They can opt out in February 2025 and the current deal would end in 2027. They could opt out no matter what Clemson and FSU do. But that would be kind of dumb of ESPN since they have them on a really cheap deal right now.
Its looking like everytime we move up the conference gets watered back down to where we were. Need bold new conferences after the split.
1 Like
Part of the process of conference affiliations is to make room for new teams a conference loses their best teams unless you are the top dog (SEC/B10).
You are right once the p2 happens officially really need a total bold vision with conferences.
I would retool the other 8 FBS leagues and a handful or so of top tier FCS programs (thinking mainly of the Dakotas and Montana) as College sports 2.0 (not that name, just the concept).
Go back to the drawing board, planning out everything from sponsorships, athlete eligibility / recruiting/ and revenue sharing (if any), promotional opportunities for corporations, preseason, season, and playoff/championship structures, and regional leagues. I would seriously look at a 2 tiered approach with promotion/ relegation. And I would negotiate one single media rights package. Everything would be targeted at maximizing fan support, ease of access for fans (physical and streaming), and visibility / branding. Iâd have branded / sponsored championships, awards, everything. And Iâd make sure the brand(s) were consistent and everywhere.
At the same time I would embrace the best parts of college traditions whenever possible and highlight that this is still college sports, and not some minor league like the P2. Iâd lean hard into that, rather than shying away or feeling lesser.
Time to rethink how everything is done. Bring in the best minds and work it all out.
And I absolutely would NOT play the P2 in anything. Let them die on the vine after the novelty wears off and the reality that 2/3rds of those programs are going to have losing records every single year with no hope in sight sinks in.
4 Likes
It really is going to take the colleges and conferences coming together and deciding their priority isnât the success of their program over others but the success of the college model in general.
We really havent had a leader in college sports willing to do that.
2 Likes
Thatâs the one thing I absolutely agree with. I hope it will be the case. But I fear again nothing will be all that different. They are going to be perceived as the premier conference/division. There are always going to be schools wanting to compete against the best. Theyâre not going to want to piss those schools off. A diluted new division means the schools will have even more money to offer for an extra home game.
A solid media deal that adequately supports the athletic departments of the âG8â, while scaling back expenses with regional leagues and smarter scheduling, along with improved attendance again from regionalizing, would go a long way in promoting the viability of boycotting the P2.
Iâm not naive, I know as long as the P2 has money they will continue to waive guarantees at the G8 teams, and continue to poach players with the 
.
But if the schools can achieve some solidarity, they can survive, and maybe even prosper. Eventually the novelty luster will wear off of the P2 and people will decide what they want out of college sports: Minor league football against distant opponents with no draft or salary cap to promote competition? Or something more closely approaching the old school regional rivalries and less professional (overpaid divas) athletes. Itâs a genuine question. I know which Iâll prefer, but I cannot predict the public. I just have my suspicions, especially several years in.
2 Likes
And Iâve said it beforeâŚif the P2 morphs into a minor league pro league (paying players, ever changing rosters, etc)âŚno minor league professional football league has ever survived. USFL, XFL, UFL, Arena LeagueâŚnone of them.
What makes college football special is the rivalries, pageantry, traditions, connection to the players, the legacy of the players/teams that endure, etc.
Iâll absolutely take whatever true college football model breaks off from this P2 craziness. All. Day. Long.
6 Likes
Reminds me of those tech companies and the parties they had before they crashed and burned a couple of years later. Texas of course will not crash and burn but the system they are buying into might.
Going to be a hell of a possible 30 -30 documentary one day
2 Likes
Who would you guys like to see as a non football member if we bring one in?
clt would be ok with uconn
1 Like
Actually a good comparison in other ways too, some of those tech companies are still the big dogs controlling everything. (Nvidia, Amazon, MS, Apple, Facebook, Google)
AgainâŚthis is already happening. Ever heard of the the South Atlantic Conference. All of what youâre saying hinges on a âsolidâ media deal. I donât see that happening.
There will be regional rivalries, just maybe not as regional as youâre describing. Missouri was already in a conference with Florida. PSU was already in a conference with Minnesota. Clemson was already in a conference with Syracuse. Nebraska with Maryland. Houston with Cincy.
Look, I realize you think I keep poopooing your regional rivalries and tier 2 thriving. Iâm not really. I wish everything was more regional too. All Iâm saying is in order for something like that to work, you need the big boys to be a part of it as well. There is no world where a Florida, Michigan, Texas, etc sees any bit of success from a tier 2 format potentially taking money from them that they donât poach the top teams from tier 2, that they donât implement state legaslation to make it more difficult, thet they donât change the rules again, that they donât do everything in their power to not be an inferior product.
If, and this is a big if, since the ACC seems to be squandering a little bit, if after they lose FSU, Clemson, Miami; the ACC then says, weâre going back to the way it used to be become more regional again, if a P4 conference with a few marquee schools still in took that approach, then maybe that would have a chance of being successful and persuading the B12 to take the same approach. But like I said, thatâs a big IF.
Could not more strongly disagree with you on two points:
-
Relegation / Promotion 2 tiered system does not NEED the P2 to be successful. Itâd be nice, but since it isnât happening, itâs pointless to keep bringing it up. It can be a strong draw to differentiate the G8 from the P2. Itâs part of the greater plan I outlined, and there is routinely interest expressed amongst G8 fans on social media. If you organize it as 4 or 5 tier 1 leagues, 1 per each major geographical region, and then match them with an equal # of regional tier 2 leagues in the same regions (eg you get promoted from a newly established WAC to the MWC - those two are paired promo / rel groups), it creates that same sense of regional rivalry and pride that the English soccer system does, without requiring san jose state to have to regularly schedule Louisiana Tech or some other such stupidity.
