ACC Network challenge

http://www.dailypress.com/sports/dp-spt-acc-network-year-away-0801-story.html

But the paramount ACC Network challenge for ESPN and its parent company, Disney, during the next 12 months will be securing carriage deals with the nation’s top cable and satellite providers. And odds are those negotiations will be public, protracted and, perhaps, contentious.

Disney/ESPN has one carriage agreement for the ACC Network, and it’s big, with Altice, a primary cable provider in New York City, New Jersey and Connecticut. That population base makes Altice, formerly Optimum by Cablevision, the fourth-largest provider behind Comcast, Charter Spectrum and Cox, according to BroadbandNow.com and Variety.

But as the SEC Network teaches, ACC fans shouldn’t expect similar deals this far in advance, even with Disney/ESPN’s considerable portfolio and, therefore, leverage with providers .

ESPN and the SEC unveiled plans for their network in May 2013, and that very day they announced a carriage arrangement with AT&T U-verse. But contracts with cable and satellite’s biggest players took far more time.

Here’s an instructive timeline of the SEC Network’s carriage deals. Keep in mind the network launched Aug. 14, 2014, and all dates listed are in 2014.

March 3: Dish Network.

July 9: Cox Communications.

July 18: Comcast.

July 24: Time Warner. Charter purchased Time Warner two years ago.

Aug. 4: DirecTV. This was 10 days before launch.

Aug. 14: Mediacom serving SEC states Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Missouri and Tennessee. Grande Communications in Texas.

Aug. 26: Verizon Fios. This was 12 days post-launch and two days before the SEC Network’s first football game, between Texas A&M and South Carolina.

Their challenges notwithstanding, the SEC and Big Ten networks are models for the ACC as it attempts to close the revenue gap with the richest Power Five leagues.

During the conference’s annual football kickoff two weeks ago, ACC commissioner John Swofford said that he and his staff look forward to the new undertaking of collaborating with ESPN on programming for the conference’s channel. And even with ESPN’s recent presidential transition from John Skipper to Jimmy Pitaro, Swofford pronounced the working relationship as “stronger than ever.”

“This fall we will finalize the live event programming schedule for the fall, winter and spring sports,” he said. “Throughout the academic year, we’ll begin the process of considering our non-live program needs and reviewing different show ideas that will be on the ACC Network. And by next spring, we will have identified the talent for the programs that we create, as well as our lead game announcers for all sports. …

“It’s not that I don’t want to share more with you, but the reality is I’ve provided all the answers we have at this current time. But, rest assured, by next year's football kickoff, there will be no shortage of information surrounding the ACC Network shows and talent, and we will at that time be within weeks of its launch. Bottom line, whether it’s production, distribution, scheduling or anything else related to the network, I am pleased to be able to tell you that we are right on schedule.”

But as Swofford acknowledged in a subsequent one-on-one interview, “on schedule” for distribution is a relative concept.

Carriage negotiations are, Swofford said, “a tough world.”

FSU faculty awarded $226M in research dollars

https://news.fsu.edu/news/university-news/2018/07/30/fsu-faculty-awarded-226m-in-research-dollars-2/

Florida State University researchers brought in more than $226 million in the 2018 fiscal year from federal, state and private sources to support investigations into areas such as nuclear science, climate change, the effect of deep space travel on human health and much more.

This is a $16 million increase over the prior fiscal year and the second highest amount FSU researchers have ever received in a single year. The university has received more than $1 billion over five years.

“This news is evidence of the growth of Florida State University and the exceptional work by the faculty here,” Vice President for Research Gary K. Ostrander said. “We have made critical investments to support our researchers as they apply for these competitive grants and are seeing a great return on that.”

The yearly total received a boost from university researchers’ increased focus on pursuing funding from the National Institutes of Health. Over the past year, FSU researchers have received a 73 percent increase in NIH funding.

Florida State is one of the leaders in the state for NIH funding. FSU ranks fifth in the state for NIH dollars, ahead of research heavyweights such as the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville and the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute in Tampa.

The university also received a record number of awards from the National Science Foundation, with 201 awards this past fiscal year.

“What these dollars represent is the dedication by researchers to do work that improves the human condition,” Ostrander said. “Researchers are working on treatments for Zika, Alzheimer’s and cancer. They’re developing new technologies that can improve our daily lives. These decisions by federal officials and other organizations to award FSU this type of money shows their faith in our faculty members to make the big scientific breakthroughs that can change our world.”

This is the second highest amount that FSU researchers have received in a single fiscal year from federal, state and private sources. The record year was 2014 when researchers brought in $230.1 million. However, that total was boosted by federal stimulus dollars that had to be used in a finite period.

