love this... I think the ESPN+ deal is very interesting and a bigger deal than people realize. It is fascinating to see how the media rights landscape impacts the conference re-alignment decisions.
For me personally, having the ability to watch B12 content on ESPN+ is a huge deal. Would never buy every team's individual content on their networks, but would consider watching games on ESPN+. Great to follow olympic sports too.
I hope future conference realignment emphasizes the true value a team brings. For example, natural / geographical rivalries trump size of tv market. I would argue an ISU vs. neb game has a lot more value than say neb vs. rutgers. But based on how conferences are paid, having a larger TV market (regardless of how many in that market are watching) is more important. Digital consumption, cord cutting are forcing changes... cable is not going away, but key is how it is consumed, priced, and delivered will continue to evolve.