Has NDshown the way?

[OldPony]

Will the big schools start eating their own within conferences? Why wouldn't Texas, Okla,Neb, CU, KSU say they want more of the pie than ISU, KU, OSU, TT, Mo etc? If the Big East offers that type deal to ND does it open the doors for the same from others? Football revenues are driving this bus. Would SMU give up a proportionately higher % to play UT, OK etc? What do the other also rans offer in this type of arrangement that an SMU or TCU doesn't? Just food for thought. We would sell out our games again if we were back in the old SWC so could this happen with a new revenue sharing plan?

[PonyFan]

Interesting questions, but I don't see it happening that way, because ND doesn't compete on the same playing field as the rest of the teams in the country. Even programs like Ohio State, Miami, Oklahoma, Tennessee, USC, Michigan, Florida State - bigtime marquee teams - don't have their own national TV contract. That NBC deal gives ND better leverage than any school in the country..

[OldPony]

While I agree that none individually have that kind of power, 2,3 or 4 of them together might. If they discover that they do, it could make for interesting times for the also rans of the big name conferences. In a way, that is what happened to the SWC and I see nothing to prevent it happening again to the lesser powers of the BCS conferences now. If I were Vandy or Northwestern i would be leery of a trend in this direction. Put another way, I wouldn't skip any conference meetings.