WAC Still Demanding Five Million Dollars From Fresno State And Nevada
by Jeremy Mauss on Aug 30, 2010 3:01 PM PDT
in Conference Expansion
Email
PrintThe WAC is now changed their tune from saying that there is nothing the league could do to have teams leave or even pay the five million dollar exit penalty to now saying that Fresno State and Nevada must pay the exit penalty and stay in the league through the 2011-2012 academic year. Per WAC officials:
"The WAC fully expects to receive the $5 million from both Fresno State and Nevada and will take legal recourse if necessary to obtain the money," said Benson. "As for the termination date, WAC Bylaws make it very clear that Fresno State and Nevada must remain in the WAC through the 2011-12 season unless the WAC authorizes an 'early out.' Fresno State and Nevada leaving the WAC following the 2010-11 season would cause irreparable financial harm to the remaining WAC members in terms of football scheduling and potential loss of revenue from television and bowl games. The damages that Hawai'i, Idaho, Louisiana Tech, New Mexico State, San Jose State and Utah State would incur could exceed as much as $2 million per school."
This to me looks like WAC is going to bring in BYU for their non-basketball sports and will use the next year to invite teams such as Montana, other FCS teams, or perhaps a Sun Belt team or two. Or this could be just a big bluff by Karl Benson and the WAC, but either way there will be a bunch of lawyers involved to hash through this.
Plus, Wednesday is when we will know a log more about the WAC since that is the day BYU must decide if it wants to leave the Mountain West after this season.
Follow Mountain West Connection via Twitter and Facebook for News Quick Hits and Random Nonsense.
25 comments
|
Add comment
|
0 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
Is this a change?
Benson had said from the outset that he was insisting on the buyout from both schools, and that they were obligated to stay through the 2011 season. The comment about not having a buyout was in reference to the remaining teams (USU, Idaho, etc.) who were no longer bound under the agreement of the Project, and as far as I understand, they are still not required to pay to leave the conference.
At least it feels like we have different reads on the statements.
yes
Last week Benson said the buyout was null and void.
When Fresno State and Nevada jumped to the Mountain West Conference, the 5 million dollar agreement between the WAC schools all went null and void.
Knowing that, Benson was asked what’s stopping his other schools from leaving in the very near future.
“Nothing”, was the response. And how right he’s turning out to be.
Mountain West Connection The best site for MWC sports!
by Jeremy Mauss on Aug 30, 2010 4:32 PM PDT up reply actions
block quote did not work
but you get the gist
Mountain West Connection The best site for MWC sports!
by Jeremy Mauss on Aug 30, 2010 4:33 PM PDT up reply actions
Not how I read that
I think he is referring to the remaining WAC teams being able to leave without repercussions once the two teams left. The leaving is what voided the remaining penalties.
I agree with you
I think after Fresno and Nevada breached the agreement Benson was saying he couldn’t enforce it against anybody else. He never intended for Nevada and Fresno to get a pass and really why would he? That’s $10 million.
Axes Up. Miner Rush - For UTEP Miners Fans
So we do read that differently.
I read that as the agreement being null and void specifically for the schools remaining after Fresno and Nevada left. Basically, since Fresno and Nevada were already gone, the agreement was no longer binding to schools like Idaho, LaTech, etc.
by David Hooper on Aug 30, 2010 5:20 PM PDT up reply actions
perhaps
maybe I just msread that
Mountain West Connection The best site for MWC sports!
by Jeremy Mauss on Aug 30, 2010 5:22 PM PDT up reply actions
Did the WAC 'chang their tune'?
The league, from Day 1, has said they intended to enforce the payouts against Nevada and Fresno State. Did I miss something there?
Fresno signed the agreement and Nevada agreed to it as well. Why wouldn’t they enforce it? Colorado and Nebraska are paying it to the Big 12, why should this be any different?
Axes Up. Miner Rush - For UTEP Miners Fans
see the above link from SL Trib
Mountain West Connection The best site for MWC sports!
by Jeremy Mauss on Aug 30, 2010 4:34 PM PDT up reply actions
Here is what I expect is going to happen.
Fresno State, Nevada and the MWC will agree to pay the $5 Million by the October deadline in exchange for the change taking place in 2011.
BYU can do whatever they want.
LA Tech should seriously consider the Sun Belt.
BCS Evolution -- Punctuating the Equilibrium - twitter
Or C-USA if UTEP or Houston jump ship to the MWC.
Mountain West Connection - The best site for MWC Sports.
UNLV is going all the way this year!
Benson wants both
The money and the schools to stay through 2012
Mountain West Connection The best site for MWC sports!
by Jeremy Mauss on Aug 30, 2010 7:33 PM PDT up reply actions
Compromise
Benson wants both; Nevada and Fresno St. want neither. I see a compromise.
