forums

MEGA Conference Realignment and lawsuits Megathread(Its still personal)

Ispyin said:
I agree with a bit here on Miami but there is no way that is the list. For starters Stanford burned their bridge to the big ten to the ground and extremely unlikely that changes.

Also who wants to let you know about Miami and Notre Dame as rivals as a very obvious retort to no rivals. And once upon a time Miami - Nebraska and a few others happened regularly

Think you need to hold some beers tbh
Click to expand...
And by that time Miami /OSU may have become very bitter with the way we are battling for recruits on the regular now not to mention us getting screwed in the National CG..
 
Advertisement
Between now and ‘26 Miami needs to win big to make it pretty much impossible for the P2 leagues to leave them out…If we get to the CFB playoffs the next 3 years with possibly vying for the NC in 26 there’s no way we get left out no matter how many or how few teams are moving.

A competitive Miami team that has the “U” competitive like the old days with the TV eyeballs of S.Fla which they will bring with them is going to get left out of any expansion..
 
Rickd said:
I don't believe anybody outside of the FSU president and AD really know THEIR situation and same with UNC / UVA Clemson. Everybody is looking for clues period and the actual insiders are few and have it buttoned up.
Click to expand...

Well, I’m very happy to see that you’ve come to your senses.
 
Rickd said:
Every "scenario" I see shows the big ACC brands being added ... and maybe Utah.

Disagree with this 100%. If you have read the GOR it is TIED TO THE ESPN media contract ... that was the purpose of the GOR. ESPN's current media commitment expires on 6/27, so it is actually in effect for only seasons 24,25,26 UNLESS THEY EXTEND the current contract at the current media payout of roughly $40M per school. If ESPN does not exercise the extension option by 2/25 then the media agreement ends ... and new one would have to be negotiated with either ESPN or other media carrier ... and a new GOR signed by parties in favor.

A prime purpose of the FSU LEGAL ACTION is attacking the validity of the 2025 option to extend as they found out in initial discovery at ACC headquarters, the original option expired in 2021 ... and Phillips UNILATERALLY GRANTED ESPN an extension on their option period to 2/25 without consulting with or getting approval from ACC members. Since ESPN wasn't going to extend their agreement in 2021 ... could we have then negotiated a new better deal? Worst case ... they DID NOT EXERCISE THEIR OPTION TO EXTEND ... the extension on the time period granted by Phillips is not valid / legal as it was done without the required 2/3 approval ... and therefore the media deal and GOR both expire on 6/27. Anybody not wanting to sign a NEW contract with different terms would have NO GOR buyback, pay only the $120M ACC exit fee, and commence playing in another conference for the 2027 season. Leave before, and then you need to buy back media rights for season 2025 and 2026.

Bob Thompson, former CEO of FOX Sports and co founder of the B10 network, commented on the day the FSU filings were posted "wow, it took the FSU legal team to find a hole big enough in the GOR to drive a truck through". (he has since apparently deleted that Tweet). That is the current thinking summarized by the majority of the Nole fans who are practicing attorneys ... pay the ACC exit fee ... buy back rights for the period necessary up until the current ESPN media contract expires 6/27. Done, adios.
Click to expand...
"A prime purpose of the FSU LEGAL ACTION is attacking the validity of the 2025 option to extend as they found out in initial discovery at ACC headquarters, the original option expired in 2021 ... and Phillips UNILATERALLY GRANTED ESPN an extension on their option period to 2/25 without consulting with or getting approval from ACC members."

This is why the ACC seeks to keep the GOR documents hidden from public view.
 
Badbart43 said:
"A prime purpose of the FSU LEGAL ACTION is attacking the validity of the 2025 option to extend as they found out in initial discovery at ACC headquarters, the original option expired in 2021 ... and Phillips UNILATERALLY GRANTED ESPN an extension on their option period to 2/25 without consulting with or getting approval from ACC members."

This is why the ACC seeks to keep the GOR documents hidden from public view.
Click to expand...
And if those are the actual facts, I would think ACC could be big time financially liable and Phillips could be fired.
 
Advertisement
Alex Del Piero said:
Well, I’m very happy to see that you’ve come to your senses.
Click to expand...
Oh I have pretty much always had that view ... I just like to discuss what ever the "newest" info is that is thrown out there by the X warriors. There is an attorney from FSU who is a staunch Nole football fan and he picks apart every single comment in every action filed and posts daily on Warchant with HIS opinons. A lot of the Noles don't like his viewpoint as he believes that while they do have a case, it is not as strong as a lot of fans like to believe, and is strongest in the area of the "non approved contract extension granted to ESPN". Some of the Noles close to the program like to believe a deal is already done, but he cautions that even the university president probably doesn't know where they will actually end up. The CFP details need to be finalized, then the media moguls will have the time THEY need to hash out how they want to handle this as it will most likely involve some horse trading with EXPN / FOX etc., especially if the B10 will be where the Noles end up. It is obviously a cleaner deal if they go SEC as ESPN already has their media rights through 6/2027. Going to be an interesting few months.
 
