OdontoBear66 said:
Pac 12 schools have alums all across the US. So you announce games late in the FB year and sometimes just days in advance, and you eliminate a large number of alums who would make travel plans in advance to enjoy Cal FB. In doing so what do you lose in alum interest in their alma mater. Oh well, I will stay home and pay the Cable Gods and not go back on campus, 'cause I live far away and they never let me know before buying season tickets when the game times will be.
Now for locals (Bay Area alums) this is not as big a deal. But I will buy single games and travel to Memorial after I find game times, but why buy a season ticket. Now, I am sure the reply to this will be the TV money is much bigger than anything ever contributed by what I suggest, but FB and BB games tie me to my history with Cal much more than anything else. Let the dollar dictate and you lose in ways that may not be measurable easily. The size of the TV contracts are easy to measure.
A few years ago, it was reported that over 30% of the fans at Cal football games live at least two hours away from the stadium. The same is probably true for most Pac-12 teams, given the distances between places in the west. And as you say, the conference has basically written off ticket sales to those fans in pursuit of TV dollars, because people get tired of not being able to make travel arrangements until 6 days before a game.
Obviously the TV money is a nice short term boost, but the shell game they play with game times is just one more big factor that gets people out of the habit of ever going to the stadium. They've put themselves on a downward slope that will wind up with stadiums never being more than half full, because they've made it so much more enjoyable for former ticket buyers to watch from home.