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FSU, Clemson, Louisville & Maryland.....more rumors on Big 12 expansion.... ReplyStole this from a Clemson site....take it for what it's worth.In the early months of 2012 the chatter of Clemson and Florida State bolting to the Big 12 started with Honus Snead from Eer Insider. Shortly there after Clemson formed an Athletic Advisory Committee, leading to speculation this group may be charged with exploring a move to the Big 12 and reporting these findings later this summer.In an interview in February Clemson AD Terry Don Phillips disputed the Clemson-Big 12 rumors, saying "There is no substance to that. None." which is what would be expected of anyone in Clemson's Administration considering the relative infancy of the discussions and the bold nature of such a move.But here we are on May 1st, the Big 12 meetings are a month away and the BCS meetings with an announcement on a playoff format comes next month. Already, the chatter regarding additional conference realignment is growing louder, and is expected to intensify as the various league and BCS meetings approach.To that end, Cemetery Hill has once again spoken with Honus Snead late last week, and Snead characterized the latest rumors as follows:- The Big 12 expansion talk of Clemson, Florida State, Maryland and Louisville is very hot. There is a high likelihood these teams will jump ship from the ACC and Big East after the B12 and BCS meetings conclude. The one question remaining is if this shift happens would the Big 12 expand to 16 teams instead of just 14? If so who else might join the party? Miami? Virginia Tech? We don't have the answers to that, but we have heard those programs mentioned.Many have scoffed at this rhetoric before, and many will again. However, consider this: A four team playoff is coming down the line very soon, and RPI will factor into the selection of those 4 teams. Given how the ACC and Big East have fared in recent years within the RPI rankings, it's not very likely teams from these conferences would stand much chance for inclusion in a playoff format. As a result, the football powers in these conferences are looking for a safe haven, hence jumping to a conference that will have a seat at the playoff table. This is a win-win for the Big 12 as well, as they are looking to go from possible implosion last year to rivaling the SEC in football superiority:* It puts the Big 12 in the middle of SEC country, and captures new TV markets much like the SEC did with the Texas A&M and Mizzou additions.* It would also expand the Big 12's recruiting footprint into the talent-laden deep south and Florida* An expanded and enhanced Big 12 makes for a fourth super-conference, joining the SEC, Big 10 and Pac 12.* A 14-16 team conference opens up the door for enormous national revenue streams. On a given Saturday; Clemson-Oklahoma, FSU-Texas or West Virginia-Oklahoma State could be playing, and who wouldn't want to see those type games, not to mention the TV revenues to be generated.* It potentially provides the impetus for a framework of 64 teams in 4 conferences who will fight it out for 4 spots every year for the national championship.Why would Clemson and FSU even consider this? They are football first in sports and don't want to be irrelevent in the discussions of the future national scene, and are the only schools in the ACC (along with Virginia Tech) that have SEC type facilities and feel. Also, the ACC's recent additions of Syracuse and Pitt only further cement its reputation as a basketball league. Furthermore, television revenues from an expanded Big 12 are projected to bring in an additional 5 million per year minimum beyond what the ACC could generate with their rights.Speaking of the SEC, what would be there counter move, if any, should the Big 12 expand to 16 teams? It would make sense for them to look for teams in new markets in the mid-Atlantic, with the likliest additions being NC State and Virginia Tech.The one wild card the ACC and Big East have in this whole scenario is Notre Dame. The addition of the Golden Domers would add cache to either conference, and may keep the ACC from breaking apart should they be raided by the Big 12 and SEC. However, should the ACC fracture, Notre Dame may not have any other choice than to seek out their natural home in the Big 10.
in the end, EMAW will always win.
Bowlsby seems pretty legit. He's connected, been at the top level of some major organizations. Hopefully will take the Larry Scott approach. I like this move.
