Conference Realignment

[zippy5]

21 minutes ago, Let'sGoZips94 said:

USC and UCLA set to join Big Ten in a couple of years.

 

There will be spots open to move up in conferences, and I think we're setting ourselves up nicely to get an invite. 

We'll need to win more than 2 football games soon for anyone to think about considering us

[72 Roo]

Why would this surprise anyone? It's logical to think that the PAC 12 would turn to Akron if USC and UCLA left. After all,  we have new turf and a new logo. Plus both schools are near the Pacific ocean and we are near Portage Lakes. The similarities are astounding. 

 

The basic premise that these two schools are leaving for the Big Ten is not believable, but a great rumor. Akron may indeed be positioning itself for an invitation to move up one day. Current AD Guthrie is against that. He feels the MAC is a great fit for us. I doubt it will come under his administration.

[Let'sGoZips94]

1 hour ago, blueandgold said:

Where to, the PAC 12? That wouldn't make sense.

 

American. 

[Let'sGoZips94]

1 hour ago, 72 Roo said:

Akron may indeed be positioning itself for an invitation to move up one day. Current AD Guthrie is against that. He feels the MAC is a great fit for us. I doubt it will come under his administration.

 

As a member of the MAC with no present or imminent invitation, and a new AD, he has to say that. 

[GP1]

Fans for these two schools must be excited about the 9am starts against Indiana and Maryland. 

[Zipmeister]

2 hours ago, 72 Roo said:

Why would this surprise anyone? It's logical to think that the PAC 12 would turn to Akron if USC and UCLA left. After all,  we have new turf and a new logo. Plus both schools are near the Pacific ocean and we are near Portage Lakes. The similarities are astounding. 

 

The basic premise that these two schools are leaving for the Big Ten is not believable, but a great rumor. Akron may indeed be positioning itself for an invitation to move up one day. Current AD Guthrie is against that. He feels the MAC is a gr12eat fit for us. I doubt it will come under his administration.

 

 

I too was doubtful about the jump to the Pac 12, but after you pointed out the Portage Lakes connection I think the move is inevitable. I think  when the Ducks come to play here the fact that Coach Mo used to be on their staff will add a little bit of extra excitement to that game. Can't wait to beat the crap out of those pretty boys from ASU and Arizona.

 

[Spin]

Just wait until the Women's Lacrosse takes that first 40 hour bus trip to Stanford. Then off to Washington the following week. 

 

Parents could car pool together. What could go wrong?

[GP1]

Joining the PAC 10 doesn't make sense for us right now, but with the right "building process".......

[Zipmeister]

The Dominos are lining up for Akrons move to the PAC 12.

could happen as soon as 2024

[GP1]

If we go to the PAC Whatever, it will blow our chances for the Big East. 

[72 Roo]

Let's Go, 

 

After leaving a smart ass reply to your post on the supposed USC-UCLA move to the Big Ten I turned on the local evening news here in Columbus to see that the lead story was the interest in USC-UCLA to move to the Big Ten. I was dumbfounded. You were on top of the breaking news. Congratulations! I think that the idea is absurd, but  so is college sports today. The Big Ten cares only about money and if these two schools can bring them more money it is not out of the realm of possibility. How the dominos falling affects Akron remains to be seen. But money is everything in college sports going forward. 

[Kangaroo Craig]

It’s officially a done deal! 

 

 

[Kangaroo Craig]

It’s officially a done deal! 

 

 

[Z.I.P.]

3 hours ago, 72 Roo said:

I turned on the local evening news here in Columbus to see that the lead story was the interest in USC-UCLA to move to the Big Ten. I was dumbfounded. You were on top of the breaking news.

How the dominos falling affects Akron remains to be seen. But money is everything in college sports going forward. 

Everywhere except anywhere near Akron.  Or anywhere else in the MAC! As always.

[Zipmeister]

54 minutes ago, Z.I.P. said:

Everywhere except anywhere near Akron.  Or anywhere else in the MAC! As always.

 

The link I posted 8 hours ago was available in Columbus, Akron and all MAC cities.

[GJGood]

I don’t really see anyone from the MAC going anywhere but I do wonder if the MAC expands. With all these conferences jumping up to 14 and 16 teams would the MAC start courting some top FCS programs?

[GP1]

26 minutes ago, GJGood said:

I don’t really see anyone from the MAC going anywhere but I do wonder if the MAC expands. With all these conferences jumping up to 14 and 16 teams would the MAC start courting some top FCS programs?

I hope not. The league is already too big. They should look to reduce the size of the league by 1-2 teams.

 

League expansion should not be the strategy of G5 conferences. The strategy should be to carve a place out for themselves in the changing landscape of college athletics where those schools use athletics to benefit the athletes, students, alumni, fans and general communities around them.

