Devil In The Detail – Alliance Lacking In Specifics For Now

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Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

Jim Quist @ACCTheQ –

The Devil is always in the detail. The ‘Alliance’ press conference featuring the commissioners of the ACC, Big Ten and PAC 12 was lacking in specifics. Don’t take that as a negative, however. There is a very clear vision of what the three conferences want to do. And that is to protect the integrity of college sports. Part of that goal is to fill what appears to be a growing power vacuum as the NCAA’s leadership wanes. It’s obvious how important protecting the opportunities for student-athletes is for the leadership of the conference schools. That was very clear in the comments from Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren. Warren reflected on his families’ history in regard to scholarships. He wants to maintain those opportunities.

Overall, from a fan’s perspective there wasn’t a lot to take away from the conference presser. Jim Phillips, Kevin Warren and Georgia Kliavkoff spelled out little in the way of specifics. If you wanted to know how this will impact scheduling or generating additional revenue then you came up short.

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What you can take away from the press conference is that all three commissioners are looking at the bigger picture. They’re playing long ball. So, it’s only natural that this move isn’t about a big haul financially, at least not in the short run. But, there is no doubt they are thinking about how it can be. That all comes from scheduling games across the three conferences that will grab the attention of networks and ultimately viewers. Both the Big Ten and PAC 12 have television contracts coming up for bid soon. And even though the ACC contract is not up until 2036 having marquee matchups will drive viewers. That means more advertising revenue for the ACC Network. That’s a win.

Devil In The Detail

When the ACC Network is carried by Comcast/Xfinity they will be coast to coast. They’ll have millions more with access to their content. The key word here is content. Again, having the kind of games that pull in viewers will drive numbers. Numbers help ESPN demand more from advertisers. You get the idea.

There are no contracts, merely a handshake between three gentlemen with similar goals. That tends to make people suspicious, at least those on the outside looking in. But, if you listen to the ACC Nation Podcast with special guest Jeff Adams, you get an idea that the right financial persuasion will quickly negate any contract. Sometimes all you have is trust and at least one P5 conference flushed theirs. Warren, an attorney, indicated that he was more than comfortable with this type of an agreement.

How might this impact games? There are a lot of contracts between schools that extend out 5 to 10 years. However, that doesn’t mean that conferences can’t adjust to accommodate adding a game or two with the other conferences. That’s on the football side. What about basketball? That appears to be the immediate gold mine.

What About?

Some observers walked away wondering if this is a power play to shut down the SEC and ESPN. There is a lot to be said for making sure that other networks are in play. Competition is healthy as it drives up the value of content provided by the conferences. More critically, what networks are willing to pay for it. Is there more to the story? Isn’t there always?

All three commissioners said there is much to work through. Laying the initial groundwork is important at this stage. What comes next is the proverbial devil in the detail. Much of this goes directly to the changes in NCAA governance. The ‘Alliance’ will have teeth in reforming the faltering organization. The three conferences have a distinct voting advantage over the SEC, 41-16. If for instance the group would like to put a pause on changes to the playoffs. Or, how many scholarships are to be divvied up, they appear to have positioned themselves to have the last word. As mentioned above, it’s important to have more competition in bidding for college sports contracts. It’s never been a wise business decision to have all your eggs in one basket. Are you listening Fox, CBS and NBC among others?

Reading The Room

Pause before you have a knee-jerk reaction or read one on Twitter. Take time to do some research and read what journalists outside of ESPN are saying. Go to the Athletic, Yahoo, CBS and others plus the myriad reporters and bloggers who don’t have a dog in this hunt to get details. Once you have, then make up your mind. Then, take a few days to digest what you’ve read. Take the lead from this tweet by Rubbing The Rock. Hot takes on Twitter might be a ‘thing’ but they don’t make for facts, just opinions. And you know what they say about opinions.