There is always more to the story than is reported to the
masses. Headlines sell news, which can
lead to great sensationalism. In some
cases, news is not only self generated, but also self preserving. Take the conference realignments around
college football the past few years. The
largest benefactor is not the programs, not the conferences, or even the
fans. It is actually the entity who
reports the news and broadcasts the games: ESPN.
Programs are going to find the best situation for
success. Eventually, we are going to see
“super-conferences” of 16 or more teams competing for FBS national
championships. According to Mike
DeCourcy of Sporting News, the realignment is about making a move before it is
too late. It is about stability. In his article, he cites PAC-12 Commissioner
Larry Scott as making a point for smaller conferences with more teams to
strengthen football. This is a mindset
solidified this year with the creation of a playoff in FBS football. Now that we know only four teams are going to
be allowed to compete for a trophy, the current procedure dictates that the
“better” the conference, the more access granted to playing for a national
championship. Schools are running on a
“divided we fall” mentality to justify such moves as San Diego State joining
the Big East.
However, the Big East is an isolated situation because they
are considered a weak football conference mainly focused on basketball
season. Who drives the SEC, winner of the
past six BCS championships, to expand?
One can make the argument that money made that move. Steve Wieberg and Steve Berkowitz cite ESPN
as how conferences decide what schools to add.
The attempt to create the Longhorn Network is one of the main reasons
Colorado, Nebraska, Texas A&M and Missouri left the Big XII for other
conferences. The first two went to the
former PAC-10, currently the PAC-12, whose commissioner and ESPN executive John
Wildhack acknowledge “a close association between [the two] as the conference
was working on expanding although PAC-12 Commissioner Scott created the
strategy. The article also presents a
scenario where the value of the Big East TV contract directly influenced
Pittsburgh and Syracuse to leave the Big East.
Former San Diego State President Stephen Weber says ESPN’s strength
“approaches a monopoly, if it’s not literally one” and views ESPN as “a co-conspirator”
in the way the BCS excludes many schools.
Even on a typical broadcast, you can feel the bias of ESPN
commentators as they speak on issues of polls, conference strengths, post
season individual awards, etc. It would
be folly to assume they are quiet when the cameras are off.
Is ESPN the force behind realignment?- Steve Wieberg and
Steve Berkowitz USA Today
Conference realignment: Smart People making dumb decisions- Mike
DeCourcy Sporting News
