Pac2 may be after nearly 500 Million of Pac12 assets for this year.
Pac 12 schools were scheduled to make around 40 million per school for this the final year of their TV contracts. OSU and WSU want to be declared the only remaining voting members of the Pac-12.
I suddenly don't hate the idea of leaving the B1G immediately if a big chunk of that money could be used to build up a new Pac-xx conference over a year or two. I wonder what teams might want to rethink their partial share memberships in other places if Michigan were there to secure a big contract.
November 14th, 2023 at 10:10 AM ^
Username checks out
November 14th, 2023 at 11:59 AM ^
I'm not sure why everyone seems to think the ACC is not an option.
If Michigan came in and could convince Notre Dame to assume an actual membership there would be 3 elite level football programs and some good midlevel programs that sometimes get into the top 10 or 15.
There would also be some very highly regarded academic institutions and Florida State is on the verge of joining the AAU.
It would also give Michigan an in to the hottest recruiting areas in the country without having to join the recruiting cesspool of the SEC.
And, finally, it would have appeal to the viewers in the east coast megapolis, Florida, Georgia, and the national fan base of Michigan and Notre Dame.
November 14th, 2023 at 12:05 PM ^
Not the ACC in toto, just the parts we want. Create a new conference of schools from anywhere that we like/can tolerate....
November 14th, 2023 at 12:33 PM ^
I think that the ACC is a legit option (and not just because I live in Raleigh). It's largely based in Eastern time zone. The academics are top notch (Duke, Stanford, Cal, UNC, UVA....). The football is good and the basketball can be great. Baseball and Lacrosse would be at a whole new level.
I don't REALLY think that UM will leave the B1G. However, if they do, they ACC seems like a reasonable option.
November 14th, 2023 at 3:20 PM ^
That’s my take too.
November 14th, 2023 at 3:42 PM ^
Don't really give a crap about academics. Just want to play in a competitive conf.
What makes anyone think UM joining the ACC would make ND want to join?
November 15th, 2023 at 12:25 AM ^
ACC has a horrific TV deal through 2038 or something like that. It is why Clemson and FSU want out.
November 14th, 2023 at 10:13 AM ^
Well, it probably won't be the ones who just left, right? I would die laughing if USC, UCLA, UW, UO, Stanford, and Cal changed their minds and decided to remain in the Pac if Michigan joined the party.
that said...
November 14th, 2023 at 10:27 AM ^
There's no way any of those schools would be willing to pay the exit fee for the conferences they just joined. Unfortunately, I think the most recent wave of realignment is locked in for the time being.
November 14th, 2023 at 10:31 AM ^
Until Michigan partners with the SEC to begin forming the national superconference we all know is coming.
November 14th, 2023 at 3:15 PM ^
My guess is the next iteration won't be any of the legacy conferences with their baggage (both administrative and in ties to non-major revenue schools). My guess is the next step will be formation of an elite superleague that can offer all of its participants much bigger stakes with lower overhead, but that probably comes together halfway through the existing TV contracts while the big dogs hash it out.
November 15th, 2023 at 9:14 AM ^
This is what I’m thinking. Up until this point, Michigan would have stayed loyal to the Big Ten. But now, let’s say Amazon or Netflix or even Fox wanted an 8 team football only superconference. I’m sure that Michigan listens now.
Michigan, Notre Dame, Texas, Alabama, USC, Georgia. Start there. I’m sure Ohio State would join. The last spot can be Florida, Oklahoma… I don’t care.
That Superconference could schedule two conference games per week. And each game would draw 6-18 Million viewers. And probably net each team about $200 Million in TV revenue per year.
November 14th, 2023 at 12:50 PM ^
Would their contract still apply since it wouldn't be the same B1G that they agreed to join?
November 14th, 2023 at 12:19 PM ^
That’s been my dream scenario. Everyone backs out. UM leaves and the whole 2024 schedule makes the PAC 12 the country’s premiere conference. To hell with the big ten. And ND while we’re at it.
November 14th, 2023 at 10:30 AM ^
If Michigan were to leave the only conference I’d consider is the SEC. I know they don’t have the best rep, but they take football and sports seriously and don’t try to ruin each other.
November 14th, 2023 at 10:32 AM ^
No way.
Michigan would drown in the SEC. We aren’t willing to wade into their world of pay for play.
November 14th, 2023 at 10:40 AM ^
We have stayed on a moral high ground and watched OSU do it for years and kick our teeth in. With NIL now I could care less about pay for play. We have the alumni to make it happen.
it’s rumored OSU is still paying cash for visits, so that’s okay but Michigan couldn’t go to the SEC?
November 14th, 2023 at 10:44 AM ^
Michigan is currently in a conference with one Ohio State. Going to the SEC we'd have at least 6 Ohio States.
November 14th, 2023 at 10:46 AM ^
If you follow recruiting you know we lose a ton of recruits to “NIL friendly” schools. I don’t think joining the SEC would make us flip a switch and say ok, now we will do it.
It would be a tremendous disadvantage for us to compete against schools that are paying up front for recruits. It’s not that we can’t do it, it’s that we are unwilling.
November 14th, 2023 at 10:52 AM ^
Trust me I get, we have alot of old school Michigan men that want to take the high road. There is no high road anymore, the ncaa is the new Wild West. Imo going all in is long overdue.