This swell of research activity coincides with a dramatic jump in national rankings by FSU. In two years, the university surged ahead 10 spots in the U.S. News & World Report rankings. FSU is now ranked No. 33 in the nation among public universities.

The Florida Legislature’s designation of FSU as a preeminent university in the state has provided FSU with additional funding that has allowed the university to hire more faculty in the health sciences and other areas.

FSU $8 million redesign Don Veller Seminole Golf Course

http://www.wtxl.com/news/fsu-to-start-redesign-don-veller-seminole-golf-course/article_497de784-9417-11e8-91c2-f720262642ba.html

Florida State University's Don Veller Seminole Golf Course is getting a multi-million dollar redesign in August by a legendary golfer.

Officials say renovations on the Don Veller Seminole Golf Course with begin Monday, August 13.

FSU is partnering with Nicklaus Design, a global golf course design firm founded by golf legend Jack Nicklaus, to redesign the par-73 course. The course will be transformed into the first Jack Nicklaus Legacy Course in North America.

Officials say Jack Nicklaus and his oldest son, Jack Nicklaus II, will collaborate on all design-related issues. Tallahassee-based Childers Construction Co. will oversee the $8 million project. 

Built in 1962 and last redesigned in 2004, the Don Veller Seminole Golf Course is among the nation’s top facilities in collegiate golf. 

The golf course will be closed through September 30, 2019. The driving range will also be closed during the renovations.

Total # of Wins over the Last Quarter Century ('93-'17)

36 Days till #BeatFSU - #Hokies (5th overall) sit 2 wins behind the #Seminoles (2nd overall) in Total # of Wins over the Last Quarter Century ('93-'17) pic.twitter.com/AYpW6pFKNC

— OXVT (@OX_VT) July 29, 2018

ACC Total 4-Star & 5-Star commits (2014-2018)

Hard to believe these numbers given how far away FSU is perceived to be (and maybe, I don't know).

Total 4-Star & 5-Star commits (2014-2018)

ACC ATLANTIC: 154
ACC COASTAL: 112
FSU + CLEM: 129 (48% of ACC)

73 - FSU
56 - Clemson
47 - Miami
21 - VT
18 - UNC
13 - Pitt
11 - Louisville
10 - NC St
5 - UVA, Duke
3 - Cuse, GT
1 - BC
0 - WF

— Pick Six Previews (@PickSixPreviews) July 27, 2018

Elite Wins - 5 year totals

https://csnbbs.com/thread-854077.html

https://collegefootballnews.com/2018/07/...conference

Defined as: "a victory over an FBS team that finished with two losses or fewer, or on the road or in a bowl game against a team that lost three games. An extra 0.5 is added on to the Elite Win score when a team comes up with a road victory over a team that finished with two losses or fewer."

Top 10
1. Ohio St - 12
2. Clemson - 10
2. Oklahoma - 10
4. Alabama - 8
4. Mich St - 8
6. Fla St - 6.5
7. Houston - 5.5
8. UCF - 5
8. Baylor - 5
8. Oregon - 5

Big 10 - 33.5
SEC - 32
ACC - 27.5
Big 12 - 24.5
Pac 12 - 22
American - 13.5

Ind - 4 (ND 3, Army 1, BYU 0)

Five year Sagarin FBS ratings

https://csnbbs.com/thread-854155.html

Five year Sagarin FBS ratings

This is a Top 16 ranking of FBS teams' average Sagarin ratings for the five seasons from 2013- 2017. The purpose of using such an average is to mitigate the effects of seasons which are an anomaly for that school, whether that's a single "caught lightning in a bottle" year, or "found a turd in the punchbowl" season. Each team's rank for the five years between 2007 and 2011 is in parentheses.

Rank..Rating..School

..1......99.6...Alabama (1)
..2......94.1...Ohio State (9)
..3......93.9...Clemson (29)
..4......89.7...Oklahoma (3)
..5......88.9...Florida State (22)
..6......87.5...Wisconsin (20)
..7......87.1...Stanford (17)
..8......87.0...Auburn (16)
..9......86.9...LSU (2)
.10.....86.8...Georgia (15)
.11.....85.7...Southern Cal (6)
.12.....85.5...Washington (60)
.13.....84.4...TCU (7)
.14.....83.9...Oklahoma State (12)
.15.....83.4...Michigan State (32)
.16.....83.3...Oregon (4)

2018 CFN Five-Year Program Analysis: Attendance Rankings No. 1-130

https://csnbbs.com/thread-853943.html

https://collegefootballnews.com/2018/07/2018-cfn-five-year-program-analysis-attendance-rankings-no-1-130/amp?__twitter_impression=true

