COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- The University of
Maryland's decision to stay in the Atlantic Coast Conference or join the
Big Ten comes down to tradition versus money.
Given the plight of the school's
struggling athletic program, the Terrapins' stature as a charter member
of the ACC may not mean as much as the prospect of playing a home
football game against, say, Ohio State, and being part of a league that
generates more revenue.
The Board of Regents is scheduled to
meet Monday to discuss the joining the Big Ten. If Maryland approves the
move and applies for admission, Rutgers is expected to follow suit and
leave the Big East. That would leave the Big Ten with 14 schools.
An announcement on Maryland's final decision is expected this week, maybe as soon as Monday.
The addition of Maryland and Rutgers,
located in New Brunswick, N.J., about 40 miles south of New York city,
would give the Big Ten an added presence in the East -- along with Penn
State -- and add two huge television markets. Which explain in part why
the Big Ten is courting Maryland and offering a fee to join, enough to
at least partially offset the $50 million exit fee the ACC approved by
vote in September after adding Notre Dame.
By leaving the ACC, Maryland would be
breaking ties and rivalries with many schools it has competed against
since 1953. There are few bigger college basketball games than Maryland
vs. Duke, and Terrapins fans for decades have made up a decent portion
of the crowd at the ACC basketball tournament.
Unfortunately, tradition doesn't fill
the football stadium on Saturdays. Maryland can't sell out the luxury
boxes at the newly renovated Tyser Tower inside Byrd Stadium, and only
35,244 fans showed up Saturday on senior day for a matchup against
10th-ranked Florida State.
Home games against Ohio State, Michigan
and Nebraska would surely be sellouts. And, it is entirely possible
that the school would consider expanding the on-campus stadium from its
current capacity of 54,000.
There's also the matter of the Big Ten
television contract, which is far more lucrative than the one the ACC
has currently in place. The Big Ten network has also become a cash cow
for the league since it started in 2007. According to a May report in
the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Big Ten schools receive about $24.6 million
in revenue from the conference this year. With two more major
television markets in the conference's footprint, that could go up.
Maryland this year cut seven sports
programs because of budget concerns. Instead of merely surviving, the
athletics department might even flourish if the Terrapins become part of
the Big Ten.
But the prospective move would call for
longer road trips. Instead of taking a bus trip to North Carolina for a
basketball game against the Tar Heels, Maryland would be forced to fly
to the Midwest, perhaps in a snowstorm. And while a visit from the Ohio
State football team would be extremely interesting and unique, the
curiosity factor would drop off considerably for a game against
Minnesota or Iowa.
Those against the move cite tradition
is the key factor. But university president Wallace D. Loh has no
significant ties to the ACC. In fact, he came to Maryland in November
2010 after serving as the University of Iowa provost. Athletic director
Kevin Anderson was hired in 2010 after a seven-year stint at Army.
Anderson did not respond to text
messages from The Associated Press this weekend. It is likely, however,
that the prospective move is being championed by Loh, who was slated to
brief the Board of Regents on Sunday in advance of Monday's session.
The 17-member Board of Regents governs
the University System of Maryland. Appointed by the governor, the
regents oversee the system's academic, administrative and financial
operations. It also formulates policy.
