On the realignment board, I floated an idea for bringing the Texas market into the ACC. It would require the cooperation of ESPN and the SEC. I wondered how ACC fans would view the proposal.

In a nutshell, ESPN would support moving Virginia Tech and NC State into the SEC, giving them market penetration that they seek. Then, the ACC would have room to add Texas, Oklahoma, TCU and Baylor as a group, so no one is on an island. And the SEC makes no more threatening moves that would hurt the ACC.

The two leagues would partner with ESPN to merge the Longhorn Network with the SEC network and scrap now unnecessary plans to add a new ACC network and save on administrative costs.

This combined network would now dominate states with almost half the US population. The Big Ten would be frozen out of its biggest target markets, Texas, NC and VA. Any further expansion by them would be only of marginal value, both financially and competitively.

The ACC can now be organized into four scheduling pods.

Texas, Oklahoma, TCU and Baylor
Florida State, Clemson, Ga Tech and Miami
UNC, Duke, Virginia and Wake Forest
Louisville, Pitt, Syracuse and BC

Play every pod member every year, and two from each of the other three pods every year. The first two pods are competitively strongest, and each of these teams would get five SOS boosting league games every year. They would also have four games they would be expected to win a high percentage of the time, helping them stay high in the national rankings. The two weaker pods would get five games against teams they are competitive with, and only four against the more powerful, giving them a better chance at bowl eligibility if they schedule OOC prudently. Every school would play every league member at least once home and once away every four years.

The league now would have two strong national brands - Texas and Notre Dame - under its umbrella. Its combined football power ratings would place it closer to the SEC which is above it than to the Big Ten which would be significantly beneath it. And I believe it would be a slight net plus in basketball ratings as well.

How do ACC fans view this?

Works for me...however, I think FOX might have something to say about it.

It would kick ass...as a 16 team conference but WVU would go apesh!t...wonder what our resident WolfPack and Hokie fans think

(04-20-2015 11:46 AM)ken d Wrote:  On the realignment board, I floated an idea for bringing the Texas market into the ACC. It would require the cooperation of ESPN and the SEC. I wondered how ACC fans would view the proposal.

In a nutshell, ESPN would support moving Virginia Tech and NC State into the SEC, giving them market penetration that they seek. Then, the ACC would have room to add Texas, Oklahoma, TCU and Baylor as a group, so no one is on an island. And the SEC makes no more threatening moves that would hurt the ACC.

The two leagues would partner with ESPN to merge the Longhorn Network with the SEC network and scrap now unnecessary plans to add a new ACC network and save on administrative costs.

This combined network would now dominate states with almost half the US population. The Big Ten would be frozen out of its biggest target markets, Texas, NC and VA. Any further expansion by them would be only of marginal value, both financially and competitively.

The ACC can now be organized into four scheduling pods.

Texas, Oklahoma, TCU and Baylor
Florida State, Clemson, Ga Tech and Miami
UNC, Duke, Virginia and Wake Forest
Louisville, Pitt, Syracuse and BC

Play every pod member every year, and two from each of the other three pods every year. The first two pods are competitively strongest, and each of these teams would get five SOS boosting league games every year. They would also have four games they would be expected to win a high percentage of the time, helping them stay high in the national rankings. The two weaker pods would get five games against teams they are competitive with, and four against the more powerful, giving them a better chance at bowl eligibility if the schedule OOC prudently. Every school would play every league member at least once home and once away every four years.

The league now would have two strong national brands - Texas and Notre Dame - under its umbrella. Its combined football power ratings would place it closer to the SEC which is above it than to the Big Ten which would be significantly beneath it. And I believe it would be a slight net plus in basketball ratings as well.

How do ACC fans view this?

I think you probably have to take Okie State instead of TCU to make that work, and I'd be more than fine with that.

On the surface, it seems unthinkable, but it makes a ton of sense. Not saying it could get done, how do you even approach VT and NC State with that move? But I've been thinking for a while...it's the cleanest outcome.

To extrapolate...the ACC and SEC would then have the Sugar AND Orange. And think about adding Texas-AM, UVA-VT, UNC-NC St to the end of the year ACC-SEC rivalries.

