College football's sleeping giant awakens.

Well yeah, I figured everyone else would mention it but fine here are the Conference Champions in football from 1990-1994

1990: Miami

1991: Miami

1992: Miami

1993: Florida State

1994: Penn State
1990: What is Miami's record? Do they lose to BYU and Notre Dame like OTL, or does the conference schedule preclude them from scheduling one of those games? If Miami is 10-1 instead of 9-2 going into bowl season they have a shot at the national championship.

1991: Assuming Miami is undefeated and national champions, just like OTL. The Pac-10 Rose Bowl tie-in means Washington can't play Miami in #1 vs. #2, so the split national championship is same as OTL.

1992: I assume Miami loses to Alabama in the national championship just like OTL

1993: If Florida State doesn't play Notre Dame, they have an undefeated season. If they do, same controversy as OTL for the national championship, because Florida State beat Nebraska in the Orange Bowl and Notre Dame finished 11-1 with a bowl victory. My only question here, is do they switch the bowls up and have FSU play ND, thus leading Nebraska to a possible national championship as the only eligible unbeaten? Is Auburn still bowl banned ITTL? They were undefeated in the regular season but bowl banned IRL

1994: Penn State vs. Nebraska for the national championship occurs (likely a Penn State win, they were dominant that year)
 
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As for basketball, the tournament
1990: What is Miami's record? Do they lose to BYU and Notre Dame like OTL, or does the conference schedule preclude them from scheduling one of those games? If Miami is 10-1 instead of 9-2 going into bowl season they have a shot at the national championship.

1991: Assuming Miami is undefeated and national champions, just like OTL. The Pac-10 Rose Bowl tie-in means Washington can't play Miami in #1 vs. #2, so the split national championship is same as OTL.

1992: I assume Miami loses to Alabama in the national championship just like OTL

1993: If Florida State doesn't play Notre Dame, they have an undefeated season. If they do, same controversy as OTL for the national championship, because Florida State beat Nebraska in the Orange Bowl. My only question here, is do they switch the bowls up and have FSU play ND, thus leading Nebraska to a possible national championship as the only unbeaten?

1994: Penn State vs. Nebraska for the national championship occurs (likely a Penn State win, they were dominant that year)
1990: Miami went 10-2, and no a spot was left open to preserve Miami-Notre Dame. Paterno knew rivalries like Miami-Notre Dame can deliver TV ratings

1991: Miami is undefeated

1992: You are correct

1993: The bowl tie in for the ECC Champion is the Orange Bowl
 
Preliminary negotiations open between the ECC and FOX to lock up tv rights for the next five years with a enormous increase in the base payments with bonuses being paid out if certain ratings are reached.
ESPN has already increased their payments for cable tv rights as their contract expired last year and as part of the package they get a Friday night game from the lesser schools in the conference (it is hoped that extra exposure will help with recruiting) and three games on Saturday as long they don’t go against the over the air broadcasting partner.
ABC is waiting in the wings if the negotiations with FOX fall apart.
For FOX the NFL was impressed by the innovations introduced for the ECC telecasts and decided that if FOX came up with the money that the NFL was going to do business with them.
 
Preliminary negotiations open between the ECC and FOX to lock up tv rights for the next five years with a enormous increase in the base payments with bonuses being paid out if certain ratings are reached.
ESPN has already increased their payments for cable tv rights as their contract expired last year and as part of the package they get a Friday night game from the lesser schools in the conference (it is hoped that extra exposure will help with recruiting) and three games on Saturday as long they don’t go against the over the air broadcasting partner.
ABC is waiting in the wings if the negotiations with FOX fall apart.
For FOX the NFL was impressed by the innovations introduced for the ECC telecasts and decided that if FOX came up with the money that the NFL was going to do business with them.
Rumor has it Turner Sports are looking to get into the game as well, rumor is they're looking to follow the FOX playbook with their own network, The WB.
 
