THE GROUP of FIVE

[EPJr]

BCS presidents approve access for non-BCS schools in playoff

DENVER -- A six-bowl, four-team college playoff has been approved that would give automatic access to the highest rated "Group of Five" team, the BCS announced Monday afternoon.

The BCS Presidential Oversight Committee approved the structure in a brief meeting here. Five months after approving a playoff, the presidents figured out the complicated process of giving the game's least-invested programs a spot at the table.

"I think it's all fair," said Texas president Bill Powers. "A lot of hard work went into this."

The Group of Five are the so-called non-BCS schools (Mountain West, Big East, MAC, Sun Belt, Conference USA) that were seeking a guaranteed spot in the system. The highest-ranked of those teams beginning in 2014 will play in one of the three "host" -- or open -- bowls. Those bowls are still to be determined.

The ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and SEC already have automatic access to the new system via the Sugar, Rose and Orange Bowls -- so-called "contract" bowls.

http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootbal ... in-playoff

[SuperHornet]

Another excuse to isolate the have-nots.

kw must be quaking in his boots with glee....

[AZGrizFan]

So now the Big East is non-BCS?

[EPJr]

So now the Big East is non-BCS?

yup!
so all those teams that came running to the BEC to get a leg up could have stayed where they were

[93henfan]

That's the spirit of inclusion. Giving one spot to a group of 60+ teams.

ODU, you better get your one national championship this year while you still have a snowball's chance in hell. Have fun up there in the "big time".

[CAA Flagship]

That's the spirit of inclusion. Giving one spot to a group of 60+ teams.

ODU, you better get your one national championship this year while you still have a snowball's chance in hell. Have fun up there in the "big time".

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[ASUMountaineer]

So now the Big East is non-BCS?

yup!
so all those teams that came running to the BEC to get a leg up could have stayed where they were

The questions is, will a school like Boise stay in the BigLEast? What advantage do they have now, other than a contract. If I were BSU, I'd be on the horn with BYU trying to orchestrate a move back to the Mountain West. It's on the same level as the BigLEast now (non-BCS/contract) and will save money, provide a better conference (and possibly a better TV contract), and allow olympic sports to be in a much better home.

IMO, this helps schools thinking about making the jump to do so. Yeah, they only get one shot out of 60+ to the access bowls, but that was one guaranteed shot more than before.

[CAA Flagship]

yup!
so all those teams that came running to the BEC to get a leg up could have stayed where they were

The questions is, will a school like Boise stay in the BigLEast? What advantage do they have now, other than a contract. If I were BSU, I'd be on the horn with BYU trying to orchestrate a move back to the Mountain West. It's on the same level as the BigLEast now (non-BCS/contract) and will save money, provide a better conference (and possibly a better TV contract), and allow olympic sports to be in a much better home.

IMO, this helps schools thinking about making the jump to do so. Yeah, they only get one shot out of 60+ to the access bowls, but that was one guaranteed shot more than before.

It's all about the money. I find it hard to believe that the Mountain West can have a better TV contract than one with schools in Conn, NJ, Louiville, Cincy, Orlando, Memphis, Dallas, Houston, and whatever other schools currently make up the BEC .

[ASUMountaineer]

The questions is, will a school like Boise stay in the BigLEast? What advantage do they have now, other than a contract. If I were BSU, I'd be on the horn with BYU trying to orchestrate a move back to the Mountain West. It's on the same level as the BigLEast now (non-BCS/contract) and will save money, provide a better conference (and possibly a better TV contract), and allow olympic sports to be in a much better home.

IMO, this helps schools thinking about making the jump to do so. Yeah, they only get one shot out of 60+ to the access bowls, but that was one guaranteed shot more than before.

It's all about the money. I find it hard to believe that the Mountain West can have a better TV contract than one with schools in Conn, NJ, Louiville, Cincy, Orlando, Memphis, Dallas, Houston, and whatever other schools currently make up the BEC .

Well, I said "possibly." And, the only reason would be because the football would be infinitely better. However, given the amount of households, it would be difficult to imagine a higher price.

I do wonder though, what are your thoughts on the rest of the post?

