As stated above... Would you be on board with this AAC if it meant AQ status and true P6 conference affiliation? Guaranteed spot in one of the Peach, Cotton, or Fiesta Bowls annually.
Full bore ESPN contract for their content, and be in the $400-500M range.
Roughly $18-22M per school (depending on FB vs non, etc). CFP bowl cash and NCAA units on top of that.
Incorporate all the the remaining name brands/known schools with solid fan bases that draw eyes to TV sets. Restore rivalries and driveable games (we see how COVID has affected this), but with all of the plusses of a National brand and reach.
Have solid Basketball with VCU, Wichita, and Zags aboard.
Some schools will have protected cross div rivals.
———
American Athletic Conference
East
——————
1-Army (NY)*
2-Navy (MD)*
3-Temple (PA)
4-East Carolina (NC)
5-Marshall (WV)
6-Cincinnati (OH)
7-UCF (FL)
8-USF (FL)
*(VCU) (VA)
Central
—————
1-Memphis (TN)
2-Southern Miss (MS)
3-Tulane (LA)
4-Houston (TX)
5-SMU (TX)
6-Tulsa (OK)
7-New Mexico (NM)
8-Air Force (CO)
*(Wichita St) (KS)
West
—————
1-Colorado St (CO)
2-Wyoming (WY)
3-BYU (UT)
4-Boise St (ID)
5-UNLV (NV)
6-Fresno St (CA)
7-San Diego St. (CA)
8-Hawaii (HI)
*(Gonzaga) (WA)
——————
1: Non-conference G4/P6
2: Non-conference P6
3: Non-conference P6
4: Interdivisional (Rotating)/fixed for SA
5: Divisional
6: Divisional
7: Divisional
8: Divisional
9: Divisional
10: Divisional
11: Divisional
12: *Interdivisional (set by conference office/TV for best matchup at end of year to set the following week Conference Champ game. This ensures there aren’t 3 undefeated teams in 3 divisions going into conf champ game, as well as setting highest ranked matchups for TV ratings, bowl selections, etc.)
**13: (away Hawaii game/extra home game)
AAC Champ Game: Top 2 Highest Rated Division Winners (Record/Playoff Committee Ranking)
———————
ESPN contract
Thursday prime time (ESPN/ESPN2/ESPNU)
Friday prime time (ESPN/ESPN2/ESPNU)
Sat Noon-Midnight
games across all the networks (ABC/ESPN/ESPN2/ESPNU/ESPN+)
Any game not on one of the ESPN networks, will be broadcast on ESPN+ internationally, and will have 3rd Tier access rights available to pick up on local networks.
—————————
Bowl Games:
——————-
Top Tier:
AQ spot/AAC Champ
*NY6 / Playoff
•Fiesta Bowl
•Cotton Bowl
•Peach Bowl
P6 Tier 1 Traditional Bowl Games:
(highest profile backup games selected first, if available, then all contractual Tier 1 spots filled thereafter. Based on geography, matchup, and ranking as much as possible for fan support).
•Liberty Bowl vs SEC/Big XII
(Liberty Bowl Stadium/Memphis, Tenn.)
•Cheez-It Tangerine Bowl vs ACC/Big XII
(Camping World Stadium/Orlando, Fla.)
•Copper Bowl (Cactus Bowl) vs Big XII/PAC-12 (Chase Field/Phoenix, Ariz.)
•Independence Bowl vs ACC/ND/PAC-12
(Independence Stadium/Shreveport, La.)
•Aloha (Hawaii) Bowl vs PAC-12
(Aloha Stadium/Honolulu, Hawaii)
•Military Bowl vs ACC/ND
(Navy-Marine Corp. Memorial Stadium/Annapolis, Md.)
•First Responder Bowl vs Big XII
(Cotton Bowl Stadium/Dallas, Texas)
•Fenway Bowl vs ACC/ND
(Fenway Park/Boston, Mass.)
•Gasparilla Bowl vs SEC
(Raymond James Stadium/Tampa, Fla.)
•Armed Forces Bowl vs Big XII/BigTen
(Amon G. Carter Stadium/Fort Worth, Texas)
•Birmingham Bowl vs SEC
(Legion Field/Birmingham, Ala.)
————
*Holiday Bowl vs BigTen/PAC-12 (backup)
(San Diego, Calif.)
*Sun Bowl vs PAC-12/ACC/ND (backup)
(El Paso, Texas)
*Las Vegas Bowl vs PAC-12/BigTen/SEC (backup)
(Las Vegas, Nev.)
*Red Box Bowl vs Big Ten/PAC-12 (backup)
(Santa Clara, Calif.)
————
After all Tier 1 games, and backup slots are filled, Tier 2 selections will take place if teams are still available.
Tier 2 Bowl Games:
•Myrtle Beach Bowl (Conway, S.C.)
•Boca Raton Bowl (Boca Raton, Fla.)
•New Orleans Bowl (New Orleans, La.)
•Cure Bowl (Orlando, Fla.)
•Frisco Bowl (Frisco, Texas)
•New Mexico Bowl (Albuquerque, N.M.)
•Idaho Potato Bowl (Boise, Idaho)