Are SEC or Big 10 interested in Hurricanes? An update. And Van Dyke, Cristobal weigh in
A six-pack of Miami Hurricanes notes on a Friday:
▪ The Miami Hurricanes eventually might get a chance to leave the Atlantic Coast Conference. But it hasn’t happened yet, and it’s uncertain if it will. And restrictions are in place that would seemingly prevent ACC schools from bolting without paying an enormous financial price.
Three sources briefed by the UM administration said this week that neither the Southeastern Conference nor the Big 10 has offered membership to UM nor shown any serious interest in adding the Hurricanes.
Speculation about UM’s future began in recent weeks following Southern California’s and UCLA’s decision to bolt from the Pacific-12 to the Big 10. Dan Patrick, the longtime former ESPN and NBC sportscaster, said on his radio show that he has heard that the SEC is interested in UM, FSU and Clemson.
But if the SEC is interested, that hasn’t been conveyed to Miami, the UM sources said.
If the SEC or Big 10 expressed interest, would UM be interested?
Two UM Board of Trustee members said that would depend on several factors, including whether the Canes believe they could survive financially in the ACC, whether other top ACC schools bolt and how the rapidly-changing college landscape evolves in the coming months or years.
“If we’re contacted, we would be foolish not to listen,” said one prominent Board of Trustee member.
The sources said it was unclear which conference (the SEC or Big 10) would be of more interest to president Julio Frenk and the highest levels of the UM administration if the Canes ultimately have a choice of either. (Right now, they don’t have a choice of either, let alone both.)
The SEC has the obvious geographical advantage, but one UM administrator close to the president noted that if the Big 10 lured Notre Dame, that would be something significant.
One UM source said not to completely discount the Big 12 if the ACC is raided and the Big 12 is left standing strong, but it’s difficult to envision that scenario happening.
It’s important to note that UM is not unhappy in the ACC and is not looking to leave. But as one Trustee said, the Canes wish the TV revenue disparity between the ACC and the Big 10 and SEC wasn’t so wide.
Schools in the Big 10 and SEC already earn at least $25 million more annually, on average, than ACC schools pocket from their media deals, and that disparity will grow when the two Los Angeles schools join the Big 10 in 2025 and when Oklahoma and Texas join the SEC by no later than 2025. The Big 10 currently is immersed in media rights discussions, with several suitors.
ACC commissioner Jim Phillips said this week “I love our 15 schools and I’m confident in us staying together. That’s all I’ve heard in the calls we’ve had. We want to work together to provide more resources to our student-athletes. But we are all on the same page.”
He said the ACC and ESPN, which are 50-50 partners in the ACC Network, speak regularly about how to produce more revenue. ESPN’s ACC contract runs through 2036.
“They’re motivated, we’re motivated and we’ve come together to have some discussions about what would be the next iteration for the ACC,” Phillips said. “Doesn’t mean we’re going to make a move. Doesn’t mean we’re not going to move. But all options are on the table.”
Keep in mind, as explained in this McClatchy piece by Steve Wiseman, that “the ACC doesn’t appear to be in imminent danger of losing schools because of the grant of rights contract member school presidents signed in 2013. That contract ties the schools together, stipulating a school must forfeit any media revenue from its home games through 2036 no matter what conference it calls home.
“That means a school wishing to leave the ACC could face hundreds of millions of dollars in financial penalties to do so. Phillips said decisions by USC, UCLA, Texas and Oklahoma to stay in their current leagues until their grant of rights expires is a sign of how strong that document is. But, since no one has challenged the grant of rights in court, some doubt remains.”
As Phillips said: “I think it holds, but your guess is as good as mine.”
Wiseman also noted that “in the 2020-21 fiscal year, the SEC brought in $833 million in revenue followed by the Big Ten ($680 million) with the ACC lagging at $578 million. Those figures were, of course, before the SEC added Texas and Oklahoma, the Big Ten landed USC and UCLA and those two leagues see increased revenue from new television deals.”
▪ UM has improved its size on both lines, and that’s by design.
“It’s a big man’s game,” Mario Cristobal said on WQAM’s Joe Rose Show. “I remember the guy I worked for out in Tuscaloosa [Nick Saban]. I remember a day when I brought him a smaller player and he pulled me aside with a couple very choice words and if he asked me if I knew why they had weight divisions in boxing and I had to answer, ‘Tell me why.’
“He said, ‘So the big guy doesn’t kill the little guy. That’s why they have weight divisions. Make sure we recruit big, long guys because it’s a big man’s game.’ Now there are some guys with elite traits that don’t exactly have to be super-sized. But you want to increase the size and the length of your football team without compromising athleticism and explosive power.”
▪ Four-star offensive lineman Olaus Alinen picked Alabama over Miami and others on Friday, but the Canes remain in play for several players who are expected to announce their college choice this weekend.
That group includes Massachusetts-based safety Joenel Aguero (who plans to announce Saturday) and two Orlando-area prospects: linebacker Malik Bryant and offensive lineman Payton Kirkland, who also both plan to announce Saturday.
▪ Quarterback Tyler Van Dyke told WQAM’s Rose and Joe Zagacki that he believes freshman running back TreVonte’ Citizen, who has been on campus this summer, “is going to be a great player. He still has to prove it because he’s a freshman, but I really can see him playing early....
“Last year, Rooster [Jaylan Knighton] was really the only guy we had. He took a lot of hits.”
Now, UM is five deep in good backs with Don Chaney Jr., Knighton, Henry Parrish, Citizen and Thad Franklin.
“We’ll have three, four [backs who will play a lot],” Van Dyke said, adding that new offensive coordinator Josh Gattis “will do a great job of rotating them” and maximizing their strengths.
▪ Van Dyke is curious to see how the wide receiver battle will unfold.
“X is always going to be there making plays,” Van Dyke said of Xavier Restrepo, who’s the front-runner in the slot. “We’re really trying to figure out who’s going to be the outside guys. We have KeyShawn Smith, Jacolby George, Frank Ladson, Romello Brinson, Michael Redding. Tights ends are going to have a big role in what we’re going to do. They’re going to be getting the ball a lot.”
▪ Tight end Will Mallory, who wasn’t a top NFL prospect, said he returned for his senior season because “there was a lot left that I wanted to prove to myself. There’s a lot left that I think I want to go down and be remembered as a Miami Hurricane. This place is special to me…. Coach Cristobal came in. We were fortunate to get him…. I wouldn’t want to play for anyone else for my last year.... It’s the best thing for our team.”
