UCF Athletic Director Todd Stansbury Releases Statement to Fans

Dear Knights Fans:

The past few weeks have seen a great deal of activity pertaining to UCF’s new conference. I know many of you follow media reports about the Knights, but I wanted to reach out to you directly to make sure you have as much information as possible and to give you some insight into my thoughts on what’s happening in our new league.

Among the most recent news are the official announcements of television deals with ESPN and CBS. While the revenue from these deals isn’t what we all thought it might be months ago, the opportunity for exposure on the ESPN family of networks and the CBS broadcast network is very important to UCF and the conference. It is vitally important to continue increasing nationwide recognition for the UCF brand and we believe our new television contracts will help us do that. Being affiliated with ESPN and CBS will also allow sports fans from all over the country to quickly get acquainted with our new conference name and brand.

With nearly 90 percent of the conference’s football games and nearly two-thirds of the men’s basketball games being aired nationally, either over the air or on cable, we’re very pleased with the potential for exposure. In fact, we already know that three of our 2013 football games will air on ABC, ESPN or ESPN2 next season and I believe it is reasonable to expect more 2013 games to be picked up. In fact, the three that have been announced already represent more exposure for the Knights on the ESPN family of networks than the previous two regular seasons combined.

Speaking of the football schedule, we are very excited about the upcoming season. Our home schedule is one of the most attractive we’ve ever had here at UCF. Welcoming nationally-ranked South Carolina, Connecticut, Rutgers, and Houston to Bright House Networks Stadium will make the 2013 season a lot of fun. And last, but not least, there is that Black Friday date with our rivals from Tampa right here in our home stadium. I encourage you to purchase your tickets now to experience what is shaping up to be an amazing season.

Of course, we would love to see you at our road games as well. That portion of the schedule will also be appealing. Facing Penn State at Beaver Stadium and a nationally-televised game at Louisville are highlights. Of course, we also expect to see a bunch of Knights fans make the short trek down the Turnpike to join our alumni and fans from south Florida for an in-state rivalry game at FIU.

As I mentioned earlier, the conference will have a new name and a new brand in the near future. Commissioner Mike Aresco told a media teleconference recently that the new name and brand would likely be unveiled in April, or early May, at the latest. There has been speculation and rumor about potential names. However, I can assure you we are engaging in a thorough, thoughtful process — including enlisting the expertise of branding experts — when it comes to this important decision for the league. I’m looking forward to having a new name and brand that we can start building upon soon.

Obviously, the need for a new name for our league arose from the split of the seven non-football-playing, Catholic universities that had been members of the BIG EAST. That group will move forward with the BIG EAST name and begin play as a conference this fall. It is noteworthy that throughout the negotiations of that split, the best interests of each institution and their respective student-athletes were top of mind for all of us involved in the process. That it happened as expeditiously and amicably as it did says a great deal about the people and the institutions involved.

We certainly wish that group the best. Meanwhile, we’re moving forward with a core group of schools that are very similar in many ways.

While talking about the split of these two groups, I feel it is important to mention the discussions about handling of the financial aspects of the new conference. There have been various reports about dollar amounts and percentages. There have also been reports of some conflict regarding these financial decisions. None of those reports are accurate, as we have only recently begun to look at these matters.

There are various streams of revenue from items such as conference exit fees, entry fees and NCAA Tournament shares that will be distributed among the membership. In addition to the distribution of these funds, there are timing issues with that will need to be worked out, as well. I am pleased to be part of a six-member panel — along with my counterparts from USF, Cincinnati, Connecticut, SMU and Memphis — who will be working through this process and ultimately making recommendations to the presidents of our conference.

I can tell you that there is a strong desire on everyone’s part to be fair and equitable in this exercise. I believe everyone in our conference understands that we’re all in this together. Each of our schools will have great opportunities to elevate their programs and finances can certainly play a part in that. At the end of the day, the success of our conference is going to be determined by how competitive we are as a whole.

As always, thank you very much for your support of our programs. Loyal Knights fans like you are vitally important to the success of our teams. Beginning this fall, we will be introducing ourselves to many new markets. We want to make a great first impression. When ESPN or CBS show up at our venues, it is very important that Knight Nation shows up in full force as well.

           I look forward to joining you and cheering on the Knights throughout the rest of the spring, while we also look forward to the beginning of an exciting new chapter in 2013-14.

Charge On,

Todd Stansbury

UCF Vice President & Director of Athletics