So right now ITTL the “Leftover 7” (TCU joined the “non-conference conference) and are looking for more partners so far the biggest “names” are UTEP and Memphis St.
Boston University is studying if they can improve their football program to ECC standards of just drop it entirely, BC is torn between having the Boston market to themselves or if a crosstown rivalry will benefit them also.
SUNY Stony Brook is embarking on their “Project X” a ten year plan to move from Division II to Division I-A the top division with a stop in I-AA.
Stony Brook sees this a way to increase their National profile as it is really a good academic school with more and more research dollars pouring in (Thank Sen D’Amato) and secret funding for a 12,500 basketball arena and an up to 45,000 football stadium has been secured.
 
So right now ITTL the “Leftover 7” (TCU joined the “non-conference conference) and are looking for more partners so far the biggest “names” are UTEP and Memphis St.
Boston University is studying if they can improve their football program to ECC standards of just drop it entirely, BC is torn between having the Boston market to themselves or if a crosstown rivalry will benefit them also.
SUNY Stony Brook is embarking on their “Project X” a ten year plan to move from Division II to Division I-A the top division with a stop in I-AA.
Stony Brook sees this a way to increase their National profile as it is really a good academic school with more and more research dollars pouring in (Thank Sen D’Amato) and secret funding for a 12,500 basketball arena and an up to 45,000 football stadium has been secured.
Wouldn't Stony Brook play their big games at the Nassau Coliseum?

Also, Project X is very ambitious, gotta say.. Jumping from Division II to potentially one of the strongest conferences in football. Very bold move
 
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Which will help Rutgers most of all turn into the NYC school for the conference.
Yeah those things can help to build competitive teams in the NY-NJ Megalopolis long term.

oston University is studying if they can improve their football program to ECC standards of just drop it entirely
Don't do it, especially as NY is getting their stuff together, adopt your own PROJECT X too.

UNY Stony Brook is embarking on their “Project X” a ten year plan to move from Division II to Division I-A the top division with a stop in I-AA.
Stony Brook sees this a way to increase their National profile as it is really a good academic school with more and more research dollars pouring in (Thank Sen D’Amato) and secret funding for a 12,500 basketball arena and an up to 45,000 football stadium has been secured.
Nice when your local senator helps you, hope Project X work long term
 
Yeah those things can help to build competitive teams in the NY-NJ Megalopolis long term.


Don't do it, especially as NY is getting their stuff together, adopt your own PROJECT X too.


Nice when your local senator helps you, hope Project X work long term


Problem is there may not be an open spot for Stony Brook in the conference. Temple's [Spoiler Alert] going to be expelled from the conference and the conference may look into Cincinnati or Louisville to replace them
 
There is another flaw with Project X, Stony Brook is a 2 hour train ride from NYC. Hard for them to claim to be the NYC school when they are that far
 
Their going to be jokes about how every Friday night it is either Rutgers or Temple playing and depending on how the ratings, are losing the Philadelphia market may not be worth dropping Temple and besides having a patsey in the conference is always good for a certain win by the big boys.
 
Their going to be jokes about how every Friday night it is either Rutgers or Temple playing and depending on how the ratings, are losing the Philadelphia market may not be worth dropping Temple and besides having a patsey in the conference is always good for a certain win by the big boys.
Penn State still brings in Philadelphia.
 
There are going to be plenty of butterflies ITTL as IOTL Temple was expelled from one Group of Five conference to a lower ranking Group of Five conference and with the exposure playing on Friday nights Temple can recruit the Two Star and Three Star high school players who want to play immediately instead of spending four years on the bench at Penn State.
One of the biggest problems is that schools like Alabama and Ohio State will recruit a high school player to keep them from another school that needs them and after a couple of years on the bench their scholarship is pulled for a Five Star recruit and if they go to another school they lose one year of eligibility.
 
