MERGER ANTE UPPED - SEC announces $209 million distribution

[bamamarquettefan]

From SEC country here, the front page of print additions of our local Auburn newspaper leads with "SEC to distribute record $209 million."  Pretty dramatic increase from $132.5 million last year, $73.2 million in 2000, $16.3 million in 1990 and $4.1 million in 1980.

That's $17.3 million a year, and really upping the ante in the merger competition with the Pac10 and Big10.  Not sure if this impacts the dreaded march to four 16-team conferences, but I was interested in the breakdown of where they said the revenue came from:

$150 million
Football TV $109.5
Bowls $26.5 million
SEC football chmpionship $14.5 million

$58 million
Basketball TV $30 million
SEC Men's hoops tourney $5 million
NCAA Championships $23.5 million

So in the best football conference, that has been pretty weak in basketball, it's almost 3-to-1.

[chapman]

Should expansion come you also have to believe that there is a very, very short list of schools that would be guarantees to increase the share of $17.4 million to make it worth an invite.  Many will (try to) enter, very few will win. 

[bamamarquettefan]

Good point.  There was definitely an ego play in trying to get the Texas teams, something they tried in the 70s, but they do seem to think some ACC schools are attractive (Miami, Florida State and Ga Tech).  However, IF the Pac10s grab works partly due to the Big 10 raiding everyone they want from the Big East, how would this look for a 20-team Big East that would truly dominate the basketball world and have two 6-team Football divisions that would create a championship game and keep BCS status.

College   Current   Basketball Rank   Football rank
(Basketball only - 8 teams)
Butler   Horz   12   no football
DePaul   Big East   172   
Georgetown   Big East   13   
Marquette   Big East   33   
Providence   Big East   88   
Seton Hall   Big East   72   
St. John's   Big East   67   
Villanova   Big East   21   

(Eastern football conference)
Boston College   ACC   62   43
Cincinnati   Big East   75   7
Louisville   Big East   43   90
South Florida   Big East   83   44
Temple   A10   22   60
West Virginia   Big East   8   27

Western football conference
Colorado   B12   86   96
Iowa St.   B12   71   57
Kansas   B12   2   74
Kansas St.   B12   7   63
Missouri   B12   19   46
Nebraska   B12   85   16

[chapman]

I'm worried as much about SEC expansion as Big Ten expansion - maybe more.  As much of a nightmare it could be for us, the situation sounds mouth-watering for others.  Big East football schools could split easily if the SEC finds some ACC schools it wants.  The ACC minus two or three of its current members might have room for 5-7 Big East football schools.  It would look more like a merger than an expansion.  The football divisional alignment is perfect - 5-7 Big East football schools are in a division with BC, possibly Maryland, possibly VaTech, and the remaining 7 or 8 ACC schools, possibly USF are the second division.  It has room to keep rivalries intact and reinstates old ones.  The basketball strength would be outstanding - at 14-16 they have room to add Georgetown as basketball-only if the Big East football schools push for it due to ideal geography and natural rivalries.  Ensuring that Georgetown/Cuse and Georgetown/UConn play twice a year and getting Georgetown/Duke, Georgetown/UNC, Georgetown/Maryland, and Georgetown/BC on the schedule once a year is ideal for all involved.  Nova would have to beg to get in and might not and we don't have a shot - as basketball-only we're just a geographical outlier and another game on the schedule that either makes for a basketball schedule in which everybody doesn't play each other or prevents mirror matches between old rivals that are more lucrative than adding MU to everyone's schedule.  Only way we get try to be an option is if the SEC takes FSU, Miami, Ga Tech, and either Clemson or USF which seems unlikely to increase their revenue share, but if they go 15 they would go 16.  This could make it possible for the ACC plus Big East (less Pitt and Rutgers) to be 14 football schools but mirror games with Louisville and Cincinnati would somehow have to be lucrative enough to warrant our inclusion as basketball school #3 and member #17, which would be the best thing in the world but also have very, very long odds.

[HouWarrior]

Does SEC have a cable network, like that of Big 10? If not, given the STRONG loyalties to SEC fb in the south, one would think it would be a pretty good money maker.

[77ncaachamps]

Doesn't nova have a fb team?

[GGGG]

You shouldn't worry as much about SEC expansion.  The SEC has fixed rate television contracts with ESPN and CBS that do not have a clause for expansion.  This means that the $209 M would not immediately increase much and per school revenue would decrease.  Yet the conference may decide that making a short term cut for the sake of a school like Texas may be worthwhile.

And really, schools like Texas are the ones that are going to make sense.  (In fact there is some talk that A&M wants to be in the SEC rather than the B10.)  They aren't going to duplicate themselves geographically with Florida State or Georgia Tech.

The Big Ten, by tying a good portion of its revenue to the BTN, doesn't have this issue.

[Brewtown Andy]

Doesn't nova have a fb team?

Yup.  They won the Div. 1-AA title this past year.

[oldwarrior81]

remember in addition to the $209 million they split, SEC teams are able to negotiate local television deals as well.   Florida has a $10 million dollar a year contract with Fox/Sun Sports