PAC needs the state of Texas (UH) BAD!

Good points all.

Let me be perfectly clear here. The Big 12 is emphatically NOT - I repeat - NOT a “big player” in the Houston media market. When UH-UCONN goes head to head with the Big 12’s premier game of UT-OU and equals their viewership in this market then that’s hardly dominance. And it’s hapoened several times.

Here’s the scoop. Would you take time out of your life to watch K State - Okie St? Or any game not involving UT or perhaps OU? This is not my opinion. This is what the data shows. In the Houston market UT does well. But not great. UH also does as well. So do most SEC games televised here. All the Big 12 smoke is just that. Eventually advertisers will also figure it out. Not quite sure why they haven’t already.

So, bottom line, the Big 12 ain’t nada in the Houston media market. UT by itself does pretty well, but no where near dominance. UH and the SEC including A&M dominate the Houston market. That’s a fact.

7 Likes

YY[quote=“Bear1132017, post:95, topic:17369, full:true”]
Well said but I think the racial issue may be slighted over stated because it was NOT our (UH) intention to intentionally break the “color barrier” it was our intention to bring a fine young man who played football into the University. Addressing racial injustice was a natural by product but not some progressive thought that the University of Houston originated.
[/quote]

To be perfectly clear at no point did I say UH was on a mission to “break the color barrier”. Not at all clear where you got that from. UH simply wanted to recruit the best athletes they could get. So they recruited Warren McVea , Elvin Hayes and Don Chaney - all at the same time. This sent really big shock waves across the South and particularly in Texas. I guess you could call that a mission if you wanted to.

1 Like

That is true, but at the same time, that opened the gates for many minorities to enroll at UH. Soon - very soon - we became one of the most diverse student bodies in the country. THAT reverberated throughout the state, and all the other schools of the old SWC resented it then - and still do!

That was certainly a byproduct of our recruiting - and a desirable one at that. I was on campus in 64 when it unfolded. And black students did begin to enroll in greater numbers. So replace your “but” with an “and” and we are in total agreement.

UH ratings do well in Houston if UH is doing well. How are national ratings? Media companies make valuations on national appeal, not individual markets and on long term trends.

According to sportsmediawatch.com, the highest rated UH football game was v USF where it tied USC-ASU with a 1.4 rating making it the 9th highest rated game of that day, just ahead of KSU v OU, while UT v OSU was the 2nd highest rated game that day.

UH v USF easily beat out TTU v ISU, BU v WVU, TCU v KU.

One thing about seeing ratings numbers is that it’s clear what a ratings juggernaut UT is. Pretty much all their games on TV are in the top 3-5 when it comes to ratings. No wonder the Big 12 is always kissing their ass. If UT leaves, the Big 12 is toast!

The Big 12, if it ever expands will in all likelihood look outside Texas. Their non-Texas programs are not too keen on making the conference even more Texas centric, and increasing Texas political interference.

The question becomes would adding UH make the Big 12 top dog in the Big 12? And would this make the networks value UH enough to increase Big 12 payout enough to make the programs sit up and take UH membership seriously?

Moncoog, Yes Alabama and LSU and several SEC teams were recruiting Texas before A&M joined the SEC. But you can’t tell me that A&M’s joining the SEC and having those SEC teams roll into SE Texas hasn’t boosted their visibility in Texas. TV ratings say otherwise.

If somehow UH found its way into the SEC then that conference would pretty much drive out Texas And OU from the region. UH carries pretty good weight in this area in spite of B12 propaganda. UH + SEC would dominate. As for A&M, if the SEC wanted to move in A&M would not be a factor.

Your point about Oregon is a bit of a misstatement. Lots of PAC12 teams recruit Houston. A few years ago both Oregon and Oregon State featured Houston area players. When Joseph Young left UH where did he go and more importantly, why? UCLA and USC both put a heavy emphasis on recruiting Houston, as do both Arizona and Arizona State. Having UH in the PAC12 would be a significant boost to the visibility of that conference and therefore to PAC12 recruiting in general. In my opinion, of course.

1 Like

The comment was mine and offered as follow up. Just to be clear, that’s MY opinion and not intended to imply that you said anything similar. My apologies if I offended you.

