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Conference Expansion: Stanford, California and SMU Join the ACC

A writer for the Tampa Bay Times reviewed Phillips' speech and his main points about how the ACC can address its TV revenue shortfall compared to the BIG 2. It doesn't sound very promising or reassuring.


https://www.tampabay.com/sports/202...ignment-expansion-fsu-football-clemson-miami/

...Some of the ACC’s power programs spent the offseason grumbling about money, so much so that one of FSU’s trustees asked if it was financially feasible for the Seminoles to leave the league. Athletic director Michael Alford showed a $30 million annual gap between what FSU will receive from the ACC and what teams will make from the Big Ten and SEC.

Phillips said the league and its schools are working together to close the gap with solutions such as:

• An eight-point plan with marketing group FishBait Solutions to create new revenue.

• Being “completely motivated together” with ESPN to “generate additional dollars.”

• Weighing future payouts more toward schools that perform better in revenue sports.

• Growing from more exposure and “elevated production value and innovative creative approaches” from ESPN. A new TV distribution deal with The CW will help, too.

Phillips also vaguely referenced “some other things that we’re working on I can’t address with this group,” for whatever that’s worth. Add them up, and Phillips described the league as healthy and third in conference revenue.

“Third is certainly a good position,” Phillips said, “but we want to gain and gain traction financially in order to close the gap with obviously the SEC and the Big Ten, who have leapfrogged everyone.”

That sounds fine. But his predecessor, John Swofford, said almost the same thing in the same ballroom at the same hotel (The Westin Charlotte) at the same event seven years ago. Swofford said the money and exposure from the upcoming launch of the ACC Network would put his league in the “upper echelon of the Power Five conferences” financially, and the 20-year grant-of-rights contract would take the ACC “out of any kind of conversation” regarding conference realignment.

Or not.

The grant of rights has become the duct tape holding the conference together, making it financially difficult, if not impossible, for FSU, Clemson or Miami to leave. Instead, they’re trying to nickel and dime their way to success as the ACC tries to scrounge together a few million here and there...
 
CaptRenault said:
A writer for the Tampa Bay Times reviewed Phillips' speech and his main points about how the ACC can address its TV revenue shortfall compared to the BIG 2. It doesn't sound very promising or reassuring.


https://www.tampabay.com/sports/202...ignment-expansion-fsu-football-clemson-miami/

...Some of the ACC’s power programs spent the offseason grumbling about money, so much so that one of FSU’s trustees asked if it was financially feasible for the Seminoles to leave the league. Athletic director Michael Alford showed a $30 million annual gap between what FSU will receive from the ACC and what teams will make from the Big Ten and SEC.

Phillips said the league and its schools are working together to close the gap with solutions such as:

• An eight-point plan with marketing group FishBait Solutions to create new revenue.

• Being “completely motivated together” with ESPN to “generate additional dollars.”

• Weighing future payouts more toward schools that perform better in revenue sports.

• Growing from more exposure and “elevated production value and innovative creative approaches” from ESPN. A new TV distribution deal with The CW will help, too.

Phillips also vaguely referenced “some other things that we’re working on I can’t address with this group,” for whatever that’s worth. Add them up, and Phillips described the league as healthy and third in conference revenue.

“Third is certainly a good position,” Phillips said, “but we want to gain and gain traction financially in order to close the gap with obviously the SEC and the Big Ten, who have leapfrogged everyone.”

That sounds fine. But his predecessor, John Swofford, said almost the same thing in the same ballroom at the same hotel (The Westin Charlotte) at the same event seven years ago. Swofford said the money and exposure from the upcoming launch of the ACC Network would put his league in the “upper echelon of the Power Five conferences” financially, and the 20-year grant-of-rights contract would take the ACC “out of any kind of conversation” regarding conference realignment.

Or not.

The grant of rights has become the duct tape holding the conference together, making it financially difficult, if not impossible, for FSU, Clemson or Miami to leave. Instead, they’re trying to nickel and dime their way to success as the ACC tries to scrounge together a few million here and there...
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Money continues to be an excuse that athletic departments use to tell their fans why their programs suck. We’re doing fine with this set up. The Big 10 still sucks with all the money in the world. It’s pretty clear that money is not equated with on-field/court success. FSU just can’t understand why they keep losing to WF. The most important thing in college football is the head coach. That’s it.
 
Biff Ochocinco Tannen said:
@Pilchard is right. There's really nothing to judge Phillips on as a commissioner at this point. He has a bunch of schools that are locked into an long term contract that he didn't negotiate or sign. All of the schools are disgruntled to different degrees, some for different reasons, but almost all of that is out of his or those schools' control.
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I guess we differ on how good "There's really nothing to judge me on at this point" looks on a review after 2.5 years on the job.
 
PhDeac said:
I guess we differ on how good "There's really nothing to judge me on at this point" looks on a review after 2.5 years on the job.
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Is it really so bad you’re ready to give him $5 to $10 million buyout and go hire somebody else to deal with the same set of circumstances ?
 
Phillips also vaguely referenced “some other things that we’re working on I can’t address with this group,” for whatever that’s worth.

ND??!
 