You'd really have the college football world largely revolving around the SEC and ACC.

BTW, for hoops scheduling purposes, I would consider treating the two southern pods as if they were a separate conference from the northern pods, with minimal crossover during the regular season. Just as the southern pods bring football value to the conference table, so do the northern pods with basketball. We should capitalize on that by maximizing the number of games between the top teams in each sport every year.

(04-20-2015 11:55 AM)TexanMark Wrote:  Works for me...however, I think FOX might have something to say about it.

It would be very tough to break up the Big 12 just taking four teams. Kansas would probably get a B1G invite, but that would be about it. Those five teams could still make things very difficult.

Now, if both conferences went to 18, added a conference semifinal pitting division champs + wild card, you could probably get it done. You could theoretically pick up WVU, Kansas, KSU, another Texas school.

ACC gets: Texas, OU, OSU, Baylor, TT, WVU
SEC gets: Kansas, KSU (VT, NCSU)

(04-20-2015 11:55 AM)Lou_C Wrote:  

(04-20-2015 11:46 AM)ken d Wrote:  On the realignment board, I floated an idea for bringing the Texas market into the ACC. It would require the cooperation of ESPN and the SEC. I wondered how ACC fans would view the proposal.

In a nutshell, ESPN would support moving Virginia Tech and NC State into the SEC, giving them market penetration that they seek. Then, the ACC would have room to add Texas, Oklahoma, TCU and Baylor as a group, so no one is on an island. And the SEC makes no more threatening moves that would hurt the ACC.

The two leagues would partner with ESPN to merge the Longhorn Network with the SEC network and scrap now unnecessary plans to add a new ACC network and save on administrative costs.

This combined network would now dominate states with almost half the US population. The Big Ten would be frozen out of its biggest target markets, Texas, NC and VA. Any further expansion by them would be only of marginal value, both financially and competitively.

The ACC can now be organized into four scheduling pods.

Texas, Oklahoma, TCU and Baylor
Florida State, Clemson, Ga Tech and Miami
UNC, Duke, Virginia and Wake Forest
Louisville, Pitt, Syracuse and BC

Play every pod member every year, and two from each of the other three pods every year. The first two pods are competitively strongest, and each of these teams would get five SOS boosting league games every year. They would also have four games they would be expected to win a high percentage of the time, helping them stay high in the national rankings. The two weaker pods would get five games against teams they are competitive with, and four against the more powerful, giving them a better chance at bowl eligibility if the schedule OOC prudently. Every school would play every league member at least once home and once away every four years.

The league now would have two strong national brands - Texas and Notre Dame - under its umbrella. Its combined football power ratings would place it closer to the SEC which is above it than to the Big Ten which would be significantly beneath it. And I believe it would be a slight net plus in basketball ratings as well.

How do ACC fans view this?

I think you probably have to take Okie State instead of TCU to make that work, and I'd be more than fine with that.

On the surface, it seems unthinkable, but it makes a ton of sense. Not saying it could get done, how do you even approach VT and NC State with that move? But I've been thinking for a while...it's the cleanest outcome.

To extrapolate...the ACC and SEC would then have the Sugar AND Orange. And think about adding Texas-AM, UVA-VT, UNC-NC St to the end of the year ACC-SEC rivalries.

You'd really have the college football world largely revolving around the SEC and ACC.

I could certainly live with OK State as well. Besides, it would give us our very own billionaire.

This makes pretty rational scheduling pods for the SEC as well.

LSU, A&M, Arkansas and Mizzou
Alabama, Auburn, Ole Miss and Mississippi State
Florida, Georgia, Tennessee and South Carolina
Va Tech, NC State, Vandy and Kentucky

That avoids the east/west power imbalance and enables the two strongest teams to duke it out for the title.

I have felt for a long time that NC State would thrive better if they were decoupled from UNC. Not sure how their fans would feel about it. They could, and most likely would, continue to play each other in every sport OOC regardless. That could make the rivalry stronger - it sure doesn't seem to hurt South Carolina/Clemson to be in different conferences.