[Spin]

59 minutes ago, GP1 said:

I hope not. The league is already too big. They should look to reduce the size of the league by 1-2 teams.

 

League expansion should not be the strategy of G5 conferences. The strategy should be to carve a place out for themselves in the changing landscape of college athletics where those schools use athletics to benefit the athletes, students, alumni, fans and general communities around them.

 

...but here in the REAL world, conferences are selling their souls to TV network dollars by the millions. 

 

Even MLB, the most traditional of all sports leagues has bastardized itself with pitch clocks, universal DH, banning the shift (eventually), enlarged bases, ridiculous extra inning rules. What's next, 4 strikes for a K? Underhand slow pitch? If the networks ask for it...

Edited July 1, 2022 by Spin

[GP1]

4 minutes ago, Spin said:

 

...but here in the REAL world, conferences are selling their souls to TV network dollars by the millions. 

 

Conference leaders function in a herd. See my tag line below.

[bigjim]

20 minutes ago, Spin said:

 

...but here in the REAL world, conferences are selling their souls to TV network dollars by the millions. 

 

Even baseball has bastardized itself with pitch clocks, universal DH, banning the shift (eventually), enlarged bases, ridiculous extr1a inning rules. What's next, 4 strikes for a K? Underhand slow pitch? If the networks ask for it...

what a great post!!  As a former D1 baseball player I agree with what you said.  However, the general public likes these changes and that means more income for MLB.  I have said multiple times that most people could not play above TBall and that is the knowledge level of their sports.  These are the people driving these changes.  These are the people with Money, and Money drives all decisions!!!!!

[mes102]

Sports Illustrated on Twitter: "With the news of USC & UCLA leaving the Pac-12 for the Big Ten Conference, let's reimagine the NCAA landscape with the 'Forde Bowl Subdivision' from 2020 @ByPatForde explains: https://t.co/iZVgsPPBPy https://t.co/Tvo9kbbG8l" / Twitter

Edited July 1, 2022 by mes102

[Let'sGoZips94]

14 hours ago, 72 Roo said:

Let's Go, 

 

After leaving a smart ass reply to your post on the supposed USC-UCLA move to the Big Ten I turned on the local evening news here in Columbus to see that the lead story was the interest in USC-UCLA to move to the Big Ten. I was dumbfounded. You were on top of the breaking news. Congratulations! I think that the idea is absurd, but  so is college sports today. The Big Ten cares only about money and if these two schools can bring them more money it is not out of the realm of possibility. How the dominos falling affects Akron remains to be seen. But money is everything in college sports going forward. 

 

You weren't the only smartass in this thread, as a plethora of people took my "Akron to another conference" as Akron moving into a P5 conference.

 

The intent behind that comment was specifically aimed at the American Athletic Conference, as they are the only non-P5 conference with a better media deal than the MAC. 

 

The MAC is an absolute joke. It lives in the shadows of the Big Ten, hoping that scraps of Big Ten college athletics fall to the wayside for the MAC to grab. 

 

The P5 is consolidating. East coasters don't give a damn about the PAC12, and I'm not sure how many west coasters give a damn about any conferences east of the Mississippi. The two biggest media deals belong to the Big Ten and SEC, which are both east of the Mississippi (for the most part). How do west-of-the-Mississippi schools get a piece of the pie with those media deals? Join them. Now you're capturing the majority of the biggest markets in 1-2 conferences, instead of spreading them out across 5. 

 

Non-revenue-generating sports may become a free for all, like we've seen with soccer. G5 schools do not consistently have the same non-revenue sports (hockey, lacrosse, etc. for examples of variance), and add ridiculous travel hurdles in there to cement them being an after thought. BG and Miami's best sport (hockey) don't compete in the MAC, for example. The MAC can't even hold a men's soccer conference consistently, which has produced a National Champion an top 4 team consistently in the last 15 years. The conjoining of conferences is a revenue-only decision, so non-revenue sports will adapt and change.

 

The MAC, by not accepting MTSU and WKU, proved it is not willing to do what it needs to, to survive. The G5 must follow in the P5 footsteps by consolidating its revenue generating sports. The American and Mountain West are the two conferences that will likely survive in those categories. The stepping stones will become American/MW to PAC12/Big12/ACC, and then the PAC12/Big12/ACC to the Big Ten/SEC.

 

Figure out the non-revenue sports later, but we have to find a way into the American.

Edited July 1, 2022 by Let'sGoZips94

[Captain Kangaroo]

Stay in the MAC. Good TV availability (are there any games, aside from Point Park, that aren't on ESPN+?). Good rivalries. Easy road trips for conference games. Decent bowl tie-in's. Cheap travel costs. If your a good coach like Groce, with your program established, your chance dancing in March is at worst, 50/50. Probably better. 

