In 2009, Ohio State signed a then-record media rights deal with IMG and RadiOhio. It pays Ohio State about $11 million a year.
Well, the price on Ohio State's next contract just went up significantly. Today, according to the Louisville Courier-Journal, Kentucky officially announced it will leave IMG and sign a deal with JMI Sports for $210 million over 15 years, starting in 2015-2016.
From the Louisville Courier-Journal:
UK's current deal with IMG, which expires in April, was worth $80.5 million over 10 years. This new deal is significantly larger despite television rights no longer being included due to the SEC's broadcast agreements and upcoming launch of the SEC Network. Under its agreement with JMI Sports, UK's guaranteed rights fee starts at $9.1 million in 2015-16 and increases annually up to $16 million in 2029-30.
There is also a $29.4 million signing bonus to be paid over the first two years of the contract, which UK noted in its news release "will help the university fund important capital projects."
Alabama recently signed a $150 million, 10-year contract with Learfield Sports back in April.
