Eric Ruby

Washington meeting with Big 10 - Brett McMurphy 8/31/22

Nah. They took the only ones they wanted from the B12 with Tx/Ok.

The SEC taking ACC schools before the contract is up would be a big disservice to ESPN who just put a boatload of cash up front to launch the ACCN. The ESPN programming president said yesterday it’ll take 20 years to see return on that investment. ESPN would lose a ton of money if that happened. The SEC are partners with ESPN. SEC isn’t gonna screw over their only TV partner. ESPN wouldn’t pay more to the SEC for FSU and Clemson or others, while also taking a financial hit. Too add, ESPN still has exclusive rights to FSU/UF, Ga/GT, S car/Clemson, Clemson/FSU, UL/KY and the ACC vs SEC neutral site kickoff games.

Burke Magnus, the ESPN President of Programming and Content, told the Sports Business Journal talked about the ACC deal, yesterday. He said in 2016 they put down a ton of $$ up front to launch the ACCN. The deal is so long because it takes about 20 years to see any return on it. So basically the ACCN has to succeed and needs the conference in tact, as is to do so. So the SEC is a full partner of ESPN, as well. The GoR put in place was for a reason. Without it, they’d have never launched the ACC network. ESPN and the SEC have a great relationship and are extending their deal through 2034. Basically SEC raiding the ACC would be doing ESPN a massive disservice before 2036. They’d lose a lot $$$. This also means ESPN wouldn’t increase the SEC deal with any new ACC teams until their next go around in 2034. It was a great interview. I mean look at the SEC. They don’t need FSU or Clemson to be relevant. He talked a lot about expansion and how it works. He was professional, so he didn’t give any ideas of who goes where or not. He did say he believed the Big12 was very stable and looked to continue that partnership. Said the same about the PAC, but said they’re working on their stability. He also mentioned rivalries being more important than markets. https://twitter.com/andrewmarchand/status/1562394305049903104?s=21&t=w_CplnRAUM4ebwcrOfYTpA

Timmy will redshirt this year, so he won’t be able to play against USF. But one thing is for sure in all of this, unless Jeff Scott rewrites the entire playbook, he’s going to have everything he knows available to UCF in game prep for that game. He’s the best scout team UCF could ask for in this game. He’ll give them everything.

Also, hearing some chatter on the Big 12 TV deal. Apparently it’s looking like Fox and ESPN are going to have a bidding war on Tier 1 rights for the Big 12. Fox still has time slots in the afternoon and night. ESPN has their noon games and other slots too. Fox is also interested due to them currently not having any teams in FL. That’s a big missing piece. Sure right now it might only be UCF in FL, so how much does that move the needle alone? Right? So what brings more value? USF was on the Big 12 radar last go around. It could get real interesting. Just sayin’.

Here’s a good listen. Former Fox Tv exec Bob Thompson explains how the GoR is separate from the TV deal. As I said, the ACC GoR is put together by the conference only. The conference uses that GoR to present to the TV networks when negotiating a new TV deal. It show them solidarity and commitment. Not every conference has a GoR. Big 10 and SEC aren’t in fear of anyone being poached. Bob Thompson on air with Marc Daniels

Right, no matter what, the ACC won’t exist eventually. This is way different that the Big East thing. ESPN invested a lot into the ACC. They don’t run things how fans would prefer, they run things to what makes financial sense. They created an ACC Network and put a lot into that. Why would ESPN want to pay 2-4 more schools they get cheap and pay them another $60 mil a year? ESPN doesn’t care if they’re frantic now, too bad. They signed the deal. Plus ESPN gets FSU vs FL, Ga v Ga Tech, Clemson v South Carolina now, too. What if FSU and Clemson get poached by Fox and the B1G? B1G would love to tap into FL. USF fans should hope the ACC stays together. If it falls apart, the big 10 and SEC will gobble up the teams they want and the rest will join the Big12.

