Conference Realignment

[49RFootballNow]

Apparently South Dakota has an invite to the Big Sky on their desk as well.
 
http://www.bigskyconf.com/news/2010/11/1/GEN_1101105326.aspx

[Run49er]

Latest on Big East...
 
NJ.com: Big East to hold 'pivotal' meeting to discuss conference expansion, according to report

[LakeNorman49er]

Latest on Big East...
 
NJ.com: Big East to hold 'pivotal' meeting to discuss conference expansion, according to report

The report cites TCU, Houston, Temple, Villanova and Central Florida as possible candidates to join the conference

tcu and houston?  are they going to rename the conference?  big tex east?  big east tex? 

[49RFootballNow]

The report cites TCU, Houston, Temple, Villanova and Central Florida as possible candidates to join the conference

Is it just me or does this whole recent Big East love affair over TCU scream of desperation? It's kind of like not being able to get the hot girl in your city, so you go to 3 cities over but you still just get a high-medium chick. Looks like Menpiss can't catch a break and their state actually touches a Big East state.

[LakeNorman49er]

The report cites TCU, Houston, Temple, Villanova and Central Florida as possible candidates to join the conference

Is it just me or does this whole recent Big East love affair over TCU scream of desperation? It's kind of like not being able to get the hot girl in your city, so you go to 3 cities over but you still just get a high-medium chick. Looks like Menpiss can't catch a break and their state actually touches a Big East state.

i think mempiss state falls under the category of "likely to have a disease" more so than "hot girl".  maybe that's your answer.     

[49RFootballNow]

The report cites TCU, Houston, Temple, Villanova and Central Florida as possible candidates to join the conference

Is it just me or does this whole recent Big East love affair over TCU scream of desperation? It's kind of like not being able to get the hot girl in your city, so you go to 3 cities over but you still just get a high-medium chick. Looks like Menpiss can't catch a break and their state actually touches a Big East state.

i think mempiss state falls under the category of "likely to have a disease" more so than "hot girl".  maybe that's your answer. 

I was just going to say they were still the ugly chick, but we'll go with disease infested.

[punkrockcowboy]

The fact that ECU isn't a choice is pretty telling to me.  I know a lot of you hate ECU, but they have dominated CUSA football the past 3 years.  I think that media market, as some of us have speculated, is playing a big role here. 

[X-49er]

tcu and houston?  are they going to rename the conference?  big tex east?  big east tex?

The 2/3 of America Conference

The fact that ECU isn't a choice is pretty telling to me.  I know a lot of you hate ECU, but they have dominated CUSA football the past 3 years.  I think that media market, as some of us have speculated, is playing a big role here.

That's probably the biggest factor, and the fact that most teams would have to fly to Raleigh and drive to Greenville.  That doesn't help you get into a major conference.

I agree that their credentials in football should help them overcome some of those obstacles, though. 

[Niner National]

I hope ECU doesn't get an invite. Not because I don't like them (I'm pretty indifferent to them honestly), but because if there is any hope of a decent Non-BCS conference in the east, ECU would be a great conference mate for football. With Memphis not making the list of teams being discussed for BE expansion, I'd like to have them as conference mates again as well.

[49RFootballNow]

The fact that ECU isn't a choice is pretty telling to me.  I know a lot of you hate ECU, but they have dominated CUSA football the past 3 years.  I think that media market, as some of us have speculated, is playing a big role here.

ECU does OK on ratings when they're on ESPN but they don't have a large "home" media market and that probably scares the Big East a bit. They've been good the last decade, but the BE thinks like the "big boys" even if they really aren't. They think that if the teams that want in don't have several decades worth of football success then they are unreliable in adding value to the conference long term. The Big East is also VERY basketball focused. You can even say its part of the reason they are poached for football schools.The current and former commissioners came out of basketball only programs and the conference is HQ'd in Providence RI. Let's face it, ECU is the limp phallus of east coast basketball programs.

[2k]

Pat Forde: 

RT @espn4d: Big East says its members have unanimously approved "terms and conditions for possible expansion" to 10 football members.

[49RFootballNow]

Pat Forde: 

RT @espn4d: Big East says its members have unanimously approved "terms and conditions for possible expansion" to 10 football members.

1) What's going on with Villanova? Have they said no thanks or are they still projecting to be #9 in the 10 team BE. The phrase "football members" makes me think they're talking about football ONLY.
 
2) If it is 2 are they football only or all sports? Where would football onlies play their others sports (I hope we vote NO if they look at the A10 without getting a good bribe, especially if ECU is one).

[Normmm]

The fact that ECU isn't a choice is pretty telling to me.  I know a lot of you hate ECU, but they have dominated CUSA football the past 3 years.  I think that media market, as some of us have speculated, is playing a big role here.

ECU does OK on ratings when they're on ESPN but they don't have a large "home" media market and that probably scares the Big East a bit. They've been good the last decade, but the BE thinks like the "big boys" even if they really aren't. They think that if the teams that want in don't have several decades worth of football success then they are unreliable in adding value to the conference long term. The Big East is also VERY basketball focused. You can even say its part of the reason they are poached for football schools.The current and former commissioners came out of basketball only programs and the conference is HQ'd in Providence RI. Let's face it, ECU is the limp phallus of east coast basketball programs.

