BOULDER, Colo. -- The College Football Association announced Monday that its attempt to gain control of television rights for major college football teams has crumbled for lack of member support.
The CFA, an organization of 61 of the nation's biggest college football powers, informed NBC that too few teams had decided to participate in the $180 million television package, drawn up as a direct challenge to the NCAA.
The CFA package with NBC was announced during the summer, just a few days after the NCAA unveiled its $263.5 million agreement with ABC and CBS. Both agreements covered the 1982-85 seasons.
'The CFA advised NBC today (Monday) that it would be unable to deliver a sufficient number of teams to create a viable TV package under the terms of its agreement,' said Arthur Watson, president of NBC sports. 'NBC Sports is naturally disappointed that we will not be in a position to pursue the objectives of our innovative college football package.'
All CFA members are members of the NCAA, and all are Division 1-A teams. The CFA-NBC agreement deal with NBC would have guaranteed each of the members at least $1 million for the next four seasons, and at least two television appearances.
'Although a number of CFA members expressed interest in the NBC agreement there was a continued concern about the possibility of the NCAA initiating enforcement procedures,' said CFA Executive Director Chuck Neinas.
In San Diego, however, NCAA Executive Director Tom Hansen said the organization had never threatened CFA members with expulsion.
'There never has been a threat or absolute penalty mentioned,' he said. 'I don't believe this was a factor in their decison.'
Neinas refused to say how many schools had agreed to participate in the CFA deal, but Oklahoma, Clemson, Georgia, Florida and Texas had publicly announced support of the package.
'I think it's fair to say that we are pleased that the NCAA arrangement with CBS-ABC appears to be intact and for this we are grateful,' said Donn Bernstein, NCAA media director for ABC Sports. 'Now we can direct our efforts to the 1982 scheduling process.'
Following the announcement of the terms of the NBC agreement during the summer, each CFA school was given until mid-September to decide whether to participate. The deadline was extended until Dec. 14 after the NCAA announced that it would convene a special meeting on the television rights issue in St. Louis Dec. 3.
During the convention, the NCAA adopted a resolution allowing the bigger colleges in Division I-A have more voice in television contracts.
'I think the restructing of Division I-A did say to many of the CFA members that NCAA was being responsive to the concerns they expressed,' Hansen said.
Under the restructuring approved in St. Louis, Division I-A will be reduced from 137 members to between 90 and 95 next year, Hansen said, and each network (CBS and ABC) must use 82 different teams in two years, which will 'provide a large number of teams participating in TV games.'
One college president who was encouraged by the outcome was Dr. Ralph Christoffersen, president of Colorado State in Fort Collins, Colo. Last week, Christoffersen announced CSU would not participate in the NBC-CFA agreement.
'He felt there was significant progress being made,' said Gary Ozello, CSU's sports information director. 'The main complaint of CFA is that everyone in the NCAA has the same vote. As a result, the small schools with 700 or so students are controlling the television policies of schools like Oklahoma. That has been their main complaint.'
Another school encouraged by the St. Louis meeting was Wyoming. Assistant Athletic Director Bill Young said UW voted against participating in the CFA-NBC agreement because 'CFA has accomplished what is was organized to do, and that was the reorganization of the NCAA.'
He said there is now a better chance Wyoming will be on television because of the reduction in the number of Division I-A schools.
The CFA, formed in 1977, includes major independents and most major conferences, among them the Big Eight, Southwest, Southeast, Atlantic Coast and Western Athletic conferences. Big Ten teams are not CFA members.
It was apparent before Monday's the deadline, however, that many large schools would not be behind the uprising. The University of Colorado decided against participation Thursday.
President Arnold Weber said CU may support such a movement in the future if the timing was right and the national support is there, and added that CU would join in a lawsuit aimed at determining how much control the NCAA has over a school's right to contract with a television network.
The suit in still pending in U.S. District Court in Oklahoma City.
'The pluses and minuses (of CFA participation) weren't all that evident, and there wasn't enough support from a sufficient number of institutions with highly successful programs,' Weber said after CU's decision last week.
Weber also wondered what would happen if a CFA-contracted school plays an NCAA-contracted school. Which network, he asked, would get the rights to air the game?
CFA members who had already announced they were siding with the NCAA included Syracuse, Iowa State, Kansas and a number of Western Athletic Conference schools.