(04-20-2015 11:46 AM)ken d Wrote:  On the realignment board, I floated an idea for bringing the Texas market into the ACC. It would require the cooperation of ESPN and the SEC. I wondered how ACC fans would view the proposal.

In a nutshell, ESPN would support moving Virginia Tech and NC State into the SEC, giving them market penetration that they seek. Then, the ACC would have room to add Texas, Oklahoma, TCU and Baylor as a group, so no one is on an island. And the SEC makes no more threatening moves that would hurt the ACC.

The two leagues would partner with ESPN to merge the Longhorn Network with the SEC network and scrap now unnecessary plans to add a new ACC network and save on administrative costs.

This combined network would now dominate states with almost half the US population. The Big Ten would be frozen out of its biggest target markets, Texas, NC and VA. Any further expansion by them would be only of marginal value, both financially and competitively.

The ACC can now be organized into four scheduling pods.

Texas, Oklahoma, TCU and Baylor
Florida State, Clemson, Ga Tech and Miami
UNC, Duke, Virginia and Wake Forest
Louisville, Pitt, Syracuse and BC

Play every pod member every year, and two from each of the other three pods every year. The first two pods are competitively strongest, and each of these teams would get five SOS boosting league games every year. They would also have four games they would be expected to win a high percentage of the time, helping them stay high in the national rankings. The two weaker pods would get five games against teams they are competitive with, and only four against the more powerful, giving them a better chance at bowl eligibility if they schedule OOC prudently. Every school would play every league member at least once home and once away every four years.

The league now would have two strong national brands - Texas and Notre Dame - under its umbrella. Its combined football power ratings would place it closer to the SEC which is above it than to the Big Ten which would be significantly beneath it. And I believe it would be a slight net plus in basketball ratings as well.

How do ACC fans view this?

The idea is pretty stupid.

(04-20-2015 12:09 PM)Lou_C Wrote:  

(04-20-2015 11:55 AM)TexanMark Wrote:  Works for me...however, I think FOX might have something to say about it.

It would be very tough to break up the Big 12 just taking four teams. Kansas would probably get a B1G invite, but that would be about it. Those five teams could still make things very difficult.

Now, if both conferences went to 18, added a conference semifinal pitting division champs + wild card, you could probably get it done. You could theoretically pick up WVU, Kansas, KSU, another Texas school.

ACC gets: Texas, OU, OSU, Baylor, TT, WVU
SEC gets: Kansas, KSU (VT, NCSU)

The way I saw it playing out for the B12 is that they get to keep their P5 status by adding BYU in the western division, and UCF, USF, ECU, Memphis and Cincy in the east. That keeps their power rating pretty close to the Big Ten's. It would provide a respectable representative for a NY6 bowl most every year (probably a bit better than the BE and even the ACC did for the BCS in its day). They aren't likely a national championship contender most of the time, and their market value isn't P5 strong. But its a lot better than G5 strong. If you give the B12 one NY6 slot, and the G5 a second, you still have 10 spots to be shared by the remaining four P5 conferences.

As for the Big Ten, I think they stay put. Anybody they would be willing to add provides only marginal value. A property like Kansas IMO is more valuable as a bridge to their real targets than it is stand alone. Take their real targets off the table and the B1G probably loses its appetite.

This kind of change will not & should not happen. The SEC doesn't want to change, ACC doesn't want to change, and why on earth would Texas move from a conference where they are at the top of supremacy?

I suppose I could learn to deal with it if VT ended up in the SEC, as long as it's the SEC East; I have absolutely NO desire to see Mississippi State, Ole Miss, or Arkansas, and I'm not all that excited about watching Alabama or LSU either. Auburn is interesting with Malzahn running things, and Texas A&M is an interesting program. I also don't care to see Missouri or Kentucky (football), but I could get into games against Tennessee, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida.

TBH, the conference with the most interesting teams (to me) is the ACC.

I prefer to remain in the ACC.

The SEC wants into NC and VA but I don't see them helping the ACC by making room for more football schools.