If Phillips gets strongly linked to the ND mess (and he probably should), I would suspect firing with cause is likely possible.
 
inspectah said:
So in the midst of an existential crisis, the ACC hires a consulting group named "Fishbait Solutions"? Lol, smh

It was fun while it lasted. Thanks for the memories.
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that was my exact first thought as well, just reading the name of the consulting group. . . . "so are we the bait?" or "are we about to get swallowed....?" or "who are we fishing for." LOL, I digress SMH
 
CamLemons said:
I’m still waiting on the other ideas that Phillips should be doing (when there aren’t any)
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Pay me a couple mil and I’ll actually sit down and figure something out. I already mentioned pushing for an ACCN2. He has basically nothing else to do but sit and think about this question 365 days a year. The other one is simply pushing ESPN for more money since they cannot afford to lose this content even with their terrible financial situation.

Hell, here are two more out of the box ideas. Take over ads from ESPN for ACCN and sell to non-infomercials and take a cut. Have every game be sponsored. The Ron Desantis for President Miami @ FSU game. The Tobacco Lobby NCSU @ WFU game. It doesn’t just have to be bowl games and opening week neutral site games with sponsors. You can piece together a lot of small things. It doesn’t have to be one giant thing.
 
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I gotta be honest with you. Those ideas are nothingburgers at best.
 
Biff Ochocinco Tannen said:
I gotta be honest with you. Those ideas are nothingburgers at best.
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Well I came up with them in 2 minutes while taking a shit. In 365 days with nothing else to do, I would hope that a whole team of folks getting paid well to think about just this would be able to come up with something.
 
deacdixieboy said:
Pay me a couple mil and I’ll actually sit down and figure something out. I already mentioned pushing for an ACCN2. He has basically nothing else to do but sit and think about this question 365 days a year. The other one is simply pushing ESPN for more money since they cannot afford to lose this content even with their terrible financial situation.

Hell, here are two more out of the box ideas. Take over ads from ESPN for ACCN and sell to non-infomercials and take a cut. Have every game be sponsored. The Ron Desantis for President Miami @ FSU game. The Tobacco Lobby NCSU @ WFU game. It doesn’t just have to be bowl games and opening week neutral site games with sponsors. You can piece together a lot of small things. It doesn’t have to be one giant thing.
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  • pushing ESPN for more money isn't a new idea but it's not happening. They are broke
  • There is no leverage of "they can't afford to lose this content" the ACC is locked into their contract.
  • Piecing things together has been the name of the game for them. It's why Ally has put more money into the ACC as a main sponsor now, unequal revenue sharing, they should see a significant boost in revenue when the Raycom deal is up in a couple of years, even just yesterday Phillips mentioned enhancing campus production facilities and corporate sales opportunities.

It's always weird seeing it doesn't have to be one giant thing because, well there have been a bunch of small things and they're all generally met with "well there needs to be more". Nothing really matters unless something happens with the TV deal and that isn't something that's happening until the financials with ESPN change.
 
CamLemons said:
It's always weird seeing it doesn't have to be one giant thing because, well there have been a bunch of small things and they're all generally met with "well there needs to be more". Nothing really matters unless something happens with the TV deal and that isn't something that's happening until the financials with ESPN change.
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Yeah, but you have to start with firing the AD !
 
I get that people are upset with where the ACC stands at the moment, but the fixation on Phillips is just dumb.

We don't have any idea if he is worth a shit, other than the fact that the conference remains intact in an age of conference realignment. And acting like there are a ton of solutions out there that are going to drastically alter the financial landscape is thinking not based in reality.

He may end up being terrible, but there is no real track record to make that determination at this point. The Northwestern thing may sink him as well, but that doesn't have anything to do with whether he will or won't be a good representative of the conference.
 
DeaconSig said:
I get that people are upset with where the ACC stands at the moment, but the fixation on Phillips is just dumb.

We don't have any idea if he is worth a shit, other than the fact that the conference remains intact in an age of conference realignment. And acting like there are a ton of solutions out there that are going to drastically alter the financial landscape is thinking not based in reality.

He may end up being terrible, but there is no real track record to make that determination at this point. The Northwestern thing may sink him as well, but that doesn't have anything to do with whether he will or won't be a good representative of the conference.
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He comes off as your college history professor. Describes the past. At least acknowledge everything about showing sports to the public is undergoing vast changes and I am on it. We need to hire someone who understands everything about yesterday is gone. No one gives a fuck. You could take this conference to an all new level if you were more of a futurist instead of this boring past , never come again, wishing and hoping. This dude is weak sauce and we got no chance with him as our leader. Tear it up and begin again. Be bold at all costs. He’s a pussy.
 
macktheknife said:
He comes off as your college history professor. Describes the past. At least acknowledge everything about showing sports to the public is undergoing vast changes and I am on it. We need to hire someone who understands everything about yesterday is gone. No one gives a fuck. You could take this conference to an all new level if you were more of a futurist instead of this boring past , never come again, wishing and hoping. This dude is weak sauce and we got no chance with him as our leader. Tear it up and begin again. Be bold at all costs. He’s a pussy.
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He's a reflection of the individuals who hired him.
 
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