I don’t think anyone is letting anyone leave early. That’ll blow up the conference and leave a lot of schools stranded. ESPN would be pissed to. Nobody in college football has any desire to rescue the likes of Clemson and FSU from the ACC. That includes ESPN, the SEC, Big 10 and especially the other ACC schools.

No. If the SEC wanted to pay FSU $100 mil a year, that entire $100 mil goes to to ACC. Not the $35 mil. It’s not what ESPN is paying them now, it ALL rights. Meaning it’ll never be money minus what the other conference offers. So if the the Big 10 says we’ll pay FSU $100 mil, the ACC gets $35 mil. It’s a ACC gets 100% of that $100 mil.

It does not matter. No ACC team makes any $$ for those way games in a new conference. They’re not gonna make 50% of the $100 mil playing away games. Plus the ESPN $500 mil buyout + $120 mil exit fee. No team will do that. They’ll be negative.

Brett Yormark is intense. He’s also in good standing with the B1G commish, Warren. Things are gonna get interesting imo. I am standing by the fact that when USF’s next step up happens, it’ll be Big12. That TV market is advised by networks. UCF got invited because of future projections of TV value due to large alumni. USF has 50k students. Both are in huge markets and combined are #4 nationally. It’s well known. USF’s future is not the ACC, it’s the Big12. Your AD is waiting on a Big12 deal, before ACC. We’ll see what happens, but it’s not SDSU, it’s eastern, I think.

No school is gonna make any money on away games or take any deal where they hope for away game money. No network will make that happen. It’s senseless. It’s silliness to think so. Again, no P5 school would do that for season ticket sales with a better schedule, either. It’s not even the same ballpark.

Yup

It’s a grant of rights, not a TV contract. It grants the media rights for every school thru 2036 to the ACC, no matter where they go. The whole point of it was to make it virtually impossible to get out of. I never say never, but it’s been looked at and nobody is challenging it. It’s this: 1. ACC Grant if Rights - ACC owns TV media rights to all schools thru 2036 2. ESPN TV contract buyout. $35 mil per every year left on the contract thru 2036z 3. Exit fee of $120 million

I don’t think UCF would decline that game. It’d be nice to have a game within driving distance. It’s also way better than FCS or CUSA opponents and will sell tickets, too. I think USF’s OOC is booked until 2028. Another issue is that the Big 12 will be playing 9 conference games leaving UCF with only 3 non-conference.

Not an interpretation, the GoR only applies to each school’s TV rights being owned by the ACC until 2036. That’s it. Has nothing to do with ESPN. ESPN cannot touch the ACC’s Grant of Rights or has any part of the GoR. The TV contract is totally 100% separate and has its own buyout clause. On top of those two penalties, there’s also a $120 million exit fee that has nothing to do with the TV contract.

The GoR coincides with the time frame of the ESPN contract. The Grant of Rights itself has no buyout. It just states that the ACC owns the media rights for whatever sports ESPN is currently covering for each school until 2036. For instance, if FSU went to the Big10 under a FOX deal, any $$ that would go to FSU would go to the ACC to be split between the remaining members. The ESPN TV contract does have a buyout. Two separate contracts. Two separate penalties. This is a great breakdown of the GoR from ESPN’s Andrea Adelson. Open the tweet and read her thread. https://twitter.com/aadelsonespn/status/1545437213214838785?s=21&t=LgQeEcIowN5GPBnj1cuWRA

I actually think the Big 12 will be USF’s landing spot, even if the Big12 lands some PAC12 schools. The alumni base combined and market combo of Orlando/Tampa is something the Big12 seriously researched. The attention has been on the PAC12 vs Big12. But there’s TV value with USF/UCF that cannot be ignored by TV. UCF is alone on an island and more east coast games are definitely a big plus. It doesn’t hurt having a passionate rivalry game on the docket either. I don’t know when, but USF could possibly be invited next summer and start playing by the 2025 season. Brett Yormark will be working with the networks big time throughout the year and working on a new deal next summer. If USF gets in the Big12, you hope the ACC GoR lasts thru 2036. Buys time to grow in a P5 or P4 or whatever it’ll be, with FSU and Miami basically making the same $$. When 2036 comes, it will be a crazy time. Way more crazy than even now.

