TKthunder2

Like UVA/VT, I could see them adding NCSU if UNC goes North (UNC fans want SEC, their admin wants Big Ten) I don’t see the SEC going West. They made a big deal about keeping the geography tight and publicly criticized the Big Ten expansion to LA. I don’t see them expanding past 20, because the next set of candidates will water down the brand. FSU, Clemson, UNC, UVA, VT, Duke, Kansas, WVU (though I admit having UK, KU, UNC, Duke is the same conference would be appealing) When thinking about SEC expansion now, you have to think about the future schedule. The current SEC division model were shit so blowing them up didn’t upset anyone all too much. This new model of playing more teams regularly will be far superior, so any additions will upset the new balance and have a real negative impact. 3-6-6-6 gets you to 22 and playing everyone on a 3 year rotation with 9 conference games 4-5-5-5 gets you to 20 and playing everyone on a 3 year rotation with 9 conference games 1-9-9 gets you to 20 playing everyone on a 2 year rotation with 10 conference games 3-7-7 gets you to 18 playing everyone on a 2 year rotation with 10 conference games 1-8-8 gets you to 18 playing everyone on a 2 year rotation with 9 conference games

OU in the next 12 years has an open spot for Okie State and has offered to schedule them. They only have series with Michigan, Nebraska, and Clemson over that same time period. Joe C has been told by Okie State that they don’t want to play it and he doesn’t want to rock the boat. Oklahoma State has only a single power 5 opponent booked 11 of the next 13 years (ArkansasX4, and home and homes with Bama, Oregon, Nebraska, and Colorado). To their credit they aren’t your regular bullshit opponents, but Gundy doesn’t want to play OU. The series is so lopsided and it has ruined their chances at major bowls multiple times. I understand their position and why they are adamant on blaming OU, but anyone with half a brain can see they are using this to their advantage. Neither has a power 5 opponent scheduled in 2031. The fact that they didn’t immediately put something on the books tells you everything you need to know.

Yep. They add after the ACC GOR expires, before the next TV contract and the money will be there. Sure, hypothetically everyone might be out $5mil/yr or so in the short term, but the long term results will be worth it.

I don’t think they’ll expand until the ACC GOR expires (nor do I really want them to for my own reasons) but I think you’re looking too short term. FSU and Clemson consolidate and protect the brand. They are both top 20 home stadiums by capacity and would enhance the SEC product in all sports. They would be a threat to SEC hegemony in the South if they joined the Big Ten. No other school has the same impact. UNC and UVA are about expanding the brand. They won’t be worth their payout but both have extremely high sports, including basketball (which is something the SEC is weak in), academics (ditto), and markets that the SEC has long desired. The SEC Network is headquartered in North Carolina. The Big Ten can grab Miami or Georgia Tech but 2 Southern away games out of 20-24 won’t change their demographics. The rust belt is dying and the South is booming. Taking the two biggest targets of Big Ten expansion at forcing them to look West absolutely should be a high priority for the SEC. If they can get the Big Ten to take Washington, Oregon, Stanford, Cal, Utah, Arizona State, Colorado and Notre Dame; that would be huge win for the SEC. If the Big Ten takes UVA, UNC, Duke, Clemson, FSU, Miami, Notre Dame, and Stanford that can only be interpreted as a loss.

In an eight conference game schedule we would only play OU every year. These would be the only annual matchups: UT/OU, aggy/LSU, pig/Mizzou, OleMiss/MSU, Bama/Barn, UF/UGA, TN/Vandy, SC/UK

It’s an implied threat for ESPN and the members (like Alabama) who voted no to 9 conference games. To their credit, aggy voted yes.

Conference agreements do not equal TV deal. Conferences have bylaws that prevent people from leaving without notice and may also have exit fees. Now they can still leave, but they will pay a penalty if they don’t abide by their conference agreements. The TV deal was a huge $$ number. That will not be a blocker for anyone after this season, but there are others thing that could still prevent movement.

4,150 fans. UT paid around $300k to reimburse the fans. Houston fucked their relationship with Texas over $300k.

As bad as the UH addition was, UCF is worse. I think the Big 12 would look far better if they had gone with Memphis over UCF. UH was in a power conference once upon a time, same goes for Cincy who won some basketball titles back in the day as well. BYU is basically the closest you could get without being in the club. And then there is UCF. Never been in the club. Didn’t join D1 until 1985. Had 1 good year of football but brings little else to the table. They are basically Boise State in a better market. Memphis (who also was never in the club either) has final four basketball success and a longer history of football, just without that one undefeated season. Let me ask it another way. If new school #12 becomes a permanent cellar dweller in football, who would be the best fit. UCF on an island next to nobody, or Memphis far closer to the geographic center of the conference that has sports other than football on its resume?

It’s signaling that they WILL take 2. If they take 2 now, likely won’t be room for everyone in the PAC. Hoping that the scarcity of spots to get people to get off the fence. I doubt they add 2 non P5 schools, but it’s a good scare tactic to a school like Arizona.

He just quit football again, per twitter

Here’s a professor on CNN briefly discussing the 20% of men figure.

Real original Cincinnati…

lol at thinking they have fans, much less fans that travel.

It doesn’t have most of the ones I see in NW Austin but I agree South wins by a mile.

Take it up with the NYT, but if a fan base is national (like ND) this graphic isn’t going to capture that. It’s an intensity heat map so single schools that dominate their home state look more attractive than schools in a competitive state with a disbursed fan base. Knowing nothing about college sports most would conclude that Michigan looks weaker than Wisconsin or that New Mexico is better than Texas Tech just based on this map (which we know is absurd).

1. Third party vendor support. What do you want to use, who has it? 2. ACH - what are the fees what type can they do, collections, tax payments, batch (for payroll) 3. Positive Pay - if you’re a small business still writing real checks, I would make sure your bank has a positive pay solution to avoid get caught up in check fraud. These would be the three biggest things I’d look for outside of general fees/balance requirements.

According to 538 Oregon’s TV viewership was only behind ND, FSU, and Clemson for schools not in the Power2. Oregon is very decisive, but the facts are the facts.

Add in that only 2 conference games (omitting USCvUCLA) were top 5 games of the week per the ratings last year (UO/UW, and Utah/UCLA) and that with most of their top games were on FOX or ESPN late which artificially boosted their numbers and you can see the issue. Take those advantages and the LA schools/market away and you can see why networks don’t want to pay for their tier 2 or tier 3 games.

That would get you 3 late OOC games and 3 conferences games between those 3 schools. To get full weekly coverage you need 6 additional conference games against Central Time Zone opponents. That would be 2 additional games per team. That would put them 4 late night home games for each CU/AZ/BYU which is likely too big of an obligation to cover a full season worth of late night games. 4 Mountain/Pacific Time Zone teams gets you closer (4 OOC games, 6 games between those 4 schools) where you’d only need a few more and coverage might be feasible, but 5 teams is really the sweet spot where no Mtn/Pac TZ school would have more than 3 late night games (some even only 2) and you could mix in a few CTZ teams as late night opponents a couple of times a year to help with coverage/interest as well.

Creative = The CW or Ion Forward Thinking = Apple

You know Texas is a big state right? No one in Austin works for the minimum wage but plenty of people outside of the Texas triangle still do. The State of Texas could raise the minimum wage by $5/hr and it wouldn’t effect Austin in any noticeable way.

That CBS article I posted above seemed to indicate that it was July1/June30 for the PAC 12 (which makes sense as it aligns with the athletic calendar).