Those of you who have posted about a SuperConference may be on to something. I will post some comments from Josh Whitman, Athletic Director at Illinois. He is one of the longest tenured Athletic Directors in the B1G, has served on several high level committees in the B1G and currently sits as the Chair of the NCAA Council. He also has a JD. And he is very aware of the concept of a Super Conference.
illiniguys.com
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In layman’s terms, Whitman addressed what it could mean for Illinois if some of the perceived big brand athletics institutions were to eventually become dissatisfied with the revenue sharing policy inside its own league (a major issue in Florida State University’s current lawsuit in federal court against the Atlantic Coast Conference), which would likely be prodded by television network executives wanting to broadcast exclusive big brand content.
“I always think about it in terms of the live golfstat.com (leaderboard) where when you get into the NCAA Tournament (for college golf), eventually they put that red line on there,” Whitman said. “I always think about it where if at some point if they choose to put that red line there, we have to make sure that Illinois is in front of the cutline…that has been a primary driver of our strategy here really since coming out of COVID-19 and will continue to be as we move into this next environment.”
And how can Illini athletics find itself “in front of the cutline” should power conference consolidation eventually happen? For Whitman and his staff members at Illinois, the answer is simple. Find on-the-field and financial success in two sports and two sports only - football and, to a lesser degree, men’s basketball.
“We know all of those decisions are going to be eventually driven almost exclusively by football and then very secondarily by men’s basketball. We know this,” Whitman said. “As we’ve developed our strategy over the last several years, we have been very upfront internally and with others about the priority that those two sports occupy for our program. And it’s not because we like them. It’s not because they’re inherently more important to us. It’s a recognition of the reality of our business. If at some point, that red line is put on the screen, those sports will determine where our athletic program falls relative to that red line.”
Thursday was the first time Whitman has publicly spoken about his current concerns about how Illinois could be directly impacted by the future of consolidation among power conference programs in college athletics. Whitman spoke about these anxieties of future consolidation in a cold, stark reality while the leader of an athletics department that has seen its football program fail to win a Big Ten Conference title since 2001, fail to qualify for a bowl in consecutive seasons since 2011 and has only secured a prime national television draw for any of its past or current network partners (CBS, FOX, NBC or ABC) just 10 times since 2012.
Despite the fact the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a founding member of the Big Ten Conference going back to the league’s inception in 1896, Whitman was quick to point out Thursday that may likely not matter in the ever-changing landscape of college athletics in 2024. The Illini’s athletics boss said he no longer believes any longer any program, including and most assuredly Illinois, can simply count on a historical preservation or grandfather for future power conference status survival.
“There’s a very real consequence to being below that red line that has never existed before,” Whitman said. “If there’s anything we’ve learned over the last five years, it’s that we can’t rely on being guaranteed anything anymore.”
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Illini AD Josh Whitman Addresses Concerns Over Potential College Athletics Super League - IlliniGuys.com
In his annual media roundtable Thursday morning, University of Illinois athletics director Josh Whitman cited concerns over his school’s resume for a future ‘Super League’ scenario in college sports. Matt Stevens, IlliniGuys Staff Writer June 21, 2024 CHAMPAIGN — When Josh Whitman asked about a...
illiniguys.com
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In layman’s terms, Whitman addressed what it could mean for Illinois if some of the perceived big brand athletics institutions were to eventually become dissatisfied with the revenue sharing policy inside its own league (a major issue in Florida State University’s current lawsuit in federal court against the Atlantic Coast Conference), which would likely be prodded by television network executives wanting to broadcast exclusive big brand content.
“I always think about it in terms of the live golfstat.com (leaderboard) where when you get into the NCAA Tournament (for college golf), eventually they put that red line on there,” Whitman said. “I always think about it where if at some point if they choose to put that red line there, we have to make sure that Illinois is in front of the cutline…that has been a primary driver of our strategy here really since coming out of COVID-19 and will continue to be as we move into this next environment.”
And how can Illini athletics find itself “in front of the cutline” should power conference consolidation eventually happen? For Whitman and his staff members at Illinois, the answer is simple. Find on-the-field and financial success in two sports and two sports only - football and, to a lesser degree, men’s basketball.
“We know all of those decisions are going to be eventually driven almost exclusively by football and then very secondarily by men’s basketball. We know this,” Whitman said. “As we’ve developed our strategy over the last several years, we have been very upfront internally and with others about the priority that those two sports occupy for our program. And it’s not because we like them. It’s not because they’re inherently more important to us. It’s a recognition of the reality of our business. If at some point, that red line is put on the screen, those sports will determine where our athletic program falls relative to that red line.”
Thursday was the first time Whitman has publicly spoken about his current concerns about how Illinois could be directly impacted by the future of consolidation among power conference programs in college athletics. Whitman spoke about these anxieties of future consolidation in a cold, stark reality while the leader of an athletics department that has seen its football program fail to win a Big Ten Conference title since 2001, fail to qualify for a bowl in consecutive seasons since 2011 and has only secured a prime national television draw for any of its past or current network partners (CBS, FOX, NBC or ABC) just 10 times since 2012.
Despite the fact the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a founding member of the Big Ten Conference going back to the league’s inception in 1896, Whitman was quick to point out Thursday that may likely not matter in the ever-changing landscape of college athletics in 2024. The Illini’s athletics boss said he no longer believes any longer any program, including and most assuredly Illinois, can simply count on a historical preservation or grandfather for future power conference status survival.
“There’s a very real consequence to being below that red line that has never existed before,” Whitman said. “If there’s anything we’ve learned over the last five years, it’s that we can’t rely on being guaranteed anything anymore.”
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