Texas gets $300 Million from ESPN for Longhorn Network

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krambman

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Jan 19, 2011 2:09 PM
Texas and ESPN have reached a deal that will pay UT $300 million over 20 years for the Longhorn Network. That's $15 million a year.

That is ridiculous. I fail to see how ESPN can make any money off of this. I understand why they're doing it since Fox owns the Big Ten and Pac-12 networks, but this can't be a good deal for them. I doubt that this gets added to Direct TV or Dish like the BTN did, and it's likely to only end up on basic cable in five states at most. This network will likely carry only one football game a year (if it even carries one) and maybe ten men's basketball games a year.

This effectively ends the possibility of Texas ever joining the Big Ten and I think it almost guarantees that they will eventually be an independent. If anyone is screwing college football it isn't going to the Jim Delany, super conferences, or the BCS; it's going to be Texas.
Jan 19, 2011 2:09pm
Writerbuckeye's avatar

Writerbuckeye

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Jan 19, 2011 2:14 PM
Texas just sent a big Fuck You to the rest of their conference.
Jan 19, 2011 2:14pm
ytownfootball's avatar

ytownfootball

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Jan 19, 2011 2:15 PM
Honestly, I put more of the blame of screwing college football on ESPN. How the hell are we supposed to get any type of balanced coverage when the leader in sports news is able to pimp their product?

One more reason I rarely watch that shit anymore.
Jan 19, 2011 2:15pm
thedynasty1998's avatar

thedynasty1998

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Jan 19, 2011 2:19 PM
First off, ESPN wouldn't have done this if it wouldn't have benefited them. So we can't really question this as a business decision.

Secondly, what does this mean about a potential move to a playoff or Texas joining a super conference if they are locked in for this long?
Jan 19, 2011 2:19pm
se-alum's avatar

se-alum

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Jan 19, 2011 3:06 PM
thedynasty1998;644117 wrote:First off, ESPN wouldn't have done this if it wouldn't have benefited them. So we can't really question this as a business decision.

Secondly, what does this mean about a potential move to a playoff or Texas joining a super conference if they are locked in for this long?
Don't think it would have impact on a potential move to a playoff, but it pretty much guarantees that Texas will be an independent in the near future.
Jan 19, 2011 3:06pm
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karen lotz

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Jan 19, 2011 3:20 PM
slmandel Stewart Mandel



Longhorn Network will include 1 fball game, 8 men's hoops games per yr. Also: A web site devoted to Texas HS sports. Hello, recruiting.
O_o
Jan 19, 2011 3:20pm
se-alum's avatar

se-alum

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Jan 19, 2011 3:26 PM
Longhorn Network will include 1 fball game, 8 men's hoops games per yr. Also: A web site devoted to Texas HS sports. Hello, recruiting.

Can Texas do better in recruiting?? They get pretty much any Texas kid they want.
Jan 19, 2011 3:26pm
E

enigmaax

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Jan 19, 2011 3:26 PM
krambman;644096 wrote: This effectively ends the possibility of Texas ever joining the Big Ten and I think it almost guarantees that they will eventually be an independent.

Yeah, my first thought was "hello, independent". But then again, why go independent when you have all that money in your pocket and you get to rape nine other schools. I don't blame Texas one bit, isn't their job to make sure the other shitty schools make money. But those other schools were idiots for not bailing when they had the chance. Still feel the numbers they miraculously came up with to keep the remaining schools were completely bogus.
Jan 19, 2011 3:26pm
G

gyea36

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Jan 19, 2011 4:23 PM
ytownfootball;644108 wrote:Honestly, I put more of the blame of screwing college football on ESPN. How the hell are we supposed to get any type of balanced coverage when the leader in sports news is able to pimp their product?

One more reason I rarely watch that shit anymore.

I totally agree, and I see the Texas bias has already started on espn.com with the hyping of the Longhorn recruits. Its sad that the climate in the media is such where the Big Ten Network has to play this game for its teams to be relevant.
Jan 19, 2011 4:23pm
krambman's avatar

krambman

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Jan 19, 2011 4:26 PM
enigmaax;644201 wrote:Yeah, my first thought was "hello, independent". But then again, why go independent when you have all that money in your pocket and you get to rape nine other schools. I don't blame Texas one bit, isn't their job to make sure the other shitty schools make money. But those other schools were idiots for not bailing when they had the chance. Still feel the numbers they miraculously came up with to keep the remaining schools were completely bogus.

