B1G vs. SEC for Miami: Realignment Reality Check - Poll

[EmCane]

Joining B1G would put us at a competitive disadvantage with heavier travel constraints compared to the traditional B1G schools. I also don't think people realize how much of a disadvantage it would be for us to play a B1G game on the road in November when it's absolutely frigid. We need to stay regional and compete on the field against the programs we recruit against (SEC). It's what's best for the long-term health of players and the program.

That works both ways and our heat and HUMIDITY would melt teams from up there. Besides football should be played in cold once in a while. As the NCAA has moved to paying players, this is clearly a career development path now. Any player moving up to NFL or other professional leagues will end up playing in cold weather games. So going to Big10 would technically be the better development path for our players, providing them that real life experience before moving on. Beside I live in Chicago suburbs and this puts 7 potential away game sites within 4 hours.

 

[JD08]

Neither

Big 10 is more lucrative (for now) and better academically.
SEC will be more lucrative with the next contract and the games are a lot closer.

I think we'll end up in the Big 10, but I lean toward the SEC.

 

[Tony4Canes]

Good timing for article

 

[cookies]

Who says you can’t be in the SEC and still hate every ****** team in that mfer?

How I feel about the ACC right now and **** sure ain’t likely to enjoy the sorry B1G and their plodding cold weather slogs.

Gimme the SEC and an annual matchup with UF with a bonus of FSU stuck in the Big12. We still heavily recruit the SE. I’d rather end up in a pod with UF UGA and Clemson than whatever crap we would have in the B1G but we will go where we can and where the money is at I will be happy to be out of the ACC regardless.

Proposed SEC pods at 20 teams

Plains - Oklahoma, Texas, A&M, Arkansas, Missouri
Bayou - LSU, Ole Miss, Miss St, Alabama, Auburn
Smoky - Vanderbilt, Tennessee, Kentucky, UNC, Louisville
Marsh - Miami, UF, UGA, South Carolina, Clemson

This would be awesome. Our division would be the toughest but whatever only concern is the weaker smoky division

The SEC currently has 3 protected rivals that rotate every 4 years. They aren’t going back to divisions. Who knows how scheduling will work in 20-team conference; or that those teams listed would even be in the SEC. To think we would go to the SEC without FSU is irrational. And UF’s rivalry with them would be prioritized.

Especially in an a potential conference governance led system, i want no parts of being at the whims of Greg Sanskey & co.

We’re a national brand and going into either conference isn’t going change our evaluation process on the whole, and entering the SEC doesn’t make us closer to their home(s) for out of state recruits.

 

[cookies]

Good timing for article

B1G needs us more than the SEC does; but truth is TV ratings don’t matter too much with media deals. The B1G makes more money than the SEC, and likely will on the next deal as well, because they 3 logos next to their top 3 games compared to just one for the SEC’s top three.

If the ACC implodes, Disney will just use that money to spend more on the SEC in order to keep their exclusivity.

 

[Numb Nuts]

SEC. More ***** live in the south

 

[futurecane]

B1G needs us more than the SEC does; but truth is TV ratings don’t matter too much with media deals.

TV ratings drive the deal - to state otherwise is disingenuous. TV ratings and potential audience size are the entire basis of any media deal, and TV ratings are the best indicator of potential audience size.

 

[Kn[]_[]ckles3o5]

The SEC currently has 3 protected rivals that rotate every 4 years. They aren’t going back to divisions. Who knows how scheduling will work in 20-team conference; or that those teams listed would even be in the SEC. To think we would go to the SEC without FSU is irrational. And UF’s rivalry with them would be prioritized.

Especially in an a potential conference governance led system, i want no parts of being at the whims of Greg Sanskey & co.

We’re a national brand and going into either conference isn’t going change our evaluation process on the whole, and entering the SEC doesn’t make us closer to their home(s) for out of state recruits.

Ultimately money will decide what happens to whom.

