The SEC decided to expand eastward. Most of the speculation has been about a move into Texas, but I don't think the UT would care to associate with the SEC schools who are more about athletics than academics. Without UT there is no point in going to Texas. Suppose the SEC decided to move eastward rather than westward.

There are 2 possible scenarios I could see happening.

1. The SEC decides to squeeze out the ACC in their territory by adding GA Tech and FSU, essentially cutting off Miami from the rest of the conference. They could also target Clemson who has the best football tradition in the ACC excluding the recent additions (including FSU who joined in the early 90's). This would consolidate them in the SE competing only with CUSA in that area.

2. The second strategy would be to add new markets. This would mean an expansion into NC and VA. I doubt the blue bloods in Chapel Hill would consider it, but NC State would. Adding VT and NC State would add 2 additional states and new markets to the SEC. If they were to emulate the B10 network, those would be valuable items to have.

How would the FB schools react? If we had an ounce of leadership, and we don't, we would immediately try to lure Maryland and Virginia. They would fit perfectly into the footprint and would effectively emasculate the ACC. BC and Miami? F them, they wanted to be in the ACC so bad, leave them there. A 10 team all sports conference with Maryland and Virginia would be the bomb. The alternative would be to sit still while the ACC tried to raid us again.

Shannon Panther Wrote:The SEC decided to expand eastward. Most of the speculation has been about a move into Texas, but I don't think the UT would care to associate with the SEC schools who are more about athletics than academics. Without UT there is no point in going to Texas. Suppose the SEC decided to move eastward rather than westward.

The school that the SEC wanted was not Texas, but Texas A&M. LSU wanted them in the worst way, but A&M's hand was forced along with UT's by the way the state gov't was going to withhold some educational funds from those schools if they didn't stick together.

A&M was also better on the field at the time of that expansion than UT was.

Shannon Panther Wrote:The SEC decided to expand eastward...

There are 2 possible scenarios I could see happening.

2. The second strategy would be to add new markets. This would mean an expansion into NC and VA. I doubt the blue bloods in Chapel Hill would consider it, but NC State would. Adding VT and NC State would add 2 additional states and new markets to the SEC.

I think that the ACC and SEC split off from each other several decades ago? And I think that VT was in that group that left. Why would N.C. State and VT want to go back to the SEC?

Shannon Panther Wrote:The SEC decided to expand eastward. Most of the speculation has been about a move into Texas, but I don't think the UT would care to associate with the SEC schools who are more about athletics than academics. Without UT there is no point in going to Texas. Suppose the SEC decided to move eastward rather than westward.

Agreed on Texas not wanting in on the SEC due to their immense focus on academics. That just might be one of the reasons why the SEC formed their own academic consortium recently.

And while at one time A&M considered the SEC, I'd probably now extend that same attitude (about emphasizing both academics and athletics) to them. Some may not be aware how quickly A&M is rising in stature in terms of being an academic powerhouse on a par with Texas.

Quote:There are 2 possible scenarios I could see happening.

1. The SEC decides to squeeze out the ACC in their territory by adding GA Tech and FSU, essentially cutting off Miami from the rest of the conference. They could also target Clemson who has the best football tradition in the ACC excluding the recent additions (including FSU who joined in the early 90's). This would consolidate them in the SE competing only with CUSA in that area.

As I see it, the only reason for the SEC to consider going beyond 12 is to bring in new markets for a conference network. The SEC already owns both Georgia and Florida. South Carolina is still basically ACC country, but I just don't see that market being significant enough to the SEC to go beyond 12 with Clemson.

Quote:2. The second strategy would be to add new markets. This would mean an expansion into NC and VA. I doubt the blue bloods in Chapel Hill would consider it, but NC State would. Adding VT and NC State would add 2 additional states and new markets to the SEC. If they were to emulate the B10 network, those would be valuable items to have.

Agreed that these would be new markets, but would they be enough to secure the entire states of North Carolina and Virginia for the SEC and their conference network? I have my doubts about that. The best they could probably hope for is Raleigh, Roanoke-Lynchburg, and a longshot possibility of DC.

Cheers,
Neil

If the SEC went east, VT would have to be #1 on thier list. NCST, Mia & WV would proablly get looked at. I can't see them having any intrest in GaT, Maybe FSU & Clemson.
A move to 14, you need TV clout to pay off. TexA&M & VT would be perfect for SEC, with Tex not being intrested.

Not going to happen. We don't need their markets.

What if The BEast expanded eastward?

Major universities in Europe soon begin competing as NCAA Divison 1A programs. The influx of talent from Europe has all other conferences trying to establish their own ties. But The BEast has signed an exclusive deal with all nations in Europe of consequence.

Let's let Lichtenstein - and a few other insignificant nations - talk to representatives of the other conferences. Nothing will come of those talks.

Gator Wrote:Not going to happen. We don't need their markets.

Need is probably too strong a word anyway, but which markets are the SEC not going to "need"?

Cheers,
Neil

Shannon, I don't think that NC State would ever leave the ACC. The ACC schools that might jump would be FlaSt, Clemson, GaTech, Miami, & VaTech. I don't think the SEC would want Duke, Wake, or Maryland. It would be very interesting to see what the ACC would do if a couple of their schools bolted to the SEC. Would the ACC raid the Big East again or would the ACC go after an SEC school like Kentucky? Would the ACC just look to replace 2 schools or would it look to match the SEC at 14? Would the ACC look at schools like Central Florida? I know ECU wouldn't be in the ACC plans, but I could see the SEC looking at ECU. ECU is the 3rd largest university in North Carolina, poised to be #2 within 10 years. I could see the SEC consider ECU & VaTech to get into the North Carolina & Virginia markets.

bitcruncher Wrote:What if The BEast expanded eastward?