-
There will be 94 (+/- 10) G8 schools when the breakaway happens. They donât need the P2. Theyâd love their money, but there is safety in numbers. That is the overwhelming majority of college programs. They donât have the viewership of the P2 as of today, but with that many programs and smart scheduling and regional rivalries like I and many many many others are advocating, the burnout from the reality of the P2 and the return to the core of what makes college sports great that I am proposing for the G8 gives those 94 programs the best chance to thrive on their own.
Youâve already made it abundantly clear that we all owe our existence to the P2 overlords (
wtf ever). I strongly disagree. There is no need for you to keep saying it because youâre not presenting any new ideas.
The ultimate model that they want will retain some past conference foes - so they arent ever going to lose all their rivalries at the top. Auburn/Bama, Michigan/OSU. If Chapel Hill joins they lose theirs likely. They keep maybe FAU and Clemson but they lose Duke and State and Wake. Plus weve already lost OK and OSU, OR and ORS, etc. We will see how those fans react long term.
The G8 will find their success in getting back to something that makes sense. It wont be to stay in far flung leagues without significant media money. As long as the B12 and I guess the ACC see themselves as at the same level as the SEC and B10 nothing drastic is going to happen. When the big shift happens - consolidation of teams, dropping dead weight, etc then we will see what the G8 schools do. Unless a new tv partner with big money steps up it will force some changes.
I still say ultimately the P2 or superleague or semipro league or NFL Lite - whatever your term for it will fail because ultimately they wont pull the numbers at the network level they want. They will make a ton of money, but the growth trajectory will determine if it works long term. I dont see the entire college audience jumping on board with their bucket of teams and the demographics show the the next generation of fans might not be there. If they remake the 2 conferences dropping teams fans love in favor of new big brands and donât do anything to introduce parity while also telling about 100 schools fans to get bent - i just dont see it working long term and if those other 100 schools decide to get back to something closer to what we had maybe that can influence what comes after. I think the issue with elevating the G8 success stories - is while they might drive some ratings, their brand ultimately wont be worth splitting the pie with. I think that is the opportunity for the rest of us. New blue blood brands just donât really happen. It takes decades to rise to those levels.
It is going to be interesting to watch. The college athletics world doesnt look anything like it did when I was 20 -I am 50 now and I am sure it will be just as crazy when im 80.
And you are presenting new ideas? Good one! Your post that I responded to said âitâs a genuine questionâ. I guess your genuine question only wanted a response that agreed with you? If you havenât noticed, I mostly only comment in response. I generally donât initiate the conversation. SoâŚif you donât continue to post your abundantly clear position, you wouldnât see my responses.
The fact that you consider my opinion as we owe our existence to P4 means that I apparently havenât made my position abundantly clear. Youâre the one using P2 when there isnât even an official P2 yet. Youâre the one using SuperLeague, Iâve used division 1.
My ideal solution would be for calmer heads to prevail, and decide that the current the FBS schools should be divided into roughly 10-12 regional conferences with 10-12 schools in each conference. We needed the NCAA to be more authoritative or for Congress to step in order for that to happen. Of course neither of those has happened thus far.
I assume part of what youâre perceiving as we owe our existence to P4 is because I want to compete in the same division as them. I want to compete in the same division as them because that is what is going to be considered as the national champion, highest competition, etc. Forgive me for wanting my school to be the best in the country.
Youâre idea of a division 2 as excelling and division 1 as failing is just not realistic in my opinion. It sounds exactly the same as what App fans were saying about FCS merits when we went FBS, then App immediately jumped to FBS at the first opportunity. Does that mean App fans think they owe their existence to P2 overlords? Or, does it mean they wanted to compete against the best?
The fact of the matter is both sides have stated their opinion countless times, bringing nothing new to the table. Weâre all in a holding pattern to see how this shakes out. We did recently have a NC representative try to fight for the good guys. Of course it failed. We also had Or St and Wash St try to sort of fight for the good guys. Of course that failed as well. But mostly itâs been a waiting game.
I agree with this, but it just isnt possible anymore. Not just in football but exceedingly in basketball, baseball, softball and more. We canât compete. We just canât. We can not play the game the big boys are playing. I want to play at that level, I just donât see how we can. At this point I would rather be with other schools with like challenges. If we are right and the superleague or whatever is 30ish schools, then being the group down wonât be a big deal as there will be plenty of schools that we will be excited about playing - schools like VT or GT or Sincy, etc. and more akin to what college sports has been vs the pro model happening at top level. IF we are wrong and the P2 break is 40-60 schools then itâs gonna suck for us as that starts resembling FCSish levels. If its over 60 schools that break and we donât make it then that really is basically a totally different division which will impact absolutely everything with our athletics and not in a good way.
Really depends on how big the breakaway group is.
If and its a huge IF, someone were to push the idea of prom/rel at the college level then all of this starts to work better. Since we are minimizing history and rivalries and geography then why not? I just donât see the top willing give that. To Hootieâs point below - not everyone gets the cheerleader, but it gives everyone a shot to ask her out.
1 Like