How the hell do two potent teams like UNLV and Army get stuck with such crappy bowl games?
Army and UNLV
- Thread starter RebelAlbert
- Start date
Yes and no.
The game thread and comments after the result would have been pretty over the top.
Maiava is the second coming ! Why didn't we pony up the money! If USC won.
Maiava was a bum ! Good riddance! Enjoy that NIL money! If Rebs won.
I would have liked to go back to the Guaranteed Rate Bowl vs the other Kansas team, we would have been a better draw than Rutgers.
Sneaky good game there.
Not to mention a potential 3rd win over a conference we might be trying to get into. (I mean pipe dream but still)
I believe Marshal was scheduled for that game but because nearly their entire team hit the portal they dropped out. La Tech was quickly substituted
I would disagree that it was a "crappy" bowl game. The top team in the MW is chosen for the LA Bowl (if they don't go to the national playoffs). I believe that UNLV got $1.6 million for it.
Big12 vs B1G tie in. We were lucky last year that the B1G couldn’t get a team in.
LA Bowl was better, played an ACC team. Better than potato bowl or Arizona bowl. Only would have been interested in the Hawaii bowl.
Helps with the Dan Mullen contract fund.
We did get lucky but given a choice much preferred over Cal.
I don't think it is that much of a pipe dream anymore. UNLV appears to be finding the funding to be very competitive with the Big 12 conference, and the crowds at UNLV have almost doubled in size over the last 5 years. My expectation is that UNLV will continue to win, continue to get more hotel/casino and other corporate support, continue to increase crowd size, and continue to get more of a national following. If UNLV continues in this direction, unlike BSU who have a small local market, UNLV will become the best option to join one of the major conferences. The Big12 needs to increase their media footprint, and I think UNLV is working their way towards being the best option.
I agree on all of your points. I'll add that UNLV is in one of the most recognized, glamourous, and sports-oriented cities in the world.
UNLV need to starts playing from the SEC and BIG conferences. Win lose or draw play them to gauge and show our team off on a national stage. Especially in these bowl games.
UNLV if added cannot reduce the overall media contract. If BIG12 can add UNLV and possibly one other and the media payouts stays static UNLV has a shot. If it would reduce the payout because it's one more mouth to feed the other schools will vote against the addition. Really comes down to that.
I think UNLV is definitely trying to position themselves and make themselves as viable as possible.
But until I'm sitting in Stillwater Oklahoma watching the Rebs play the Cowboys in a conference game its still a pipe dream.
All we have now is ifs and maybe...
I am dying to see some smash mouth football but while utilising Coach Dan Mullen's wizardry play calling on the offense end. We need to shore up more DL and OL line.
Agree except I’d put our chances at 50/50 should the B12 expand. Much better than a pipe dream. We’re definitely on the list of top 5 G5 schools to be offered an invite.
There are four schools that make sense if the big12 expand. UNLV, UConn, Memphis, and Tulane. They will probably take 2 of them. We just need to make sure that no matter the configuration, it’ll be insane to not take UNLV.
Best way is what we’re doing now. Sustain the success, so we can sell more seats and keep eyes on the tv. Having Coach Mullen helps us gain a few extra eyeballs nation wide from fans of his, and people who are curious about how he’ll do. Need to at least bowl the next 3 years.
I will not allow myself to believe it can happen until it does. So many moving pieces in the realingment game still need to be played.
BIG12 may look more East to help out Cincy/Wvu with travel which puts UConn/Memphis/ Tulane in play.
Definitely not impossible and I think there may be more behind the Mullen hiring and increased booster support. But I'll temper my expectations for now..
I look at the viewership numbers for UNLV games on a national level, and from what I can see the viewership numbers that include UNLV games have more than doubled in the last 2-3 years. Under Mullen UNLV is going to have even more eyeballs on them to see what happens then they had under coach Odom. All you need to do is look at the increase in social media followers and interactions regarding UNLV post to see that the interest level is going up! Another huge positive for UNLV is picking up a players out of Florida, Texas, and other areas from the south, mid-west, and eastern regions. which will go far to increasing the media interest in UNLV. The more UNLV ties to past SEC, Big 10, Big 12 and ACC coaches and players, the better chance to turn UNLV more into a national level program than just a regional program.