Agreed. Unless some of these other Big XII schools think that they'll get their own network they've got to be kicking themselves for not leaving for the Pac-10. Apparently though it was ESPN who agreed to continue paying them the same amount even though there are two less teams and no championship game, which is what kept the conference together.

I can't really see many other schools being able to support their own network. I could maybe see an Alabama/Auburn network or an all-Florida network (with Florida, Florida State, Miami, USF, UCF, FAU, and FIU). Interestingly enough the Big Ten and Pac-16 own all broadcast rights for their schools, so no school in those conferences could start their own network if they wanted to. I wouldn't be surprised if we saw other conferences like the SEC try to lock their schools down now (and they would have the votes needed to do it even if some objected).

I know that the Big XII is looking to expand beyond ten teams, but I don't see how they could get any legitimate teams at this point. With TCU moving to the Big East that takes them out of the picture, and no one from the SEC, Pac 16, or Big Ten is going to want to leave. That leaves them with schools like SMU and Colorado State. That doesn't benefit their conference any and no major program would be willing to join a conference where one team has that much of the pie.
Jan 19, 2011 4:26pm
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enigmaax

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Jan 19, 2011 4:43 PM
krambman;644288 wrote:Apparently though it was ESPN who agreed to continue paying them the same amount even though there are two less teams and no championship game, which is what kept the conference together.

I know that the Big XII is looking to expand beyond ten teams, but I don't see how they could get any legitimate teams at this point.

What I meant with the bogus numbers is that the minor schools were getting something like 8-10 million a year and suddenly it was determined those schools would get 14-17 million a year. Texas, A&M, and Oklahoma were always going to be taken care of and were estimated at a much higher share. I took a quick look for the article where some of the numbers were being crunched (couldn't find it), but it just didn't seem to add up that losing Colorado and Nebraska would make that much additional cash available. Even at that estimate, the Pac 10 was saying it would be 20 mil per team, although that probably couldn't have happened without Texas, so those schools were at Texas' mercy either way.

As for expansion, I thought the Big XII had decided not to expand or look to re-add a championship game because the schools really didn't like the extra game anyway?
Jan 19, 2011 4:43pm
se-alum's avatar

se-alum

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Jan 19, 2011 4:52 PM
So are the other Big 12 teams locked into staying in the Big 12??
Jan 19, 2011 4:52pm
ytownfootball's avatar

ytownfootball

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Jan 19, 2011 4:55 PM
I would say no but the ship has sailed on the Pac 10 for now. Should have seen the writing on the wall there.

Whose going to start a Big XII network that doesn't include Texas? Stupid lack of foresight
Jan 19, 2011 4:55pm
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bases_loaded

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Jan 19, 2011 5:24 PM
ESPN has too much power for it to be good for them to have stake in anything. Thier contract with the SEC and now Texas only assures blatant homering of the two entities which will control public opinion and skew rankings. They no doubt will benefit with loads of cash but the college sports world will not.
Jan 19, 2011 5:24pm
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jordo212000

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Jan 19, 2011 6:49 PM
How are they going to fill all of the programming? Haha I remember people were wondering how the Big 10 was going to fill theirs
Jan 19, 2011 6:49pm
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Little Danny

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Jan 19, 2011 6:51 PM
There were a lot of serious discussions about Missouri, Kansas, Kansas State and Iowa State branching off last season and joining the Big East football teams for a new all sports conference (actually there was a separate debate about the all sports issue). There are several B12 sources on records stating it was a done deal if Texas had not backed out of the Pac16 at the last minute.

If the B12 does stay alive there will be significant opposition by the B-12 North schools opposing more Texas teams. That was the reason why TCU never joined them in the first place. Likely suitors would be BYU and/or Nevada.
Jan 19, 2011 6:51pm
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Tobias Fünke

formerly "sjmvsfscs08"

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Jan 19, 2011 7:24 PM
Little Danny;644436 wrote:Likely suitors would be BYU and/or Nevada.

Arkansas?

I for one see Texas going independent once the rest of the conference grows a pair. I think Southern Cal is watching to see what Texas does very closely too.
Jan 19, 2011 7:24pm
Little Danny's avatar

Little Danny

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Jan 19, 2011 8:00 PM
Tobias Fünke;644469 wrote:Arkansas?

