SMU can add immediate $ to ACC media deal

[Dukie]

I guess that makes sense. Yet, there are only 1.8 million in all of West Virginia. Maybe another 250k have moved to other states? So 2M+ fans globally?

That's a lot of assumptions, but when I asked Google they said 1.84M - so I guess I was close. It has no answer for SMU.

The ACC will never add WVU unless/until at least four teams have jumped ship.

[rodrod5]

I guess that makes sense. Yet, there are only 1.8 million in all of West Virginia. Maybe another 250k have moved to other states? So 2M+ fans globally?

That's a lot of assumptions, but when I asked Google they said 1.84M - so I guess I was close. It has no answer for SMU.

Fans of college sports are not based on the population of the state or city that the university is located in. SMU should know this as well as anyone. Arkansas is an example or Ole' Miss or LSU. Even Alabama today. Arkansas has recruited Texas students for decades they feast on them and in turn they have fans all over Texas. Ole' Miss has done so, but with less talk about it they just do it. LSU is really in on that now as well. If you look at the out of state enrollment of Alabama and the growth of it and the places those students come from it is shocking. They draw a ton of students from the upper midwest.

In the case of WVU if you look up and down the east coast and the state universities there are a number of top universities, but not all of them are desirable to a lot of students for various reasons. Pitt is in a large city that was dying for a long time. Penn State is a very large school and a lot of those students enter in after their freshman year because they have gone through the Penn State satellite schools. It is much more difficult to get direct admissions to State College. Rutgers is located in New Jersey. UConn is not in the most exciting place on earth. Same with UMass.

WVU offers a lot of students up and down the east coast an affordable, smaller public school, "traditional college experience" that they will not get at the private schools that get most of the attention, funding and support on the east coast. A quick google says that almost 54% of their students are from out of state. Those students went there to be involved in their university experience not just to drive up I-35 3 times a week, sleep through class, grab a New York Sub Hub, and then head back home to their parent's basement.

[EastStang]

If two West Virginians get divorced are they still kin?

[NTXCoog]

I keep seeing West Virginia mentioned as an ACC possibility. Why would they leave the Big 12 - and could they?

I dont see how WVU could leave. It cost OU and UT $50 million each to break the Big 12 GOR and leave 1 year early. Those are 2 of the high revenue programs and they were leaving to SEC revenues.

WVU would be breaking a 10 year contract, not 1. I don't think WVU has the money OU and UT have. And even if the ACC could renegotiate their TV contract, I don't think they'd get near SEC levels

[HorsePower]

You're right. WVU is nowhere near the financial stratosphere as Oklahoma or especially Texas.

[Topper]

Tweet from sports law attorney Tom Mars:

Interestingly, the ACC Grant of Rights Agreement does not contain a “choice of law” provision. Assuming Florida law would apply to a dispute with FSU, the Florida legislature could arguably do what Texas did to Mike Leach and make FSU immune from liability for breach of contract.

I don't know if it is realistic, but Florida State didn't hire JPMorgan Chase to work out the numbers on an ACC exit for nothing.

[rodrod5]

Tweet from sports law attorney Tom Mars:

Interestingly, the ACC Grant of Rights Agreement does not contain a “choice of law” provision. Assuming Florida law would apply to a dispute with FSU, the Florida legislature could arguably do what Texas did to Mike Leach and make FSU immune from liability for breach of contract.

I don't know if it is realistic, but Florida State didn't hire JPMorgan Chase to work out the numbers on an ACC exit for nothing.

They did not hire JP Morgan to work out the numbers they want them to help finance it. Which is all the more stupid because FSU will be giving up future revenue to get that to happen. It is probably slightly less stupid than the PAC 12 thinking they were going to sell off part of the PAC 12 to private equity. The only thing that made the PAC 12 more stupid is the price they thought they might get.