November 14th, 2023 at 11:01 AM ^
OSU is the only SEC-like team in the B1G. Competing with them is not as big of a deal compared to competing with Alabama, Georgia, LSU, Florida, etc that Michigan is losing recruits to as it is due to paying them through NIL.
November 14th, 2023 at 11:16 AM ^
Just curious if there is any meat to those rumors of paying cash for visits. Also read on here from someone that OSU pays recruits to not visit Michigan. It would be fascinating if verified, more nefarious than some sign stealing scheme by somebody who wanted to seem smarter than he really is.
November 14th, 2023 at 3:47 PM ^
Oh come on sign stealing is the worst thing in the history of sports. /s
November 14th, 2023 at 11:01 AM ^
The only reason I'd consider it would be to see the likes of Alabama, Georgia, etc, play in at The Big House, in November.
November 14th, 2023 at 12:04 PM ^
In the past, yes.
With NIL...
November 14th, 2023 at 10:34 AM ^
It would be funny to watch Pete Finebaum handle the news.
<head explode.gif>
November 14th, 2023 at 10:44 AM ^
Are they allowed to show Finebaum's head exploding on TV, or is that considered pornographic?
November 14th, 2023 at 10:58 AM ^
He would love Michigan joining the SEC. It would give him a talking point that he would love. Finebaum would just spend all of his airtime saying that Michigan has no chance of success.
November 14th, 2023 at 10:35 AM ^
Michigan would not need to "join" the SEC. Instead, Michigan would partner with the SEC to lay the foundation of a national superconference that detaches itself from the NCAA.
It would be based on the SEC as its initial core (it would be re-branded to be called something else) which would then add teams from all regions of the country like Michigan, FSU, Miami, Clemson, ND and so on.
Equal strength Big Ten and SEC conferences keep this from happening now. But if the Big Ten loses Michigan to the SEC, that equality is gone. At that point the critical mass is with the SEC/superconference and programs will gravitate toward it.
Michigan is the olive that is pulled out of the jar. Once it comes out, the rest all start coming out.
November 14th, 2023 at 11:25 AM ^
Under such a model, it seems highly likely the SEC culture would prevail and be perpetuated. So, while it may be called something different, at its heart it is pretty indistinguishable from M joining the SEC.
The value would be in separating from the NCAA and creating a rule set that doesn't give the "SEC way" a competitive advantage.
Edit: BTW this is another reason teams in the B1G ought to be concerned with the league's actions. If M is driven into some type of alliance with the SEC to start a super conference, as you point out, the B1G will no longer be on relative equal footing with the SEC. This means the SEC will have a much stronger say in how that super conference gets set up and marginal teams in the SEC will have a much better chance of a "golden ticket" than the marginal teams in the B1G
November 14th, 2023 at 11:39 AM ^
Great metaphor. I hate getting that first olive out of the jar.
November 14th, 2023 at 12:08 PM ^
I think this is the head on the nail, Michigan is going to be the catalyst to end the NCAA's dominance of college athletics, particularly in football.
Sucks it had to be this way but its so clear the Big Ten has become a toxic cess pool of Michigan haters that actively work to degrade Michigan athletics success. That can't and shouldn't be tolerated. The only answer may be to leave and blow it all up.
November 14th, 2023 at 1:33 PM ^
Another upvote for the olive metaphor. Outstanding...and it reminds me to have a martini before dinner this evening. :)
November 14th, 2023 at 11:14 AM ^
You're forgetting about the academic and research side. The PTB at the university would never allow it to join with such drastically inferior academic institutions. Probably the only other conference that would get consideration from the academic side is the ACC.
November 14th, 2023 at 11:25 AM ^
The Green Bay Packers don't care about the academics of the Kansas City Chiefs. If that doesn't appear to be a related comment to you, think about it a little.
November 14th, 2023 at 12:08 PM ^
I think those days and that line of thinking is over and has to be over.
November 14th, 2023 at 3:58 PM ^
The University does not exist to support the football team. Dismissing that line of thinking won't happen as long as the academic mission of the school comes first.
November 14th, 2023 at 9:05 PM ^
So does Demar Dorsey still have eligibility?
November 14th, 2023 at 11:19 AM ^
I, too, want to see the PAC-2 leftovers get the whole pie that everyone else left in the trash can on their way out. However, using that money to reconstitute a Left Coast league isn't going to change the TV money allocated to the previous iteration of the PAC-12. They are still on the West Coast, and as such don't get any TV viewership in the noon and 3:30 time slots.
That is the issue, not the teams.
November 14th, 2023 at 11:39 AM ^
As far as I am concerned, the Pac2 are morally and legally entitled to the conference's assets.
November 14th, 2023 at 12:05 PM ^
I actually hope they win, I think what USC/UCLA did was wrong and I think what ESPN/Disney did to reshape conferences was wrong.
November 14th, 2023 at 12:09 PM ^
Go for it
November 14th, 2023 at 12:27 PM ^
The RCMB sleuths have everything figured out now! Trial over!
November 14th, 2023 at 12:31 PM ^
Temporary independence and then ascension into ACC alongside ND.
November 14th, 2023 at 12:50 PM ^
Rebuild it M !
$500M to play with lol
Won't happen but damn it would hilarious and awesome at the same time.