(06-27-2020 12:34 PM)TexanMark Wrote:  

(06-26-2020 10:54 AM)Wahoowa84 Wrote:  

(06-26-2020 09:43 AM)Lou_C Wrote:  I'm just going to chip in that I hear a lot of people touting the idea of a commissioner who understands TV, like Wildhack or others.

Boys...that horse is out of the barn and dead. The time to have a commissioner that understood TV revenue was 15 years ago, and we didn't have it. In all likelihood the next commissioner won't make a meaningful TV deal.

Don't get me wrong, you're going to want expertise in that area to deal with changing landscapes etc, but you can hire experts in associate commissioner roles, or keep consultants. Hiring a commissioner that swings his heaviest axe in the television space makes little sense when 95% of that juice has been squeezed.

To me, I'd be looking to hire a commissioner that would be most likely to increase the competitiveness of football, and maintain the competitiveness of basketball and other sports. You absolutely need a football hire. There won't be a major TV deal cut, so the best way forward for revenue is creating a can't miss product that increases engagement, donations, ticket sales, etc. That might allow the ACC Network to command higher carriage fees in future cable deals (which are long term as well), but also command high carriage fees on future platforms. It would also increase ad revenue on the ACC Network. It should make the ACC more attractive for bowl games.

It also would help to have someone highly respected and influential, especially given all the turnover among commissioners. You really want to make sure as the playoff contracts come back up, and new developments in the NCAA model and amateurism etc. You want someone that's going have some gravitas in those discussions and protect ACC interests.

Honestly, I'm no huge Swarbrick (or Notre Dame) fan, but he checks a lot of boxes other than his age.

Agree that hiring a commissioner with TV experience (e.g., backgrounds like Wildhack) is not a top priority.

Also agree that hiring a commissioner who knows the mechanics of better commercializing the football product (e.g., backgrounds like Swarbrick) would be beneficial. The Orange Bowl deal exposed a huge weakness in Swafford’s approach. Furthermore, it’s unacceptable that the B12 got the tie-in with SEC for a NYD bowl. The ACC commissioner needs to be leading this charge.

I also believe that basketball should be commercialized differently. The NCAA tournament is stealing a lot of revenue from the ACC. The ACC should be the leader in forcing the NCAA to restructure its finances...or look at alternative solutions.

There are a lot of areas where the new commissioner will have to make a difference.

I agree with a ton of what both of you said... however, don't sell Wildhack short. He is a sports guy who loves both sports. He also has the managerial skills over most. He would be best positioned to extract more TV dollars in the future. The league needs to get someone fresh without NC centric thinking.

If your point is the need for a viewpoint not born in North Carolina, I heartily agree!

Still not sure Wildhack is the right person for the job, but if it ends up being him, OK.