Conference Realignment Thread

[RedOctober3829]

I'm saying that there might be a home for Richmond in the Sun Belt or CUSA, or any other conference that will have them, especially if the CAA completely implodes.

Again, 2 years ago, the Big XII was dead. Now, it's outlook looks rosier than the BIg East, and maybe the ACC.

They would need to renovate their stadium again if they want to go FBS as they only have 8,700 seats.

 

[SumnerH]

Why would Notre Dame join the ACC if it loses its football programs like Clemson and FSU? That makes zero sense.

I agree. My reaction was to Clears saying that the ACC wouldn't have taken Syracuse/Pitt if they knew Texas and OU weren't coming West. That's the part that makes no sense to me--they were much more vulnerable to being picked apart before they pulled in Syracuse and Pitt, and pulling in those 2 didn't materially damage the holy grail scenario of landing Notre Dame at a later date (it remained a long shot, but no longer than before).

If the ACC loses FSU/Miami then it's pretty much off the table (Clemson I doubt matters that much except that they wouldn't leave alone).

 

[mauf]

Where does the SEC fit in all this? Aren't they likely to cherry-pick two schools from the ACC at some point in the not-too-distant future? And wouldn't FSU be likely to be one of those two? (It would be politically untenable for UF to block the accession of another Fla. public university -- Miami would be a different story.)

I guess it still makes sense for FSU to take the best deal on the table right now, so long as the Big 12 pays the $20mm exit fee.

If the ACC loses FSU/Miami then it's pretty much off the table (Clemson I doubt matters that much except that they wouldn't leave alone).

I don't have any data to support this, but I'll bet Clemson's football program is more profitable than you think.

 

[mauf]

sorry, dp

 

[DJnVa]

Richmond had a good run in 2011 and has made 2 of the past 3 tournaments, but before 2010 they only made 4 NCAA appearances in 20 years. Going forward, I think George Mason has more potential to keep their success going consistently.

Going to be tough to recruit in the watered down CAA, especially with Hewitt there.

 

[DJnVa]

They would need to renovate their stadium again if they want to go FBS as they only have 8,700 seats.

More than renovate--they would have to average 15,000 in attendance as well. Make it bigger and fill it up.

 

[URI]

They would need to renovate their stadium again if they want to go FBS as they only have 8,700 seats.

Which they could do fairly easily. Check the layout of Robins Stadium, they could enclose the bowl and there you go.

 

[mabrowndog]

The problem with all of these FCS schools wanting to jump up is that there has to be a spot for them to go and they have to be invited to a conference. You can say you want to move up, but if there's no interest from any conference what do you do?

They would need to renovate their stadium again if they want to go FBS as they only have 8,700 seats.

Yeah, I mentioned both these points in an earlier post, where one of the ideas/rumors I've seen floated is that some of the FCS schools jumping to FBS would form their own conference right out of the gate, perhaps in conjunction with (or later adding) other existing FBS teams. And Richmond's insufficient post-renovation stadium capacity seemed an immediate disqualifier for them to make that jump anytime soon.

I'd wondered if Buffalo might be a school that could replace Richmond in such a set-up, at least at the outset. But Liberty makes far more sense. So you'd have:

Villanova
Delaware
James Madison
Liberty
Appalachian St
GA Southern

That would meet the 6-team minimum for FBS status, and you'd have three pairs of geographic rivals that also have solid head-to-head histories. Adding UMass & Army would get them into the NYC/Tri-State and Boston/Hartford markets. After a few years, a group like this might prove appealing to other programs that could be FBS candidates (Chattanooga, Furman, Elon, Wofford, NC-Greensboro, NC-Wilmington, Albany) as well as schools that already jumped to crappy or ill-fitting FBS conferences, such as GA St & Fla Atlantic (Sun Belt) and Buffalo (MAC).

 

[URI]

More than renovate--they would have to average 15,000 in attendance as well. Make it bigger and fill it up.

It's really not that difficult to nudge that up. See: Massachusetts, University of

 

[mabrowndog]

Boise St having second thoughts about leaving MWC for Big East

Lots of great stuff here from McMurphy...

An industry source told CBSSports.com that Mountain West representatives met with Boise State officials earlier this week to persuade the Broncos to remain in the MWC. Adding to that possibility is that the Broncos still haven't formally notified the Mountain West they are withdrawing from the league.

