Chicago Sun Times: Big Ten's "next move will be adding the 15th & 16th schools"

[Aughnanure]

http://www.suntimes.com/sports/27271214-419/big-ten-makes-big-mistake-with-dc-tourney.html#.U2pUMvldV1Z

"This is where the college athetics world is going. To head off a players' union, the schools are insisting athlete-students they are not employees. But concessions are already being made, and college sports will move on just as sure as baseball moved on when it lost the reserve clause.

Stay tuned. Delany's next move will be adding the 15th and 16th schools to the Big Ten. This will be needed to pay for increased labor costs that will stem from players organizing in one form or another.

Four 16-team leagues. And good luck if you're not among those 64.

Nobody is better suited to deal with all of this upheaval than Jim Delany."

[GGGG]

Herb Gould wrote that.  Gould is the typical cranky old journalist who really can't figure out how and why things change.  This article is a typical example.  He talks about how dumb Delany is for moving the tournament for one year to Washington because "students from Madison or Champaign" won't be able to get there...but then talks about all the great moves he has made.

Look, the B10 might add two more members.  But I would guess not anytime soon.  Mostly because the good members are tied so legally and financially into other conferences. 

But this sounds like an old, cranky guy article more than anything.

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

UConn will be knocking on that door and ringing the doorbell all night.  They may have to play the "Fairfield County" Connecticut is in the New York City television market card.

[Lennys Tap]

UConn will be knocking on that door and ringing the doorbell all night.  They may have to play the "Fairfield County" Connecticut is in the New York City television market card.

Cue Chicos - 3,2,1... UConn not an AAU (or whatever) member.

[Aughnanure]

Coming announcements in next 60 days?


"So, embrace change, Big Ten Nation. Time is marching on in this new Big Ten world that now will feature an anchor event on the Eastern Seaboard. Expect more, as Delany has alluded to coming announcements in the next "60 days." Some of those surely will entail news of events out East."

http://btn.com/2014/05/06/dienhart-d-c-big-ten-tourney-will-be-big-change/

[GGGG]

Or maybe Gould is right and I'm an idiot...time will tell.

[Aughnanure]

AAC better be ready to be irrelevant in basketball. If they're expanding East there's no one else except UConn available consider.

[brandx]

Or maybe Gould is right and I'm an idiot...time will tell.

But there's still the possibility that Gould is wrong and you're an idiot. right?

[GGGG]

But there's still the possibility that Gould is wrong and you're an idiot. right?

Clearly.

[Desert_warrior]

So who would be the 16th team? Other than UConn, who else would even be close to the profile of the Big10/12/14/16?

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

So who would be the 16th team? Other than UConn, who else would even be close to the profile of the Big10/12/14/16?

.......that's also not already locked into a "grant of media rights" deal.

[GGGG]

I don't think it would be UConn.  They would probably try to pry UVa, UNC or Georgia Tech out of the ACC and hope that the increased television rights that they will get annually will make their exit payments to the ACC seem like worthwhile investments.

[Tugg Speedman]

So who would be the 16th team? Other than UConn, who else would even be close to the profile of the Big10/12/14/16?

Thinking out loud ... maybe they think Maryland is going to win its lawsuit against the ACC over paying an exit fee. 

If so, it's open season on the ACC!  Hello "The U" (Miami), Hello UNC. Hello Georgia Tech (Atlanta) and so on.

[Aughnanure]

I don't think it would be UConn.  They would probably try to pry UVa, UNC or Georgia Tech out of the ACC and hope that the increased television rights that they will get annually will make their exit payments to the ACC seem like worthwhile investments.

Can't see that happening at all, unless the Maryland case opens the flood gates and allows schools to leave w/out paying $50+ million. UConn is the easiest add, and is the best response to the ACC trying to claim NYC market. Penn St, Rutgers, UConn and Maryland is a better footprint from simply an alumni-based viewpoint than Syracuse, Pitt, Boston College and VaTech(?)

[GGGG]

Can't see that happening at all, unless the Maryland case opens the flood gates and allows schools to leave w/out paying $50+ million. UConn is the easiest add, and is the best response to the ACC trying to claim NYC market. Penn St, Rutgers, UConn and Maryland is a better footprint from simply an alumni-based viewpoint than Syracuse, Pitt, Boston College and VaTech(?)

