ODU planning for 60-70% drop in TV revenue

[RedParallax]

ODU budgets for at least a $600,000 reduction in TV revenues

It's becoming more and more clear that CUSA will be the first G5 conference to be negatively impacted by the conference realignment strategy of adding programs based solely on their TV market/value. We will have absolutely no short-term value in having added Charlotte, UTSA, UNT, Old Dominion, FAU, and FIU (you could argue that there was Marshall and CUSA-wide recruiting value in having added FAU/FIU, I suppose).

Granted, hindsight is 20/20, but think of how awesome it would've been if we had a post-2012 lineup of Marshall, Southern Miss, UAB, WKU, LaTech, Georgia Southern, Appalachian State, Middle Tennessee, UTEP, and Rice where the only real weak points in that total conference is UTEP. We would've had 4 less mouths to feed, resulting in a potential program payout of $420,000 (worst case scenario based on this article), and the competitiveness would clearly be better than the Sun Belt and MAC resulting in better negotiation standpoint for this round of TV negotiations and an increased overall payout. However, EVEN THEN, we would've seen an annual payout decrease of up to 58%.

CUSA is a total shit show joke where the top 3-4 programs each year are overshadowed by the other 9-10 tire fires that take their weekly beat downs.

I've been an adamant supporter of having moved to CUSA, and I think it was the right move at the time, given what we knew and the TV payouts that Marshall has greatly benefited from since leaving the MAC. I've railed against people who have wanted to go back to the MAC since we left because it made ZERO financial sense. However, now that the MAC is locked in to a $670,000 per year, per program payout, does it potentially make sense for us to start considering heading back to the MAC? God, it makes my skin crawl just thinking/typing that.

 

[The Real SamC]

All contracts run out eventually, and when the MAC's turn comes, it all evens out. If you bid the CUSA rights and the MAC rights today, I don't see how CUSA is not worth many multiples more. The only thing that makes the MAC rights worth anything is their willingness to play on random weeknights. Take a gander at the stands. Nobody is there is not much of an exageration. Random weeknights regularly KILL your fanbase.

More that that, see the discussion in the EMU thread. There really is something going on in MACland. And not something good. This is the heart of the Rust Belt and, in case you have not noticed, the economy stinks and has stunk for almost a decade nationally and almost 3 decades locally. States are cutting back and the mega subsidies for football nobody cares about anyway is going to get the axe before cutting off granny's pension or closing down the ambulance service. It just is.

I think that the MAC will break up eventually. Probably two-thirds will be realistic and go I-AA, and a third will look for shelter in CUSA or the SBC.

 

[Herdmeister]

All contracts run out eventually, and when the MAC's turn comes, it all evens out. If you bid the CUSA rights and the MAC rights today, I don't see how CUSA is not worth many multiples more. The only thing that makes the MAC rights worth anything is their willingness to play on random weeknights. Take a gander at the stands. Nobody is there is not much of an exageration. Random weeknights regularly KILL your fanbase.

More that that, see the discussion in the EMU thread. There really is something going on in MACland. And not something good. This is the heart of the Rust Belt and, in case you have not noticed, the economy stinks and has stunk for almost a decade nationally and almost 3 decades locally. States are cutting back and the mega subsidies for football nobody cares about anyway is going to get the axe before cutting off granny's pension or closing down the ambulance service. It just is.

I think that the MAC will break up eventually. Probably two-thirds will be realistic and go I-AA, and a third will look for shelter in CUSA or the SBC.

I agree with much of what you are saying. I was looking at MAC attendance the other day. NIU, which has been one of the more successful MAC teams on the field (including an Orange Bowl) has a terrible attendance average. Kent, Akron, Eastern, Ball State and probably others should downsize.

 

[RedParallax]

All contracts run out eventually, and when the MAC's turn comes, it all evens out. If you bid the CUSA rights and the MAC rights today, I don't see how CUSA is not worth many multiples more. The only thing that makes the MAC rights worth anything is their willingness to play on random weeknights. Take a gander at the stands. Nobody is there is not much of an exageration. Random weeknights regularly KILL your fanbase.

More that that, see the discussion in the EMU thread. There really is something going on in MACland. And not something good. This is the heart of the Rust Belt and, in case you have not noticed, the economy stinks and has stunk for almost a decade nationally and almost 3 decades locally. States are cutting back and the mega subsidies for football nobody cares about anyway is going to get the axe before cutting off granny's pension or closing down the ambulance service. It just is.

I think that the MAC will break up eventually. Probably two-thirds will be realistic and go I-AA, and a third will look for shelter in CUSA or the SBC.

With regards to your first paragraph, the MAC's TV deal is set through the 2026-2027 athletic seasons, so it's not coming up anytime soon. I'll totally defer to your point on weeknight games being awful for attendance. You'r spot-on there. I guess we have to start thinking about TV availability/exposure vs attendance vs TV revenue payouts at that point.

I'm not familiar with anything that might be going on in the MAC, as you imply, although I am aware of EMU's potential discussion of eliminating football or dropping it down to FCS or lower. With regards to your points about the MAC's regional economy/economies, pretty much every point you make there directly applies to Huntington and Marshall, as well.

I can't fathom the MAC ever breaking up, but, again, don't know what you're eluding to that might be going on within the MAC itself.