CBSSports.com asked Boise State for a comment about the MWC meeting and why the school had not formally withdrawn from the Mountain West. "We are actively monitoring the changing landscape in college athletics and remain committed to making the best long-term decisions for Boise State," a spokesman said.

Technically, Boise State has until June 30 to formally notify the MWC it's leaving, but the other five schools scheduled to join the Big East in 2013 -- San Diego State from the MWC and Houston, Southern Methodist, UCF and Memphis from Conference USA -- all have formally withdrawn from their respective leagues.

The Broncos have signed a contract to join the Big East so they would have to pay a $5 million exit fee if they did not join the Big East before July 1, 2013. If the Broncos leave the Big East on or after July 1, 2013, they must provide 27 months notice and pay a $10 million exit fee.

Sources told CBSSports.com that the Big East initially wanted Boise State to join the league in 2012 -- to replace West Virginia and guarantee an eighth football playing member -- but the Big East would not pay for the Broncos' $10 million exit fees to leave the Mountain West and move their Olympic sports to the Western Athletic Conference a year earlier than scheduled.

Another reason Boise State couldn't join the Big East early was because the school would not formally withdraw from the MWC, sources told CBSSports.com.

Boise State also could be reconsidering its move to the Big East because of the uncertain future of the WAC, where Boise State is scheduled to place its non-football sports. The WAC has lost several members and could be down to a handful of non-football members and is fighting for survival.

MWC commissioner Craig Thompson said last Friday Boise State could not keep its non-football sports in the Mountain West and move its football program to the Big East, but could remain in the MWC as a full member. The MWC added San Jose State and Utah State, giving the league 10 football members in 2013, but Thompson added "I think there is room [for Boise State and San Diego State] at the table."

Boise State is concerned about the WAC's future and has asked the Big East for help in placing its non-football programs in another league, the Idaho Statesman reported Wednesday.

Another reason Boise State could be changing its mind is the uncertainty surrounding the Big East's future without the BCS AQ conference label. The BCS is removing the AQ and non-AQ designations beginning in 2014 and its unknown if the Big East will still receive BCS AQ type revenue or an amount closer to the current non-AQ leagues, such as the Mountain West.

Former Big 12 acting commissioner Chuck Neinas told USA Today Monday that the Big East is no longer a power conference, and consequently, shouldn't be paid like one.

Another unknown is how much the Big East's new media rights deal, which the league starts renegotiating on Sept. 1, will be worth.
----------------
Former CBS Sports president Neil Pilson recently told the New York Times he thought the Big East's deal would exceed the $155 million per year deal the league turned down last year. However, industry sources told CBSSports.com that they believe the Big East's new media rights will be worth substantially less than $155 million per year. That's because when the Big East starts negotiating, about $8 billion will have been spent on recent college football deals, so there won't be as much money available.

 

[RedOctober3829]

VCU is holding a 1:30 press conference to announce their move to the A-10.

 

[DJnVa]

And now the talk is that it's an IMMEDIATE move and VCU basketball will play in the A-10 this coming season.

 

[URI]

Where did you hear that?

That would cause a serious logistical problem unless they are just letting Temple walk.

 

[DJnVa]

http://www.cbssports...murphy/19042989

VCU was expected to join the A-10 in 2013, but because it didn't want to spend a lame duck season in the Horizon League, the Rams will join the A-10 a year earlier in 2012, sources told CBSSports.com on Tuesday.

If VCU had remained in the CAA, the Rams likely would have been ineligible to play in the CAA men's basketball tournament and the automatic NCAA tournament bid to the conference champion. VCU still could have been considered for an NCAA at-large berth. So instead, VCU decided to make its move to the A-10 immediately.

Typo--he obviously meant lame duck in the CAA.

 

[URI]

Jesus...that's still a scheduling nightmare with 15 teams. I wonder if there is another team jumping now or one leaving now.

 

[DJnVa]

Also interesting is that they are giving up millions from the CAA for their Final Four run. Granted they can make that back in a stronger league, but it'll take some time.

Pay the CAA an exit fee of $250,000.
Pay the A10 an entry fee of $750,000.
Forfeit $5,000,000 in NCAA money.
Increase travel costs by $150,000/yr.

