Wait. Why was this allowed?
It used to be that you could play two typical Div-2-or-lower teams and sell tickets.
OR, alternatively, you could choose to play ONE div-1 opponent in a “secret scrimmage,” behind closed doors, untelevised, and you couldn’t sell tickets.
Why does Arky get to play KANSAS and TCU BOTH and put both on TV?
If nothing else that’s unfair because think about the revenue. A TCU game or a KU game is going to get way better ratings than a Wesleyan or a Minnesota State Mankato Whatever That Is game. And obviously in the modern era higher TV ratings equals higher value ESPN contract equals more revenue which is surely all going into NIL.
And even if I’m guessing wrong about there being a difference in TV revenue, there’s still unquestionably a difference in ticket sales revenue. We had Rupp “mostly full” for our two exhibition games, is what I heard. Something like 20,000 seats filled. You know as well as I do Rupp would have been bursting at the seams if we’d played Kansas. And can you imagine what UKAthletics would have charged for that seat? Coz darned straight people would pay it.
How is that fair?
And if it is fair why didn’t we do this?
EDIT: Okay. I see the TCU game is a charity game. So that takes care of the revenue problem. Still not sure why they can put Kansas on TV or why we wouldn’t follow suit.