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MEGA Conference Realignment and lawsuits Megathread: Stories, Tales, Lies, and Exaggerations

caneingville said:
Are they still making more than us and the other ACC schools?
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Uhhhh...kinda yes? Definitely more than most ACC schools. Although with the "post-F$U-lawsuit" rules and our run to the CFP championship game last year, we may have out-earned everyone in 2025-2026. I guess we'll know for sure when the financial statements are released.
 
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Angry Ibis said:
TheEye said:
While I'd prefer the SEC, I do think hosting teams like:
OSU, Mich, USC, Penn st, and Neb will fill seats.
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My preference would be the B1G for the school overall - academic research + athletics and national footprint. The visiting teams have some good potential to fill seats as well, and some fun locations for those that travel or like a good away game now and then. (*Much of the same can be said about new teams from either conference, so not really a hill to die on team by team)
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I think academics will be the main motivator. I was just thinking SEC has more marquis teams to fill the house plus regional support.
 
Calinative said:
Northwestern, Minnesota, Purdue at minimum should be joining them in that...

They can frame it as their distribution is getting frozen at current levels (still above ACC/B12 programs they aren't even deserving of receiving more than btw)... While on next renegotiation others will get a bump.
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Purdue redeems itself with its MBB program, and that is a big deal.
 
I've been intrigued by this Rutgers thing, so I googled to learn more about their budget crisis and why they are losing money. What dumb decision makers up there. They spent a ton of money to upgrade their facilities once they joined the Big 10, and started spending like they were Michigan State or Wisconsin or Iowa, but forgot that they were...Rutgers.

Rutgers is spending an average of $123M each year (and will spend over $200M this year), but only bringing in an average of $106M each year.

This article gives a really detailed breakdown of their finances. What a cluster****.

 
TheOriginalCane said:
I'm actually partially joking, they have just recently started to receive revenue CLOSE TO, but not equal to, the other Big 10 schools. But, yes, they were "extended" at half share when they were supposed to jump to full share.

And in that time, Rutgers has amassed an F$U-like deficit. So...there's that...

View attachment 360035

Here's an excerpt from an article 6 weeks ago talking about Maryland's situation. STILL not receiving a full share.


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This is a bit misleading (perhaps that is what you meant by 'partially joking') as yes Maryland and Rutgers still haven't received the same payouts as the Big10 schools that were there when they joined, but that is b/c they are still paying back loans/advances they took from the Big10. So they are getting the same revenue, but their net payout is less b/c of repaying the Big10. The snippet about Maryland even says this specifically.

It doesn't change their ****** financials, but I think many might read your post and assume that the Big10 is not sharing revenue with them at the same amount as other schools in the league (at least that was my first take upon reading).
 
Shogungts said:
This is a bit misleading (perhaps that is what you meant by 'partially joking') as yes Maryland and Rutgers still haven't received the same payouts as the Big10 schools that were there when they joined, but that is b/c they are still paying back loans/advances they took from the Big10. So they are getting the same revenue, but their net payout is less b/c of repaying the Big10. The snippet about Maryland even says this specifically.

It doesn't change their ****** financials, but I think many might read your post and assume that the Big10 is not sharing revenue with them at the same amount as other schools in the league (at least that was my first take upon reading).
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Thank god you aren't in finance or accounting.

Noooo...loan proceeds don't count as revenue. But thanks for trying. And "advances on pay" don't count, because that just means you get less money later.

Again, BOTH Rutgers and Maryland were told they would NOT be getting full shares right when they expected to get full shares.

Please leave the discussion of business to the Business School grads.

I'll say this as simply as I possibly can. NO, the Big 10 is NOT sharing revenue with Rutgers/Maryland at the same amount as other schools in the league. That is an unassailable fact. They are about to do so soon, but have not done so for over a decade.


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TheOriginalCane said:
While there's a part of me that can acknowledge and appreciate the logic, I also know that unequal revenue distribution is what killed the Big East.
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But did the Big East collapse because the lowere tier distribution programs weren’t receiving enough or because the top tier wasn’t….

The clear thing is what alternative does Northestern and Purdue have? They have none. What they are already receiving is far more than the value they bring.
 
Calinative said:
But did the Big East collapse because the lowere tier distribution programs weren’t receiving enough or because the top tier wasn’t….

The clear thing is what alternative does Northestern and Purdue have? They have none. What they are already receiving is far more than the value they bring.
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Wellllll...

The school that was complaining the most about unequal revenue distribution in the Big East was...Miami...because in the "lean years" we made so little money that we incurred massive operating deficits.

I realize that the "Michigan is better than Northwestern" crowd has probably never worked for an entity in the sports industry. But I have. And I can tell you one simple thing, you need REVENUE CERTAINTY. Sure, it's awesome when you can EXCEED expectations (such as what Miami accomplished with the CFP championship game run), but you need absolute revenue certainty in a number of areas, including all your "contractual" arrangements (sponsorships, etc.).

It wasn't about the "top tier", because the top tier of the Big East was based solely upon year-to-year success. Thus, while Miami was arguably one of the "top tier" teams of the Big East, our payouts were feast-and-famine. Thus, a "lesser" program like Boston College (or God forbid, St. Johns) might have made more money than Miami in any given year simply by succeeding at football or basketball while Miami was on probation.

So you can crap on the "lower tier" schools all you'd like, but the reality is not whether you are "lower tier", but whether the lowest payouts are enough to pay the bills and keep the lights on.

Thus, when Miami wanted to explore ways to improve payouts in the Big East, many other schools (especially the basketball-only schools) mischaracterized our efforts out of jealousy, knowing full well there was no way to have EQUAL distributions in a league in which some schools WERE basketball-only schools.

