Big Ten Conference Commissioner Jim Delany said the CFP committee got it right with the selection of Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State and Washington to the field, leaving out Delany’s own conference champion in Penn State. Speaking in a one-on-one interview at the ’16 Learfield Intercollegiate Athletics Forum, Delany said the playoff continues to be a positive development for college football. “In three years we’ve had 11 conference champions, one second place team, and no two-loss teams,” Delany said. “There are going to be disagreements on the margins, but overall, it’s been a good structure and it’s been great for the sport.” Delany dismissed the boos he received from Penn State fans during the trophy ceremony last weekend, a reaction fueled by comments he made earlier opining that Ohio State had already done enough to reach the playoff. “It’s not the first or last time I’ll be booed,” he said. “Penn State and Michigan each had a case, but I respect the decision and the rationale behind it.” Delany sharply cut off any discussion about the possibility of expanding the playoff to eight teams.
NETWORK NEWS: Delany also spoke at length about the 10th anniversary of the Big Ten Network, which proved to be an influential trailblazer in the development of conference-specific media networks, and the rise of collegiate sports programming overall. The network is now in more than 60 million homes, and Delany said '16 set new records for revenue and profitability. “Starting a network isn’t easy, but I credit our institutions, our ADs, our coaches, our university presidents. They all got behind this,” Delany said. Questions about the viability of specific conference networks have risen in recent years amid a fast-changing media landscape. But Delany insisted traditional linear TV networks still have viability. “People have been predicting the death of the [cable] bundle for 25 years,” Delany said. “It’ll fray, it’ll change, but it’ll still take several years to sort itself out.”
TOO MUCH OF A GOOD THING? Delany said he would be open to a slight reduction in the length of college basketball schedules, which for some teams now approach 40 games a season. “It should be on the table for discussion. Too much ice cream isn’t good, and too many playoff games isn’t good,” he said. Delany did acknowledge that a reduction in non-conference games would likely impact smaller schools disproportionately, but that for bigger schools it could potentially done without a significant loss in revenue.
QUICK HITS:
* Delany does not yet see a clear direction for e-sports at the collegiate level, saying, “I think we’re still in an investigative phase.”
* He declined to specify any retirement plans. Reports have suggested he intends to retire in '20, and Delany himself has said he does not expect to be in his current role by '22. He said yesterday, “My energy is really good. I’m sticking around.”
* He remains supportive of the NCAA and its role in organizing championships and administering rules in college athletics. “They perform functions we need performed,” he said.