First of all, I don't think UConn adds much of anything. 

Second, $50 million may not seem that much if the B10 television contracts net each school $40 million per year.  (And they might.)

[tower912]

Maybe they will go after Va Tech because of its basketball program. 

[Aughnanure]

First of all, I don't think UConn adds much of anything. 

Second, $50 million may not seem that much if the B10 television contracts net each school $40 million per year.  (And they might.)

Because.....Rutgers and Maryland do? Flagship state universities are valuable. I'm sure they'd like to grab UNC. I'm also sure they can't.

Actually I'm probably wrong on $50 million. Maryland got out BEFORE the GOR. Could be much much worse.

[Canned Goods n Ammo]

The B10 is a television network, not an athletic conference, and they will make decisions that allow them to create content and generate revenue.

That's it.

It's not more complicated than that.

Forget geography, forget academics, forget traditional rivalries.

It's a for-profit-style business model.

Keep that in mind whenever you read ANYTHING about the Big10. Everything will make sense then.  

[GGGG]

Because.....Rutgers and Maryland do? Flagship state universities are valuable. I'm sure they'd like to grab UNC. I'm also sure they can't.

Actually I'm probably wrong on $50 million. Maryland got out BEFORE the GOR. Could be much much worse.

Well you are right about the Grant of Rights.  That will make things much more difficult than what Maryland is dealing with.

And that is why when all is said and done, I don't think they do much of anything wrt expansion

[Aughnanure]

Well you are right about the Grant of Rights.  That will make things much more difficult than what Maryland is dealing with.

And that is why when all is said and done, I don't think they do much of anything wrt expansion

They could, if they really wanted to, grab UConn and Mizzou tomorrow. SEC is the only conference without any penalty fee or GOR.

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

First of all, I don't think UConn adds much of anything. 

Second, $50 million may not seem that much if the B10 television contracts net each school $40 million per year.  (And they might.)

They add to the New York City TV market as Fairfield County, Connecticut is situated in the New York City television market.  UConn draws better than Rutgers.  See the ticket rush at MSG this past NCAA.  SNY, the New York based regional network bought the broadcast rights to UConn women's basketball as well as having a separate deal with UConn for football & basketball coach's shows as well as broadcasting any football games not televised elsewhere.  Notice that neither Syracuse or Rutgers got such such a deal with any of the NYC regional sports networks. 

UConn may get more interesting to the Big10 when cable operators in New Jersey decide to pay higher subscription fees for the Big10 Network, but the NYC cable operators say no way for Rutgers.  And then we'll see how much the the AAU thing matters.  UConn is a good academic school despite no AAU, yet.

[KenoshaWarrior]

Cue Chicos - 3,2,1... UConn not an AAU (or whatever) member.

LOL!!!!

[Tugg Speedman]

The B10 is a television network, not an athletic conference, and they will make decisions that allow them to create content and generate revenue.

That's it.

It's not more complicated than that.

Forget geography, forget academics, forget traditional rivalries.

It's a for-profit-style business model.

Keep that in mind whenever you read ANYTHING about the Big10. Everything will make sense then.  

This!

Again they plan (rumored) to be looking to create a 30 school coast-to-coast conference.  Then they will use the BTN to bid on NBA, MLB, NHL etc.  Remember that ESPN started as a venture to broadcast Uconn basketball.  That's their model.

The Big 10 is intent on world domination.  Someday we will live in the "The United States Of Big 10"

[KenoshaWarrior]

First of all, I don't think UConn adds much of anything. 

Second, $50 million may not seem that much if the B10 television contracts net each school $40 million per year.  (And they might.)

Yea they only add the most titles in mens and womens hoops over the past 20 years.  No big deal

[ChicosBailBonds]

Cue Chicos - 3,2,1... UConn not an AAU (or whatever) member.

I'm just telling you what the Big Ten folks have told me over the years.  Some of us worked on the launch of the Big Ten channel, and we deal with some of these folks all the time.  Could things change, of course.  Fact is, the Big Ten has NEVER added a school that wasn't a member of the AAU and the politics associated with that status.  Nebraska went on to lose that status, but they had it when they were invited.

If the Big Ten's dream vision is to add UConn football, knock their socks off.  UConn basketball is the proverbial drop in the ocean in ratings and money.