Big Ten and other Conference Expansion

[pnuts34]

I've been on record that this is always about tv sets. When the B1G added DC and NYC I was not worried about the football associated with those markets.

The overall plan employed by the B1G is starting to show that the long game was a good play

Yeah, I've always felt that too. Adding those 2 enormous TV markets. But what else justified adding those 2 were the talent in their areas. NJ and the DMV have a ton of talent that started looking to the B1G more instead of the ACC. I wonder if OSU gets all of the talent from those areas if Rutgers and Maryland aren't added. Heck, their addition kept Hairball from getting canned with the talent he was able to add from there.

 

[BuckTwenty]

I'm with you. I think the B1G will want in Georgia, easy with Georgia Tech, and Florida. If they have to be a little flexible getting into Florida, they will be. Miami and Florida State make more sense than Oregon.

Getting Georgia Tech doesn't make enough "cents" though for the Big Ten... at least now... and I'd argue that even if offered a partial share, they wouldnt be worth it right now. They've got the academics, the research endowment, the local market (Atlanta), but frankly, their sports teams suck. They're not going to turn on TV sets and they're never going to add marquee games worth watching to add millions to the collective pot for the TV deal as they are currently. They are Rutgers South with fewer BTN subscriptions.

BKB's got it. Big Ten's playing the long game. They can literally sit back, count their money, and invest their revenue in their teams while the other conference's teams individually squirm and claw for a seat at the table

Big Ten's officially conducting tryouts over the next few years. If Georgia Tech can hire and keep the next young Urban Meyer that woukd make them must-see TV, maybe they can earn that seat

 

[Abenaki]

Getting Georgia Tech doesn't make enough "cents" though for the Big Ten... at least now... and I'd argue that even if offered a partial share, they wouldnt be worth it right now. They've got the academics, the research endowment, the local market (Atlanta), but frankly, their sports teams suck. They're not going to turn on TV sets and they're never going to add marquee games worth watching to add millions to the collective pot for the TV deal as they are currently. They are Rutgers South with fewer BTN subscriptions.

BKB's got it. Big Ten's playing the long game. They can literally sit back, count their money, and invest their revenue in their teams while the other conference's teams individually squirm and claw for a seat at the table

Big Ten's officially conducting tryouts over the next few years. If Georgia Tech can hire and keep the next young Urban Meyer that woukd make them must-see TV, maybe they can earn that seat

You're both right in that they're playing the long game. I think the long game means they may be willing to sacrifice a few short term dollars because there's huge long term value in planting a Big Ten flag in Georgia and Florida and getting Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State, USC, even Nebraska and probably Notre Dame playing regular games in Atlanta and Miami.

 

[Woody1968]

FiveThirtyEight (free) - "Where Should The Big Ten Expand Next? We Crunched The Numbers"

Really interesting breakdown of all expansion candidates (plus many more) and how they stack up to current B1G schools in athletic excellence, best fit, and biggest markets

There's a bit I don't agree with, but I do agree with the author that the 10 schools that make up the top 3 tiers would add the most to the Big Ten

Likewise, I agree with the author that anyone in tiers 4-6 would not add enough to the B1G to warrant entry to the conference. This would include some teams like Virginia, Colorado, Georgia Tech, Duke, Virginia Tech, Boston College, or anyone in the future Big 12, amongst others

I think Nate does miss the recruiting footprint benefit by bringing in teams from traditional recruiting areas. I think that is a big factor in why you hear about Virginia as a candidate, due to their proximity to the tidewater area, which probably puts them up in a higher tier.

 

[Dryden]

I don't see anyone other than McMurphy running with this, so take it with a grain of salt.

 

[Zurp]

so take it with a grain of salt.

What do you mean? Has he ever reported something that wasn't true?
Ohh... THAT Brett McMurphy....

 

[BuckTwenty]

Hard for McMurphy to lose credibility when he already doesn't have any

 

[cincibuck]

Though I agree, the only thing is, don't you think the B1G wants a footprint in FL? Free Shoes or Miami does that. Oregon has nothing but Nike, and yes that 's an enormous name, that's still not the actual student body. I can see the B1G expanding into the south east more instead of the Pacific NW. Teams in NC, GA and FL would be a much bigger deal revenue wise.

FSU brings zip in terms of academic cred and adds a ton on the doesn't-play-by-the-rules scale, but they do bring a fan base. Miami brings dodgy bling-toting felons to the sidelines, a beach setting, good academics including a leading oceanography grad school, but they don't travel well. Unless they get picked up by the SEC, they will wither and die in the near future. The Big doesn't need cancers to do cancer research.