18 Florida State 75718.80 95.24% 18

the best CFB team of the past 20 years

http://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/24198508/college-football-national-champions-20-years-ranked

4. 2013 Florida State Seminoles

The Seminoles would gladly take on 2001 Miami in a debate over the most talented team. Every starter on the 2013 Florida State squad, plus kicker Roberto Aguayo, landed on an NFL roster. Jameis Winston won the Heisman Trophy as a redshirt freshman, throwing for 3,820 yards and 38 touchdowns with Rashad Greene, Kelvin Benjamin, Devonta Freeman and Nick O'Leary among the skill position talent. Defensively, Lamarcus Joyner, Telvin Smith and Tim Jernigan set the tone with a tenaciousness Florida State is still trying to match. Florida State set an NCAA record for points scored in a season with 723, but what made this team so impressive beyond the talent was how easy it made everything look. The Seminoles won their first 13 games by an average of 42.3 points per game. Nobody came within single digits until Auburn in the BCS National Championship Game. Trailing in the fourth quarter for the first time all season, Winston threw the game-winning TD to Kelvin Benjamin with 13 seconds left to seal the undefeated season. -- Adelson

10. 1999 Florida State

There's no question the pressure was on Florida State in 1999, a year after a disappointing loss to Tennessee in the national championship game. The Seminoles started out ranked preseason No. 1, with a veteran quarterback in Chris Weinke, a star-studded group of receivers led by Peter Warrick, a strong defense that featured Corey Simon, Chris Hope and Derrick Gibson and one of the greatest kickers in college history, Sebastian Janikowski. Midway through the season, adversity hit: Warrick was suspended and fellow receiver Laveranues Coles dismissed after they got heavily discounted clothes at a department store. Warrick was suspended two games, ending his Heisman hopes. But Florida State kept winning, earning a spot in the national title game opposite dynamic Michael Vick and Virginia Tech. The Seminoles' fast and aggressive defense penned Vick in, and Florida State won 46-29 to become the first wire-to-wire national champion, not to mention Bobby Bowden's only undefeated team. Florida State had four consensus All-Americans, eight All-ACC first-team selections and 31 players who would go on to play in the NFL. -- Adelson

Populare Mech Top 25 College Football Stadiums

https://www.popularmechanics.com/adventure/sports/g22522292/college-football-stadiums-ranked/

2 Doak-Campbell Stadium, Florida State

Getty ImagesIcon Sportswire

Florida State’s stadium was meant to mimic the academic buildings around it, using brick as an all-encompassing feature. It took three million bricks to make it work. Originally opened in 1950 with 15,000 seats, the Tallahassee venue has grown into a stadium of 83,000-plus seats and one of the largest continuous brick buildings in the nation.

Insight into new FOF facility for FSU

http://gridironnow.com/fsu-latest-to-join-growing-national-trend-in-construction-of-football-only-facility/

The original plans were to renovate the current Moore Athletic Center or build around the indoor practice facility. The latter option was chosen with an estimated $65 million going into exterior and interior development of said football-only facility.

The building will be three stories with 135,000 square feet of space dedicated to running FSU like powerhouse program. It’ll cost more, but be a few thousand square feet smaller than Clemson’s. It will be state of the art with all the modern bells and whistles helping the Noles enhance recruiting through facilities.

At first, I thought FSU’s new football facility would just be a 2019 version of the old F-350 – useable, not flashy. I was wrong. This is definitely Wraith, Maybach, or whatever cool exotic car you want to put in its place. At least it has the potential to become that.

From the plans I’ve seen, the players’ lounge/locker room concept comes fully equipped with space for a theatre room and I’m guessing they will have to have a barber shop. The training room and weight rooms are huge. I personally hope they get some cryotherapy chambers, sleep pods or other cool alternative treatment measures that a lot of pro athletes are turning to.

The facility will also feature a dining hall, meeting rooms, coaches rooms, administrative offices and the other spaces required to run a football program. Jimbo Fisher regularly complained about a lack of office space. Willie Taggart and his staff will have plenty.

The football team will not be the only FSU sport to benefit from the new facility. With football and it’s 100 players along with dozens of coaches and staffers moving out of Moore, that building’s usage can be transformed. FSU’s incredibly successful Olympic sports programs, which become better and better all the time and just finished ninth in the all-sports trophy standings, best in the ACC and second best in school history, will be able to spread out.

Athletic academic services and student life functions will most likely remain there and grow. This new facility will help create a more efficient and athlete-centered experience for FSU’s players and coaches.
The facilities arms race isn’t new to college football, but it’s cycle has sped up and it’s becoming more expensive to keep pace every year. It’s cool to have these palaces, but in order to be able to keep up, first and foremost, you’ve got to simply WIN.