Oregon, Washington ‘Vetted and Cleared’ to Join Big Ten: Brett McMurphy

[WAGopher]

Here's the average number of viewers per week for the 2021 12-week season for each program. There might be something more recent, but I'm too lazy to look.

Minnesota is #24. Washington is #38, which is pretty much equal to or better than other programs being discussed, such as North Carolina (36), Stanford (46), Virginia (52), Georgia Tech (61) and Cal (76). Oregon is an outlier at #10.

Recent Big Ten additions: UCLA (29), USC (32), Maryland (39), Rutgers (58).

And the poor access to watch WA Husky football probably skews the viewership downward. It’s not possible to watch all games without a subscription and then it’s not a guarantee they’ll be on live.

 

[WAGopher]

They do fill up a 70k stadium pretty well. They're about like Iowa. Roughly that level of a program in the PAC.

But the game is all about TV ratings. Just because they fill a stadium doesn't mean that Sea-Tac market tunes into their games on TV.

Lot of tech nerds out there, lot of Asians who don't care a lick about American Football to boot. Very similar to San Fran, in that sense.

True there are a lot of nerds out here, but we are a football state. For 2023, WA has three times as many 3 and 4 star recruits as MN and a lot more 2 stars:

WA State Football Recruits
2023 State Population: 7.79 million
6 Four Star
49 Three Star
142 Two Star
——————
197 Rated

MN State Football Recruits
2023 State Population: 5.71 million
2 Four Star
16 Three Star
19 Two Star
——————
37 Rated

 

[Taji34]

I’ve said all along that not only do I expect WA to join the B1G, but it will be an excellent addition as well.

Someone earlier mentioned Georgia Tech to be a better addition. I disagree. I feel WA fits the B1G much better. They each add a big market but I’d bet the vast majority of Atlanta cheers for and cares about SEC sports. The Seattle/Tacoma market is all in on the Huskies and unlike much of the rest of the PAC12, do show up regularly to fill a large stadium.

I may be a bit biased, having moved to Seattle after graduating, but I agree they would be a great addition. I would 100% go to every game the Gopher's played here in Seattle vs the Huskies.

Their campus and it's proximity to Seattle feels very similar to the U, and I think it would be a great trip for Gopher fans to make. Plus I think we have a decent alumni base in the Seattle area.

 

[Plato]

As has been written many times, it is not important how any area fills or does not fill its stadia or what its TV rankings may be.
What the BTN cares about is how many people will have the BTN put on their cable or streaming packages.
The people who advertise on the games do care about the number of viewers.

 

[PMWinSTP]

And the poor access to watch WA Husky football probably skews the viewership downward. It’s not possible to watch all games without a subscription and then it’s not a guarantee they’ll be on live.

Totally agree. I always try to catch Huskies when they are on TV. Moving to B1G will definitely make their games more widely available. 500K alumni. I would attend every Gopher game in Seattle.

 

[STPGopher]

I may be a bit biased, having moved to Seattle after graduating, but I agree they would be a great addition. I would 100% go to every game the Gopher's played here in Seattle vs the Huskies.

Their campus and it's proximity to Seattle Vancouver feels very similar to the U, and I think it would be a great trip for Gopher fans to make. Plus I think we have a decent alumni base in the Seattle area.

FIFY

Seriously that whole rainforest area is stunning! I love the sunshine coast! Can't wait to get back up there. Watching Gopher football as well. Wow, just wow! I'd take a week or two off just for that game!

 

[PMWinSTP]

FIFY

Seriously that whole rainforest area is stunning! I love the sunshine coast! Can't wait to get back up there. Watching Gopher football as well. Wow, just wow! I'd take a week or two off just for that game!

Right? An early October game there would be perfect. Grab some jumbo prawns and clam chowder from Ivar's, hit some taprooms in Ballard. Would be awesome if there was a Wild/Kraken game the same weekend.

 

[Gophers_4life]

I'd rather the PAC continue to persist with its 12 schools, perhaps add San Diego and one more (Hawaii? Colorado State?), and then get into a scheduling agreement with the Big Ten, as opposed to the Big Ten picking off two more of the most valuable programs.

I'll keep saying it because it's correct: 5 major conferences is better than 4.

 

[matt]

I'd rather the PAC continue to persist with its 12 schools, perhaps add San Diego and one more (Hawaii? Colorado State?), and then get into a scheduling agreement with the Big Ten, as opposed to the Big Ten picking off two more of the most valuable programs.

I'll keep saying it because it's correct: 5 major conferences is better than 4.

I'll keep saying it because it's correct: you should stop posting.

 

[PMWinSTP]

I'll keep saying it because it's correct: you should stop posting.

Blasphemy! The all-knowing has spoken...

 

[Dave H]

I'll keep saying it because it's correct: you should stop posting.

Sounds like fan fiction/clickbait to me