Not interested. Call me back when we're talking about raiding Tennessee or Pedo State.

I think it'd take a larger agreement between the conferences. Maybe all P5 conferences even. There could be a way that everyone could make more money if they reorganized but nobody wants the process to come at their expense. So you pretty much have to ensure that everyone has a stake in the final outcome.

None of this makes any sense and virtually all of it is built on half-baked Internet speculation.

(04-20-2015 11:46 AM)ken d Wrote:  On the realignment board, I floated an idea for bringing the Texas market into the ACC. It would require the cooperation of ESPN and the SEC. I wondered how ACC fans would view the proposal.

In a nutshell, ESPN would support moving Virginia Tech and NC State into the SEC, giving them market penetration that they seek. Then, the ACC would have room to add Texas, Oklahoma, TCU and Baylor as a group, so no one is on an island. And the SEC makes no more threatening moves that would hurt the ACC.

The two leagues would partner with ESPN to merge the Longhorn Network with the SEC network and scrap now unnecessary plans to add a new ACC network and save on administrative costs.

This combined network would now dominate states with almost half the US population. The Big Ten would be frozen out of its biggest target markets, Texas, NC and VA. Any further expansion by them would be only of marginal value, both financially and competitively.

The ACC can now be organized into four scheduling pods.

Texas, Oklahoma, TCU and Baylor
Florida State, Clemson, Ga Tech and Miami
UNC, Duke, Virginia and Wake Forest
Louisville, Pitt, Syracuse and BC

Play every pod member every year, and two from each of the other three pods every year. The first two pods are competitively strongest, and each of these teams would get five SOS boosting league games every year. They would also have four games they would be expected to win a high percentage of the time, helping them stay high in the national rankings. The two weaker pods would get five games against teams they are competitive with, and only four against the more powerful, giving them a better chance at bowl eligibility if they schedule OOC prudently. Every school would play every league member at least once home and once away every four years.

The league now would have two strong national brands - Texas and Notre Dame - under its umbrella. Its combined football power ratings would place it closer to the SEC which is above it than to the Big Ten which would be significantly beneath it. And I believe it would be a slight net plus in basketball ratings as well.

How do ACC fans view this?

I don't think NC State and Virginia Tech would like that very much.

And where's Notre Dame? If we're talking about adding Texas as the 16th team when Notre Dame fully joins, then I guess Texas is okay. Wouldn't be my first, second or third choice, but it wouldn't be as bad as some other prospective ACC members I've seen discussed on the internet.

I don't think the ACC is expanding until Notre Dame adds 180 minutes of ACC football to its annual schedule (cue Terry D to say that's never happening).

Going beyond 16 members is too many. I think if a few conferences go beyond 16, the whole thing could blow up. Which might not be a bad thing, if the aftermath is an 8-10 school conference of academically focused Southern universities (plus UNC-CH). Much like the ACC's original split from the SoCon.

(04-20-2015 03:50 PM)4x4hokies Wrote:  I think it'd take a larger agreement between the conferences. Maybe all P5 conferences even. There could be a way that everyone could make more money if they reorganized but nobody wants the process to come at their expense. So you pretty much have to ensure that everyone has a stake in the final outcome.

I don't get why the major conferences don't just pool their rights together.

(04-20-2015 11:46 AM)ken d Wrote:  On the realignment board, I floated an idea for bringing the Texas market into the ACC. It would require the cooperation of ESPN and the SEC. I wondered how ACC fans would view the proposal.

In a nutshell, ESPN would support moving Virginia Tech and NC State into the SEC, giving them market penetration that they seek. Then, the ACC would have room to add Texas, Oklahoma, TCU and Baylor as a group, so no one is on an island. And the SEC makes no more threatening moves that would hurt the ACC.

The two leagues would partner with ESPN to merge the Longhorn Network with the SEC network and scrap now unnecessary plans to add a new ACC network and save on administrative costs.

This combined network would now dominate states with almost half the US population. The Big Ten would be frozen out of its biggest target markets, Texas, NC and VA. Any further expansion by them would be only of marginal value, both financially and competitively.