The ACC GoR is the same length as the ACC ESPN contract, but the GoR and the ESPN TV contract are two separate contracts. They’re not one in the same or connected. The GoR is an ACC agreement alone. So any new teams would just have to sign on to that very same GoR until 2036, no matter what could be renegotiated with ESPN. The ACC wouldn’t risk any chance to causing anything that could allow schools out and send them all off, anyhow. They’ll hold tight. Texas and Oklahoma signed a 14 year Big 12 GoR just like this one. That Big 12 GoR ends in 2025. Texas and Oklahoma with all that Texas $$ are waiting that full 14 years to join the SEC in 2025.

Big12 will be the lifeboat for the PAC12. Next summer will be very interesting. That’s when the Big12 media rights negotiations begin.

That’s not how the GoR works. FSU and Clemson would get $0 until 2036 if they left. They’re not going to take $0 just to beef up their schedule. ESPN would hate that too. Its just that TV couldn’t air their home games. Not to mention they’d have to pay like $500 million on top of the loss of rights. It’s not one or the other. All ACC teams are stuck until 2036. As for the PAC 12, they’re toast by 2024. That’s when their GoR is expired and nobody is going to want to sign a new PAC12 GoR and are getting lowballed from ESPN right now, scrambling to find a Tv deal. Big 12 will land new members from the PAC. I think by 2025 there will no longer be a P5. It will be a P4. New CFB Playoff starts in 2026. But nobody knows who will be involved with that or how. The current format and committee expire in 2025. So right now, the CFP format and leadership does not exist in any form as of 2026. For all we know, B1G/SEC can try to run it themselves and take all the money. But I don’t see that happening. I think it’ll be expanded to 12 games include more at large opportunities. P4 will be ACC, SEC, Big12 and B1G until 2036. After 2036, all hell breaks loose.

Adding schools does not change the GoR. The new schools would have to sign the GoR that ends in 2036, as well. Adding schools does not mean more revenue, it would mean less. Adding Oregon or Washington wouldn’t even add revenue. They’re looking at barely $25 mil yr in the PAC. They’re stuck and will just have to wait all the way until 2036, no matter how pissed off it makes certain teams that want out.

ACC Grant of Rights The ACC Grant of Rights will not be broken until it officially ends in 2036. It takes 100% of the ACC members to vote on it. The GoR says so on page 4, section 8. Attorneys can do nothing to break it. It was sighed by all members to stay true until 2036. There are no loopholes. The ACC GoR has zero to do with the TV contract. Every school signed over to the ACC all TV/media rights to all until 2036. That cannot be bought out with any amount. The buyouts are totally separate. More on that in a bit. It means FSU and Clemson could leave, if they wanted. But the rest of the ACC gets all of their TV revenue and can decide whether or not they’re allowed to be in TV at all until 2036. They make zero $$ until 2036. Too add, if they left, they’d have to pay out their share of the remaining TV contract. If they left in 2026, they’d owe $350 million. Then there is the AAC exit fee of $100 million. Totally separate from the TV buyout. All of that to leave the ACC is real. It can be fought in court, but they have no case. Each president signed the Grant of Rights over to the ACC. Judge would throw it out. Here’s some perspective. The ACC modeled their GoR exactly after the Big 12 GoR signed in 2012. Big 12 GoR expires in 2025. Texas and Oklahoma will not join the SEC until 2025. That is not speculation, that was confirmed a month or so ago. The reason being is that GoR. With all that money Texas has, they could not get out of that GoR even with only 2-3 years left on it. Even then it was too costly and the Big 12 owns their TV rights until then. The ACC is totally stuck. But that bodes well for USF. Buys a lot of time.

https://twitter.com/brett_mcmurphy/status/1549220322242707456?s=21&t=6-Rw541IXMkF4maCxbXeaA