We'll see on that. DavidSt says AAC will add ODU and he has a better track record than the rags.

Are leagues allowed to have a CCG if they have fewer than 10 teams and dot no have divisions?
I thought leagues with fewer than 12 teams have to do a true round robin before the CCG or they can have divisions? maybe I am mis-remembering.

If the AAC doesn't add Army as football only to replace UConn...Oh nevermind...

(06-25-2019 12:56 AM)HawaiiMongoose Wrote:  https://www.cincinnati.com/story/sports/...553756001/

This according to "a source with close ties to the league."

The source also says Boise State "shouldn’t be seriously considered as a target" for AAC expansion because "there would likely be no benefits for the Broncos to leave the Mountain West Conference for any conference not among the Power Five."

(06-25-2019 09:19 AM)MAcFroggy Wrote:  Are leagues allowed to have a CCG if they have fewer than 10 teams and dot no have divisions?
I thought leagues with fewer than 12 teams have to do a true round robin before the CCG or they can have divisions? maybe I am mis-remembering.

https://www.ncaa.com/news/football/artic...-able-hold

Council members adopted a proposal that originated with the Division I Football Oversight Committee but also approved an amendment from the Big Ten Conference. The amendment, offered by the Big Ten late last week, allows conferences with fewer than 12 members to hold championship games in football, as long as they meet one of two additional conditions: Conferences that want to play championship games must either play their championship game between division winners after round-robin competition in each division or between the top two teams in the conference standings following full round-robin, regular-season competition between all members of the conference.

the debate now is if the NCAA will give a waiver to make scheduling easier for the AAC or not give one and the AAC has to play divisional round robins then figure out how to deal with some teams playing more or less conference games total because of unbalanced divisions (and yes unbalanced divisions are specifically allowed under the rules as long as they are "as equal as possible" so a one team difference)

(06-25-2019 09:42 AM)RutgersGuy Wrote:  

(06-25-2019 12:56 AM)HawaiiMongoose Wrote:  https://www.cincinnati.com/story/sports/...553756001/

This according to "a source with close ties to the league."

The source also says Boise State "shouldn’t be seriously considered as a target" for AAC expansion because "there would likely be no benefits for the Broncos to leave the Mountain West Conference for any conference not among the Power Five."

the answer from ESPN is

teams A-Z......bout tree fiddy (yes three dollars and fifty cents more)....now get out of here you P6 Loch Ness Monster you!

(06-25-2019 09:47 AM)TodgeRodge Wrote:  

(06-25-2019 09:42 AM)RutgersGuy Wrote:  

(06-25-2019 12:56 AM)HawaiiMongoose Wrote:  https://www.cincinnati.com/story/sports/...553756001/

This according to "a source with close ties to the league."

The source also says Boise State "shouldn’t be seriously considered as a target" for AAC expansion because "there would likely be no benefits for the Broncos to leave the Mountain West Conference for any conference not among the Power Five."

the answer from ESPN is

teams A-Z......bout tree fiddy (yes three dollars and fifty cents more)....now get out of here you P6 Loch Ness Monster you!

Like the BC AD once said "ESPN told us who to take..."

(06-25-2019 02:40 AM)DavidSt Wrote:  Is the tv deal worth it without UConn's women's basketball? AAC lost a major tv market. If they do not expand to replace that market? Would ESPN rework the tv deal for less money since the conference took a hit.

1- WBB isn’t a major factor in a tv deal value. Football is 70-80% and MBb is 20-30%. UConn was providing next to nothing in FB.

2- Their market wasn’t tuning in much for a few down years in hoops and one of the worst FB teams in a market that tends to care more about pro sports.

3- What are the 3-5 highest national tv ratings UConn men’s basketball generated in the last three years? Likely not crazy high. They are a good brand but how much does that brand increase eyes on the other schools or big eyeball games?

4- ESPN probably expected this. They may have a pro-rata decrease which keeps tv money level but each school makes more in league revenues due to splitting CFP, NY6, NCAA basketball credits, and UConn’s exit fees between fewer schools.

(06-25-2019 06:53 AM)CougarRed Wrote:  

(06-25-2019 03:26 AM)DavidSt Wrote:  

(06-25-2019 02:55 AM)TodgeRodge Wrote:  https://twitter.com/Ourand_SBJ/status/11...s-espn-cbs


John Ourand
‏Verified account @Ourand_SBJ

John Ourand Retweeted Stewart Mandel

The deal does not include a Grant of Rights. But ESPN did get a "conference composition clause" in the contract that protects the network financially if any of the AAC’s top brands exit.