As for the choice of venue the ACC is chartered in NC I believe while the Big 12 was chartered in Delaware which meant that no member of the Big 12 would have a chance to get a favorable government involved. With FSU and the ACC what I have read is because it is interstate it could end up in federal courts.

[Topper]

Tweet from sports law attorney Tom Mars:

Interestingly, the ACC Grant of Rights Agreement does not contain a “choice of law” provision. Assuming Florida law would apply to a dispute with FSU, the Florida legislature could arguably do what Texas did to Mike Leach and make FSU immune from liability for breach of contract.

I don't know if it is realistic, but Florida State didn't hire JPMorgan Chase to work out the numbers on an ACC exit for nothing.

They did not hire JP Morgan to work out the numbers they want them to help finance it. Which is all the more stupid because FSU will be giving up future revenue to get that to happen. It is probably slightly less stupid than the PAC 12 thinking they were going to sell off part of the PAC 12 to private equity. The only thing that made the PAC 12 more stupid is the price they thought they might get.

As for the choice of venue the ACC is chartered in NC I believe while the Big 12 was chartered in Delaware which meant that no member of the Big 12 would have a chance to get a favorable government involved. With FSU and the ACC what I have read is because it is interstate it could end up in federal courts.

Venue generally lies where the defendant resides or does business. The attorney I cited realized would be Florida in this situation. And I'm sure that JPMorgan Chase has no interest in running the numbers on any deal in which it is asked to be involved.

[Dukie]

Tweet from sports law attorney Tom Mars:

Interestingly, the ACC Grant of Rights Agreement does not contain a “choice of law” provision. Assuming Florida law would apply to a dispute with FSU, the Florida legislature could arguably do what Texas did to Mike Leach and make FSU immune from liability for breach of contract.

I don't know if it is realistic, but Florida State didn't hire JPMorgan Chase to work out the numbers on an ACC exit for nothing.

They did not hire JP Morgan to work out the numbers they want them to help finance it. Which is all the more stupid because FSU will be giving up future revenue to get that to happen. It is probably slightly less stupid than the PAC 12 thinking they were going to sell off part of the PAC 12 to private equity. The only thing that made the PAC 12 more stupid is the price they thought they might get.

As for the choice of venue the ACC is chartered in NC I believe while the Big 12 was chartered in Delaware which meant that no member of the Big 12 would have a chance to get a favorable government involved. With FSU and the ACC what I have read is because it is interstate it could end up in federal courts.

Venue generally lies where the defendant resides or does business. The attorney I cited realized would be Florida in this situation. And I'm sure that JPMorgan Chase has no interest in running the numbers on any deal in which it is asked to be involved.

I think this is a total bluff. First, FSU is more likely to be a plaintiff trying to demand money from the ACC rather than a defendant being sued. Second, Florida law is not Texas law and Florida lawyers on the Duke board are pointing out that Florida law, unlike Texas, would not seem to prohibit a breach of contract action under sovereign immunity. Third, the media parties helping to make this happen would have to be comfortable with their likely entanglement in the eventual litigation. (Remember that Texas and OU had to pay Fox, not the Big 12.) They won't be.

[ShantyBoy]

https://twitter.com/PeteThamel/status/1 ... 74684.html

[mtrout]

Welp... that's like the 4th death blow to the PAC.

[ShantyBoy]

Could this end up being good for SMU though? Maybe? Please?

[Dukie]

I think the ACC *should* add Stanford & Cal, but I don’t think they actually will.

[Drum Major]

I can't see how it is good. Conferences keep adding teams and we are not one of them. The ACC would have to want 4 right now. Otherwise, we wait for them to backfill after all of their future defections.

[Dukie]

I can't see how it is good. Conferences keep adding teams and we are not one of them. The ACC would have to want 4 right now. Otherwise, we wait for them to backfill after all of their future defections.

I don’t think anyone sees this possibility of the Bay Area schools to the ACC as good for SMU. I still think it won’t happen though.