Conference Expansion is Back

77GTFan said:
As an ECU fan through my children who are both grads I agree they have no chance to get into the Big 12, ACC, or SEC any time soon. That is a shame, because they compete so well with teams from these conferences and are not afraid to take them on. Their four non-conference games this year include trips to South Carolina and Virginia Tech and a home game with NC State, a typical schedule for the Pirates. There is a good football culture there and home attendance is outstanding, averaging in the mid 40's in a 48K stadium year after year in a conference with no natural rivals, where visitors don't sell 500 tickets a game to your home games. Sadly, all is driven by TV markets and dollars as well as by existing teams who can blacklist rivals they don't want to see in their conference.
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Nothing against ECU, but, as you agree, the vast majority of the North Carolina market is already spoken for. It also doesn't fit the Big XII strange footprint. I kind of equate them to a Georgia Southern, great college atmosphere and fanbase, but it just doesn't work for a major conference for a variety of uncontrollable conditions.
 
ThisIsAtlanta said:
ECU will be in the Big 12 sometime in the next million years, maybe, but it won't be this round. If they expand, they are going to go after BYU first. The Houston thing is probably a political game, but seems like it has more wheels than anything else.
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BYU is their prize. They only take Houston to balance the league numbers and there is nowhere else to go. I think UCF is a much better option to grow the league. Even Tulane opens up a new market. When more than half your league is in Texas and Oklahoma, expansion needs to be more strategic.
 
For the Big 12, Houston is the obvious add. BYU would be smart if they could get them.
 
USF + UCF = 4th largest TV market in the land with 90% of the fan bases in the locales, recruiting, recruiting, recruiting. Places where the fans from Kansas, Iowa & Texas want to go in November. These 2 are in.

Cincy for WV travel ease - likely.
U Conn for their Yankee footprint & Basketball

These 2 likely

I bet they think big, & go for 16. These 4 + BYU for football only & CSU for footprint & Colorado mkt.

All will get peas ant conference shares with conference paid travel for the first 10 years.

USF & UCF going to the Big 12 will hurt our Fl recruiting.

Reasons for not:
Houston, SMU...don't need them for the Texas TV mkt.

Memphis....meh no TV market

Tulane? Really? No following no TV market no appeal

BSU- No TV market, no recruiting market, no fun to visit

Bet on the directional Fl schools
 
I would take BYU, Houston, Cinn, and Boise St if I were the BIG XII.
Cinn would help WVa and BYU and Boise St are good FB programs
 
gtphd said:
Houston is likely out on academics alone. Louisville had to offer the moon academically to get an invite, and they've been so delinquent that the other ACC schools are now investing administrators to get them going. Don't think the presidents have an appetite for taking on another academic fixer-upper.
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Do you mind explaining? I've never understood why academics would matter with athletic conference affiliation. Would have thought it would be about viewership.
 
ACC teams are going nowhere. Playing almost all of your games a few time zones over would kill an ACC program. The Big 12 is looking at picking up some scrap teams just to try to stay relevant by having a playoff game. Even the best available teams aren't that appealing. I don't see Boise State getting any sort of invite.
 
I never realized just how many students there are at UCF (60,000) and USF (49,000), the non-student population base is quite substantial as well.
 
Lee34102 said:
I never realized just how many students there are at UCF (60,000) and USF (49,000), the non-student population base is quite substantial as well.
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Hell, Kennesaw State is at 33,000 now. In my day, not everyone attended college. Nowadays, it is a revenue stream that has to be fed.
 
I like CINCY, HOUSTON as full Members to the BIG12.... BYU and Boise St as FBO ...(Boise State goes in with BIG West or WAC with all other sports) The BIG12 extend the grant of rights and there you have it....in 2031 the Longhorn network becomes the bIG12 network... At that time each team will get over 15M from the tv deal so Texas does not care!!
 
JJacket said:
ACC teams are going nowhere. Playing almost all of your games a few time zones over would kill an ACC program. The Big 12 is looking at picking up some scrap teams just to try to stay relevant by having a playoff game. Even the best available teams aren't that appealing. I don't see Boise State getting any sort of invite.
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Agree. But I would really like for the ACC to pick up two more teams.

UConn, which would lock up the Boston marketing area and would make us the old Big East in basketball.

Cincinnati, which would lock up the Cleveland market.

Both schools are very good in academics which fits our conference, our time zones and have other sport programs that would rise the bar for our overall conference.

Just a thought.
 
How does another Texas team do anything to help the Big XII? How does two Florida teams help? Does anyone have any logic?
 
RamblinWreck09 said:
Word from someone attached to the BYU athletic program -

The rape-victim-blame issue ( http://www.cnn.com/2016/04/29/health/brigham-young-university-rape/ ) is a huge problem for the Big 12, given what happened at Baylor. BYU might not be in if they don't change their honor code.
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Honor code? Texas, OU, Baylor, Ok St, and the conference that had the only school banned from football calling the kettle black? Oh yeah, and Colorado when they were a member.
 
GTFLETCH said:
I like CINCY, HOUSTON as full Members to the BIG12.... BYU and Boise St as FBO ...(Boise State goes in with BIG West or WAC with all other sports) The BIG12 extend the grant of rights and there you have it....in 2031 the Longhorn network becomes the bIG12 network... At that time each team will get over 15M from the tv deal so Texas does not care!!
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The new Big12 is going to receive double the amount the Big10 and SEC receive for their respective networks?

Who's gonna run the network? Their rights are split between Fox and ESPN. Which of those is gonna step aside?
 
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