What I proposed is a feasible scenario given the money and current status of FSU as a brand. I wont disagree that UF would prefer to add FSU over Miami if they were forced and they would fight either to the bitter end. FSU has the infrastructure to integrate into the SEC and definitely is a more natural fit than Miami so in reality they are more likely to go to the SEC without us and most/all SEC members would prefer that scenario

If we were talking true perfection the SEC would dump Vandy and Missouri and pick up FSU and NC State along with UNC Louisville Clemson and Miami. Thats a strangle hold on the SE with nearly every traditional rivalry amongst state schools preserved with Miami being the only remaining private institution I believe.

I admit we don’t fit into the SEC model as an institution but we don’t fit into the B1G geographically so it’s a ****** situation. The ACC was the best of both worlds. High level academics and sports but its relevance is fading because of its horrible leadership so we have to jump ship.

With the money equal give me the SEC due to the geographical fit and potential schedule over everything but as I stated before either would be fine. We played in the big east and travelled north plenty during that time and we have natural rivalries with penn state Ohio state and Nebraska. We probably won’t see OsU or Michigan nearly as often as we would like it’d be really interesting to see where we would slot into the conference scheduling. At 20ish teams it would seem that pods or division would be the only way to stabilize the conference schedules and it might also help with travel if the teams are grouped geographically

B1G potential divisions

East - PSU, Rutgers, Maryland, Miami, UNC
Great Lakes - OSU, Mich, MSU, Wisconsin, Northwestern
Plains - Indiana, Purdue, Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota
West - Oregon, USC, UCLA, Washington, Nebraska

Really only Nebraska gets screwed on this deal. If you went east west with no crossovers it would work out at 9 conference games and be more fair to Nebraska. But then lack of space in the schedule for crossover and potential for the west division to be way easier presents a problem for OSU who doesn’t want to have to fight with Michigan PSU and Miami for a spot in the conference championship.

 

[OBLIVION]

Good timing for article

The B10 needs to do a better job with scheduling, too. Right now, some of the matchups later in the season don't have the same appeal that the SEC is putting on television. Oregon needs to climb back up the rankings, but USC also needs to avoid dropping off. Iowa is another program that needs to stay relevant because when Iowa is good, those games carry much more weight nationally.

You also have to consider that ESPN controls a huge portion of the college football television landscape. They have more flexibility with scheduling, better control over time slots, and they have the pregame programming and overall presentation built around their product. The B10 needs to get better at selling its own product instead of simply relying on the quality of the teams to sell itself.

That's where adding two more premier programs could help as well. You're not just adding two teams, you're adding more high-profile matchups, more meaningful games late in the season, and more opportunities to build the conference's television product.

The B10 already has Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State, USC, Oregon, Iowa and others with national recognition. If they can keep those programs relevant while adding two more premier brands, the conference would have a much deeper slate of games that can be sold nationally instead of relying on one or two marquee matchups each week.

And if the B10 were able to bring in Miami and Notre Dame, a yearly Miami vs Notre Dame matchup would be extremely valuable from a television standpoint if they packaged it correctly. Two nationally recognizable brands, major recruiting regions, history between the programs, and a matchup that doesn't need much selling to the audience.

That is the kind of game the B10 needs more of. You could build an entire Saturday around it with a major pregame show, promote it for weeks, put it in a premier time slot and make it an annual event. Then you still have Ohio State vs Michigan, USC vs Notre Dame, Miami vs Penn State, Oregon vs Washington and all the other potential matchups.

 

[cookies]

TV ratings drive the deal - to state otherwise is disingenuous. TV ratings and potential audience size are the entire basis of any media deal, and TV ratings are the best indicator of potential audience size.

No, to state otherwise is to understand the market and business dynamics at play. It’s really simple. You have 3 conglomerates vs 1 paying a conference. If the B1G were averaging lower tv ratings than XII schools, then they’d be in trouble. The ACC made a 12 year deal that turned into a 27 year deal in 2010 and 2016; our (as a conference) TV ratings are irrelevant to our (collective) payout atm!