[UNI88]

It's all about the money. I find it hard to believe that the Mountain West can have a better TV contract than one with schools in Conn, NJ, Louiville, Cincy, Orlando, Memphis, Dallas, Houston, and whatever other schools currently make up the BEC .

Well, I said "possibly." And, the only reason would be because the football would be infinitely better. However, given the amount of households, it would be difficult to imagine a higher price.

I do wonder though, what are your thoughts on the rest of the post?

BE money might be better but will it be enough better to offset the increased travel costs and the impact on the Olympic sports. Four of "the Five" need a realignment. BE, CUSA, Sunbelt and MWC should swap some schools for sanity's sake. The only one with any geographic sense is the MAC.

[SuperHornet]

Well, I said "possibly." And, the only reason would be because the football would be infinitely better. However, given the amount of households, it would be difficult to imagine a higher price.

I do wonder though, what are your thoughts on the rest of the post?

BE money might be better but will it be enough better to offset the increased travel costs and the impact on the Olympic sports. Four of "the Five" need a realignment. BE, CUSA, Sunbelt and MWC should swap some schools for sanity's sake. The only one with any geographic sense is the MAC.

What increased travel costs? Boise State and San Diego State are football-only associates; Boise is reverting to the WAC for all other applicable sports and SDSU has joined the Big West. Both moves seriously DECREASE travel costs (though they likely kill RPI).

Hard to see how Sun Belt schools (other than possibly North Texas) could possibly help the MWC. The Sun Belt categorically sucks, even more so than the MAC. From CUSA, Tulsa MIGHT help, IF their current 8-2 record isn't flash-in-the-pan material. The Big East lost their best schools (football-wise, anyway) to the ACC, but are geographically fairly decent right now. The MAC made a mistake with the addition of outlier UMASS, but when they jumped, the idea was that they would go to the Big East after establishing themselves in FBS; that might still happen. If any of this shuffling proposed here happens, it might well be Sun Belt to WAC; the MWC has a good lineup with good regional representation; the only issue I would claim (which would be a problem for ANY conferene) is outlier Hawai'i.

I know this goes counter to the trend toward mega-conferences, but I think the best situation would be to resurrect the old Big Eight and Southwestern Conferences. The numbers were right, the rivalries were good, and travel wasn't a burden. We have newer teams with "upward" movement, so one MIGHT be able to fit those teams in there SOMEWHERE. The big problem there, of course, is the presence of Texas trying to bully everyone, which is pretty much what made the Big XII go up in smoke....

[CAA Flagship]

It's all about the money. I find it hard to believe that the Mountain West can have a better TV contract than one with schools in Conn, NJ, Louiville, Cincy, Orlando, Memphis, Dallas, Houston, and whatever other schools currently make up the BEC .

Well, I said "possibly." And, the only reason would be because the football would be infinitely better. However, given the amount of households, it would be difficult to imagine a higher price.

I do wonder though, what are your thoughts on the rest of the post?

When I first heard the details of the new arrangement, I felt that the move ODU did was just made a little better. Now, there is actually something realistic to play for, even though it will not likely be for a NC.
So I agree with you that although there is only one spot, it is a guarantee that didn't exist before, and others could still join the party too.

[ASUMountaineer]

Well, I said "possibly." And, the only reason would be because the football would be infinitely better. However, given the amount of households, it would be difficult to imagine a higher price.

I do wonder though, what are your thoughts on the rest of the post?

When I first heard the details of the new arrangement, I felt that the move ODU did was just made a little better. Now, there is actually something realistic to play for, even though it will not likely be for a NC.
So I agree with you that although there is only one spot, it is a guarantee that didn't exist before, and others could still join the party too.

Yeah. Overall, I think it's a step in the right direction. If the "Gang of 5" can prove itself, it may be able to garner a little more when the current contract expires. Who knows?

[EPJr]

Mid-American Conference inks historic TV deal

With Fox Sports 1, CBS Sports Network and NBCSN looking for live sports programming, the Mid-American Conference could have tested the market with their television rights package..

Instead, the MAC decided the best move was to stay with ESPN. With three years left on its deal, the conference announced Tuesday a 10-year extension with ESPN through the 2026-27 academic year.

It is the largest and most extensive agreement in the 68-year history of the conference. It also adds provisions to the remaining three years of the existing agreement.


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