UCF makes all of that not true.  Don't get me wrong, I don't want ECU to be in the BE.  Just saying.

[Powerbait]

USF.

[49RFootballNow]

The fact that ECU isn't a choice is pretty telling to me.  I know a lot of you hate ECU, but they have dominated CUSA football the past 3 years.  I think that media market, as some of us have speculated, is playing a big role here.

ECU does OK on ratings when they're on ESPN but they don't have a large "home" media market and that probably scares the Big East a bit. They've been good the last decade, but the BE thinks like the "big boys" even if they really aren't. They think that if the teams that want in don't have several decades worth of football success then they are unreliable in adding value to the conference long term. The Big East is also VERY basketball focused. You can even say its part of the reason they are poached for football schools.The current and former commissioners came out of basketball only programs and the conference is HQ'd in Providence RI. Let's face it, ECU is the limp phallus of east coast basketball programs.

UCF makes all of that not true.  Don't get me wrong, I don't want ECU to be in the BE.  Just saying.

USF.

Yeah, but USF was an emergency situation. The Big East was in jeopardy of not only losing their Florida pipeline but their status as a BCS football conference. They HAD to have 8 teams to keep it and it needed to be a Florida school. At first they looked at UCF as a football only and then switched to USF as a full member thanks to Rutgers request. This time its not an emergency and everything out of Providence has been "schools that add additional value" which is their way of saying they want a fellow BCS school. Now the football schools may have finally gotten their way and this may have changed. I can see UCF as a travel partner of USF, but I can't imagine USF would be too happy about it. UCF's main advantages are school size, heavy investment in ALL sports facilities, and being in Florida.

[NinerAdvocate]

http://www.nj.com/rutgers/index.ssf/2010/11/big_east_will_seek_to_add_two.html

[survivor45]

Here's a question:

Let's say that the Big East announces that they are inviting Villanova and UCF as football-only members.  Looking at it purely from UCF's perspective, would they remain in Conference USA for their sports? (it does NOT appear that the Big East is interested in granting full membership)  Would the football-centric C-USA prefer to keep a non-football UCF?

I know the A10 commish has openly considered expansion.  If the A10 picked up UCF for all sports, it would be great for Charlotte to have someone else that gave a damn about their athletics (besides basketball).  Not that their basketball team lacks potential - since being a Big East football program would bring them nice exposure plus they have a nice modern 10k facility in Orlando:



It's a nice dream, but unfortunately it's a dream that the A10 members (especially the dregs) would shoot down.  I'm sure most A10 members would want to expand - but I think their "vision" is to favor a northeastern, private Catholic college with a s*** gym, less than 1000 undergrads, and a flash-in-the-pan basketball program that lit up some low-major conference somewhere.  I really doubt if anyone would actually seriously consider this idea. 

[49RFootballNow]

UCF would need to find a new home for their other sports if they left CUSA football. That was what we were forced to do and I'd assume CUSA would be looking for a new 12th member to COMPLETELY replace UCF.

[Hal Jordan]

I really don't know what will happen if UCF is invited to the BE for football only but I guess they could always throw the rest of there sports in the A-10 or the CAA.

If TCU gets in for football only though I really have no idea what they can do with the rest of there sports.  I'm sure they do have options but I have no idea what conferences they can bargain with to thor the rest of their sports in.

[Run49er]

Let's say that the Big East announces that they are inviting Villanova and UCF as football-only members.

Survivor, the BE inviting Nova as a football-only member makes no sense as it is already a member of the conference in everything BUT football.

[survivor45]

Let's say that the Big East announces that they are inviting Villanova and UCF as football-only members.

Survivor, the BE inviting Nova as a football-only member makes no sense as it is already a member the conference in everything BUT football.

Okay, so maybe the choice of words is a little poor.  
But I've had long convos with a buddy about the Villanova/Big East situation.  The policy of the conference is such that Big East members who do not currently participate in any Big East conference sport are readily encouraged to field a team in that sport, if they so desire.  And Villanova sponsoring a football team is no different.  Recently, the Big East announced plans to expand to 10 (maybe more) for football and Villanova is expected to be among the expansion candidates since an open conference invite is already on the table for them to field a football team.  So with that in mind, it's also expected that the expansion to 10 football programs will only require Villanova plus one new member.  It is possible that Central Florida will be among the expanded 10 football programs in the Big East.  But the Big East conference does not seem to want to expand beyond 16 teams in basketball, so Central Florida may be out of luck in terms of being anything beyond a football-only member.  Villanova would continue to be a full Big East member with a football program.
I thought my original statement could be easily understood without me having to make such a long-winded explanation!  Geez....

[Normmm]

Let's say that the Big East announces that they are inviting Villanova and UCF as football-only members.

Survivor, the BE inviting Nova as a football-only member makes no sense as it is already a member the conference in everything BUT football.

 

[Run49er]

Denver, Texas State, and UT San Antonio to the WAC.
 
ESPN.com: Sources: Three teams to join WAC

[49RFootballNow]

Well that's a fast move up from FCS to FBS for UTSA. We're on the wrong side of the country.

[ZombieLew]

Well that's a fast move up from FCS to FBS for UTSA. We're on the wrong side of the country.

...wait, so they are only playing one year in FCS?  I thought you had to do at least four?