According to sources, ESPN rejected the Big Ten's final offer of a seven-year, $380 million agreement, which included fewer marquee games than the network's current package. Warren reiterated the respect he has for ESPN's executive team but acknowledged that "owning windows" for football games with certain media partners was a major priority for the Big Ten in this deal. ESPN in 2024 will begin carrying all of the SEC's football games and has the ACC's rights through the 2035 season.

NBC has exclusively broadcast Notre Dame home games since 1991, but wanted to increase its college football presence. Bevacqua (NOTRE DAME’S CURRENT AD) said NBC had been monitoring the media rights landscape and "circled" the Big Ten, which had an expiring deal with Fox and ESPN, as a potential investment.

Do you think that B1G schools had better ratings than SEC schools during the few years leading up to their new media deals? Spoiler alert: they did not. Mind you, the B1G signed the larger media deals BEFORE they started their CFP championship run.

SEC, ESPN strike 10-year deal for college football, basketball starting in 2024

The new SEC deal, which begins in 2024, provides ESPN and ABC up to 15 premier football games, including the SEC championship game and rivalry games such as Alabama-Auburn and Florida-Georgia.

www.espn.com

December 2020: THE SEC signs a 10 year, 3 billion dollar deal w/ an AAV of 710 M’s to be distributed to their members (pre-Texas and -OU adjustment)

ESPN and the SEC announced Thursday that they have reached a 10-year deal beginning in 2024 that will make the network the exclusive rights holder of SEC football and men's basketball.

The deal provides the network, including ABC, up to 15 premier football games, including the SEC championship game and rivalry games such as Alabama-Auburnand Florida-Georgia.

August 2022: The B1G signs a 7 year, 7.7+ BILLION dollar deal w/ an AAV of 1.1 billion to be distributed to their members (pre-Oregon and -Washington joining the conference)

Big Ten completes 7-year, $7 billion media rights agreement with Fox, CBS, NBC

The Big Ten has completed a new seven-year media rights agreement with Fox, CBS and NBC that is set to bring in more than $7 billion to one of the nation's most powerful athletic conferences.

www.espn.com

On May 1, the conference announced a $1.37 billion distribution to its 18 member schools for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2025 ($72 million per school, though Washington and Oregon will earn reduced shares as the conference's newest additions). It's the largest distribution in league history and a $490 million increase from last fiscal year

https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/college/2026/05/01/big-ten-distributes-record-1-37-billion-dollars-to-member-schools-new-tv-deal-cfp/89902033007

Former ESPN president John Skipper has many podcast episodes w/ Pablo Torre talking about why TV ratings literally never come in negotiations between networks and sports leagues

 

[King of Allapattah]

I prefer the BIG for political reasons. As a black man, I got a problem with places like Alabama and Mississippi. And no i am not interested in getting into the weeds on it.

I'm not a black man but I'm 100% right behind you. **** them confederate flag waving SOBs.

 

[King of Allapattah]

The highest proportion of Black residents relative to their overall state populations are in the South

Go Canes!

That's funny because when I turn on the tube to watch SEC football I don't see many black people.

 

[westcoastcanes]

I don't really care about fan culture, and if you have to get on a plane you have to get on a plane, travel time doesn't matter too much to me.

Better academic schools
Better cities to visit
Better money
Plenty of historical matchups
We are already pulling recruits in volume from SEC territory.

B1G would be my preference. But it isn't like i would be upset if it was the SEC.

 

[tr1ck]

 

[RVACane]

Who says you can’t be in the SEC and still hate every ****** team in that mfer?

How I feel about the ACC right now and **** sure ain’t likely to enjoy the sorry B1G and their plodding cold weather slogs.

Gimme the SEC and an annual matchup with UF with a bonus of FSU stuck in the Big12. We still heavily recruit the SE. I’d rather end up in a pod with UF UGA and Clemson than whatever crap we would have in the B1G but we will go where we can and where the money is at I will be happy to be out of the ACC regardless.

