The SEC Network has been a pretty big hit in its inaugural season, already boasting more subscribers than any other conference network. Part of that is due to the network’s partnership with ESPN. That second detail doesn’t have Nebraska coach Bo Pelini too happy, as he is sensing a conflict of interest between the network and the conference.
Bo Pelini: ‘I don’t think [ESPN/SEC] relationship is good for college football’
He’s forgetting that his own conference has a pretty big affiliation with a major television network.
Mike Carter-USA TODAY Sports
"I don't think that kind of relationship is good for college football. That's just my opinion. Anytime you have a relationship with somebody, you have a partnership, you are supposed to be neutral. It's pretty hard to stay neutral in that situation."
While it is an odd relationship, to be sure, Pelini’s criticism is a bit ironic because the Big Ten Network has a major broadcast partner, as well. FOX has a 51 percent ownership share of BTN, acquiring that majority control in 2010. The SEC Network is not at all owned by the conference, though ownership shares notwithstanding, both conferences are pretty clearly tied with major television networks.
ESPN is the biggest name in sports, and the network is partnered with the College Football Playoff, so that could be part of Pelini’s concern. But as for any perceived biases, Pelini might be more biased against the SEC than ESPN or the College Football Playoff is biased in favor of the conference. He insinuated that media punditry is the only way to decide whether the SEC West really is the best division in football, when it’s pretty clear that statistically, Pelini’s stance on the ambiguity of the division’s strength doesn’t have a lot of merit.
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