 

The AAC will be completely different in 5 years...and completely different 5 years after that. The Zips sending their baseball team to Wichita? Never in a million years. And on and on and on...

 

I wish the MAC would have accepted MTSU and WKU. It would have upgraded the conference, with minor impact to the travel budget. Those two schools are different than UMass...Temple...UCF...Marshall...all of whom were looking to leave the MAC the day after they arrived. MTSU and WKU would have been a nice, like-minded fit.

 

The MAC has survived for 75 years. As it stands today it is perfect for the Zips. Bring on summer football camp!

[catdaddyp]

1 hour ago, Let'sGoZips94 said:

 

You weren't the only smartass in this thread, as a plethora of people took my "Akron to another conference" as Akron moving into a P5 conference.

 

The intent behind that comment was specifically aimed at the American Athletic Conference, as they are the only non-P5 conference with a better media deal than the MAC. 

 

The MAC is an absolute joke. It lives in the shadows of the Big Ten, hoping that scraps of Big Ten college athletics fall to the wayside for the MAC to grab. 

 

The P5 is consolidating. East coasters don't give a damn about the PAC12, and I'm not sure how many west coasters give a damn about any conferences east of the Mississippi. The two biggest media deals belong to the Big Ten and SEC, which are both east of the Mississippi (for the most part). How do west-of-the-Mississippi schools get a piece of the pie with those media deals? Join them. Now you're capturing the majority of the biggest markets in 1-2 conferences, instead of spreading them out across 5. 

 

Non-revenue-generating sports may become a free for all, like we've seen with soccer. G5 schools do not consistently have the same non-revenue sports (hockey, lacrosse, etc. for examples of variance), and add ridiculous travel hurdles in there to cement them being an after thought. BG and Miami's best sport (hockey) don't compete in the MAC, for example. The MAC can't even hold a men's soccer conference consistently, which has produced a National Champion an top 4 team consistently in the last 15 years. The conjoining of conferences is a revenue-only decision, so non-revenue sports will adapt and change.

 

The MAC, by not accepting MTSU and WKU, proved it is not willing to do what it needs to, to survive. The G5 must follow in the P5 footsteps by consolidating its revenue generating sports. The American and Mountain West are the two conferences that will likely survive in those categories. The stepping stones will become American/MW to PAC12/Big12/ACC, and then the PAC12/Big12/ACC to the Big Ten/SEC.

 

Figure out the non-revenue sports later, but we have to find a way into the American.

I agree most people in the Southeast - especially with ties to the SEC - don’t care much about the move of Southern Cal and UCLA to the B1G. Outside of maybe something along the lines of “oh, that’s neat.” 
 

Like you mentioned, it’s all about revenue. And according to the revenue numbers from a few years back neither Southern Cal nor UCLA were in the top 20 in revenue for football or as an athletic department. Those numbers could have changed recently and certainly could change in the coming years, but if revenue is what this is all about then it’s a ho-hum move.

 

Most B1G schools aren’t going to spend much time and money recruiting the state of California except in certain situations, so it doesn’t help in that department. Nor will Southern Cal and UCLA spend a ton of time recruiting the Midwest. 
 

I can’t speak to what dominoes will fall from here as it seems almost any possibility could turn into reality at this point. I’d guess there is some concern amongst the other P5 conferences, as well as the G5, in how the overall scope could affect them.

[Let'sGoZips94]

15 minutes ago, catdaddyp said:

I agree most people in the Southeast - especially with ties to the SEC - don’t care much about the move of Southern Cal and UCLA to the B1G. Outside of maybe something along the lines of “oh, that’s neat.” 
 

Like you mentioned, it’s all about revenue. And according to the revenue numbers from a few years back neither Southern Cal nor UCLA were in the top 20 in revenue for football or as an athletic department. Those numbers could have changed recently and certainly could change in the coming years, but if revenue is what this is all about then it’s a ho-hum move.

 

Most B1G schools aren’t going to spend much time and money recruiting the state of California except in certain situations, so it doesn’t help in that department. Nor will Southern Cal and UCLA spend a ton of time recruiting the Midwest. 
 

I can’t speak to what dominoes will fall from here as it seems almost any possibility could turn into reality at this point. I’d guess there is some concern amongst the other P5 conferences, as well as the G5, in how the overall scope could affect them.

 

I don't think individual school revenue is the driving force, but rather the media market as a whole. The Big Ten probably has a lot of alumni/fans who have migrated to the LA/West Coast area. Their media deals can now include those markets, therefore more $$$, hence why the Big Ten added Maryland and Rutgers.