Proposed SEC pods at 20 teams

Plains - Oklahoma, Texas, A&M, Arkansas, Missouri
Bayou - LSU, Ole Miss, Miss St, Alabama, Auburn
Smoky - Vanderbilt, Tennessee, Kentucky, UNC, Louisville
Marsh - Miami, UF, UGA, South Carolina, Clemson

This would be awesome. Our division would be the toughest but whatever only concern is the weaker smoky division

No FSU???

 

[coffeecane]

Everyone keeps debating where Miami should end up when the inevitable happens and it’s time to go to a Power 2 conference. Please vote below, and explain why (especially if you prefer the B1G)…

For the purposes of this, I added FSU, Clemson and NC to the SEC, and Notre Dame to the B1G.

I vote for the SEC, and here is why:

1. Roster Footprint

• SEC Territory (~79% of current roster): Nearly 80% of the entire locker room comes from SEC country (Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana, Texas, Missouri, and North Carolina). That means families can actually drive or catch quick 1-2 hour flights to almost every single road game.
• B1G Territory (~17% of current roster): We pull some talent out of California, Illinois, Ohio, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Nebraska, but that's still under a fifth of the team. Sending South Florida kids to Eugene, East Lansing, or Iowa City is a much tougher sell for local families, especially in November!
• Other (~4%): Nevada, Virginia, Idaho, and international roots.

2. Travel Math

If Miami visits every road venue in each league:

• SEC: ~26,900 total round-trip miles (~1,790 miles per trip)
• Big Ten: ~48,820 total round-trip miles (~2,870 miles per trip)

Joining the Big Ten adds nearly 22,000 extra flight miles (+81%). In fact, just four West Coast trips (USC, UCLA, Oregon, Washington) equal almost half of an entire SEC schedule.

3. Culture & Non-Revenue Sports

B1G travel would butcher baseball, soccer, and volleyball schedules with 5-hour midweek flights. Plus, regional SEC matchups (Florida, FSU, Clemson, UNC, LSU, Georgia) match our fan culture far better than cold November trips to Minneapolis or Madison.

Member Teams:

SEC (19): Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Clemson, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, Kentucky, LSU, Mississippi State, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M, Vanderbilt.

Big Ten (19): Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Nebraska, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oregon, Penn State, Purdue, Rutgers, UCLA, USC, Washington, Wisconsin.

I know about the AAU status, media rights, etc - but looking at it from a pure football standpoint, the SEC makes sense. We’ve played and won National Championships and huge games against Oklahoma, Texas, Alabama, FSU, Clemson, Florida, LSU, Ole Miss, Georgia, Texas A&M… I couldn’t say that for 80% of the B1G, except Ohio State, Notre Dame, and maybe a Michigan/UCLA.

Do you really want to go to a game in Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, Nebraska, Maryland or Ohio in November? Seriously?

100% agree with OP on all points. The officiating is much better in SEC as well. I think the money will even out over the long haul. Every time a new deal gets done one conference may surpass the other but should go back and forth.

 

[Chuck Norris]

SEC is a better geographical fit.

Big Ten is a better cultural fit.

I don’t want Miami consistently playing in cold weather, which would happen a lot in the Big Ten. So I’d choose the SEC if I could.

 

[ThomasM]

My biggest concern with the SEC is the officiating we would get in conference play. We've seen it in the ACC for two decades, and I am sick of it. The SEC would do us dirty every chance they got.

 

[58straight]

For the people concerned about academics in the SEC. I believe Vanderbilt, Florida and Texas are the highest ranked schools in that conference has anything been shown that these schools have suffered from their membership in the SEC? Purely football wise I would prefer the SEC for less travel and the recruiting footprint. I can imagine a brutal travel schedule in the big 10 with back to back road trips to Washington and Rutgers. The weather wouldn't concern me living in the Midwest we are trending warmer in November and not much different than playing at VT BC or pitt.

 

[westcoastcanes]

Seems hard to believe the big 12 would go for those schools, and not just put the nail in the ACC coffin by grabbing the remaining best after sec and big10 take theirs. why add boise state or san diege state over pitt, nc state, smu, cal, stanford etc?