UConn was one of the AAC's top brand.

In basketball.

Worst program in football.

Football drives 75% of conference TV deals.


C. Austin Cox
@C_Austin_Cox
Confirmed: UConn's departure will NOT impact the AAC's new TV deal with ESPN. AAC will not allow football-only for UConn in the league due to poor performance from the program and lack of value it would bring. Huskies are expected to pay $10M exit fee.
11:50 AM · Jun 22, 2019

I doubt anyone outside the AAC conference, its member schools and ESPN have ever seen the actual contract. Anything reported in the media is either pure speculation or self-serving hearsay. We read all the time that "football drives 75% of conference TV deals". According to whom? And is it universally true for all conferences and deals? Is it not possible that ESPN puts more value on football in its contract with the SEC than in its contract with the ACC?

If UConn is truly the valuable brand that some here say they are, then they are about to come into a boatload of money. If the entire AAC is worth $84 million with UConn, and UConn accounts for more than an average share of that value, then the Huskies should be able to get a contract for football only in the neighborhood of $6 million. Combined with their share of BE basketball, they would net about $3 million a year more by leaving.

Who here thinks UConn could sell their football games for $6 million?

Army is solid now. I dont see why AAC would pass on them or why they wouldn't want to be w Navy now.

(06-25-2019 12:49 PM)Fresno St. Alum Wrote:  Army is solid now. I dont see why AAC would pass on them or why they wouldn't want to be w Navy now.

Because they would have to cancel a ton of games ($$$), move their Army-Navy showcase date (dumb), subject troops to future pros every single week (they prefer to schedule FCS opponents and play Yale), rejoin almost the exact same damn conference they QUIT!!!

(06-25-2019 12:49 PM)Fresno St. Alum Wrote:  Army is solid now. I dont see why AAC would pass on them or why they wouldn't want to be w Navy now.

The Army/Navy game is the problem.

The AAC Championship game is the week before the Army/Navy game.

How are you going to handle that if Army/Navy becomes a conference game?

(06-25-2019 09:12 AM)IWokeUpLikeThis Wrote:  We'll see on that. DavidSt says AAC will add ODU and he has a better track record than the rags.

Don't doubt the Oracle of Arkansas Tech. I've already ordered 100 P6 decals.

Drop Navy and go to 10, no buyout required. Let Navy be free to schedule whomever and split the TV revenue 10 ways. 5/6 team divisions don't make sense. Plus you still keep a plus one CCG model for the top 2.

(06-25-2019 12:58 PM)Claw Wrote:  

(06-25-2019 12:49 PM)Fresno St. Alum Wrote:  Army is solid now. I dont see why AAC would pass on them or why they wouldn't want to be w Navy now.

The Army/Navy game is the problem.

The AAC Championship game is the week before the Army/Navy game.

How are you going to handle that if Army/Navy becomes a conference game?

It could be done. For example: Schedule Army-Navy for the Saturday closest to Veterans' Day, start the game at 12 noon ET, get the TV networks to agree that Army-Navy will be the only national "linear" CFB broadcast starting before 3 pm ET that day.

(06-25-2019 10:23 AM)ken d Wrote:  

(06-25-2019 06:53 AM)CougarRed Wrote:  

(06-25-2019 03:26 AM)DavidSt Wrote:  

(06-25-2019 02:55 AM)TodgeRodge Wrote:  https://twitter.com/Ourand_SBJ/status/11...s-espn-cbs


John Ourand
‏Verified account @Ourand_SBJ

John Ourand Retweeted Stewart Mandel

The deal does not include a Grant of Rights. But ESPN did get a "conference composition clause" in the contract that protects the network financially if any of the AAC’s top brands exit.

UConn was one of the AAC's top brand.

In basketball.

Worst program in football.

Football drives 75% of conference TV deals.


C. Austin Cox
@C_Austin_Cox
Confirmed: UConn's departure will NOT impact the AAC's new TV deal with ESPN. AAC will not allow football-only for UConn in the league due to poor performance from the program and lack of value it would bring. Huskies are expected to pay $10M exit fee.
11:50 AM · Jun 22, 2019

I doubt anyone outside the AAC conference, its member schools and ESPN have ever seen the actual contract. Anything reported in the media is either pure speculation or self-serving hearsay. We read all the time that "football drives 75% of conference TV deals". According to whom? And is it universally true for all conferences and deals? Is it not possible that ESPN puts more value on football in its contract with the SEC than in its contract with the ACC?

