And so it begins ... Pac 12 commissioner wants to break from NCAA

[jpfalcon09]

I read expansion is FAR from done. Apparently the Big 12 wants in the fun and will target the Pac 12 - AZ, ASU, Utah, etc. Maybe Big 10 takes some remainders of the Pac 12? SEC raids who they want in the ACC? Who knows.

I'm interested in what all this means for BG and for Purdue, my other Alma Mater. Will the MAC end up as an NCAA conference where the big greedies end up as an NFL minor league? Will Purdue be able to keep up with OSU, Michigan, and USC?

Honestly I'm sad for the sport. Not really excited about this. But nothing can stop it.

A majority of the power five schools will be fine. I don't see the Big Ten kicking out its legacy members anytime soon. Group of five? Really depends on what the haves choose to do. I can see a world where the cupcake games are phased out. If so, BG, the MAC, and the G5 are probably going to struggle to justify keeping their programs going.

[Falconfreak90]

I can see all this eventually making me not want to follow college football anymore if it basically turns the whole thing into pro development leagues. It's a shame some people seem intent on destroying what was once something that brought a lot of enjoyment to a lot of people, even if it wasn't a perfect system. When I wax nostalgic about how fun college football was growing up and the direction it's heading now, I start feeling like Stan in the South Park episode when he gets old and depressed.

This is how I am beginning to feel. I've been watching BG and MAC football since 1983 & the greed is killing the game. I couldn't care less for the No Fun League so it's college and HS for me.

[2006Grad]

Couldn’t agree more, I love what college football is: tradition, rivalries, amazing locations and really just the connection you can have with a college that you attended.
I never would have expected it to go away during my lifetime and am bummed my son won’t get to experience it.
Perhaps it is my hatred of the idea, but this just doesn’t seem sustainable. OSU is widely popular in the state of Ohio because it is the state school with a huge alumni base. If the team playing in “the shoe”has no connection to the college how many of those alumni still care? Further more all the “Walmart OSU” fans already have a pro team to root for, are they really going to invest the time and money for a semi pro team that they did for the state college?

[pdt1081]

Couldn’t agree more, I love what college football is: tradition, rivalries, amazing locations and really just the connection you can have with a college that you attended.
I never would have expected it to go away during my lifetime and am bummed my son won’t get to experience it.
Perhaps it is my hatred of the idea, but this just doesn’t seem sustainable. OSU is widely popular in the state of Ohio because it is the state school with a huge alumni base. If the team playing in “the shoe”has no connection to the college how many of those alumni still care? Further more all the “Walmart OSU” fans already have a pro team to root for, are they really going to invest the time and money for a semi pro team that they did for the state college?

As long as the team has the same name as the school, 90% of them won't even know the difference.

[Flipper]

Agreed..the OSU fanboys aren't going to care about any of that. They'll still lay out the $$$ for that sweet scarlet and grey merch.

I read somewhere that Ryan Day thinks he'll need $13 million to maintain a roster. Crazy....

[2006Grad]

I am sure this is correct, but at some point it will take 30 million plus to pay for the roster and coaching staff. It would seem that at some point the football team will have to disconnect from the university and run as a private organization?
Will the alumni shell out money for a team that isn’t connected to their college? The Ohio football team of the independent league of former colleges, doesn’t have the same ring to it lol

[Flipper]

Washington and Oregon approach the Big 10 and are told "not now". Presumably, the big 10 is after Notre Dame....who would seem to have a lot of leverage in playing the Big 10 off against the the ACC.

Would one of these super conferences ever boot a traditional member in favor of another school?

[MarkL]

Washington and Oregon approach the Big 10 and are told "not now". Presumably, the big 10 is after Notre Dame....who would seem to have a lot of leverage in playing the Big 10 off against the the ACC.

Would one of these super conferences ever boot a traditional member in favor of another school?

Hence my concern about Purdue. USC and UCLA are making this move because the Big Ten has several superpower programs. Purdue is not among them. With tradition dead, what's to stop the Big Ten from being Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State, Wisconsin, ND, USC, UCLA, Clemson, Miami, and Kansas or some other configuration of only top tier football and/or basketball powers and media markets?