I would say less than 50%. I really don't think that the Big 12 really wants to elevate more G5 teams if they don't have to. I think they are still watching the ACC to see if anything happens there, though that looks less likely than inevitable at this point.
What the Big 12 needs is more quality football. I think they hit the pause button on that UConn deal mostly because of the football program not doing anything to help.
Now UNLV is in good standing right now. Good market with bonus points for fans who want to come here for conference games. Just finished in the final CFP rankings.
We did have our best year ever after being one of the worst FB programs in the country. We lost our coach and a vast majority of players that got us there.
Mullen was a home run hire with a contract that is P4 level. His buyout was purposefully low so you can't count on him staying IF he can do as well or better. Oh yeah, it is getting even more difficult to compete with power conference teams for players with NIL blowing up like it has.
So for UNLV to get that call they have to stay a top 25 level team for a few years, it would really help to crash the playoffs, and then we have to hire another homerun and start over from scratch personnel wise yet again most likely.
Unless the Big 12 gets desperate and they have another subpar year next season, AND UNLV not only keeps pace, but somehow does even better, then a call may come sooner than 6 years or so.
Which makes it tougher because we will be playing in a weaker league after next season and our degree of error becomes razor thin.
What the Big 12 needs is more quality football. I think they hit the pause button on that UConn deal mostly because of the football program not doing anything to help.
Now UNLV is in good standing right now. Good market with bonus points for fans who want to come here for conference games. Just finished in the final CFP rankings.
We did have our best year ever after being one of the worst FB programs in the country. We lost our coach and a vast majority of players that got us there.
Mullen was a home run hire with a contract that is P4 level. His buyout was purposefully low so you can't count on him staying IF he can do as well or better. Oh yeah, it is getting even more difficult to compete with power conference teams for players with NIL blowing up like it has.
So for UNLV to get that call they have to stay a top 25 level team for a few years, it would really help to crash the playoffs, and then we have to hire another homerun and start over from scratch personnel wise yet again most likely.
Unless the Big 12 gets desperate and they have another subpar year next season, AND UNLV not only keeps pace, but somehow does even better, then a call may come sooner than 6 years or so.
Which makes it tougher because we will be playing in a weaker league after next season and our degree of error becomes razor thin.
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Fair assessment. I’d prefer we roll the dice and take our shot as Harp has done. We’re like a player on a hot streak at the craps table. Ride it as far as we can.
Again, I agree. Worth the risk. But a lot has to go right for a B12 invite to actually happen.
This is absolutely true. In the coming years if you aren't in a power conference it won't make a difference where you are. Revenue sharing begins next year. It starts at $ 20.5 million per school distributed to the students (if you have it) and I believe it will only go up. That will be added to NIL which is exploding. The next set of P4 TV contracts will be gigantic and concentrate media viewing across the nation on P4 programs. As this becomes normal, the have nots will be left completely behind and become irrelevant on the national scene. (Similar to D2/D3 now) A program in our position needs to spend every penny and take every chance to get in. If you don't get in it won't make any difference.
Your post is right, but I believe 20.5m is the starting cap. Its based on a % of total athletic revenue that can be distributed and is separate from NiL.
We can’t afford to be left off the gravy boat.
My expectation is that it is going to go in the other direction. The way college football is going will ultimately alienate a large amount of the viewing public, and as games go more and more to streaming, the general public will either not watch football at all, which in many ways has already happened, or they will watch only the team they support. Since traditional TV and cable are shrinking, there will be that point where the huge sums of money being paid to the major conferences will start to dry up.
One market shrink, other will open up. What UNLV need to do is create a story. Either the offense, the defense, special team, player or coaches. Create a story. Arizona State created a good one Cam Scattaboo. Creates interest, the TV revenues will never run out.
