Big Ten’s per-member payout this year? Nearly $25 million

By John TaylorMay 21, 2012, 9:38 AM EDT

(Prepare for the Florida State-to-Big Ten rumors in three… two… one…)

Already flush with cash, each member of the Big Ten will realize a significantly higher windfall than they’ve ever received in the past.

According to a report from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch over the weekend, 11 of the 12 members of the conference — Nebraska, which officially joined the league last year, does not yet receive a full share — will receive an estimated $24.6 million this year in shared revenue. The Post-Dispatch obtained the financial information from the Illinois athletic department.

The nearly $25 million per-school payout (pictured) is a record for the conference, topping the $22.8 million total each member received last year. In 2008, each school received $18.7 million, meaning the payouts have increased over 35 percent the past four years.

By comparison, the paper notes, SEC schools were paid $19.5 million last year. That financial gap between the two most powerful conferences in the country should be closed in short order, however, as the SEC will reap the benefits from a revamped TV deal in the not-so-distant future. How much reaping could be potentially be involved? “[A]bout $8 million a year in revenue under soon-to-be-renegotiated television agreements,” USA Today wrote Monday morning.

The Big 12 and ACC recently completed — or will soon officially complete — new deals that will pay each conference member annually an average of roughly $20 million and $17 million, respectively, over the life of the contract. The Pac-12’s new-ish deal is expected to pay each member in the neighborhood of $22 million a year. Actually, that could be a very lowball number for the Pac-12; in that same USA Today piece, it’s estimated that the conference could make at least $30 million a year per member when the revenues from national television deals and regional Pac-12 networks are combined.

The Big Ten’s record haul comes despite the payout from the wildly successful Big Ten Network coming in less than last year. In 2011, Big Ten schools received $7.9 million from the network; this year, that total will drop to “just” $7.2 million. A 22-percent increase in its television deals, however, more than offset that dip in network payouts.

Utah State player upgraded to fair condition after collapse

Associated PressMar 25, 2023, 1:50 AM EDT

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Utah State redshirt freshman wide receiver Josh Davis is in fair condition on Friday, one day after collapsing at spring football practice following sudden cardiac arrest, the university announced.

Davis, initially was listed in critical condition, was breathing on his own. He is in the intensive-care unit at McKay-Dee Hospital in Ogden, Utah.

Davis’ parents arrived in Utah on Thursday evening.

The 6-foot-1, 185-pound Davis, who is from Carlsbad, California, collapsed at Merlin Olsen Field and was immediately treated by the training staff, the university said. He was taken to Logan Regional Hospital.

The university said Davis was stabilized in the Logan hospital before being moved to Ogden.

Alabama suspends freshman defensive back after drug arrest

Associated PressMar 20, 2023, 10:32 PM EDT

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TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama freshman defensive back Tony Mitchell has been suspended from the team following his arrest on a drug charge.

Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban said Monday after the first practice of spring that Mitchell was suspended from the team “and all team activities until we gather more information about the situation and what his legal circumstance is.”

The Holmes County Sheriff’s Office arrested Mitchell and another man, Christophere Lewis, last week on a charge of possession of marijuana with the intent to sell or deliver, according to a post on the department’s Facebook page. Lewis also was charged with carrying a concealed gun without a permit.

“Everybody’s got an opportunity to make choices and decisions,” Saban said. “There’s no such thing as being in the wrong place at the wrong time. You’ve gotta be responsible for who you’re with, who you’re around and what you do, who you associate yourself with and the situations that you put yourself in. It is what it is, but there is cause and effect when you make choices and decisions that put you in bad situations.”

Mitchell, who is from Alabaster, Alabama, was a five-star prospect rated the 34th-best player and No. 3 safety in the 247Composite rankings.

Mitchell was driving the vehicle during a traffic stop. After deputies smelled marijuana, Mitchell picked up a baggie of marijuana from the passenger floorboard, according to the department’s Facebook post.

Sheriff’s deputies found “an additional significant amount of marijuana, a set of scales, a loaded handgun between the passenger seat and center console, and a large amount of cash,” according to the department’s Facebook post.