Realignment Megathread (All The Moves)

If the Big 10 and SEC formally separate from the rest of the sport, it's pretty obvious that it will only be a matter of time before they jettison the non-blue bloods and end up with the 16ish schools that are actual annual powers. Ohio State and Michigan are going to tire of subsidizing eventually.

Iowa and Nebraska won't make that cut.
There's no doubt that in this case Iowa doesn't make the cut.

But I don't see a 16-team superconference with nothing but bluebloods ever happening. Eventually half of them will no longer be bluebloods, they'll be the bottom half. And then why wouldn't the top 8 do the same thing all over again... why are we subsidizing these 8 bottom feeders?

Conferences need cannon fodder to help prop up the elite programs.
 
I am actually looking forward to when Ohio State and Michigan wise up and demand a bigger check from the B1G. That will just create more teams on a similar resources level to Iowa State with 2/3 or more of the B1G getting rev-share cuts
I'd be willing to bet the next round of negotiations results in the B1G changing up its CFP/bowl game revenue distribution model, instead of an equal cut to every team, giving a bigger cut to the teams that made the CFP and earned the bulk of the bowl revenue. That would be the fair thing to do. I don't think we'll see unequal distribution of revenues from the media deal.
 
I am actually looking forward to when Ohio State and Michigan wise up and demand a bigger check from the B1G. That will just create more teams on a similar resources level to Iowa State with 2/3 or more of the B1G getting rev-share cuts
Gonna wait awhile, people have been banging this drum since Texas did it and nothing has changed. Just look at Indiama as exhibit A as to why that won’t happen. They set a record in the big ten championship for ratings and were the most watched big ten team by ratings this year. Before Cig came they have been a bottom dweller and now are probably favorites or close to favorites to win the big ten again.

unequal rev share won’t ever be baked into the media deal but could 100% see teams getting bigger cuts for mbb tourny results and cfb playoff results which I don’t think anyone would push back on
 
Another reason for 7x10 realignment.

If the AFCA have their way, there will essentially be no conference champs in the bloated 16 and 18 team clusterf*ck conferences. Wonderful,

 
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With a 24 team playoff there is absolutely no need to play conference title games. They can just roll right into the first round of the playoff that weekend.
I still want a title game and hate going to 24 team. Regular season football is just meaningless now. You would need to have a Penn state level debacle to miss the playoffs for most teams now and that’s just idiotic.

Know they won’t care because the playoff money is huge but man takes almost all the excitement out of the regular season
 
Gonna wait awhile, people have been banging this drum since Texas did it and nothing has changed. Just look at Indiama as exhibit A as to why that won’t happen. They set a record in the big ten championship for ratings and were the most watched big ten team by ratings this year. Before Cig came they have been a bottom dweller and now are probably favorites or close to favorites to win the big ten again.

unequal rev share won’t ever be baked into the media deal but could 100% see teams getting bigger cuts for mbb tourny results and cfb playoff results which I don’t think anyone would push back on
Indiana was a media darling because everyone loves the poor school rising up to win a championship. Do they have staying power to be drawing media numbers in a few years is the question. Much like EIU women's bb program, everyone wanted to watch Clark play, but after she left the ratings started to fall back down.
Lots of B10 schools keep hoping the conference never goes to unequal media revenues, but the thing is no conference is immune to the larger media schools wanting a bigger cut of the pie from the smaller schools. If OSU could triple their media money, along with a few other schools they would be silly not to, and let the MSU and Iowa's worry about themselves.
 
Indiana was a media darling because everyone loves the poor school rising up to win a championship. Do they have staying power to be drawing media numbers in a few years is the question. Much like EIU women's bb program, everyone wanted to watch Clark play, but after she left the ratings started to fall back down.
Lots of B10 schools keep hoping the conference never goes to unequal media revenues, but the thing is no conference is immune to the larger media schools wanting a bigger cut of the pie from the smaller schools. If OSU could triple their media money, along with a few other schools they would be silly not to, and let the MSU and Iowa's worry about themselves.
Totally agree about the staying power being a question, only thing I would say is that Clark was a one person show, not the program. Indiana football is a bit different in that the main draw is the coach. As long as he stays I see them in the top 3rd of the conference and drawing the views
 
There's no doubt that in this case Iowa doesn't make the cut.

But I don't see a 16-team superconference with nothing but bluebloods ever happening. Eventually half of them will no longer be bluebloods, they'll be the bottom half. And then why wouldn't the top 8 do the same thing all over again... why are we subsidizing these 8 bottom feeders?

Conferences need cannon fodder to help prop up the elite programs.
The snake will eat itself in time.
 
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Totally agree about the staying power being a question, only thing I would say is that Clark was a one person show, not the program. Indiana football is a bit different in that the main draw is the coach. As long as he stays I see them in the top 3rd of the conference and drawing the views
We will see, after a season or two the average fan's interest will be drawn to somewhere else, unless they continue to win championships, but no one believes that is going to happen. Indiana unlike Ohio State, Michigan and a few others does not have a huge fan base. They have a small stadium, so unless they are planning on enlarging it soon, they are still going to be at best 52,000 or so, they average 8000 fans less than ISU.
 
