After the ACC captured a TV rights deal with ESPN, the SEC figures to be even more powerful down the line.
The ACC reached an exclusive agreement with ESPN on Wednesday worth $3.6 billion that will extend for 15 years, via John Ourand of the Sports Business Journal. According to Ourand, each school in the conference, including Pittsburgh and Syracuse, will receive $17 million.
Schools in the SEC are each currently reaping $17 million. The SEC will be looking for a new deal after last year's expansion and it could very well dwarf the ACC's agreement.
The extensive deal on Wednesday will allow for 14 more conference-controlled games each year, and ESPN now has the right to televise three Friday ACC football games per year.
The lucrative deal is sure to create a domino effect. Just like a premier NFL player seeking what he's worth, the SEC will use the ACC's agreement as a benchmark for how much its own should be worth. As arguably the best conference in the nation, the SEC should be able to reach a deal that dwarfs the ACC's and keeps it among the top in the country.
According to a Broadcasting & Cable report, CBS is already “getting substantial price increases for its Southeastern Conference schedule" for the next season. CBS' SEC package only has a limited amount of games with top-ranked teams, so agencies are competing to pay CBS' price.
If you think the ACC just scored, imagine what the SEC will be worth. Not only did Alabama and LSU advance to the national championship game last season, the SEC had several Top 20 teams, including Arkansas, South Carolina and Georgia.
The rich keep getting richer.
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