[FalconTurf]

Washington and Oregon approach the Big 10 and are told "not now". Presumably, the big 10 is after Notre Dame....who would seem to have a lot of leverage in playing the Big 10 off against the the ACC.

Would one of these super conferences ever boot a traditional member in favor of another school?

USC and UCLA just LEFT the PAC## for the BIG##, anything is possible based on this event IMO. I can’t imagine the bottom tier not looking over their shoulders at this point. They best be proactive rather than reactive now

[Critical Thinker]

Washington and Oregon approach the Big 10 and are told "not now". Presumably, the big 10 is after Notre Dame....who would seem to have a lot of leverage in playing the Big 10 off against the the ACC.

Would one of these super conferences ever boot a traditional member in favor of another school?

With tradition dead, what's to stop the Big Ten from being Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State, Wisconsin, ND, USC, UCLA, Clemson, Miami, and Kansas or some other configuration of only top tier football and/or basketball powers and media markets?

They need 5-6 annual cupcakes to beat up on.

See Miami hockey for what happens when you join the bottom half of an exclusive super conference.

[jpfalcon09]

Washington and Oregon approach the Big 10 and are told "not now". Presumably, the big 10 is after Notre Dame....who would seem to have a lot of leverage in playing the Big 10 off against the the ACC.

Would one of these super conferences ever boot a traditional member in favor of another school?

USC and UCLA just LEFT the PAC## for the BIG##, anything is possible based on this event IMO. I can’t imagine the bottom tier not looking over their shoulders at this point. They best be proactive rather than reactive now

Only school at risk for being booted is Nebraska because they lost their AAU accreditation, something the Big Ten cares a lot about. Can't see any backstabbing with any other members.

[Bgsu2016]

I worry CFB is going to go the way of NASCAR. Sport was as hot as ever but broke away from the tradition for cash and once the recession hit, bottomed out like a rock in a pond. I just can't imagine they'd allow a full breakaway from the NCAA, the other sports are solid cash cows for ESPN programming and draw solid ratings. College basketball, hockey, baseball, softball & lacrosse just would not viable if the P5 broke away costing everyone billions

[jpfalcon09]

I worry CFB is going to go the way of NASCAR. Sport was as hot as ever but broke away from the tradition for cash and once the recession hit, bottomed out like a rock in a pond. I just can't imagine they'd allow a full breakaway from the NCAA, the other sports are solid cash cows for ESPN programming and draw solid ratings. College basketball, hockey, baseball, softball & lacrosse just would not viable if the P5 broke away costing everyone billions

The wheels are in motion for it to happen. This all comes down to two entities - ESPN and FOX. Both are offering up insane amounts of cash to the B1G and SEC, and the power players outside of those two conferences are eager to get a piece of the action. That's solely what the Texas/OU moves were about, and the same now for USC/UCLA. The question now becomes is who else do those two conferences want to bolster their lineups. I think it's fair to assume that 20-24 schools in each is the goal, with 10-12 team divisions, and the winners of those divisions playing for a conference championship and a berth to the playoff.

It wouldn't be that difficult for those conferences to renounce the NCAA, break away, and establish some sort of Board of Directors or Commissioner to oversee the affairs of the schools and conferences. The NCAA will still exist, but only to serve as a governing body to college basketball and down, and as a body to whatever remains in college football.

The handwriting is on the wall. The MAC's TV deal is up in 2026. If ESPN kicks them to the curb, I think MAC football dies a quick death in the FBS and programs either fold or drop to a lower level to reduce the financial burden they'll assuredly be forced to bear. Might be a blessing in disguise as most on here would have BGSU focus on hoops and hockey as opposed to the rat race in football which is now becoming nothing more than a grand illusion.

[BillyLP]

Interesting that this thread started around the P-12 commissioners comments and now they are the ones who might die a quick death. Big 12 expected to either add 6 teams from the Pac-12 (Arizona, ASU, Utah, Colorado, Oregon & Washington) or merge the two conferences altogether and have a Big 12 East and Big 12 West.

[Flipper]

UCLA was motivated by their athletics department's "crushing debt".

https://saturdaytradition.com/big-ten-f ... ining-b1g/