Realignment Megathread (All The Moves)
- Thread starter ISUcyclones11
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I agree that the PAC 12 screwed themselves, but I think the amount (and the conference commissioner's stances) came from delusional presidents at the member universities. The best negotiator in the world isn't going to take you from $30 million to $50 million.
GK set unrealistic figures that contributed to the delusional thinking by PAC 12 Presidents. GK had the deal the Big 12 took. He had first chance and turned it down. Larry Scott’s greed screwed the PAC 12 Network. Should have done what Big 10 did and gotten a carrier as a partner. But Larry Scott wanted all the profit. And without a carrier he failed and they got all the loss. Greed and arrogance. Sad.
I'm not convinced that GK was anything more than a negotiating mouthpiece of the member presidents. I doubt he just said "Nope, we want $50 million" without consulting them and getting that answer. Definitely a contributor, as his job was also to make sure that the numbers he was working with were realistic (but still, at the end of the day, he goes to the table with what they tell him they will accept).
They both reinforced their delusional thinking. IIRC GK threw out the $50 million figure first. Presidents liked the sound and embraced it. They evidently forgot that Big 12 could negotiate for those spots. The PAC 12 literally removed themselves from the negotiating process with unrealistic demands.
And GK continues to draw his salary.
Scott was the demise of the conference. Lavish spending, poor Pac network, really bad management, internal strife among employees, very poor business strategies. GK merely continued the absolutely horrible mess.
True but it is his job to tell the presidents that 50 mil is unrealistic an could end the negotiations with ESPN. Which it did.
George K was hired to negotiate and sell the conference rights part of that is making your stakeholders know their worth and coming with a good faith offer to ESPN especially when FOX wasn't engaging and the PAC10 needing ESPN.
I also suspect the conference thought they had a year+ to negotiate the deal and find their target middle ground (35-40mil)? Big 12 opening their media rights early and taking the roughly the original ESPN deal destroyed their negotiation plan and they didn't adjust.
That last part is key. The negotiating landscape changed radically once the Big 12 jumped ahead of the line. Just a masterstroke on the part of the Big 12.
In fairness, it might have been too late by the time he got there. He had a room full of presidents that didn't trust each other with wildly different long term goals. GK is going to take the heat in this but Scott dug the grave.
Scott dug the grave. And GK led the PAC 12 to that grave. Now dead and buried. RIP
Man! I hope USC is the West Coast version of Texas and starts agitating in the B1G for unequal revenue. Then you have ticking bombs in the both the B1G and the $EC to spread discontent and maybe weaken them. Fingers crossed.
The article makes it sound like Scott not agreeing to unequal revenue sharing as a weakness. I think it might have been one of the few correct stances he had.
Amazing to think how many times Iowa State’s life in a power conference was just about snuffed out. Scary stuff.
Yeah, and a good summary.
I don't feel great about the PAC's demise, but if it came down to us or them, I'm glad it was not us.
Lord Knows we were 'this close' at least two times in the last 13 years.
Perhaps he had a couple of pre-press conference Hi-Balls in the Hi-Ball rent district?
The Pac 12 story is just like the Bajet ad where the guy flying to an important meeting used Bajet, and won the contract over the guy using another company being late and left on the tarmac.
Yormark is aggressive and alert, while the Pac 12 Commissioner sat back for another martini and arrived late to the game.
OU and T taught the Big12 and Yormark that playing nice is a losers game. OuT worked in closets and under tables to arrange their move to the SEC before anyone else suspected. Now it was the Big12's turn to work things out quickly once the B1G began to tear the Pac apart.
Now perhaps it is the ACC's turn if Florida State puts cracks in their conference trying to escape to the SEC. While Florida State would be a nice add to the Big 12, the northeastern basketball schools would be just fine. They would add basketball revenue to the conference, even though their football teams would not.
Yormark is aggressive and alert, while the Pac 12 Commissioner sat back for another martini and arrived late to the game.
OU and T taught the Big12 and Yormark that playing nice is a losers game. OuT worked in closets and under tables to arrange their move to the SEC before anyone else suspected. Now it was the Big12's turn to work things out quickly once the B1G began to tear the Pac apart.
Now perhaps it is the ACC's turn if Florida State puts cracks in their conference trying to escape to the SEC. While Florida State would be a nice add to the Big 12, the northeastern basketball schools would be just fine. They would add basketball revenue to the conference, even though their football teams would not.
Lets hear it for the Canadian Boarder League and its super expensive travel costs and travel time.
At least the Big 12 held it to three time zones, with all but three schools in the Midwest and Mountain time zones.
At least the Big 12 held it to three time zones, with all but three schools in the Midwest and Mountain time zones.