If UConn is truly the valuable brand that some here say they are, then they are about to come into a boatload of money. If the entire AAC is worth $84 million with UConn, and UConn accounts for more than an average share of that value, then the Huskies should be able to get a contract for football only in the neighborhood of $6 million. Combined with their share of BE basketball, they would net about $3 million a year more by leaving.

Who here thinks UConn could sell their football games for $6 million?

If they could---you'd figure CUSA and the MAC would be fighting among themselves to bring them on board. That tells me UConn cant get 6 million for football (or anything even close).

(06-25-2019 09:45 AM)TodgeRodge Wrote:  

(06-25-2019 09:19 AM)MAcFroggy Wrote:  Are leagues allowed to have a CCG if they have fewer than 10 teams and dot no have divisions?
I thought leagues with fewer than 12 teams have to do a true round robin before the CCG or they can have divisions? maybe I am mis-remembering.

https://www.ncaa.com/news/football/artic...-able-hold

Council members adopted a proposal that originated with the Division I Football Oversight Committee but also approved an amendment from the Big Ten Conference. The amendment, offered by the Big Ten late last week, allows conferences with fewer than 12 members to hold championship games in football, as long as they meet one of two additional conditions: Conferences that want to play championship games must either play their championship game between division winners after round-robin competition in each division or between the top two teams in the conference standings following full round-robin, regular-season competition between all members of the conference.

the debate now is if the NCAA will give a waiver to make scheduling easier for the AAC or not give one and the AAC has to play divisional round robins then figure out how to deal with some teams playing more or less conference games total because of unbalanced divisions (and yes unbalanced divisions are specifically allowed under the rules as long as they are "as equal as possible" so a one team difference)

Since this is for 2020, I doubt the NCAA is going to give a waiver this early. The will need to do what the Big 12 did, either get the rule change or not have a championship game. I could see the following happen. AAC hopes rule change occurs for 2020. If it does not, it will need to add a 12th team. The waiver could be for one or two years as the 12th team will join in 2021 or 2022. No way a long term waiver happens.

I do think the ACC would love to see the divisionless non round robin, so I think they support. I think SEC and B10 might get on board. Actually think you would see most of the conferences move away from divisions. Might even get the ACC and SEC to nine conference games to have all P5 play the same number of conference games.

(06-25-2019 12:58 PM)esayem Wrote:  

(06-25-2019 12:49 PM)Fresno St. Alum Wrote:  Army is solid now. I dont see why AAC would pass on them or why they wouldn't want to be w Navy now.

Because they would have to cancel a ton of games ($$$), move their Army-Navy showcase date (dumb), subject troops to future pros every single week (they prefer to schedule FCS opponents and play Yale), rejoin almost the exact same damn conference they QUIT!!!

Don't you think scheduling is getting harder now though with the P5 circling the wagons on non-conference scheduling?

I don't think its automatic that Duke and Wake will do anything to play them anymore like it was in the 90's

I think Division-less Football is inevitable, but it's an explosive issue with the B12 trying to hang on to Oklahoma and Texas.

ESPN wants to get the full value from their AAC product, and that means a CCG (and 20 Basketball games). ESPN/ABC owns 7 of the 10 CCG rights (CBS has the SEC and CUSA, FOX the B1G) and their partnerships deep with 2 of the others (SEC and B1G). None of these conferences wants to cross ESPN.

The waiver to let the AAC be one game short of round robin due to imbalance is the easiest solution, and it doesn't rock the boat like Division-less football. Also the NCAA tends to give the first 2 year waivers out like candy, to allow conferences time to get back into compliance. So the waiver is really a waiver renewal issue in 2022, and I see no reason it would not be passed and as a 4 year waiver, just to not bother with it again until after the B12 drama is complete.

When in the history has NCAA or P5 ever helped the AAC in football? No way a four year waiver. I can see one at most to allow a team to transition. If AAC decides not to add a team, then it is not a hardship. Again, I think this will aid in getting rid of divisions and forcing P5 conferences to align with 9 conference games. Which likely forces AAC to go to a nine schedule as well.