(07-24-2014 07:27 AM)Transic_nyc Wrote: (07-23-2014 10:52 PM)bullet Wrote: (07-23-2014 09:29 PM)templefootballfan Wrote: adding BYU & Conn would not cost B-12 schools any money
Well if they didn't pay them a dime in TV or playoff money it still would, because attendance would be down on average.
Its been reported many times that no one outside the P5 except Notre Dame paid for themselves. Louisville didn't when they were available. There was some talk of going to 11 after WVU, but TV wasn't interested. In the Big 12, they were told Colorado and Missouri, much to their surprise, were a drag on the TV contract.
If you look at the ratings, the big games and big names in every conference draw vastly better ratings than the average. The value is disproportionately in a few schools even in the SEC.
Something tells me that the B12 were being manipulated by the networks into thinking that. Otherwise, why would a program be so valuable to another conference?
I think Transic_nyc is on to something here. This is more than just dollars on the barrel today, and conferences like the Big East football conference that ignore that tend to dissapear.
Anyone starting a small business is probably going to lose money the first year, two years, three years, and probably four years (at least relative to what they could have been making before). However, many people still do it. Why? Because (among other reasons) they have an expectation of future profits that would exceed their current or projected salary that kicks in after the startup years. LVille didn't immediately increase the profits of either the Big East or the ACC, but certainly did in the long run in the Big East and will probably do so in the ACC by opening up new local markets and consolidating more TV inventory under one contract. In many ways, the bigger your conference is, the more contract leverage you have, and the more per-team revenue you can compel TV to pay.
Second, in any financial transaction people have to weigh risk vs. reward. Purchasing lottery tickets promises huge financial rewards, but the risk is high as any money you "invest" in lottery tickets will likely be wasted. Instead of investing in lottery tickets, most financially savvy people invest a little bit of their money in insurance - paying a little money to replace income in the event of a disaster. The Big East football conference did not take out insurance policies on Miami, VTech, or LVille leaving while those teams were still in the conference. Thus they had to scramble to replace them, manage by crisis, lost huge amounts of leverage, and Big East football is now dead. Conferences strategically adding teams when they are not forced to manage by crisis have leverage, are free to choose from more teams, and are more likely to get the teams they persue. Thus, adding quality teams decreases risk by acting as an isurance policy against the top teams in the conference getting poaching or going independent.
Third, there is strategic placement among conferences. If the Pac 10 had got Texas and Oklahoma, it would have destroyed a rival conference as well as elevating itself to the top conference in the country, above the SEC and Big 10. The Big 10 could do the same by poaching those two schools, and really knocked the Big 12 down by taking Nebraska even though the 'Huskers supposedly didn't add any money on a per-team basis. The ACC improved it's position by weakening the Big East, then the Big East improved it's position by weaken CUSA. Strategic placement means better bowls, better rankings in the polls, and better seeding by the playoff committee.
Long answer to Transic_nyc, but there are many advantages to adding schools beyond the simple calculation of immediate money added. Smart conferences take future profits, risk, and strategic placement into consideration.
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