We want to build a university our football team can be proud of. -- Dr. George Lynn Cross
by marktgarten on Aug 30, 2010 10:42 PM PDT up reply actions
No way. If BYU doesn't join the WAC, the WAC can make the teams stay till 2012, but they can't make them pay.
The language in the contract is very clear. If Benson thinks he’s going to get any of the $ if BYU doesn’t join he’s dreaming. It also states in clause 6 that if any teams leave the WAC, the resolution is terminated. So the second that Fresno announced that they were leaving, the contract became void. So Nevada has precisely ZERO obligation to pay the $5 million regardless of BYU’s decision.
agreed
I have a new post up about that with info from the SL Tribune.
http://www.mwcconnection.com/2010/8/31/1660939/byu-is-the-key-to-the-wac-five
Mountain West Connection The best site for MWC sports!
by Jeremy Mauss on Aug 31, 2010 10:39 AM PDT up reply actions
Nevada
Since they only agreed verbally and not on paper, they should send a verbal check.
Methinks BYU will be cashing a $5mm check in the near future
As I understood it, if BYU doesn’t join the WAC, then the exit penalty isn’t enforceable.
It wouldn’t surprise me to hear Benson and rest of the WAC are dangling that money as carrot in order to entice BYU.
Though it'll be interesting to see if that's enforceable after the fact.
That is, if the $5mil was in fact not enforceable before BYU joined, then could Fresno and Nevada be required to pay when BYU joined after they left?
by David Hooper on Aug 30, 2010 9:02 PM PDT up reply actions
good points
The exit fee seemed to be based on BYU being in the league. Any lawyers out there?
Mountain West Connection The best site for MWC sports!
by Jeremy Mauss on Aug 30, 2010 9:19 PM PDT via mobile up reply actions
I think the buyout is enforceabel as to Fresno Regardless of whether or not BYU joins
Nevada is trickier since they didn’t sign- but if BYU doesn’t join it will be because Nevada/FSU left which makes it even more likely that the payout will be enforced.
Axes Up. Miner Rush - For UTEP Miners Fans
Nevada didn't sign
so there is no breach of contract. And no way they (the WAC) can argue an it was a verbal contract.
Fresno, is tougher. They can say since BYU didn’t come their contract is voided, BUT, it was Fresno leaving that caused BYU to not join. Which means they actually could be sued for damages on top of breach I think.
Or they can say they only agreed because of some duress the WAC put them in…like…you have to sign or else you can’t leave this room. Or the contract wasn’t finalized by proper approval from their board of regents.
Lawyer up…Nebraska is doing it to the Big 12.
Colorado Rockies correspondent at My Team Rivals (www.mtrmedia.com/rockies) and my own site Rockies Reporter (www.rockiesreporter.wordpress.com) and one of the top Rockies writers at the Bleacher Report.
They can say since BYU didn’t come their contract is voided, BUT, it was Fresno leaving that caused BYU to not join. Which means they actually could be sued for damages on top of breach I think.
How do you prove Fresno St leaving was the deal breaker? I think BYU would have to testify and/or sign an affidavit explicitly stating as much otherwise it’s just speculation.
Okay the BYU deal was contingent on the WAC staying together
It will be an incredibly easy argument to say that FSU/Nevada was the deal breaker. The deal was don, contingent on the buyout, and their departure is what led to this whole mess and not a clean exit for BYU.
That’s why the buyouts were signed to begin with. There was an offer- in this case, BYU offered to provide the WAC with their non football sports and certain football games, and in exchange, the WAC promised to give BYU a favorable stake in the new ESPN deal (All the BCS money, etc) and the teams agreed to sign a $5 million buyout making it worth it for BYU.
At Redhawk- Why can’t the WAC argue oral contract? Will they win? Well, that’s for the lawyers who have the whole story. Obviously there will be defenses to the oral contract claim but not knowing more about contract law in Utah I would say that on the surface the WAC has a slam dunk against FSU and a good shot against Nevada.
Axes Up. Miner Rush - For UTEP Miners Fans
It's an easy argument to make
but it seems difficult to prove which is what the WAC must do.
Look at it as an “and/or” proposition. What if only one of those schools left? Does one school leaving torpedo the WAC? Or was the combination of Fresno St and Nevada leaving? In which case, neither one is singularly responsible for breaking the deal unless you can prove some sort of collusion took place between the two schools. Right?
Something to say? Choose one of these options to log in.
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Recent FanPosts
In Association With
Latest Y! Sports Blogs from Yahoo! Sports
- Did Budweiser exploit beer league hockey players in its Super Bowl commercial hit?
- Act of sportsmanship highlights player’s return from a stroke
- Jon Jones misses his friendship with Rashad Evans
- Wild’s Marek Zidlicky drinks Lou’s Kool-Aid, waives no-trade for Devils
- Georgia school voluntarily forfeits playoff spot rather than play team involved in football brawl
Certain photos copyright © 2012 by Associated Press or Getty Images. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of Associated Press and Getty Images is strictly prohibited.
