Can we stop with the conspiracy theories about UC, USF, UConn trying to rip off the incoming members?

Here are the facts:

1. Memphis, UCF, SMU, Houston, Temple, ECU, Tulane just traded their current sub-standard TV contracts and conference mates (see: Rice, UAB, MAC, etc...) for essentially a new league with increased exposure on ESPN and increased $$$ (albeit not the windfall everyone had hoped for before the latest round of defections).

2. Assume that 5 years from now UConn is in the ACC. Do you honestly think advertisers would see value in a "BIG EAST Conference Tournament" being played in Memphis, TN with ZERO original BIG EAST members? Can't you see the branding concerns with that? I chalk Aresco's prior comments up to negotiating tactics.

3. If UConn, UC, and USF are compensated more than the incoming schools w/ respect to exit fees, buyouts, etc... it stands to reason, given that their damages are higher. The new members all have contracts with the BIG EAST that were looked at by lawyers who undoubtedly forsaw certain events.

4. The biggest problem with the conspiracy theory is legal. Aresco, as commissioner, unquestionably has fiduciary duties to the new schools. Fidcuiary Duty is a legal concept / relationship that can be defined as follows:

A "fiduciary" is an individual in whom another has placed the utmost trust and confidence to manage and protect property or money. The relationship wherein one person has an obligation to act for another's benefit.

A fiduciary relationship encompasses the idea of faith and confidence and is generally established only when the confidence given by one person is actually accepted by the other person. Mere respect for another individual's judgment or general trust in his or her character is ordinarily insufficient for the creation of a fiduciary relationship. The duties of a fiduciary include loyalty and reasonable care of the assets within custody. All of the fiduciary's actions are performed for the advantage of the beneficiary.

If Aresco violated this in any way, the new schools would have legal grounds to claim breach of fiduciary duty and the leverage would be withholding any entrance fee. It's not going to come to that because all these conspiracy theories are B.S. to begin with, IMO.

Exactly right. Here are some more

1. Cincinnati, UConn, and USF were hurt by the defections. While the incoming were helped by the defections.
2. Dumping the brand allows the league to add schools regardless of geography. Heck the national conference concept might come back again and who wants to have eastern name when you are building a new national conference.
3. The situation isn't ideal but you have to make the best of bad situation.

(02-28-2013 10:40 AM)jlbphila Wrote:  Can we stop with the conspiracy theories about UC, USF, UConn trying to rip off the incoming members?

Here are the facts:

1. Memphis, UCF, SMU, Houston, Temple, ECU, Tulane just traded their current sub-standard TV contracts and conference mates (see: Rice, UAB, MAC, etc...) for essentially a new league with increased exposure on ESPN and increased $$$ (albeit not the windfall everyone had hoped for before the latest round of defections).

2. Assume that 5 years from now UConn is in the ACC. Do you honestly think advertisers would see value in a "BIG EAST Conference Tournament" being played in Memphis, TN with ZERO original BIG EAST members? Can't you see the branding concerns with that? I chalk Aresco's prior comments up to negotiating tactics.

3. If UConn, UC, and USF are compensated more than the incoming schools w/ respect to exit fees, buyouts, etc... it stands to reason, given that their damages are higher. The new members all have contracts with the BIG EAST that were looked at by lawyers who undoubtedly forsaw certain events.

4. The biggest problem with the conspiracy theory is legal. [b]Aresco, as commissioner, unquestionably has fiduciary duties to the new schools. Fidcuiary Duty is a legal concept / relationship that can be defined as follows:

A "fiduciary" is an individual in whom another has placed the utmost trust and confidence to manage and protect property or money. The relationship wherein one person has an obligation to act for another's benefit.[/b]
A fiduciary relationship encompasses the idea of faith and confidence and is generally established only when the confidence given by one person is actually accepted by the other person. Mere respect for another individual's judgment or general trust in his or her character is ordinarily insufficient for the creation of a fiduciary relationship. The duties of a fiduciary include loyalty and reasonable care of the assets within custody. All of the fiduciary's actions are performed for the advantage of the beneficiary.

If Aresco violated this in any way, the new schools would have legal grounds to claim breach of fiduciary duty and the leverage would be withholding any entrance fee. It's not going to come to that because all these conspiracy theories are B.S. to begin with, IMO.

Truth be told, Aresco has no real power at all. He works at the pleasure of the conference that currently has 3 voting members. THe conference is free to listen to an Aresco suggestion and move forward with whatever the 3 presidents still voting decide to move forward with. They dont have to do a thing Aresco suggests. In fact, its just the opposite. Aresco must do what the presidents say. It is what it is.

I could be wrong, but my intuition is that Aresco wants to build a new type of conference with a "challenger brand" mentality. He talked when he first got the job about being innovative and finding new streams of revenue. I, for one, am excited to get all this C7 crap behind us and shed the BIG EAST name. After a 20 years in CUSA, I'm tired of Memphis being in a league that serves as a punch line.

Quote:Truth be told, Aresco has no real power at all. He works at the pleasure of the conference that currently has 3 voting members.

Either way, the incoming members have contracts with the BIG EAST. I feel certain that those contracts contain protections for the new members. Additionally, the conspiracy theories essentially amount to fraud - which can't be contracted for.

(02-28-2013 11:16 AM)jlbphila Wrote:  I could be wrong, but my intuition is that Aresco wants to build a new type of conference with a "challenger brand" mentality. He talked when he first got the job about being innovative and finding new streams of revenue. I, for one, am excited to get all this C7 crap behind us and shed the BIG EAST name. After a 20 years in CUSA, I'm tired of Memphis being in a league that serves as a punch line.

You're still in a conference that serves as a punch line as long as your conference is on ESPiN. They will never, ever promote any conference as a "challenger conference" to their own inventory of college football. They must build up the "value" of the BIG, SEC, ACC, etc. to convince the general viewing public that everyone else isn't worthy of playing at the BCS level. There will always be underdogs in the national title hunt, but they will no longer come from the WAC, MWC, Conference USA, or Big East. They will now come from within the dregs of the old-guard conferences, who by and large can't hold a candle to the top half of the MWC and Big East.

(02-28-2013 11:21 AM)jlbphila Wrote:  

Quote:Truth be told, Aresco has no real power at all. He works at the pleasure of the conference that currently has 3 voting members.

Either way, the incoming members have contracts with the BIG EAST. I feel certain that those contracts contain protections for the new members. Additionally, the conspiracy theories essentially amount to fraud - which can't be contracted for.

Not sure what the 'conspiracy theory' here is but allowing the Big East to dissolve might not put the incoming 'members' in a worse position than they would have been otherwise. In fact, an argument can be made that it might be better since in a reconstituted conference (with the same members) there would be no enterance fee nor would there be an exit fee if one or more of the schools now wanted to back away. As to the dissolved conference's existing banked exit fee and other settlement money --- the 'incoming members didn't earn than in any event so it still goes to whom it belongs -- UConn, Cincinnati and the others -