(06-21-2018 07:00 AM)Hokie Mark Wrote:  

(06-20-2018 02:52 PM)JRsec Wrote:  ...if the SEC finally picks up N.C. State and Virginia Tech to go along with the two Oklahoma schools and adds Kansas and T.C.U. to round out at 20.

Then the ACC can add Texas, Baylor, Texas Tech, Kansas State and Iowa State to the West, West Virginia, Notre Dame, and either Cincinnati or Connecticut to the East to round out at 20.

SEC:
Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, T.C.U.
Arkansas, Louisiana State, Mississippi, Mississippi State, Texas A&M
Alabama, Auburn, Kentucky, Tennessee, Vanderbilt
Florida, Georgia, N.C. State, South Carolina, Virginia Tech

ACC:
Baylor, Iowa State, Kansas State, Texas, Texas Tech
Boston College, Cincinnati, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Syracuse
Duke, Louisville, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia
Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Miami, Wake Forest

Now ESPN can partner those two conferences and max out on Football, Basketball, Baseball, Softball, Track & Field, Gymnastics, and the country club sports for content.

They bundle the two networks, fold the LHN into it and max out the viewing boundaries of the two conferences. They also own the vast majority of the relevant rivalries in college football.

And if Oklahoma is hurting for cash, and they are, doing this early just got a helluva lot easier.

As much as I strongly prefer keeping VT in the ACC (I actually like playing those old Big East teams!), that schedule (NC State, S Carolina, Georgia, Florida) wouldn't be horrible - especially if the Hokies could get Tennessee and Kentucky on a semi-annual basis. At least VT has SOME history with NC State and SC.

OTOH, what if the SEC took WVU and the ACC took TCU? Gives the SEC another market, gives the ACC another western team...

If this is going to be a brokered deal anyway, perhaps the best solution is for the ACC to take OU/OSU/TCU/Baylor and let the SEC take Texas, Texas Tech, Kansas and WVU?

Either of those would or could work. But in this kind of brokered division of the Big 12 A&M might well have more of a say. I guess we would find out then just how different their administrations view of having Texas back would differ from that of their fans.

BTW: The Supreme Court ruled today that States have a right to force internet companies to collect sales taxes. This is going to curtail advantages that the FAANG companies have had over retail outlets and Mom & Pop. It will help all of our local economies and eliminate an unfair advantage.

It also means that the Amazon's of the world will be rethinking a great many things by 2023 and it could be a big relief to ESPN. Which means could mean that with the acquisition of the FOX properties ESPN could push ahead on acquiring college sports rights and that they certainly might be better positioned to simply cherry pick the Big 12 if there is less competition for product. Of course less competition will curtail some of the thinking that sports rights will accelerate in value. I think this means they will continue to incrementally increase and that there will be no big escalation due to the FAANG companies getting into streaming.