• The KillerFrogs

Would TCU Join A Super Conference?

Froggish

Active Member
Depends…is it a college Athletics super conference or a pro model? I’d be all for getting into one that still wants preserve student relationships but if it’s just a minor league team wearing purple frog jerseys I don’t see the point
 

Nick Danger

Active Member
If your question is directed at the TCU administration, Board, Professors/Faculty, Department Heads/Chairs, Research Fellows, Med School graduates, and other non-sports employees of Texas Christian University, the answer is a resounding Yes! TCU's products as a University are education and research, not Liberty Bowl trophies. There is a tremendous amount of non-sports revenue and institutional prestige to be had from being associated with some PAC-12, Big 10, and ACC members of a future collegiate sports "Super Conference". We're talking about millions and millions of additional dollars in research funding, economies of scale savings for centralized library and overseas collaborative networking management, scholarship funding, endowment investment opportunities, and just plain old institutional gravitas!

While there is a vocal "less studious" minority at most colleges of higher learning that only see benefit in the success of their various sports teams, this focus is not shared by a majority of other individuals that inhabit these Universities. A common argument against striving to be a member of these large educational collectives, is that their sports teams won't be able to compete in these "semi-pro" (what does that even mean?) super leagues. That appears to be a disingenuous argument because you didn't see these same naysayers demanding that TCU exit the Big-12, when the Frogs were routinely going 5-7 or 6-6, and return to a more nostalgic, more "fun" form of football, where TCU could compete, in the AAC or Mountain West,

Should TCU get invited to join any of these monolith conferences, TCU's athletic recruitment would probably be enhanced as well, as now TCU would be able to recruit more four and five star recruits, that right now don't give TCU the time of day, because these more valued recruits would now be able to play against more high profile opponents week in and week out and be on TV every week, play in more high profile "playoff" games, and qualify for more prestigious bowl games like the Sugar Bowl, Rose Bowl, Cotton Bowl, etc., as opposed to going to play Alcorn State, SMU, or Kansas State, or preparing to play in the Fruit Roll-Up Bowl two days after Christmas on FS2! Besides, even if you go 6-6 still, you're getting paid $100,000,000, while Baylor or Iowa State plays for $30,000,000 in some fantasy Gulf Coast Conference, or the New Southwest Conference 2.0!
 
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HG73

Active Member
It's astonishing to me the level of blind greed driving these decisions. Destroying a 100 year proven model of college football that depends on a loyal fan base, in favor of a semi-pro model that I believe is destined to fail long term.
Fail? Capitalized with $100mil annual income stream? When your competition is making half that? Failure isn't in the cards.
 

Endless Purple

Full Member
I also believe a semi-pro model will fail in the long term. IF you have a breakaway of 32-40 teams with paid players, free or unlimited transfers, little controlled salary, then it is more like a professional league that would compete with the pros. How profitable are the XFL and USFL when going up against the NFL? minor league baseball vs major league? I think it loses that college aspect and perception. After that, what makes it different than the Birmingham Stallions once they start having a bunch of 7-9 win seasons with only equal level talented teams?

I think that is the evolution of where this is headed.

I know I am giving college football a couple years to figure out the money/pay side and if it ends up the pro model, I will stop going. Others will too.

IF the top teams break away and TCU stays in a college level lower group with less money, I will stay as I like to support the school and its students, not players making a bunch of money on top of my contributions towards scholarships. They wont need my money if getting a bunch already in pay, so why waste it.
 

BrewingFrog

Was I supposed to type something here?
It's astonishing to me the level of blind greed driving these decisions. Destroying a 100 year proven model of college football that depends on a loyal fan base, in favor of a semi-pro model that I believe is destined to fail long term.
The Ivy League Jackasses who are driving this don't care a whit about any of the things the average College Football fan cares about. Their drive is money, and lots of it, in the shortest time frame possible. This is why their approach to this is like a slash-and-burn pirate raid: They just want the loot. That they leave dead and wounded, and burning ruins in their wake is unimportant to them. They got theirs.
 

mc1502

Full Member
The Ivy League Jackasses who are driving this don't care a whit about any of the things the average College Football fan cares about. Their drive is money, and lots of it, in the shortest time frame possible. This is why their approach to this is like a slash-and-burn pirate raid: They just want the loot. That they leave dead and wounded, and burning ruins in their wake is unimportant to them. They got theirs.
At the end of the day, they are treating it like a business...... And with the profit they will get, it's no wonder that is their strategy. Does it suck for the little guy? Yep. Would TCU jump at the chance to do the same if they could pocket that kind of coin? Yep.

It's always been a rigged game, it's just legal and much more pervasive now. It is what it is.
 

Paint It Purple

Active Member
Fail? Capitalized with $100mil annual income stream? When your competition is making half that? Failure isn't in the cards.
Yes fail. Didn't say today or next year. Let's compare notes in 5-8 years. And, come to think of it. In the middle of a recession, significant inflation....not great timing.
 

BrewingFrog

Was I supposed to type something here?
At the end of the day, they are treating it like a business...... And with the profit they will get, it's no wonder that is their strategy. Does it suck for the little guy? Yep. Would TCU jump at the chance to do the same if they could pocket that kind of coin? Yep.

It's always been a rigged game, it's just legal and much more pervasive now. It is what it is.
I tend to differ just a bit: The businesses I have known, admittedly not terribly large enterprises, certainly not Fortune 500 outfits, never operated in such a fashion. Also admittedly, I am nearing Certified Old Fart status and have long been a Retired Dispenser of Wisdom/Curmudgeon, thus my perspective on matters ethical and Basic Investment Strategy differ greatly from the now fashionable methodology. It used to be that one looked to the future, and built for the long-term. This is evidently no longer the case. The Vampire Strategy seems to be fashionable: Bleed them dry and leave the husk. The former method built value, and provided stability. The current fashion is simply nihilistic, and devoid of thought for the future. It is concerned solely with the here and now, and tomorrow be damned. Devil take the hindmost...

Beyond the current Showcase of Modern Business Ethics on display from ESPN, this is going on all over the Nation. It does not bode well for the future.
 
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