Badbart43 said:
"A prime purpose of the FSU LEGAL ACTION is attacking the validity of the 2025 option to extend as they found out in initial discovery at ACC headquarters, the original option expired in 2021 ... and Phillips UNILATERALLY GRANTED ESPN an extension on their option period to 2/25 without consulting with or getting approval from ACC members."

This is why the ACC seeks to keep the GOR documents hidden from public view.
Click to expand...
Wasn't the GOR document ... that is on the internet. It was the ESPN MEDIA AGREEMENT that nobody had been able to see. They weren't even permitted to make copies or take photos ... could read in the presence of an ACC staffer and then put it back in the file room ... locked. And the ACC is supposed to REPRESENT THE SCHOOLS?
 
CreativeCane said:
And if those are the actual facts, I would think ACC could be big time financially liable and Phillips could be fired.
Click to expand...
Phillips stated that votes are required only for MAJOR MEDIA agreements and he didn't consider extending the option period to be 'material'. How in the name of God could you even consider a 4 year extension period as not being MATERIAL?? It meant that ESPN didn't want to extend the media agreement and the ACC conference ONLY had a media contract UNTIL 6/2027 ... and it was stated in the GOR that the GOR was tied to the ESPN media agreement .... therefore our current GOR obligation is until 6/2027 and that is what FSU is seeking to have confirmed in their suit. It is predicted by many that ESPN will NOT extend as they know FSU and most likely ND / UNC are leaving ... one way or another ... so the media contract value will not be anywhere near the current level of $40M+ per year ... more likely around #30M and could be based on a formula ... streaming value and each program based on the actual viewership generated. Nobody knows.
 
Rickd said:
Phillips stated that votes are required only for MAJOR MEDIA agreements and he didn't consider extending the option period to be 'material'. How in the name of God could you even consider a 4 year extension period as not being MATERIAL?? It meant that ESPN didn't want to extend the media agreement and the ACC conference ONLY had a media contract UNTIL 6/2027 ... and it was stated in the GOR that the GOR was tied to the ESPN media agreement .... therefore our current GOR obligation is until 6/2027 and that is what FSU is seeking to have confirmed in their suit. It is predicted by many that ESPN will NOT extend as they know FSU and most likely ND / UNC are leaving ... one way or another ... so the media contract value will not be anywhere near the current level of $40M+ per year ... more likely around #30M and could be based on a formula ... streaming value and each program based on the actual viewership generated. Nobody knows.
Click to expand...

IT's not that cut and dry. The ACC commish told members that ESPN would only sign the deal if the GOR was extended, but does not automatically mean the GOR is invalidated if ESPN does not extend.

It's like if I said I will only buy your house if you agree with your three neighbors that you will all split the cost of street repairs on a private road equally. Right now the repair % is based on house size. You have the biggest house, so you pay more. As a buyer I don't like that. You convince your neighbors to agree to the deal (let's say because they may want to add on to their house in the future and don't want have to pay a larger % for repairs if they add an extra floor). They sign a contract agreeing to split costs equally. If I don't buy your house, you still have an obligation to split repairs equally because that is between you and your neighbors. If your neighbor triples the size of his house, a road repair comes up and your neighbor wants you to pay 1/4 cost, you are paying the 1/4 cost. It doesn't matter that I didn't buy the house unless you expressly put into the contract that if I don't buy your house, the contract with your neighbors is invalidated. As far as we know, the GOR doesn't say that. Even if ESPN doesn't pick up the tv deal, the ACC brass may try to hold the remaining teams together in the conference and enforce the GOR because it gives the smaller programs more leverage in another tv deal with a different network. BC and Syracuse may get far less money if they are forced to look for a new conference, so it's in their interest to try and lock in UM, VT, GT and other remaining football schools in the ACC with a larger market to get themselves a better tv deal. They aren't going to do UM any favors.
 
Advertisement
Rickd said:
I am assuming it is YOUR OPINION that ND smoke re the B10 is not real, unless you personally have a contact in South Bend.
Click to expand...
Reread my post. I said that is something Miami fans should be hoping for, not that the smoke was real or not.
 
Handsome Squidbum said:
IT's not that cut and dry. The ACC commish told members that ESPN would only sign the deal if the GOR was extended, but does not automatically mean the GOR is invalidated if ESPN does not extend.