The ACC can now be organized into four scheduling pods.

Texas, Oklahoma, TCU and Baylor
Florida State, Clemson, Ga Tech and Miami
UNC, Duke, Virginia and Wake Forest
Louisville, Pitt, Syracuse and BC

Play every pod member every year, and two from each of the other three pods every year. The first two pods are competitively strongest, and each of these teams would get five SOS boosting league games every year. They would also have four games they would be expected to win a high percentage of the time, helping them stay high in the national rankings. The two weaker pods would get five games against teams they are competitive with, and only four against the more powerful, giving them a better chance at bowl eligibility if they schedule OOC prudently. Every school would play every league member at least once home and once away every four years.

The league now would have two strong national brands - Texas and Notre Dame - under its umbrella. Its combined football power ratings would place it closer to the SEC which is above it than to the Big Ten which would be significantly beneath it. And I believe it would be a slight net plus in basketball ratings as well.

How do ACC fans view this?

I have absolutely no interest in Virginia Tech joining the SEC.

(04-20-2015 08:49 PM)opossum Wrote:  

(04-20-2015 11:46 AM)ken d Wrote:  On the realignment board, I floated an idea for bringing the Texas market into the ACC. It would require the cooperation of ESPN and the SEC. I wondered how ACC fans would view the proposal.

In a nutshell, ESPN would support moving Virginia Tech and NC State into the SEC, giving them market penetration that they seek. Then, the ACC would have room to add Texas, Oklahoma, TCU and Baylor as a group, so no one is on an island. And the SEC makes no more threatening moves that would hurt the ACC.

The two leagues would partner with ESPN to merge the Longhorn Network with the SEC network and scrap now unnecessary plans to add a new ACC network and save on administrative costs.

This combined network would now dominate states with almost half the US population. The Big Ten would be frozen out of its biggest target markets, Texas, NC and VA. Any further expansion by them would be only of marginal value, both financially and competitively.

The ACC can now be organized into four scheduling pods.

Texas, Oklahoma, TCU and Baylor
Florida State, Clemson, Ga Tech and Miami
UNC, Duke, Virginia and Wake Forest
Louisville, Pitt, Syracuse and BC

Play every pod member every year, and two from each of the other three pods every year. The first two pods are competitively strongest, and each of these teams would get five SOS boosting league games every year. They would also have four games they would be expected to win a high percentage of the time, helping them stay high in the national rankings. The two weaker pods would get five games against teams they are competitive with, and only four against the more powerful, giving them a better chance at bowl eligibility if they schedule OOC prudently. Every school would play every league member at least once home and once away every four years.

The league now would have two strong national brands - Texas and Notre Dame - under its umbrella. Its combined football power ratings would place it closer to the SEC which is above it than to the Big Ten which would be significantly beneath it. And I believe it would be a slight net plus in basketball ratings as well.

How do ACC fans view this?

I don't think NC State and Virginia Tech would like that very much.

And where's Notre Dame? If we're talking about adding Texas as the 16th team when Notre Dame fully joins, then I guess Texas is okay. Wouldn't be my first, second or third choice, but it wouldn't be as bad as some other prospective ACC members I've seen discussed on the internet.

I don't think the ACC is expanding until Notre Dame adds 180 minutes of ACC football to its annual schedule (cue Terry D to say that's never happening).

Going beyond 16 members is too many. I think if a few conferences go beyond 16, the whole thing could blow up. Which might not be a bad thing, if the aftermath is an 8-10 school conference of academically focused Southern universities (plus UNC-CH). Much like the ACC's original split from the SoCon.

It is not likely to happen within our lifetimes. There. How is that?

Why give up 2 schools to the SEC when You might get Texas, WVU or Texas, Oklahoma in a few Years anyway when We go to the P4.

I'd prefer Miami, VT, Pitt and Louisville all join FSU and Clemson by becoming top 15 football teams - then I won't care about the rest.

P.S. If some other team wants to become top 15, that's fine too. As far as I'm concerned the whole league can be top 15 (as long as VT is ahead of UVa).