Post by elp525 on Jan 23, 2011 12:13:50 GMT -5
January 22, 2011
By Mitch Vingle
The Charleston Gazette
IN MY Friday column, I inserted a tidbit that may have been overlooked in the storm that was Marshall's basketball victory over West Virginia in the Capital Classic.
The tidbit had to do with ESPN and the Big East.
The word I'm getting is the two entities are beginning to discuss whether it's in their interests to negotiate a new contract.
You may have heard the latest in regard to college athletics and television: Texas signed a 20-year $300-million deal with ESPN. (As if the Longhorn program needed it.)
It's the latest report of spikes in television money regarding conference athletics. The SEC signed a 15-year deal with ESPN and CBS in July 2009 worth $3 billion. The ACC signed a 12-year deal with ESPN worth $1.86 billion.
The Big East, meanwhile, seriously lags behind all of the other BCS conferences at around $40 million. Back in 2006, deals were reached with ESPN and ABC for football that run through 2013. The hoops deal, which includes CBS, runs through the 2012-13 season.
Since then, ex-NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue was enlisted to help, and word is he's been concentrating on the television issues. Also, TCU has been approved as a future Big East member.
Big East commissioner John Marinatto has said if new members are added before the current TV contracts expire, his office could seek to renegotiate.
Thus, apparently, brings us to this point: Both the conference and ESPN are deciding if this is the time to negotiate.
It's a crucial time for Marinatto. A crucial call.
The Big East could decide this is the time to negotiate and try to strike a deal while the dollars are flying. Maybe it's time to strike, even though the league is coming off one of its worst football seasons ever.
On the other hand, the league could decide to wait. The football schools collectively have to do better next season, right? They can't do any worse. If Marinatto rolls the dice to wait two years, maybe the league will have back-to-back strong seasons and further improve the bargaining position.
Then again, there are risks. ESPN, which, let's face it, controls college football, could start running out of slots. It has the SEC (mostly) and ACC. Contracts for the Big 12 and Pac-10 are coming up, and the network will most likely increase its stakes there.
So does the Big East wait?
Yes, there are other options. Perhaps the best news of late was Conference USA's deal with Fox Sports. A player in the marketplace.
There are others, of course. A merger of Comcast and NBC Universal received federal approval, which could make for a possibly huge player. Versus, under the management of NBC Sports, is becoming a bigger deal. CBS and CBS College Sports are players.
The question is, what best suits the Big East? Where can the schools within earn the most money? The latter is a vital question because most schools are already doing the best they can in regard to marketing and fundraising. They are doing the best they can at selling football and basketball tickets. Radio deals are probably maximized.
That leaves television as the one revenue stream that can be widened, especially in light of the latest deals. Not only do Big East schools have to keep their own athletic programs afloat, they also have to keep pace with other leagues like the Big Ten and ACC.
Much of it, of course, is about timing. The ACC might not have received its huge contract had news of Nebraska heading to the Big Ten and Colorado heading to the Pac-10 not hit at that time, portending the decline or fall of the Big 12. All of a sudden the ACC looked pretty good.
So Marinatto and company must decide. Is the timing right for the Big East? Do they deal with ESPN now? Do they wait? ESPN is the safest route, but should the conference take a flyer with one of the other potential players?
Coming up with the correct answers is the commissioner's latest charge.
By Mitch Vingle
The Charleston Gazette
IN MY Friday column, I inserted a tidbit that may have been overlooked in the storm that was Marshall's basketball victory over West Virginia in the Capital Classic.
The tidbit had to do with ESPN and the Big East.
The word I'm getting is the two entities are beginning to discuss whether it's in their interests to negotiate a new contract.
You may have heard the latest in regard to college athletics and television: Texas signed a 20-year $300-million deal with ESPN. (As if the Longhorn program needed it.)
It's the latest report of spikes in television money regarding conference athletics. The SEC signed a 15-year deal with ESPN and CBS in July 2009 worth $3 billion. The ACC signed a 12-year deal with ESPN worth $1.86 billion.
The Big East, meanwhile, seriously lags behind all of the other BCS conferences at around $40 million. Back in 2006, deals were reached with ESPN and ABC for football that run through 2013. The hoops deal, which includes CBS, runs through the 2012-13 season.
Since then, ex-NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue was enlisted to help, and word is he's been concentrating on the television issues. Also, TCU has been approved as a future Big East member.
Big East commissioner John Marinatto has said if new members are added before the current TV contracts expire, his office could seek to renegotiate.
Thus, apparently, brings us to this point: Both the conference and ESPN are deciding if this is the time to negotiate.
It's a crucial time for Marinatto. A crucial call.
The Big East could decide this is the time to negotiate and try to strike a deal while the dollars are flying. Maybe it's time to strike, even though the league is coming off one of its worst football seasons ever.
On the other hand, the league could decide to wait. The football schools collectively have to do better next season, right? They can't do any worse. If Marinatto rolls the dice to wait two years, maybe the league will have back-to-back strong seasons and further improve the bargaining position.
Then again, there are risks. ESPN, which, let's face it, controls college football, could start running out of slots. It has the SEC (mostly) and ACC. Contracts for the Big 12 and Pac-10 are coming up, and the network will most likely increase its stakes there.
So does the Big East wait?
Yes, there are other options. Perhaps the best news of late was Conference USA's deal with Fox Sports. A player in the marketplace.
There are others, of course. A merger of Comcast and NBC Universal received federal approval, which could make for a possibly huge player. Versus, under the management of NBC Sports, is becoming a bigger deal. CBS and CBS College Sports are players.
The question is, what best suits the Big East? Where can the schools within earn the most money? The latter is a vital question because most schools are already doing the best they can in regard to marketing and fundraising. They are doing the best they can at selling football and basketball tickets. Radio deals are probably maximized.
That leaves television as the one revenue stream that can be widened, especially in light of the latest deals. Not only do Big East schools have to keep their own athletic programs afloat, they also have to keep pace with other leagues like the Big Ten and ACC.
Much of it, of course, is about timing. The ACC might not have received its huge contract had news of Nebraska heading to the Big Ten and Colorado heading to the Pac-10 not hit at that time, portending the decline or fall of the Big 12. All of a sudden the ACC looked pretty good.
So Marinatto and company must decide. Is the timing right for the Big East? Do they deal with ESPN now? Do they wait? ESPN is the safest route, but should the conference take a flyer with one of the other potential players?
Coming up with the correct answers is the commissioner's latest charge.