There's no way in **** the Big 10 will ever boot Northwestern or Purdue. Now, Rutgers and Maryland are different, but I doubt that will happen either. And the "value" of Northwestern and Purdue is about much more than their football records.
 
Calinative said:
But did the Big East collapse because the lowere tier distribution programs weren’t receiving enough or because the top tier wasn’t….

The clear thing is what alternative does Northestern and Purdue have? They have none. What they are already receiving is far more than the value they bring.
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I skimmed ten pages in about five minutes, so I may have misread your post. Are you saying you see Purdue and Northwestern out of BIG? Or reduced share? I don't see either being kicked out. Especially with Northwestern. Chicago market is probably in top 2 or 3 in alumni for every BIG school (excluding west coast). BIG HQ is about ten miles from the NW campus.
 
AuoraCane said:
I skimmed ten pages in about five minutes, so I may have misread your post. Are you saying you see Purdue and Northwestern out of BIG? Or reduced share? I don't see either being kicked out. Especially with Northwestern. Chicago market is probably in top 2 or 3 in alumni for every BIG school (excluding west coast). BIG HQ is about ten miles from the NW campus.
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No I’m saying there is ZERO universe that when the renegotiation and further expansion comes that a team like Purdue, Borthwestern, Maryland, Rutgers, etc deserve what Miami, FSU, GTech… **** I’d even say I’d rather have Stanford or cal to lesser extent (if they agree to actually significantly invest in football ) than those teams…

If we started from scratch in 2030 rebuilding these conferences from the ground up, would Northeestern and these other programs I named be included in the B1G and a member of the P2? I have significant doubts. But one thing is a fact - if they were included there is zero shot they would receive distributions to the same level as Ohio st, nd, Michigan, etc. again Northeestern is currently making more than all ACC and B12 programs. There is zero reason they can’t just be frozen at this payout and not increase. Because they don’t bring any value worthy of an increased payout from here.

And northwestern provides the Chicago market that Illinois doesn’t?… I have my doubts lol.
 
Calinative said:
No I’m saying there is ZERO universe that when the renegotiation and further expansion comes that a team like Purdue, Borthwestern, Maryland, Rutgers, etc deserve what Miami, FSU, GTech… **** I’d even say I’d rather have Stanford or cal to lesser extent (if they agree to actually significantly invest in football ) than those teams…

If we started from scratch in 2030 rebuilding these conferences from the ground up, would Northeestern and these other programs I named be included in the B1G and a member of the P2? I have significant doubts. But one thing is a fact - if they were included there is zero shot they would receive distributions to the same level as Ohio st, nd, Michigan, etc. again Northeestern is currently making more than all ACC and B12 programs. There is zero reason they can’t just be frozen at this payout and not increase. Because they don’t bring any value worthy of an increased payout from here.

And northwestern provides the Chicago market that Illinois doesn’t?… I have my doubts lol.
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Chicago is big enough for both (and add ND as well if you like). Plenty of money and power here that would make sure Northwestern isn't jettisoned. Literally spending just under $1 billion to renovate their stadium.

You can literally stay in Chicago and jump on Metra or the EL to go to the game. Can't do that with Champaign. Does Northwestern generate a ton of football TV revenue? Probably not. But will the other schools be willing to subsidize for academics, and the ability to raise funds and engage with their alumni in Chicago. Absolutely.

Just my opinion of course.
 
CaneinBroward said:
Never say never. Ask Washington State and Oregon State 5 years ago if they thought their fellow PAC 12 members would leave them for greener pastures. Ok, it was only a conference for 110 years, maybe the extra 15 years of existence will ensure the B1G loyalty. :cool:

Money can tear any relationship apart. With the number of B1G teams still running in a deficit and USC & Michigan already telling the rest of the conference to slow their roll with the private equity deal, I wouldn't be surprised to see more turmoil in their future.
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In fairness, the biggest difference in the deflections from the PAC-12 is those institutions had no choice. The PAC-12’s Brass didn’t see the telltale signs approx. 4 yrs prior to the negotiations. They were very passive, leaning on their 100 yr history. USC & UCLA held out as long as they could, but when the hubris of poor leadership was exposed, they had to bounce. The B1G made an offer they couldn’t refuse.

Without the LA market the PAC-12 was dead, now relegated to a quasi-G6; however, u did bring up a great point that cannot be overstated or emphasized enough: Money. Most ADs r indeed operating in the red & not the black. Part of the expansion talk that several rarely considers r there r more mouths to feed, which means more split revenue. The ONLY reason Oregon & Washington were accepted into The B1G was b/c they agreed to take a reduced share compared to the established members at time of TV rights negotiations.

It’s going to be interesting to see when these TV deals come up how the dominoes may fall.
 
TheOriginalCane said:
Thus, when Miami wanted to explore ways to improve payouts in the Big East, many other schools (especially the basketball-only schools) mischaracterized our efforts out of jealousy, knowing full well there was no way to have EQUAL distributions in a league in which some schools WERE basketball-only schools.
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Would love to hear more about this….
 
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caneingville said:
Would love to hear more about this….
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I'll give you just one tidbit for now. UConn's state AG decided to sue (or threaten to sue) Miami and Donna Shalala (a Democrat, if you recall) for tortiously harming UConn, who had just started to build a football stadium in order to be "more than" a basketball school.

That AG? Oh, right, Democrat US Senator Richard **** Blumenthal.

Now, I'm pretty moderate politically, but even I can find the blood-feud to be amusing...

Yeah, nearly every school in the Big East ignored Tad and Donna when they tried to bring up relevant "conference revenue" issues...and then blamed them for "undermining" the Big East...and then suddenly many of those same universities were our best buddies when they were desperate to get into the ACC after us...
 
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