Imagine Ohio State president E. Gordon Gee or Nebraska chancellor Harvey Perlman telling their fan bases that big-time sports are no longer the way to go.
I think fans needing their sports is less a factor then the economic aspect when considering whether to do away with big-time sports. TO alluded to this during the PSU scandal and sanctions were being considered. He probably had seen the figures on how much money CFB brings into the university and surrounding community. I believe Delaney is right that if a compelling case can be made that sports have become too big and there are enough negatives around it then Presidents would do the right thing and change the model. I don't think sports have gotten so big since the days when OSU decided not to go to a bowl game because they felt too much emphasis was being placed on football. I believe most fans would support a needed change- primarilly the ones that graduated from the school.The Big Ten likely would earn respect from the academic and non-sports community if it de-emphasized sports on principle rather than paying players. But the Big Ten isn't the Ivy League. Big-time sports are such an integral part of schools like Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State and Nebraska.