What this thread threw out there opened my eyes to something that may not be obvious to all the casual observers: Once the idea of a SEPERATE CONFERENCE RUN (somehow) by the Domers ($warbuck$) and dominated (somehow) by the Domers and Texas, well, then suddenly, everything about being in a conference was great, even AWESOME!?!?!? How can these fans be so blatantly blind to "WE DON'T NEED THE CASH THAT A CONFERENCE PROVIDES!" to arguing in favor of "WHAT A GREAT CONFERENCE THIS WOULD BE AND DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH MONEY THIS WOULD MAKE FOR NOTRE DAME???"
Seriously, I couldn't believe what I was reading. These two-faced SOB's basically don't want anything to do with the Big 10, but they are more than in favor of creating their own conference of their choosing to shape the football landscape the way they see fit! Is that arrogant, or is that arrogant?
But, just for shits and giggles, let's play their game:
Here is the proposed TEXA-ND conference, controlled primarily by Notre Dame and Texas:
Team - Conference
- ND - NONE
- Georgia Tech - ACC
- Texas - Big 12
- Texas A&M - Big 12
- Virginia -ACC
- Virginia Tech - ACC
- Pittsburgh - Big East
- West Virginia - Big East
- Rutgers - Big East
- Syracuse - Big East
- Nebraska - Big 12
- Missouri - Big 12
- Miami - ACC
- Florida State - ACC
I was almost quick to poo-poo the idea, but I let that list sit in my brain for minute. Notice anything about the list? There are two dominant teams/markets in there: Texas and Notre Dame. There are some fringe teams that are in important markets (Miami, Syracuse, Rutgers) and there are some Football worthy teams (Nebraska, Florida State) that may or may not be key to this, but are interesting adds none the less. And the key is all would more than likely benefit from an equal cash flow if you had Notre Dame and Texas leading the ticket.
What was interesting was that if Texas and Notre Dame were to somehow connect (I know, THAT'S A HUGE, BIG FREAKIN' IF) they could potentially have the clout (and pull) to persuade some of these teams to consider this based on the following:
NBC. They have suddenly become a big piece of this re-alignment. They are the last major network without a conference affiliation due to the Domer contract. But I am sure everyone at NBC is saying, "Look, Domer nation just isn't cutting it any more and we'd like to broadcast more than one game in SIGNIFICANT MARKETS." If that's the case and the Big 10 Market and SEC Market are gone, what do you do?
Answer: Create your own Market.
Go down to my earlier posts here and here: This market would penetrate several of the existing markets (with the exception of the Big 10 due to the BTN and the money they are already making) but it would be on in households from Texas, Florida, the East Coast and most importantly, New York. And New York, with households that would be interested in Notre Dame, Miami, Texas and Florida might then pop for the TEXA-ND Conference Channel. And NBC would be broadcasting the "Big Game of the Week" Nationally and the lesser games on Versus....
Uh-oh....This makes too much sense....WAY too much sense...And if Texas and ND can put there heads together and work out the details, the teams on the list would be idiots not to take it...But where does that leave everyone who's not on the list?
Let's look:
Big 12 - 8 Teams left...(looks a little like the Old Big 8, doesn't it?):
- Baylor
- Colorado
- Oklahoma (The biggest losers in all of this)
- Oklahoma State
- Iowa State
- Kansas
- Kansas State
ACC - 7 Teams left - (looks a little like the ACC with the best picked clean, doesn't it?)
- Duke
- North Carolina
- NC State
- Clemson
- Maryland
- Wake Forest
- Boston College (Kind of Surprised with the rivalry that they were left out - Perhaps they beat the DOMERS too often?)
Big East (These guys really get hosed - From a football Perspective):
- South Florida
- Louisville
- U-Conn
- Cincinnatti
So, what happens? Well, assuming that Texas and the Domers could actually pull this off - and don't think there aren't enough $$$$$ on the table to make something like this happen with NBC licking it's chops at the prospect of adding Texas and family to the NBC broadcast base, what have they really impacted? The ACC has the smallest television (football) contract that there is. Yes, the basketball contract is huge, but with the conference suggested, they don't lose too much of that impact, and if you were to add say, Oklahoma, Okie Stat, Kansas and Uconn to the ACC, expanding it's footprint but diminishing the football presence - a little - I don't see Miami having the presence in college football it once did and Oklahoma might be a step up.
Big East, and Big 12, well, they lose the super conference ranking and anyone left I guess goes into whatever the Big 12 can make of the remnants. Don't forget the Pac 10 will want to pick over the premium teams (Colorado?) left on the table.
New ACC:
- Duke
- North Carolina
- NC State
- Clemson
- Maryland
- Wake Forest
- Boston College
- Oklahoma
- Okie State
- Kansas
- U-Conn
- Cincinnatti
New ??????? (everything that's left after the Pac 10 has it's way or makes up it's mind)
- Texas Tech
- Baylor
- Iowa State
- Kansas State
- Louisville
- South Florida
- TCU
- SMU
- ????
- ????
- ????
- ???
(Also known as the D1 Conference that has all it's games on Wednesday Nights!)
Anyway, it's becoming very apparent to me that money, Television money, is going to dictate re-alignment in the future. And that television money will become very important with respect to the markets you are in and what you can put on the tube...And if TEXA-ND Conference could penetrate those markets and create better product for the average football viewer, well, this could be part of that seismic shift that $warbuck$ was talking about...
You have to think about it anyway...Might as well Think Big...
- Texas Tech
- Duke
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