Realignment Megathread (All The Moves)

[exCyDing]

This!!!

The only reason we are ‘raiding’ the pac now is because their deal and GOR are up and we can do so with no exit fees. The pac can’t just grab schools from the MWC as it sees fit. They don’t have cash on hand to do so. Some of their athletic departments are already underwater financially and struggling. If the remaining teams are too proud to dissolve and join the MWC, then they need to be prepared to merge with the entire MWC to avoid exit fees. That or they can exist as a 6-8 team league for a while until they can either afford exit fees or exit fees expire. All of those options described come at even less money than their current media deal offer and way less than what the big 12 is offering. I will be shocked if 3 teams aren’t joining the big 12 ASAP.

MWC schools would need to get somewhere in the range of $14M per year on a 5 year deal to break even with their buyout. More if they need to upgrade facilities, increase salaries, etc etc. They make ~$6.5 currently plus the $35M exit fee (for 2024). That’s doesn’t leave much room for finagling the numbers this way or that when 5 of your current 9 are potentially eyeing 3 spots in another conference. Plus the PAC as a conference is in a hole financially, along with a lot of ADs on their own.

 

[Gunnerclone]

 

[Yaz]

Best tweet in reply was...LOL:

 

[exCyDing]

It's hilarious how the PAC feels it is ultra-aggressive for us to take back the team they poached from us a dozen years ago. Reminds me of how Russia feels it's ultra-aggressive for Ukraine to take back Crimea, the land Russia stole from Ukraine 9 years ago.

That’s a pretty accurate description of the situation. And it still sidesteps the B10 grabbing USCLA, the PAC’s inept management for the past decade at the conference and school level (with a few exceptions), the two times the PAC tried to kill the B12 and turning down a merger proposal in 2021.

 

[CysRage]

Based on CWs comments and the silence from the Pac 12, I really think Oregon, Washington, and Arizona are coming too. There is no deal, how can these schools wait knowing they have a sure thing in the Big 12? PAC’s best case is to backfill with MWC teams with $35 mil buyouts per team to the MWC and none of those teams increase the payouts by potential media partners.

 

[HFCS]

The fact that there hasn't been an "All nine schools have met and are 100% committed to our future together" face saving statement or tweet yet from the PAC is wild.

it's because Arizona is as gone as Colorado...and Ore/Washington are probably on their heels.

 

[JRE1975]

This has never made sense to me as ASU isn’t a good academic school

Spartan, sorry if I missed it, but have you heard anything today from your Big 10 people that they are going to do anything than other than stay at 16?

The reason I ask is because about 6 weeks ago I heard from an old business partner that knows a lot of people at Iowa and Northwestern and he has heard many of the BIG West schools are adamant about not adding anymore to the current contract. Something about with all the exclusive windows taken up by the current contract adding content would relegate more games to the BTN and streaming which of course don't have the same value.

Just wondering what you hear.

 

[RustShack]

The best part is the PAC drug it out so long, they probably can’t add schools like SDSU because their buyout went up so much a few weeks ago that financially it makes more sense not to join the PAC for them.

 

[SolterraCyclone]

What if….there’s never been an offer, and there is still no offer.

I’ve kind of been thinking this too. This whole time I’ve just assumed George and the P12 have been negotiating with entities, but just struggling to get adequate offers.

But what if they’ve been negotiating with entities and not getting offers at all? If they were just getting poor offers, why wouldn’t the P12 just show CU and the schools the numbers last week, when they demanded them? Why not say “here’s what we’ve gotten so far. It’s not good enough so we’re still negotiating”. Instead it seems they still just didn’t show anything at all which was CU’s last straw, understandably so.

If they aren’t showing anything because they literally don’t have anything. They’re in a way, way worse dilemma than I even imagined.

 

[RustShack]

Spartan, sorry if I missed it, but have you heard anything today from your Big 10 people that they are going to do anything than other than stay at 16?

The reason I ask is because about 6 weeks ago I heard from an old business partner that knows a lot of people at Iowa and Northwestern and he has heard many of the BIG West schools are adamant about not adding anymore to the current contract. Something about with all the exclusive windows taken up by the current contract adding content would relegate more games to the BTN and streaming which of course don't have the same value.

Just wondering what you hear.

It’s been known for a long time the B1G doesn’t want to expand and see how it goes with USC and UCLA. Obviously could be mouth piecing though.

 

[wenkeej]

I read that and think something like this...

 

[CysRage]

The best part is the PAC drug it out so long, they probably can’t add schools like SDSU because their buyout went up so much a few weeks ago that financially it makes more sense not to join the PAC for them.

This is why it’s so wild GK just kept teasing the deal along when it was obvious there was no acceptable deal and there wasn’t going to be. Did he think Colorado (among several others) would just forget and stay in the Pac without media revenue? They missed getting their pick of MWC teams at a fraction buyout as a result of their ego.

 

[FerShizzle]

it's because Arizona is as gone as Colorado...and Ore/Washington are probably on their heels.

Oregon and Washington have to be checking their phones constantly hoping the big 10 is calling.

 

[Die4Cy]

Based on CWs comments and the silence from the Pac 12, I really think Oregon, Washington, and Arizona are coming too. There is no deal, how can these schools wait knowing they have a sure thing in the Big 12? PAC’s best case is to backfill with MWC teams with $35 mil buyouts per team to the MWC and none of those teams increase the payouts by potential media partners.

The media deal is dead for now, and when the process resumes the terms will be completely different for media partners. There's no GOR past next year holding any team there. Literally every remaining team is checking in with Yormark tonight to see where they stand.

 

[CysRage]

Oregon and Washington have to be checking their phones constantly hoping the big 10 is calling.

It would have happened already if an invite was coming. The Big Ten is holding out for a potential ACC collapse next. I honestly think Oregon and Washington are Big 12 bound in the next week or two.

 

[FerShizzle]

It would have happened already if an invite was coming. The Big Ten is holding out for a potential ACC collapse next. I honestly think Oregon and Washington are Big 12 bound in the next week or two.

Idk… they could let them sweat then lowball them with 1/3 share offer.

 

[iahawks]

Spartan, sorry if I missed it, but have you heard anything today from your Big 10 people that they are going to do anything than other than stay at 16?

The reason I ask is because about 6 weeks ago I heard from an old business partner that knows a lot of people at Iowa and Northwestern and he has heard many of the BIG West schools are adamant about not adding anymore to the current contract. Something about with all the exclusive windows taken up by the current contract adding content would relegate more games to the BTN and streaming which of course don't have the same value.

Just wondering what you hear.

I feel the Big ten isn’t in a hurry to add anyone else at this time and will wait out the ACC and ND.

 

[wenkeej]

Jason Scheer is going scorched earth today.

 

[exCyDing]

It would have happened already if an invite was coming. The Big Ten is holding out for a potential ACC collapse next. I honestly think Oregon and Washington are Big 12 bound in the next week or two.

Gotta be honest, I’m rooting for this scenario.

 

[CysRage]

Gotta be honest, I’m rooting for this scenario.

I gave it a slim chance before the Colorado news. Now that Colorado is gone, is a 9 team Pac and MAYBE MWC backfills going to keep Oregon and Washington happy even with unequal revenue sharing? If they do stay, it will be a very short (or no) GOR and those teams understanding their revenue is going to be well below the rest of power conferences.