Realignment Megathread (All The Moves)

[cyIclSoneU]

All depends on Oregon and Washington. They stay, they have a chance, they leave and it folds.

If Oregon and Washington decide to stay then the Big 12 should still put a lot of pressure on the AZ/CO/UT schools and see if they can get them to leave. That would destabilize the Pac-12 enough that Oregon and Washington would have to leave - and if the B1G is no longer interested then they'd have to come here.

 

[alarson]

Does anyone know if Utah actually would want to be in the same conference as BYU?

I doubt they'd be opposed to it. They were in the WAC and then MWC together for decades.

 

[Cloneon]

Still thinking Fox and ESPN will not be able to control the total NCAA audience. The rest of the P5 has just as much dedicated viewership as the P2. And given the ever-growing bottom feeders in the P2, they'll create bad matchups which the networks will regret. I'm not a marketing person, but I do have common sense. There's so much wrong with this power move. Especially, if the rest of the NCAA unites and solidifies. In 10 years the P2 grab will cost the endorsers their pants. Of course that's just an opinion. Heck, I'm a Bears fan and I rarely, if ever, watch other league games. Unless it has a bearing on the Bears (like end of season playoff race). Same goes for college.

 

[simply1]

Ultimately not great timing for the Big12 to be breaking in a new commish.

Especially one not familiar with the space.

 

[Hammerschlagen]

It’s somewhat heart warming to read big 12 fans optimistically considering potential new members each time a realignment shake up occurs.

Realistically we’re the dog lying under the dining table eating table scraps.

I guess it’s more fun than the doomsday scenarios but none of this is “good for Iowa state” The blue bloods are converging into super conferences and the big 12 adding a few more turds doesn’t give us a seat at the table long term sorry

 

[Gonzo]

Still thinking Fox and ESPN will not be able to control the total NCAA audience. The rest of the P5 has just as much dedicated viewership as the P2. And given the ever-growing bottom feeders in the P2, they'll create bad matchups which the networks will regret. I'm not a marketing person, but I do have common sense. There's so much wrong with this power move. Especially, if the rest of the NCAA unites and solidifies. In 10 years the P2 grab will cost the endorsers their pants. Of course that's just an opinion. Heck, I'm a Bears fan and I rarely, if ever, watch other league games. Unless it has a bearing on the Bears (like end of season playoff race). Same goes for college.

Disagree. Kevin Warren hasn't been that good of a commish up to now, but this move is a really, really good one for the conference. He played it smart and didn't rush into any kneejerk decisions in response to OuT. It's going to pay off.

 

[cyIclSoneU]

Still thinking Fox and ESPN will not be able to control the total NCAA audience.

FOX essentially owns the B1G, ESPN same with the SEC.

ESPN owns all of the ACC.

The Pac-12 is basically dead.

So that leaves the Big 12 and I think this is a perfect opportunity to create an opening for a third player in this game. Sell a huge chunk of our rights to Apple or Amazon.

If nothing else, we know that working with FOX or ESPN is just working with the entity that will try to kill us to feed its B1G/SEC beast. ESPN did that to us last summer. And FOX is doing it right now to the Pac-12. No doubt ESPN will do it again to the ACC. Let's hope we don't have to play along.

 

[alarson]

What does Utah give us that BYU doesn’t?

In the current and future eras its all about fanbases\viewers, not markets. Utah has its own fanbase that would drive its own viewership. It also won a division title in a P5 league 4 of the last 7 years. Nothing to sneeze at there.

 

[Farnsworth]

I hate college sports now.

Same. Now I love all these threads and hypotheticals, it's like fan fiction.

But I'd rather go back to circa 2002, i like multiple leagues and seeing the big rivalries. Now it's just constant movement but you don't get to see those matchups year after year. It was nice to get to know the different leagues, and within your own the rivalries and nuances.

Full disclosure I started at Iowa State in 2002, nostalgia.