 

[pnuts34]

FSU brings zip in terms of academic cred and adds a ton on the doesn't-play-by-the-rules scale, but they do bring a fan base. Miami brings dodgy bling-toting felons to the sidelines, a beach setting, good academics including a leading oceanography grad school, but they don't travel well. Unless they get picked up by the SEC, they will wither and die in the near future. The Big doesn't need cancers to do cancer research.

What are you talking about???
Sounds like you're still preaching the tired narrative about Miami. If anything they're a massive underachieving program who is in a talent rich area, but not only can't keep the talent at home but has fallen to a 3rd tier program. If anything scUM and even Iowa have had more arrests and felons than Miami. But they aren't nearly thought of in the same "thug" narrative...

But my point in bringing those 2 schools up, is for the talent in their region and brand recognition. Miami has a good academic standing, and the program sucks, but I'd love for us to have an easier path at getting kids from schools in SoFla like: Dillard, Central, Columbus, Chaminda Madonna, STA, IMG, Apopka, AH, etc

 

[ORD_Buckeye]

The last time the B1G added a school that wasn't the flagship of its state and in the AAU, it was Sparty. FSU and Miami will never be a thing. Stop trying to make FSU and Miami a thing. Besides, the B1G is second choice for them after the SEC, and the B1G will never be sloppy seconds for anyone. If we go ACC when the time comes, it will be UVA/UNC and longshot BC if it's part of some ND package.

 

[AJHawkfan]

The last time the B1G added a school that wasn't the flagship of its state and in the AAU, it was Sparty. FSU and Miami will never be a thing. Stop trying to make FSU and Miami a thing. Besides, the B1G is second choice for them after the SEC, and the B1G will never be sloppy seconds for anyone. If we go ACC when the time comes, it will be UVA/UNC and longshot BC if it's part of some ND package.

Agreed. No way would FSU and Miami agree to join the B1G unless they get all of their October and November conference games at home.

 

[BuckTwenty]

The last time the B1G added a school that wasn't the flagship of its state and in the AAU, it was Sparty. FSU and Miami will never be a thing. Stop trying to make FSU and Miami a thing. Besides, the B1G is second choice for them after the SEC, and the B1G will never be sloppy seconds for anyone. If we go ACC when the time comes, it will be UVA/UNC and longshot BC if it's part of some ND package.

Hard pass on Boston College. They have the 4th worst research endowment for a power 5 school (it's half of Oregon's), and they were 85th last year in tv ratings behind a number of Mac-tion & mid-majors... and that's with a rising star head football coach. Never say never, but it's gonna be hard for BC to be worth enough to be a "take" from the B1G

I gotta think a ND package deal, if that were to ever happen (please no), would involve Stanford, who would tick a lot more boxes as a premier academic institution than BC. Stanford would tick more than Virginia as well

 

[ORD_Buckeye]

Hard pass on Boston College. They have the 4th worst research endowment for a power 5 school (it's half of Oregon's), and they were 85th last year in tv ratings behind a number of Mac-tion & mid-majors... and that's with a rising star head football coach. Never say never, but it's gonna be hard for BC to be worth enough to be a "take" from the B1G

I gotta think a ND package deal, if that were to ever happen (please no), would involve Stanford, who would tick a lot more boxes as a premier academic institution than BC. Stanford would tick more than Virginia as well

I think you're right. And I think that Notre Dame--being Notre Dame--would never do anything to help another university (i.e. bring BC along) and would only bring along a school that they think helps them, and that's Stanford. They love the reflected academic prestige of being around Stanford and having their pet announcers continually babble on about how "these two schools do it with real student-athletes."

 

[cincibuck]

BC would also shed light on the Jesuits vs Catholics schism. BC's research money says more about Jesuit education than academic standing, i.e. it's one of the few remaining schools where the humanities are given as much attention as the sciences. For that matter, ND research money ranks well below most Big 10 schools though still among the top 50. Research money says more about grad school and post doc than undergrad.

 

[pnuts34]

The last time the B1G added a school that wasn't the flagship of its state and in the AAU, it was Sparty. FSU and Miami will never be a thing. Stop trying to make FSU and Miami a thing. Besides, the B1G is second choice for them after the SEC, and the B1G will never be sloppy seconds for anyone. If we go ACC when the time comes, it will be UVA/UNC and longshot BC if it's part of some ND package.

Yeah, because UVA/UNC really gets the ratings and recruiting talent...
That's a sad expansion if that's what youre proposing, especially with BC(which you shouldn't be making a thing). Expansion is more than just academics, and you're not seeing that. TV ratings and recruiting also matter hence why the last expansion was Rutgers and Maryland. Yes, schools with good academic standing, but they were also in massive TV markets and it allowed us in on more talent. We already have the DMV, so UVA would be pointless. UNC is meh on its on, and BC is a no go. There's little talent in MA yearly, and they are an NFL region anyway. At least Washington offers more than UVA and BC. So does Stanford