On Thursday evening Cemetery Hill spoke with sources familiar with the discussion of Big 12 expansion and learned the following information:- Per these sources Clemson and Florida State will likely join the Big 12 in all sports effective in 2013. At this time the Big 12 will only expand by two teams, and possibly look to add additional teams in 2014 or beyond. - The new Big 12 commisioner will be announced on Friday as Bob Bowlsby, who is leaving his post as AD at Stanford. We would not expect Bowlsby or anyone associated with this rumored expansion to acknowledge anything right away.- The new Big 12 TV contract with the two new schools to be added we're told will approach 30 million per team.- Approximately 3.5 million of the 30 million will be derived from the conference championship game.-The first Big 12 Championship with the two new teams will be played at Cowboy Stadium aka Jerry World.- The Big 12 is expected to contribute 10 million dollars per team to the ACC's buyout of 20 million. This is similar to what the Big 12 did with West Virginia. - Rumors of Clemson and Florida State using the Big 12 as leverage for an invitation to the SEC have been charaterized as pure speculation by sources, who indicated these programs are Big 12 bound. We were also told that a move could be very swift after the BCS meetings in June.From a financial standpoint, it's hard to see how Clemson and Florida State could turn down a deal like this, assuming these numbers are indeed accurate. Furthermore, the spectre of the ACC being left out of the proposed 4 team, RPI driven playoff system, makes a move of this nature almost a requirement if schools like Clemson and Florida State wish to compete for a national title.However, much rumor and speculation has occured in the last few years with respect to conference realignment and expansion, so some degree of caution should be exercised until a formal annoucement is issued. With that said, our sources indicated representatives from Clemson and Florida State have been in Texas for meetings with the Big 12, and it's only a matter of time before a formal invitation is made to join the Big 12. Will there be counters by the ACC that make staying put more attractive? Would the SEC intervene to protect their turf and extend an offer to Clemson and FSU or do they pursue only "new SEC media markets" Will the new BCS playoff take away the Orange Bowl and ACC/Big East affiliation? No matter what happens, the next few months will certainly be interesting to watch.
What if FSU gets the offer from the Big XII? That would leave us with one less visit to Florida for recruiting and one less prominent draw nationally. That would force ESPN to renegotiate the deal and lower the payout if they were not replaced with significant viewership. Our only ability to get attention from Florida recruits would be playing Miami every couple seasons, and Miami has no fans. Clemson would be the favorite to win the Atlantic pretty much every year, but would get even fewer talented recruits relative to the SEC teams surrounding us and the Big XII teams that would make in-roads to S Ga/Florida as a result.The converse would be true if Clemson left the ACC, without quite as much negativity for them in recruiting, but I think we all know that Clemson isn't leaving unless someone else does first. Barker loves the blueblood affiliation too much.Its my understanding that no matter what FSU or Clemson want to do individually, one school will follow the other if a decision is made to leave the ACC. We're a package deal for any conference. We’d have to pony up a big buyout, $20 Million, but that money can be made up within 4-5 years of the better TV deal in the new conference. Several ACC teams wanted to make that buyout significantly higher (you can guess who), but FSU helped argue it down to $20M from $34M.What if Clemson and FSU were both offered spots in the Big XII? While I'm old-school, and would prefer regional conferences, this possiblity is on the table. Aside from Texas, the other schools there are concerned about the money. Texas is just so greedy that they want every dollar on the planet. Texas would be more concerned with the SEC making inroads into Texas for recruiting purposes with A&M leaving. The conference renegotiated a deal last year for $130 M per season, and will be doing it again this season with the additions they're making. That renegotiation is ongoing.If Clemson and FSU were to go, we'd just hate Texas instead of UNC. They were so arrogant that they pissed off 3 schools and sunk the old Big XII. UNC and Duke just keep everyone under their thumb here and no one has the balls to tell them to piss off like Nebraska did to Texas. My only insistence if that were the case is that the Big XII offices contain plenty of non-Texas people and a Commish without strong ties to anyone. We've been down that road.We'd also have a conference that spans half the country. Road trips would be longer and the fan presence would diminish. I imagine some, including myself, would make the occasional trip just to see us play in Austin or Norman, but doing it every year? Not so sure.Clemson's travel costs would skyrocket, especially for minor sports that lose money already. Any gain in conference revenue would have to offset this expense at a minimum. If it breaks even, then the real gain would be in conference prestige and SOS/RPI arguments.The home slate would not be lined with the thrilling BC vs Clemson game, or the Wake Forest game you are all dying to get tickets to, or take-your-pick of 6-5ish ACC teams. We would host Texas, Oklahoma, FSU, West Virginia, along with Baylor, Iowa State, the Kansas's, etc.
With all the money KU and K-State will have, we could have the ultimate TSC bullet train from Lawrence Tallahassee to Manhattan.
I'm betting we end up using the money to start up a couple of non-revenue sports.
Quote from: Nuts Kicked on May 04, 2012, 09:20:11 AMI'm betting we end up using the money to start up a couple of non-revenue sports.I would be okay with a wrestling/rugby team. What if our new east coast friends make us get a lacrosse team? We would get SLAUGHTERED
Florida State and Clemson would be excellent competitors for our amazing fishing team.
our guy is a genetic freak who was born with fishing in his blood and brain and balls. he caught a 72 lb blue cat on a fisher price pole with a snoopy bobber and a piece of popcorn as bait at the age of 3.
Quote from: ben ji on May 04, 2012, 09:22:18 AMQuote from: Nuts Kicked on May 04, 2012, 09:20:11 AMI'm betting we end up using the money to start up a couple of non-revenue sports.I would be okay with a wrestling/rugby team. What if our new east coast friends make us get a lacrosse team? We would get SLAUGHTERED Try softball & soccer