On the other hand UH has learned a lot from dealing with both UT and the Big 12. The UT-Houston fiasco is a good case in point. We’re never again going to show up knocking on the front door with our hat in our hand and a big smile on our face asking if we could join the party. UH has developed considerable clout in the legislature and you better believe that if push ever came to shove we’ld come ready for a fight - and prepared to win. This ain’t your Daddy’s UH.

1 Like

No offense taken. Just the perils and limitations of written communication

On that we agree. Gone are the days when aTm was going to annex us or that then HOUSTON city council wouldn’t even let us change the street signs to put a UH symbol on them.

2 Likes

This may not be my Dads UH but my Dad would correctly tell you, don’t let your guard down. We just experienced UT’s land purchase for the purpose of developing for their own interests so this is anything but over. It might be the lull before the storm but I will never assume that UT is looking out for anybody but themselves.

3 Likes

Where is the TV market proof that shows a large number of Houston area residents watch B12 games other than the Red River Rivalry? I don’t care to watch Baylor, Texas Tech or even UT. I bet most Houston residents don’t care to watch B12 games either especially when they have something else they want to do on Saturday than watch Oklahoma State play Iowa State.

Houston residents know UT but I don’t think they care to watch their games unless it’s a really big game.

I have one question. If UT has this overwhelming presence in Houston and supposedly carries the Houston market, why isn’t the LHN on Comcast? Comcast knows the LHN is not worth it in Houston.

If it was in high demand from Houston residents and made business since for Comcast, they would have definitely carried the LHN.

UH has already shown it can carry Houston with large TV ratings when it plays a P5.

The rivalry between UT and UH is ready to go full force and that game’s TV ratings would be second to the Red River Rivalry in the B12.

Sorry I veered off the P12 talk but it chaps my hide every time I read something saying the B12 or UT has the Houston market.

3 Likes

When did UH-UConn tie UT-OU in Houston area tv ratings? What are your sources?

Not for me, if I am still slive by then, I will still only support my school and either tune out other schools or throw my TV away. Why would I care about a school in Austin, College Station, WACO, Lubbuck or even Tusksloosa, ALABAMA???

3 Likes

To add to the injury, our leadership in the 80’s and 90’s up to Bill Hobby did not favor athletics at all, some professors were calling to dissban all together. It was only with the resurgence of Dr. Khator that athletics have been vaulted to prominence at the University. She sees athletics as the front porch to making our Tier I University great, and she is right. Now we are at a crossroads, our facilities are P5 in all sports, we are winning against big time programs, going to NY6 Bowls, NCAA tournaments and baseball and track are premier, plus recruiting is easy in Houston, so who wants to add this program to there conference?

Dave Maggard started the ball rolling, Khator kicked the door in and knocked down all of the blocks that was preventing us from suceeding. Talking about a great hire from South Florids!!! Thank you, Bulls for the Win and Dr. Khator!!!

2 Likes

I, like most UH fans and Houstonian, would watch KSU/ISU, WV/TCU, or Tech/Baylor game if UH was in the B12. Otherwise, there’s no reason to watch those games. Same can be said about Pac 12 matchups once were in that conference. TV ratings will go up tremendously to whichever conference want to add us IMO. I didn’t even watch 1 minute of UCLA/USC or Wash/WSU game.

As for recruiting, if PAC 12 add us, schools like Arizona, Arizona st, Colorado, and UTAH would benefit the most in the Houston area. They’re doing OK right now with a few players here and there but imagine if they can tell the kids that they get to come home and play in front of your hometown every other years, that’s huge for them. Of course those schools might not be able to get UT or A&M recruits but they sure could steal a bunch of from Tech, tcu, Okie St, and Baylor. And same applied for ACC as well.

5 Likes

Not just UH but the entire city of Houston and it’s business leaders had a very pragmatic view of desegregation. If newcomers to Houston or younger folks don’t know the history, it’s very interesting. The old white man business establishment simply decided the economic benefits of quiet, orderly integration outweighed the potentially destructive consequences of continuing to enforce Jim Crow. They saw riots and unrest all across the south and didn’t want to lose customers and money over it. Overnight, lunch counters integrated and business continued as usual. I can see how UH’s pragmatic view of sports and campus desegregation fits that model.

I tried posting ratings here but the platform won’t allow my posts - which are essentially photographs. I’m thinking of trying to post them on Twitter.

Also, this is not new. Somehow I’ve managed to post them here a couple of yrs ago. One set comes from 2016, which is recent enough to be valid.