to the Big East has been very interesting. I've posted on both the Big East and C-USA boards on this topic, but mainly about Memphis to the Big East. Because IMO Memphis would be the better of the 2, because of their basketball program and they would also be able bring the Liberty Bowl to the Big East. But I also feel that the basketball and football school should split apart... What other major conference has members that are not full members? I know the Sun Belt does... Does the MAC with Temple? Anyway none of the other BC$ conferences do...

I think ESPN makes the desecion if BE splits. If ESPN likes the idea, ESPN gives them the money. If ESPN does not like the idea, ESPN lowballs them.

I think if the BE splits & goes to 12, the money is there for them to come out better. I like Temple, UCF, Memphis & Hybrid of East Car FB only/ ND Olimpic sports.

templefootballfan Wrote:I think ESPN makes the desecion if BE splits. If ESPN likes the idea, ESPN gives them the money. If ESPN does not like the idea, ESPN lowballs them.

Right now I believe the Big East's TV contract is a 6 year (I think, but it could be 7 years) deal for around $200 million, either $33.3 million or $28.6 million. Of that I have read the football part pays $15 million a year, so either the football make almost or more than half. IMO, they would be able to pull at least 50% of what they are now (personally I feel it would be in the $9 million to $10 million range) if they split and added Memphis...

templefootballfan Wrote:I think if the BE splits & goes to 12, the money is there for them to come out better. I like Temple, UCF, Memphis & Hybrid of East Car FB only/ ND Olimpic sports.

I don't think they will go that route, I could see them adding Memphis and Notre Dame for all sports but football (like they are now). But going to 12, who would you add? Memphis, East Carolina, Central Florida, and then who for the 4th? How excited would South Florida be to add Central Florida, anyway? Would the extra additions make enough not to cut the pie down even smaller... Memphis has a nice TV market and control a good amount of it, were East Carolina in in a much smaller TV market in a State controlled by ACC schools. Central Florida is in a very large market, but controls very little of it IMO, because of Florida St, Florida, and Miami who rule the State...

The 1st thing you have to remember is the BE does not share revunue equally. Now if the B-10 expands & takes NY area team, the BE can't do nothing about that. If the ACC ever decides to expand again [Maybe unlikly, but BE still has to protect itself]. BE has to get revenue for NY area schools up to ACC levels.
4 schools I mentioned made less than 10 million dollars from thier conf payout last yr. If the 4 schools are willing to start out as status que, & Fed Ex wants to be corprate sponser for Memphis & East Car wants to support itself [which I see as plan that would work, & would work for Temple also]. Championship game would pay for UCF, Have game played in Orlando & grarentee sell out & all 4 schools pay for themselves.

BE TV market is at 42.5 million, 4 schools bring up TV market to 52.6. 24% increase from 15 million would be 18.5 million. Also not being factord in is Championship game, EC & Temple side deal & total of games being purchased, up by 12.

IMO, the Big East is extremely fortunate to be where they are. Traingreasy himself said Miami leaving would devestate the conference. I think all 8 schools are tickled and 100% satisfied with their status in the football world and I think adding members that might weaken the conference and jeopordize their BCS status the next time evaluation period or cause dilution of the conference income is not on the docket.

I know the football coaches want a 9th member for scheduling, but there are no Bobby Bowden's or or Bear Bryant's in the Big East that rule their kingdoms. The presidents IMO are the decision makers. In any case if it's just scheduling they can schedule all the home and home's they want with C-USA schools OOC.

I think the next big shake up will be down the road when the SEC decides to go mega on us to support their own TV channel. That shake up would rock many conferences.

templefootballfan Wrote:BE TV market is at 42.5 million, 4 schools bring up TV market to 52.6. 24% increase from 15 million would be 18.5 million. Also not being factord in is Championship game, EC & Temple side deal & total of games being purchased, up by 12.

I just don't think it is that simple... But I can see how you would want that forth team to be Temple...