I for one see Texas going independent once the rest of the conference grows a pair. I think Southern Cal is watching to see what Texas does very closely too.

Arkansas would make sense geographically, culturally and from a tradition stand point (historic rivals with Texas, A&M and natural rival with Oklahoma) but they would take a significant pay cut by leaving the SEC.
Jan 19, 2011 8:00pm
SportsAndLady's avatar

SportsAndLady

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Jan 19, 2011 8:01 PM
krambman;644288 wrote:Interestingly enough the Big Ten and Pac-16 own all broadcast rights for their schools

For now.
Jan 19, 2011 8:01pm
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Jughead

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Jan 19, 2011 8:36 PM
Writerbuckeye;644107 wrote:Texas just sent a big Fuck You to the rest of their conference.

I know this seems repetitive, but Texas has done this for years.
Jan 19, 2011 8:36pm
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jordo212000

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Jan 19, 2011 8:51 PM
Little Danny;644533 wrote:Arkansas would make sense geographically, culturally and from a tradition stand point (historic rivals with Texas, A&M and natural rival with Oklahoma) but they would take a significant pay cut by leaving the SEC.

There is no way that Arkansas leaves the SEC for the Big 12 now. There is far too much uncertainty there. Texas has the conference by the balls. The SEC is a nice conference to be affiliated with, it treats its members fair, and the conference commish doesn't let Florida or Alabama bully the other members.
Jan 19, 2011 8:51pm
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dazedconfused

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Jan 20, 2011 3:29 AM
i would say that the other nine schools need to grow a pair and tell texas to fuck off but there's nothing they can really do about it. survival for those schools now features watching texas rake in truck loads of money while they eke by on the pennies that fell off the truck delivering all the money to texas. solid conference structure
Jan 20, 2011 3:29am
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Al Bundy

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Jan 20, 2011 8:59 AM
dazedconfused;645039 wrote:i would say that the other nine schools need to grow a pair and tell texas to fuck off but there's nothing they can really do about it. survival for those schools now features watching texas rake in truck loads of money while they eke by on the pennies that fell off the truck delivering all the money to texas. solid conference structure
Some of the schools (Oklahoma, A&M, and a few others could look elsewhere). However, many of the schools don't have any other options that are better. As bad as this set up is for a school like Iowa State, it is better than going to the WAC or whatever conference would accept them. Football controls who goes to what conferences, and many of the Big 12 schools don't have a good football history and don't have large markets.
Jan 20, 2011 8:59am
krambman's avatar

krambman

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Jan 20, 2011 9:50 AM
dazedconfused;645039 wrote:i would say that the other nine schools need to grow a pair and tell texas to fuck off but there's nothing they can really do about it. survival for those schools now features watching texas rake in truck loads of money while they eke by on the pennies that fell off the truck delivering all the money to texas. solid conference structure

If the other nine schools decided to "tell Texas to f*** off" as you put it, it wouldn't matter a darn bit. As several of us have stated Texas is likely moving towards independence. The other nine schools can't get a better TV deal without Texas, but Texas would do just fine on its own without the other nine.
Al Bundy;645083 wrote:Some of the schools (Oklahoma, A&M, and a few others could look elsewhere). However, many of the schools don't have any other options that are better. As bad as this set up is for a school like Iowa State, it is better than going to the WAC or whatever conference would accept them. Football controls who goes to what conferences, and many of the Big 12 schools don't have a good football history and don't have large markets.

You're right that collectively they don't have many options right now. However, many of them did have a better option (joining Colorado and going to the Pac-whatever). Obviously the Pac-12 isn't done expanding (although they may be temporarily) adding Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, and Texas A&M without Texas is still better for them than anyone else they could add to get to 16 teams (like Boise, Fresno, Nevada, etc.). Give it another few years and the Pac-12 will offer these schools again and this time the money will be too much. You talk like these decisions are made collectively, but these schools will do what they believe is in their best interest with little regard for the other schools. Texas would then go independent, Missouri would likely end up in the Big Ten, and the rest either merge with the Mountain West or work their way into the Big East. Kansas is the school that probably gets screwed the worst in this situation.
Jan 20, 2011 9:50am