The ECC wants to and more importantly needs to be thought as more than football conference with basketball as an afterthought is expanding their non revenue sports programs by accepting Associate Members in sports like baseball, tennis, track and field, lacrosse, swimming among other sports.
Sometime in the 80's the NCAA passed a rule that all schools must play their sports in the same division as some schools will play in Division I in basketball while competing in Division III in football which led to some schools to drop football or move up to Division I.
To clarify things the currently named Football Bowl Subdivision was called Division I-A and the Football Championship Subdivision was Division I-AA and non football Scholarship schools played in Division I-AAA which latered folded in to the FCS.
There are no subdivisions in other sports so a school that was in the FCS/ Division I-AA was in Division I in all other sports.
Stony Brook Project X called for Stony Brook to play football in a FCS conference and a conference like the Atlantic 10, Colonial/ Patriot league in basketball while joining the ECC in non revenue sports in order for the ECC to become a full service conference.
IOTL Stony Brook was a football power in FCS and if other schools like Western Kentucky and UTSA can make the transition Stony Brook can also but it is going to take more the ten years.
 
The ECC wants to and more importantly needs to be thought as more than football conference with basketball as an afterthought is expanding their non revenue sports programs by accepting Associate Members in sports like baseball, tennis, track and field, lacrosse, swimming among other sports.
Sometime in the 80's the NCAA passed a rule that all schools must play their sports in the same division as some schools will play in Division I in basketball while competing in Division III in football which led to some schools to drop football or move up to Division I.
To clarify things the currently named Football Bowl Subdivision was called Division I-A and the Football Championship Subdivision was Division I-AA and non football Scholarship schools played in Division I-AAA which latered folded in to the FCS.
There are no subdivisions in other sports so a school that was in the FCS/ Division I-AA was in Division I in all other sports.
Stony Brook Project X called for Stony Brook to play football in a FCS conference and a conference like the Atlantic 10, Colonial/ Patriot league in basketball while joining the ECC in non revenue sports in order for the ECC to become a full service conference.
IOTL Stony Brook was a football power in FCS and if other schools like Western Kentucky and UTSA can make the transition Stony Brook can also but it is going to take more the ten years.
The plan is to expand to include some of the Boston schools and Qunnipiac in hockey, as well as Army and Notre Dame in all sports but football.
 
If anybody wants to cover this conference in other sports like basketball, knock yourself out
 
Negotiations for the ECC's new television contract would begin. With ESPN, ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC , and even a surprise newcomer bidding for the rights. Turner Sports, looking to use sports to grow TNT, TBS, and their new The WB network.

Fox would win both the broadcast rights and the cable rights for a record $1 billion dollars over 10 years. The plan would be to air games on Fox, their brand new FX cable network, AND the new Fox Sports Net starting in 1996.
 
The ECC contract started a bidding rights war and conference raids with ABC/ESPN going head to head against CBS on the rights for the SEC and Fox on the BIG 10 and PAC 12 rights.
Life for the "Leftover 7" got interesting as they formed Conference USA with additional schools like Southern Mississippi, East Carolina, Memphis St., UTEP, Tulane, and SMU.
They got a five year $80 million contract from ABC/ESPN and an additional $25 million syndicated contract from Mizlou Sports which leased time on the dwindling number of independent stations.
Mizlou eventually sold the rights back to the conference after a year who then sold it as a secondary cable/satellite rights package.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the SEC, Big 1O, ACC, PAC 12, and WAC agreed to limit the number of schools in each conference to 14 and a seven year no raid pact on the other conferences, it made the raiding of the ECC schools fair game.
 
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Fox would win both the broadcast rights and the cable rights for a record $1 billion dollars over 10 years. The plan would be to air games on Fox, their brand new FX cable network, AND the new Fox Sports Net starting in 1996.
100M per year at the time, enough content to fill those 3 channels and make people subscribe(wonder if FX would evolved more as TNT ITTL now), that is a big league business

Life for the "Leftover 7" got interesting as they formed Conference USA with additional schools like Southern Mississippi, East Carolina, Memphis St., UTEP, Tulane, and SMU.
They got a five year $80 million contract from ABC/ESPN and an additional $25 million syndicated contract from Mizlou Sports which leased time on the dwindling number of independent stations.
remind me the members of the former BIG 12? now the money is tickling down for all, all schools must be loving the ECC sans raiding measures
 
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