Big East football schools TV markets:
Rutgers- #1 New York, NY, 7,391,940 households
South Florida- #13 Tampa-St. Petersburg (Sarasota), FL ,1,783,910 households
Pittsburgh- #22 Pittsburgh, PA, 1,158,210 households
Connecticut- #29 Hartford & New Haven, CT, 1,007,490 households
Cincinnati- #33 Cincinnati, OH, 904,340 households
Louisville- #48 Louisville, KY, 657,180 households
Syracuse- #80 Syracuse, NY, 386,380 households
West Virginia- #166 Clarksburg-Weston, WV, 108,800 households
Total households in hometown TV markets- 13,398,250

Big East- 6,006,310 households (minus New York which greatly inflates their numbers)
C-USA- 9,827,860 households
MWC- 7,604,710 households
WAC- 5,508,100 households

Expansion schools TV markets
Temple- #4 Philadelphia, PA, 2,939,950 households
Central Florida- #19 Orlando-Daytona Beach-Melbourne, FL, 1,434,050 households
Memphis- #47 Memphis, TN, 667,890 households
East Carolina- #105 Greenville-New Bern-Washington, NC, 276,020 households
Total households in hometown TV markets- 5,317,910

Now here is the kicker, sure these add schools will increase the Big East's numbers of hometown TV markets. But, how much pull do this markets really have? ESPN pays the WHOLE C-USA $3.5 million a year (for all sports) and with Temple in the MWC for football only the MAC makes around $500,000 a year from ESPN for all sports. So with these 4 teams in the C-USA and MAC, both conferences combine to make around $4 million a year from ESPN. Now you are saying if they go to the Big East they will all of a sudden become "Cash Cow" TV markets?

1st off, you can't minus NY because inflates the #'s. Conn & NJ watch NY stations as do other parts of NY state. I would think that the BE TV market includes the states of NY, Conn, NJ & WV. Metro area's of Pitt, Tampa bay area & Cin. Louv covers western Kentucky. That comes out 42.5 million

Never said cash cow, built on percentages, bigger product & championship game. You also have to remember BE does not share revenue equally. BE avg aprox 2 million in TV revenue per fb school. So you think you need 8 million for 4 schools, right. Wrong, the bottom 4 teams get million apiece. That 4 million more to cover new schools & excisting schools don't take a hit.

templefootballfan Wrote:1st off, you can't minus NY because inflates the #'s. Conn & NJ watch NY stations as do other parts of NY state. I would think that the BE TV market includes the states of NY, Conn, NJ & WV. Metro area's of Pitt, Tampa bay area & Cin. Louv covers western Kentucky. That comes out 42.5 million

The point I was trying to make is Rutgers TV market is 7,391,940 households, were all the rest (South Florida, Pittsburgh, Connecticut, Cincinnati, Louisville, Syracuse, & West Virginia) the Big East markets combine is 6,006,310 households. Or is other words , just because the school is located in a market does not mean that school controls that market. Rutgers is the only D1 football school in the largest (in a big way, #2 LA is 5,647,440 households) yet their attendance was 43,663 per game, it true it could have been larger if their stadium was bigger. But when you compare their attendance to USC's 87,476 per game and UCLA's 76,379 per game in a market 1,744,500 house holds smaller. It's pretty easy to see that Rutgers is not that big of a player in a pro sports TV market. Another example; BYU, Utah, and Utah St are all located in the Salt Lake TV market (874,650 households) which is around 8 1/2 times less households, yet their combine attendance in 2007 was 120,221 per game (BYU- 64,497, Utah- 42,593, and a 2-10 Utah St 13,131).
So all I was saying is that Rutgers inflates the numbers of the Big East, because their pull in the New York is not the big... If they were averaging 80,000 to 100,000 per game one could say they have a pretty good foothold in the New York market.

Another Example: TV market / fans average per game = how many household it takes for each fan at game;
Rutgers- 7,391,940 households / 43,663 = 169.3
South Florida- 1,783,910 households / 53,170 = 33.6
Pittsburgh- 1,158,210 households / 33,315 = 34.8
Connecticut- 1,007,490 households / 38,205 = 26.4
Cincinnati- 904,340 households / 30,246 = 29.9
Louisville- 657,180 households / 39,881 = 16.5
Syracuse- 386,380 households / 35,009 = 11.0
West Virginia- 108,800 households / 60,400 = 1.8

Now granted West Virginia has these other markets is a pretty small state...
#65 Charleston-Huntington, WV, 476,680
#155 Bluefield-Beckley-Oak Hill, WV, 141,770
#190 Parkersburg, WV, 63,680