 

[cyIclSoneU]

Disagree. Kevin Warren hasn't been that good of a commish up to now, but this move is a really, really good one for the conference. He played it smart and didn't rush into any kneejerk decisions in response to OuT. It's going to pay off.

It's good for the B1G and bad for college football.

Warren did his job and he still made the sport worse.

It's not unlike a business raising its own stock price by doing something bad for the world. You're a shareholder, you like it, that doesn't make it good.

 

[BCClone]

It’s somewhat heart warming to read big 12 fans optimistically considering potential new members each time a realignment shake up occurs.

Realistically we’re the dog lying under the dining table eating table scraps.

I guess it’s more fun than the doomsday scenarios but none of this is “good for Iowa state” The blue bloods are converging into super conferences and the big 12 adding a few more turds doesn’t give us a seat at the table long term sorry

PAC12 is under the table. We are at the kids table. Way better than sitting under any table.

 

[t-noah]

Having lived in Michigan for a decade, I'm still waiting for my first November driving blizzard.

...and now it's in Idaho.

Yeah Nov is nice, dec is even manageable.

If they played college fb from Jan through march I’d just watch on tv even when I had cheap student tickets…unless ISU had a dome.

Still, haha, let the fragile trojan flowers wallow in the cold. It'd be good fer em.

 

[dunar]

Disagree. Kevin Warren hasn't been that good of a commish up to now, but this move is a really, really good one for the conference. He played it smart and didn't rush into any kneejerk decisions in response to OuT. It's going to pay off.

Do you think Warren orchestrated it or it fell into his lap? I know there's so much back room dealing/flirting in these deals, but all reports say USC/UCLA made the first move

 

[Gonzo]

It's good for the B1G and bad for college football.

Warren did his job and he still made the sport worse.

It's not unlike a business raising its own stock price by doing something bad for the world. You're a shareholder, you like it, that doesn't make it good.

I'm a purist too but it's the world we're in. There's no going back. Adapt or die.

 

[cygrads]

C

Everyone is a genius when they have the benefit of hindsight

Granted but you can probably go into threads on this board from a year ago and see some wanted to slow down and take a more measured approach.

 

[BCClone]

Do you think Warren orchestrated it or it fell into his lap? I know there's so much back room dealing/flirting in these deals, but all reports say USC/UCLA made the first move

Wallace doesn’t seem swift enough.

 

[7Got6]

There wont be divisions, at least not in the traditional sense.

I could see 4 divisions of 5 with a 4 team conference playoff of the division winners determining the champ.

 

[Gonzo]

Do you think Warren orchestrated it or it fell into his lap? I know there's so much back room dealing/flirting in these deals, but all reports say USC/UCLA made the first move

I've heard both... that USC/UCLA reached out first, and that FOX led the charge. Hard to tell. I just think he did a good job of not reacting too quickly to the SEC power play last summer, and being able to keep the lid on this throughout the negotiations for the new B1G media deal.

 

[Rods79]

Do you think Warren orchestrated it or it fell into his lap? I know there's so much back room dealing/flirting in these deals, but all reports say USC/UCLA made the first move

This. Had to have fallen in his lap with the TV deal numbers. It’s definitely not driven by conference commissioners. Warren is…well…not stellar.

 

[HFCS]

What does Utah give us that BYU doesn’t?

If we are still in the "Rutgers and Maryland deliver NYC and DC" mode...nothing.

In the new reality where real fans and real eyeballs and real streaming subscriptions matter they're simply one of the best athletic departments and schools available and better than some of the other teams we've been adding since poaching started. Considering Washington and Oregon are probably gone (Stanford/Cal too), they're in the next top 4 available pretty easily.

Biggest school in fastest growing state. They are worth expanding. Makes the conference better having some real rivalries in conference.

They are a no brainer if they are available. The "piece of the pie" days are over now that Texas and OU bolted. It's just about getting the most quality programs and making sure the Big 12 is the third best conference after the ACC gets raided like a rummage sale.