The Tunnel

I could not access the VIP article, so sorry if this is redundant. You guys were still waiting on the new ACC deal and it is my understanding that your state legislature would be a bear on this issue. Mizzou brings a ton of TV's (for our TV rights deal that should be announced later this summer), and they are also a flagship school in a fairly large state. They were the best we could do at the time. They had also recently been slighted by the B1G, so they are hungry to become major. Not as great a cultural fit as A&M, but they definitely made the SEC stronger.

No one is talking about it right now except Clay Travis, but this new SEC media deal is going to be massive. By adding Mizzou and A&M, our inventory is about 30% larger than either the PAC or the B1G, which means our per school revenue split should be massive, and that does not include the Tier 3 rights that the schools are allowed to keep (Florida several million extra a year off those rights alone). You all should come on in... the water's fine.

Wow even the basketball schools in that conference want us there. So that's how it feels.

We seriously do, especially us at UK and I think those at UT for rivalry purposes. Adding the best cultural fits from Virginia and North Carolina has been something every SEC fan has wanted since the first inkling of 16 teams conferences came out a few years ago. It is a prideful conference, and bringing your states into the fold makes it even more fun. That is what you'll love about the SEC... you root for even the most hated SEC rival over a team from any other conference. If you guys are playing Oklahoma or USC in a bowl game, you'll have thousands of fans there from other SEC schools just to cheer (and party) for you to beat the Big 12 or the PAC.

I know, huh. Here is a conversation I had with my uncle awhile ago:

Uncle Owen: Take these two over to the garage, will you? I want you to
have both of them cleaned up before dinner.
Me: But I was going into Toshi Station to pick up some power
converters...
Uncle Owen: You can waste time with your friends when your chores are done.
Now come on, get to it!

Simplified explanation. This expansion is more consolidation of conferences to pool together and distribute a conference network in cable tv plans. If your local cable provider offers a "sports package" which includes say additional ESPN channels along with the SEC chanel, and is sold to subscribers, then the SEC would reap some % of that subscription. Therefore, Missouri's population adds alot of additional TV's and opportunites for people to purchase the SEC network. What if the SEC received $1per month for every subscriber of the local cable companys Sports Bundle? Make sense?

FWIW Adding Va and NC would be much more advantageous to the SEC footprint than Missouri was. VA is the 12th largest state and NC is the 10th largest, plus it would add the DC market. Missouri is only 18th. In fact, VA and NC would become the 4th and 5th largest states in the SEC footprint.

He didn't say it the last time either. That was Hincker.

i did...should be fixed.

Not arguing with you and SEC may be the answer, but with that logic the vision of the ACC would have 12 of the top 30 TV markets.

I hear you. I just think there may be more to it than what it appears and I do believe that our leaders know exactly what is occuring and I believe we will make the best decision for the future of VT (when it is we are ready to make it). Just because we aren't coming out in public and telling everybody that our poker hand is comprised of a pair of 2's (like FSU has) doesn't mean we don't realize we may have a decision to make. FSU and Clemson are doing our dirty work for us. This is not a decision that can be made overnight and it is a decision that we should first analyze all the facts and gameplan for without emotion.

I hope to God you are correct, because JW's statements reflect a near comatose mindset. Words like, comfortable, content, it's easier, we're doing all right, can all be found in the following article. You can also find words saying we are not contacting other conference. Words like we are looking out for VT are, however, not found. Keep in mind, these are the same guys that almost let Beamer walk until Torgersen stepped in.

BLACKSBURG - Conference realignment rumors are rampant on the Internet right now, but Virginia Tech athletic director Jim Weaver said he feels comfortable with the Hokies' position in the ACC and doesn't foresee any change to that.

A member of Florida State's board of trustees ignited realignment talk a few weeks ago by criticizing the ACC's recently renegotiated TV contract, suggesting the Seminoles should explore joining the Big 12.

That led to increased speculation that other ACC schools might pursue a similar path. Clemson's board of trustees had an informational meeting Thursday to clear up rumors and speculation surrounding the school's future in the ACC.

Despite Internet reports that Virginia Tech had sent out "feelers" to the Big 12, Weaver said there has been no contact with another conference.

"None whatsoever," he said in a phone interview Tuesday.

Asked if it would take a seismic change in the football landscape for that position to be different, Weaver said it was a tough question to answer.

"Because I think our president is very comfortable, our faculty representative is very comfortable, the leadership of this conference with the philosophical approach that the conference has to doing business," he said. "I just don't see a lot of change in the Atlantic Coast Conference."

Florida State President Eric Barron released an email last week that countered many of the arguments made by the member of the board of trustees. Weaver thought it "takes a lot of steam out" of the realignment rumors floating in Tallahassee.

He said he feels confident in the ACC's position, including the recently signed TV -contract with ESPN worth $3.6 billion over 15 years, a large sum but one worth less than many of the contracts other conferences have signed.

"We have our contract with one vendor," Weaver said. "And the platforms they have and the ways that we can be helped and the fact that we have a window of opportunity to look and see how things are occurring in the fifth and 10th year is very solid. So I'm OK with where we are and what we're doing."

Virginia Tech lobbied hard for ACC inclusion in the first great realignment craze of this century, joining the league in 2004. Weaver has said repeatedly since then that it is the right fit for the school.

"Because we're right smack dab in the footprint of the conference," he said. "We have a lot of similarities to a lot of institutions in the conference, such as Clemson, such as N.C. State, such as the University of Maryland, such as Florida State. In other words, land-grant institutions and peer-type institutions."

Weaver said that financially he believes Virginia Tech is "doing all right," and that he likes being within driving distance of the four North Carolina schools, Virginia, Maryland, Clemson and Georgia Tech, something that mitigates travel costs, particularly when you're talking about Olympic sports.

"It's easier for our team, and it's easier for our fans to travel," he said.

As for what will happen in terms of realignment this summer, Weaver is skeptical that anything major will take place with regard to the ACC.

"No, I don't think anything will come out of it," he said. "That's personal opinion."