We will see, after a season or two the average fan's interest will be drawn to somewhere else, unless they continue to win championships, but no one believes that is going to happen. Indiana unlike Ohio State, Michigan and a few others does not have a huge fan base. They have a small stadium, so unless they are planning on enlarging it soon, they are still going to be at best 52,000 or so, they average 8000 fans less than ISU.
They have massive donors. I don't know how you can really say nobody expects them to win more championships. Cig obviously is an amazing coach who knows how to put a team together.
 
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Is it just me or will this lopsided funding eventually turn against them. Breaking down my viewership, I'd have zero interest in watching someone beholden-ed to championships. I think a downward trend of viewership might become irreversible.
 
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We will see, after a season or two the average fan's interest will be drawn to somewhere else, unless they continue to win championships, but no one believes that is going to happen. Indiana unlike Ohio State, Michigan and a few others does not have a huge fan base. They have a small stadium, so unless they are planning on enlarging it soon, they are still going to be at best 52,000 or so, they average 8000 fans less than ISU.
I have a coworker that is an IU grad, he says they have a huge waiting list of people wanting season tickets and the university has jacked the price of tickets. I can't remember how much he said unfortunately.
 
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We will see, after a season or two the average fan's interest will be drawn to somewhere else, unless they continue to win championships, but no one believes that is going to happen. Indiana unlike Ohio State, Michigan and a few others does not have a huge fan base. They have a small stadium, so unless they are planning on enlarging it soon, they are still going to be at best 52,000 or so, they average 8000 fans less than ISU.
They don’t have a huge fan base because their football team has been abysmal for decades on decades. They have a huge waiting list now, massive interest and a a huge state school. The fans are there and again stadium size and attendance has zero to do with ratings.

Michigan during the rich rod and Brady hoke years were giving away tickets if you bought a Coke. Fans need something to support and winning teams do just that
 
I have a coworker that is an IU grad, he says they have a huge waiting list of people wanting season tickets and the university has jacked the price of tickets. I can't remember how much he said unfortunately.
I’ve heard that Indiana has the largest alumni base in the country. I googled it just now and it looks to be accurate.

Top Universities by Total Living Alumni (approximate):
  • Indiana University: > 805,000
  • Penn State University: > 802,000
  • University of Michigan: ~700,000
  • UCLA: ~697,000
  • Ohio State University: ~600,000
  • University of Texas at Austin: ~600,000
  • Purdue University: ~600,000
 
I’ve heard that Indiana has the largest alumni base in the country. I googled it just now and it looks to be accurate.

Top Universities by Total Living Alumni (approximate):
  • Indiana University: > 805,000
  • Penn State University: > 802,000
  • University of Michigan: ~700,000
  • UCLA: ~697,000
  • Ohio State University: ~600,000
  • University of Texas at Austin: ~600,000
  • Purdue University: ~600,000
So the reason Indiana and Michigan are so high is that they count all the satellite campus’s that don’t really count. Getting into Michigan is very hard, getting into University of Michigan Flint or Dearborn campus’s are extremely easy. Not sure about Indiana’s competitive admissions in comparison and no idea if Penn state has satellite campuses.
 
There's no doubt that in this case Iowa doesn't make the cut.

But I don't see a 16-team superconference with nothing but bluebloods ever happening. Eventually half of them will no longer be bluebloods, they'll be the bottom half. And then why wouldn't the top 8 do the same thing all over again... why are we subsidizing these 8 bottom feeders?

Conferences need cannon fodder to help prop up the elite programs.
Yep, even the Globetrotters understood the value of the Washington Generals. So schools like Purdue, Northwestern, Maryland, Rutgers, Miss State, Arkansas, etc. have value.

No way the Big10 & SEC get smaller. Over the next 5 years we'll see more realignment with adds from the ACC and Big12. Relegation could happen if schools are non-competitive, but that's probably 10-15 years out. And probably contingent on media rights revenue growth stalling out.
 
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So the reason Indiana and Michigan are so high is that they count all the satellite campus’s that don’t really count. Getting into Michigan is very hard, getting into University of Michigan Flint or Dearborn campus’s are extremely easy. Not sure about Indiana’s competitive admissions in comparison and no idea if Penn state has satellite campuses.
You are right about Indiana. The alumni numbers include the old IUPUI, which is now IU-Indy and IU-East in Richmond, IN among others. The analogy to Michigan is spot on.
 
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I have a coworker that is an IU grad, he says they have a huge waiting list of people wanting season tickets and the university has jacked the price of tickets. I can't remember how much he said unfortunately.
Everyone likes a winner, but unless they plan to expand their stadium looks like 56K is as large as it can go.