It's like if I said I will only buy your house if you agree with your three neighbors that you will all split the cost of street repairs on a private road equally. Right now the repair % is based on house size. You have the biggest house, so you pay more. As a buyer I don't like that. You convince your neighbors to agree to the deal (let's say because they may want to add on to their house in the future and don't want have to pay a larger % for repairs if they add an extra floor). They sign a contract agreeing to split costs equally. If I don't buy your house, you still have an obligation to split repairs equally because that is between you and your neighbors. If your neighbor triples the size of his house, a road repair comes up and your neighbor wants you to pay 1/4 cost, you are paying the 1/4 cost. It doesn't matter that I didn't buy the house unless you expressly put into the contract that if I don't buy your house, the contract with your neighbors is invalidated. As far as we know, the GOR doesn't say that. Even if ESPN doesn't pick up the tv deal, the ACC brass may try to hold the remaining teams together in the conference and enforce the GOR because it gives the smaller programs more leverage in another tv deal with a different network. BC and Syracuse may get far less money if they are forced to look for a new conference, so it's in their interest to try and lock in UM, VT, GT and other remaining football schools in the ACC with a larger market to get themselves a better tv deal. They aren't going to do UM any favors.
Click to expand...
The GOR doesn't say anything .... just that the signee agrees to the extension to 2036. However it DOES state that the GOR is tied to the ESPN media agreement (which was NOT available to be read by ACC GOR signees). It came as a total surprise to everyone that the actual current ESPN commitment is ONLY through 6/2027. That is one of the primary objectives of the legal action ... to get the GOR termination date confirmed and cap any media rights buyback to match THAT period. If the current media deal is not extended, then any new deal ... with ESPN or any other media company ... has to be APPROVED by the ACC members and a new GOR is prepared to match THAT new agreement.
 
Smash Bill Murray GIF by Groundhog Day

Common Sense Monkey GIF by Travis
 
Advertisement
JD08 said:
What's to keep ND from staying independent and splitting their schedule between the B10 and SEC?
Click to expand...
Believe it is going to be in the details of how ever the final CFP format is structured from 2026 on with 12-14 teams. There has been some smoke that the conference championship games might be incorporated as part of the early playoffs ... so you might NEED to be in a conference in order to participate. Then ... if the P2 actually do split away (got to be long fused no?) and have THEIR championship ... you would have to be a member of either conference. Still a lot up in the air about the next CFP format + potentially splitting from the NCAA.
 
Advertisement
JD08 said:
What's to keep ND from staying independent and splitting their schedule between the B10 and SEC?
Click to expand...
I think the only way ND doesn't stay independent would be if either 1. the money gap becomes too much OR 2. they don't have access to the playoff at all. They seem to be tolerant of never getting a first round bye in the current CFP format and happy with their new TV deal along with being in the ACC for all other sports for $$.

If the SEC and Big 10 create their own league and championship, that could push ND into joining. The idea of creating their own league sounds interesting, but what about the other sports (basketball, baseball, olympic, etc)? Does the NCAA say "okay, you guys go ahead and do your thing in football, but we'll open our arms to you to continue to take part in the $$$ from our March Madness and Omaha baseball tournaments"? Not so sure about that, especially when basketball brand schools like Duke, Kansas, Arizona, Louisville, etc. are kept out of the major football playoff $$$.

If the SEC and Big 10 do take the step of forming their own league and championship, does it make it more likely they will negotiate TV deals together like the NFL or split the revenue evenly between the conferences like the NFL did when they merged the NFL and AFL? I mean, you are essentially entering a partnership with a much smaller group of schools. Would one conference be happy in an arrangement where the other's TV contract is leaps and bounds better? A lot of questions if they did go they route.
 
Last edited:
Interesting comment by one of the Nole alum attorneys on their "realignment saga" thread on Warchant. "In depth legal analysis (of this case) is largely a waste of time. The new CFP format and medial deal planned and dictated by the P2 and the media networks is the road home for FSU". He believes the major network media moguls will be laying out their "P2 program matrix" and doing the associated
horse trading regarding media rights etc necessary to make it happen. Some in that framework expect that P2 to evolve over a couple of years to two 24 team conferences (as highlighted above). IF that happens then it is feasible that the GOR buyback issue simply goes away and any team leaving the ACC simply pays the conference exit fee of $120M. Lot of varied opinions on who goes in "wave #1" and "wave #2".
 
Rickd said:
I am assuming it is YOUR OPINION that ND smoke re the B10 is not real, unless you personally have a contact in South Bend.
Click to expand...
Why do you think it is real? b/c Twitter dip**** posted it?

ND is going to make the same amount of money being independent (football + ACC) as the B10 and will likely be at no disadvantage in whatever form the CFP takes. If they don't get an auto bye that means they have an extra home playoff game to make millions more in ticket/stadium/local economic impact.
 
Last edited:
Advertisement
Back
Top