Major universities in Europe soon begin competing as NCAA Divison 1A programs. The influx of talent from Europe has all other conferences trying to establish their own ties. But The BEast has signed an exclusive deal with all nations in Europe of consequence.

Let's let Lichtenstein - and a few other insignificant nations - talk to representatives of the other conferences. Nothing will come of those talks.

Actually, it wouldn't surprise me under the current leadership if the Big East didn't look northward to the University of Toronto.

Cheers,
Neil

Why stop there? Quebec is just a bit further on up...

I for one don't think the big 12 is going anywhere...so all the talk about texas or texas A&M leaving isn't even on the agenda in my view, ie so i don't see the sec picking off a big 12 team...As for the sec going east or to 14, they could do it today. The sec could add a texas team, houston or TCU in the west, than an eastern team, W.Virg or L'ville in the east...yet those school's expect for W.Virg seem an odd fit for the sec, notwithstanding the sec wouldn't make any money off the move. What would seem to fit the sec profile, if they were gonna add two school's that would jump, would be W.VIRG and E.Car, put them in the sec east and switch vandy to the west. However, unlike the acc adding say uconn and rutgers...wv and ecu don't bring the $'s to the table, so bottom line don't see the sec expanding.

Why are we talking about expanding conferences beyond 12? That is TOO BIG. Never will work for big time football.

If the SEC wanted 2 teams I think...
if they looked in the BEast they'd take WVU and USF.
if they looked in the ACC they'd take FSU, Va. Tech, Ga. Tech, or Clemson
if they wanted to take a team to add to the SEC east it would be Va. Tech, if they wanted a team for the SEC west it would be Texas A&M.
if they had to take non-bcs teams I think they'd take Memphis and ECU.

i can't see the sec expanding unless they kicked out a vanderbilt or some other bottom feeder to add a a&m or wvu. but i honestly never see that happening. the other probability would be the b12 splitting and arkansas goes to a new conference out west and the sec replacing arkanasas. can't see the sec to expand just to expand.

mattsarz Wrote:

Shannon Panther Wrote:The SEC decided to expand eastward. Most of the speculation has been about a move into Texas, but I don't think the UT would care to associate with the SEC schools who are more about athletics than academics. Without UT there is no point in going to Texas. Suppose the SEC decided to move eastward rather than westward.

The school that the SEC wanted was not Texas, but Texas A&M. LSU wanted them in the worst way, but A&M's hand was forced along with UT's by the way the state gov't was going to withhold some educational funds from those schools if they didn't stick together.

A&M was also better on the field at the time of that expansion than UT was.

Actually that's not true. The SEC wanted Texas. Texas A&M wanted to go to the SEC but the SEC didn't want them without Texas. That's why Texas A&M pressured the state to make Texas take them where ever they went in a package deal.

esayem Wrote:Why are we talking about expanding conferences beyond 12? That is TOO BIG. Never will work for big time football.

You can keep saying that until you're blue in the face (pun intended) but for some reason people will never get it. There is no reason for a conference to expand beyond 12. Adding two more schools will not help with a network. The SEC would still have a kick ass network without expanding to 14.

CatsClaw Wrote:

esayem Wrote:Why are we talking about expanding conferences beyond 12? That is TOO BIG. Never will work for big time football.

You can keep saying that until you're blue in the face (pun intended) but for some reason people will never get it. There is no reason for a conference to expand beyond 12. Adding two more schools will not help with a network. The SEC would still have a kick ass network without expanding to 14.

The SEC's current 9 state footprint contains approximately 18.5 million cable/dish subscribers. The Big Ten's current 8 state footprint contains approximately 22 million cable/dish subscribers. If they expand to 12 with Missouri, as you seem to think they might do, they add another 2.5 million cable/dish subscribers.

That results in another 6 million more cable/dish subscribers in their territory than the SEC has. The original asking price was $1.10 per month per subscriber. It is now down to something like $.70 per month per subscriber or approximately $8.40 per year per subscriber.

This would mean (assuming full coverage eventually down the road) that an SEC Network would garner $155 million in its territory whereas a BTN with Missouri would generate $206 million in its territory.

Even when one cuts those figures in half, the BTN is still out generating an SEC Network by over $25 million. Conferences will look for ways to cut the gaps. And one way to do that is to consider expanding beyond 12.

Not saying they will expand beyond 12, but it's a new paradigm and if successful, it will force conferences to think out of the box and consider choices some fans find ridiculous under the current paradigm.

Cheers,
Neil

Brick City Pirate Wrote:I know ECU wouldn't be in the ACC plans, but I could see the SEC looking at ECU. ECU is the 3rd largest university in North Carolina, poised to be #2 within 10 years. I could see the SEC consider ECU & VaTech to get into the North Carolina & Virginia markets.

On a serious note, though, I would like to think that if the SEC raided even 1 ACC school, that it might be enough to force a big shakeup with the BE football and some ACC schools getting together.

UConn
'Cuse
Louisville
Cincy
Rutgers
Pitt
WVU
Maryland
BC
USF
Miami
V-Tech or UVA

I like it.