in the first place.

Announcing your moves is a good way to have somebody else and make a move before you. I'm pretty sure that's not what the Big Ten wants.

 

[manuva]

I am inclined to believe that Texas is not on the list of 15. There was no reason for him to single out and mention that Texas isn't on the list. He could have easily ducked the question.

Of course not. The Big Ten isn't going to come out and acknowledge in any way that Texas is under consideration. If you swing and miss it's bad PR. If the conference denies that they're even under consideration they can plausibly deny they ever seriously considered Texas in the first place.

Announcing your moves is a good way to have somebody else and make a move before you. I'm pretty sure that's not what the Big Ten wants.

 

[MililaniBuckeye]

I am inclined to believe that Texas is not on the list of 15. There was no reason for him to single out and mention that Texas isn't on the list. He could have easily ducked the question.

Did he say, "Texas is not on the list", or did he say, "I did not see Texas on the list"? Big difference...

 

[Buckrock]

How about adding 7 teams to make it 18. Might as well think big. Once the Big 10 expands, the gold rush and consolidation will be on. The schools i would target academically and TV revenue impact would be:

1. Texas
2. Texas A&M
3. Syracuse
4. U Conn
5. Rutgers
6. Missouri
7. Oklahoma

 

[Buckeye Maniac]

How about adding 7 teams to make it 18. Might as well think big. Once the Big 10 expands, the gold rush and consolidation will be on. The schools i would target academically and TV revenue impact would be:

1. Texas
2. Texas A&M
3. Syracuse
4. U Conn
5. Rutgers
6. Missouri
7. Oklahoma

Oklahoma and academics not only don't belong in the same sentence, they don't even belong in the same dictionary.

 

[Mike80]

This process is much to easy to screw up and I fully expect the Big Ten "leadership" to fuck it up.

 

[Buckrock]

Oklahoma and academics not only don't belong in the same sentence, they don't even belong in the same dictionary.

LOL. O.k. Boston College. We can also add Virginia and keep a spot open for ND.

 

[Dryden]

How about adding 7 teams to make it 18. Might as well think big. Once the Big 10 expands, the gold rush and consolidation will be on. The schools i would target academically and TV revenue impact would be:

1. Texas
2. Texas A&M
3. Syracuse
4. U Conn
5. Rutgers
6. Missouri
7. Oklahoma

Remember, the Big Ten is now a cable network, and ideally they want to be a national expanded basic cable network. Any expansion target must deliver TV sets by population of the home state. Whether the school actually has a following throughout its state is irrelevent (Syracuse). The payday from TV subscribers/per household more than offsets ad revenue (again, Syracuse, and Rutgers). OTA networks need viewers, cable networks only need subscribers. Big difference.

Jim Delany is a genius, and its not by accident that he's often mentioned as the most powerful man in college sports.

All that said, the Big Ten is not interested in annexing the 1500 TV sets with antennas in Oklahoma (or West Virginia or Nebraska), nor can Jim Delany honestly pitch any of these as viable candidates to the current Big Ten school presidents.

The options are, IMHO: Texas, Missouri, Syracuse, and Rutgers. That's it -- that's the whole list. The only way the Big Ten "settles" for a school already in a state currently occupied by another Big Ten school is if it's Notre Dame. Either go to 12 (Texas) or goto 14 (Texas, Missouri, and Syracuse). Don't jump to 16 (or more) yet. Make the move, see what the Pac 10 does (and what happens to the Big XII after it collapses), get to 14, then the Big Ten has 2 more slots left in the bag for future considerations if there is a shift to 4 16-team Super Conferences.

 

[Jaxbuck]

This process is much to easy to screw up and I fully expect the Big Ten "leadership" to fuck it up.

gets back to the point Jwins made a while back.

Don't fuck up The Game by going to 12+ teams for the likes of Pitt, Rutgers or anybody else not named Texas and or Notre Dame.

 

[ScriptOhio]

Remember, the Big Ten is now a cable network, and ideally they want to be a national expanded basic cable network. Any expansion target must deliver TV sets by population of the home state. Whether the school actually has a following throughout its state is irrelevent (Syracuse). The payday from TV subscribers/per household more than offsets ad revenue (again, Syracuse, and Rutgers). OTA networks need viewers, cable networks only need subscribers. Big difference.

Jim Delany is a genius, and its not by accident that he's often mentioned as the most powerful man in college sports.

All that said, the Big Ten is not interested in annexing the 1500 TV sets with antennas in Oklahoma (or West Virginia or Nebraska), nor can Jim Delany honestly pitch any of these as viable candidates to the current Big Ten school presidents.

The options are, IMHO: Texas, Missouri, Syracuse, and Rutgers. That's it -- that's the whole list. The only way the Big Ten "settles" for a school already in a state currently occupied by another Big Ten school is if it's Notre Dame. Either go to 12 (Texas) or goto 14 (Texas, Missouri, and Syracuse). Don't jump to 16 (or more) yet. Make the move, see what the Pac 10 does (and what happens to the Big XII after it collapses), get to 14, then the Big Ten has 2 more slots left in the bag for future considerations if there is a shift to 4 16-team Super Conferences.

I agree with everything you said except the part about Delaney being a genius.

 

[cincibuck]

Oklahoma and academics not only don't belong in the same sentence, they don't even belong in the same dictionary.

Not to mention that Oklahoma and Alabama own just about half of the NCAA sanctions for the last 15 years. Fine folks at both schools.

 

[scarletmike]

Fine folks at both schools.

I see what you did there.

 

[Steve19]

Did he say, "Texas is not on the list", or did he say, "I did not see Texas on the list"? Big difference...

Agreed. They don't put Texas or ND on the list for research because both teams probably would be automatic decisions.

 

[ORD_Buckeye]

I am inclined to believe that Texas is not on the list of 15. There was no reason for him to single out and mention that Texas isn't on the list. He could have easily ducked the question.

Except it's Barry Alvarez, and Barry Alvarez is an idiot. We're not exactly talking about Gordon Gee here. We're talking about a guy whose best and brightest spawn nuked his roommate's parrot.

Barry falls into the JoePa camp. He actually believes that he's driving the bus on expansion and feels the need to expound upon his vast influence in the process at every opportune moment.

Right now, Barry is playing the useful blowhard jock; spouting his pronouncements to the press. Don't, however, lose sight of the fact that Gordon Gee's got chunks of guys like Barry Alvarez in his stool, and if Barry gets too far out of line, he'll find out exactly where his place in the pecking order lies. I've heard Mary Sue Coleman sports a mean strap-on, and if E. Gordon Gee gives her the green light, Barry will wish that it was himself who his kid stuck in that microwave.

 

[CleveBucks]

You don't need a consulting firm to tell you that Texas or ND would be no-brainer options for Big Ten expansion. That's why they're not on the list. They're paying to figure out who else might be a decent candidate, either to come along with UT/ND, or in their place.