Apparently negotiations are underway with the B1G passing on ESPN's first offer. Consider the dice rolled.

http://mattsarzsports.blogspot.com

I've been ruminating on Hackett's cryptic comment. Suppose what he suggests about BTN holding all broadcast rights comes to pass. 

http://mattsarzsports.blogspot.com/2016/02/did-future-big-ten-tv-strateg...

What are some possible implications for OSU?

1. What if BTN not only holds the rights, but provides game production? If you don't have to have broadcast equipment and announcers, you open up a whole new arena of broadcast opportunities. Scripps Network owns HGTV. Suppose they say, "You know we could make more money on Rutgers-Howard than reruns of the Property Brothers." Or Amazon bidding $30M for OSU-Michigan and charging $5 for the live broadcast (free to new Amazon Prime members.) I could also see packages - CBS, you get OSU-MSU for prime time as long as you take Rutgers-Purdue at noon on TruTV. 

2. Will OSU ever play a day game before mid-November? It was clear from last season's Neilson rating, night games have twice the audience of day games. Wouldn't you want to maximize the value of your biggest attraction? Night games are harder and more expensive for schools to stage. That's why they are announced in the summer. It's great when you're the home team, tough when you're the visitor and have to fly from Omaha to Baltimore. 

3. Would OSU continue to appear on BTN? I say yes even though you could get more money elsewhere. Otherwise, why subscribe to BTN? Currently, each school has a minimum of two appearances on BTN. The B1G will have roughly 91 games to broadcast (63 conference, approx. 28 non-conference.) You'll need a minimum of 26 for BTN. You can't put all crap games on BTN and hold subscribers.