Sorta OT: Conference expansion merry-go-round starts again

Didn't ESPN just sign a deal with the ACC for another 10+ years of television coverage?  Lol.

I honestly don't even know what schools are in the Big East or ACC anymore. And is West Virginia really in the Big XII now? Geographic nonsense.

Before next season there should really be a post on the front page about the final teams in all of the conferences. It's a pool full of pudding with naked midgets in it right now. I have no idea what's going on.

I live in the DC area.  People care much more about Maryland than Virginia.  That's just how it is.  It's hard to find much UVA coverage.

But I would be happy with either.  They advance Delaney's goal of expanding the B1G footprint into areas of the country that are growing markets - Metro DC and the VA Tidewater areas - without being way off the map like Atlanta or Austin. 

I was reading the Yahoo! Sports (I know, terrible source) article on this happening yesterday, and one of the justifications Florida State used for a potential leave from the ACC is that it would be "hard to bring fans to the Panhandle from such faraway locations as Syracuse and Pitt". But if they were to go to the Big 12, then... they would have just as hard of a time with Oklahoma, Ok St, Iowa St, etc.

But really this boils down to the fact that the ESPN deal doesn't add MORE money to the conference. 

Think about it, though - you're televising your top games nationally, and that attracts media attention and fans. Not to mention, since ESPN has the broadcast rights to the ACC, they're going to talk it up a bit more too. Given the fact that the conference's prestige will undoubtedly increase due to more media exposure, I believe that they all stand to benefit greatly in the long run. This is all in the face of a deal that doesn't cause any of the athletic departments to LOSE any money.

Also, no, the Big 10 is fine where it is. No crappy ACC teams please.

I'd expect ND to join a watered down ACC where they could come in and compete.

I love how you don't oversell the idea on a conference bringing in some TV market just because a school is close to one. As the NYT estimated, Rutgers does have viewership in the NYC area but the viewership is nowhere near what it is in big southern or midwestern cities. Besides, adding a school for TV markets is a terrible reason to change the conference (though it seems like that is what is driving it).

Virginia does seem like a good fit to me. From the article above, their fan base is estimated at around 835k which would put them below the conference median but they also have great academics and facilities in a very nice setting. It has a rich history and while their football and basketball would probably put them in the middle of the pack, their soccer, lacrosse, and baseball are very good. I would also argue that their basketball and football are getting better.

As for other schools, Notre Dame seems to make sense but they are stubborn. Texas will not happen. The SEC is just trying to get numbers so they probably won't want teams like Clemson or Georgia Tech. That said, I have come around to the idea of Georgia Tech joining the B1G. It seems kind of strange geographically but Atlanta is 709 miles from Ann Arbor. Minneapolis is 650. Yes, those are both midwestern states but Atlanta is not 100% a southern city. There are a lot of transplants here from the northeast and midwest.

Their fan base is nowhere near as passionate as Michigan or Nebraska fans. I would compare them to Purdue. They have a new basketball arena on the way and their football stadium opens up into the Atlanta skyline. They are very good academically and have a lot of foreign-born students. Plus, they are in a city with a very cheap cost to travel to. Flights to Atlanta from DTW or ORD are very cheap and hotels are inexpensive.

That UVA is not going anywhere without VaTech.

I don't see anything happening, FSU is just using these rumors to leverage money. Being spring sports can't travel by air it would be the stupidest thing that they could do. I'm confident that the big schools are done moving for a while. The only thing you'll see is the mountain west and conference usa refeeling there slots and the wac finally taking the bullet to the back of the head.

B1G has parts of the NY market, mostly us and PSU,  but not all.

Notre Dame has parts of the NY market, but not all.

Rutgers has 3 times as much fans in NY than the B1G or Notre Dame combined, but not all.

However, if Delany could rope the above 3 together, he COULD make a decent case for NY, imo. When you're talking about the largest media market in the world, where even a small chunk of a pro sports town is a huge amount of money, adding Rutgers may be worth it. 

money has absolutely ruined D1 athletics.

Geographically that would make more sense to add these schools. Plus it would boost basketball and probably make the big ten the best basketball conference.

Can we please just stop screwing with the B1G? I really like it the way it is; it's a distinctly midwestern conference, along with PSU, which is a great fit academically, athletically, and (until recently) culturally. I could care less about bringing in money for the conference; I'd rather see a conference I can cheer for than a conference that kicks lots of money back to the schools.

It's interesting how the Big XII is already slowly moving east and the Big East is moving west. I am guessing that, if the current trend continues, the two conferences will pass one another on I-70 outside of Indianapolis in their efforts to lose further regional focus. 

There's also this:

"On the other hand, it will do very little for schools with a more traditional football following like FSU, Clemson, Virginia Tech and Miami." - from the article

In the long run, however, I don't think this holds entirely - your conference in general gets a little boost in publicity with the deal, so eventually the efforts will pay off for other programs as well, although I am not sure it would be enough to satisfy Haggard. More potential revenue streams exist than just the TV deal, and what you don't see here you might see in other areas. 

I would be curious as to what Haggard believes the Big XII can offer FSU, other than perhaps a media deal more suitable to him, because in itself this is quite  frankly a horrible reason to make such a switch. Further, contrary to what he claims, being in a certain conference can very much boost at least the perception of your academics, so really, being in the ACC doesn't exactly hurt them in this regard. 

cares. 

Actually, I do care. I know this is going to open up the floodgates of Charlie Weis jokes but I think the best fits to add two more are Kansas and Notre Dame. Kansas would solidify B10 as best in basketball and ND's intangibles (if not their recent performance) would put us a notch above the SEC in football. That has to have something positive to do with ratings and cable networks doesn't it? 

If we add teams, I want teams with good LAX programs. I'm excited about Big Ten LAX.