 

[DJnVa]

Thinking about the unbalanced A-10 a bit more--what if they tell Charlotte to leave ASAP, and CUSA takes in Charlotte and ODU for next year.

It gets rid of 2 lame ducks (Charlotte and ODU), and both conferences are balanced.

 

[mabrowndog]

We interrupt all the football & hoop discussion for a few laps on the Zamboni...

UConn in talks to join Hockey East

And this time it looks like it'll be a done deal:

The University of Connecticut and Hockey East are in serious talks that could lead to an invitation next month

...........

"Our attention is pretty focused on the University of Connecticut," [Hockey East commissioner Joe] Bertagna said. "There are other institutions that have had casual conversations. But I think it would be disingenuous to suggest that there is someone else, that our conversations are this far along."

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy confirmed in March that he has been involved in the meetings with the conference along with officials from the XL Center, a likely venue for the games. UConn Athletic Director Warde Manuel said the two sides met again last week.
...........

"The window is small," Manuel said. "It is a great opportunity should it be offered to us to move into the strongest hockey league in the country."

Manuel said the school would have to initially move games from the on-campus Freitas Ice Forum to the XL Center in Hartford, where UConn plays many of its home basketball games.

"It would be starting off playing Hockey East games in XL and then looking down in the future at what we would be able to do for a campus facility as well," Manuel said. "Whether it would be new or renovated, it would be where the hockey rink is currently in that Freitas footprint."

Chuck Steedman, the XL Center's general manager, said the arena would have very little trouble accommodating UConn hockey as an anchor tenant alongside The AHL's Connecticut Whale and UConn basketball.
...........

A study commissioned by the school and released last month put the cost of upgrading the program at about $1.3 million just in scholarships, and almost $11 million to renovate the on-campus rink. It would also cost the program about $20,000 a game to play at the XL Center

UConn would need to add 18 scholarships for the hockey team and spokesman Mike Enright said the school also would add scholarships to existing women's programs, likely rowing and tennis, to meet federal gender equity requirements. The UConn women's hockey program already plays in Hockey East.

It just makes far too much sense for this not to happen. With Notre Dame joining for 2013-14, the Huskies would become the 12th team. All 5 of the main campuses from New England state universities that sponsor hockey would become intra-conference rivals. UConn's departure from the AHA would coincide with Air Force's likely departure for the WCHA as the 10th team out west. The AHA could then remain a 10-team league, or add Buffalo & Navy if/when they bring their club programs to the D-1 varsity level, as both have been rumored to varying degrees.

Meanwhile, Alabama-Huntsville, which has reversed course and will not be terminating their hockey program after all, would likely be left out of the conference realignment picture. They're just too isolated to be anything other than a desperation fit. Had Kennesaw (GA) State decided to turn their club team into a varsity program (they didn't), at least UA-H would have had a travel partner.

 

[WayBackVazquez]

It's really not that difficult to nudge that up. See: Massachusetts, University of

Richmond is different from UMass, and VCU, and Appalachian State, etc. in that it is TINY. You can make the stadium as big as you want, but when you've got a total undergrad and graduate enrollment of about 4,000 students, it's going to be pretty difficult to get the average attendance you need at the outset. It would be one of the 2 or 3 smallest schools in FBS. I don;t see it happening.

 

[mabrowndog]

Richmond is also very different from UMass and Appalachian State, etc. in that it is within a city of 204,000 with an SMSA of 1.25 million. I don't think getting sufficient crowds there would be anywhere near as big a challenge as in Amherst or Boone.

I agree the limited student/alumni body is a factor, but I also suspect the 44th-largest metro area in the country would love to have a place to watch big-time college football on fall Saturdays.

 

[( . ) ( . ) and (_!_)]

It just makes far too much sense for this not to happen. With Notre Dame joining for 2013-14, the Huskies would become the 12th team. All 5 of the main campuses from New England state universities that sponsor hockey would become intra-conference rivals. UConn's departure from the AHA would coincide with Air Force's likely departure for the WCHA as the 10th team out west. The AHA could then remain a 10-team league, or add Buffalo & Navy if/when they bring their club programs to the D-1 varsity level, as both have been rumored to varying degrees.

And URI continues to spend money on a shitty football program instead of pursuing hockey

 

[RedOctober3829]

Richmond is also very different from UMass and Appalachian State, etc. in that it is within a city of 204,000 with an SMSA of 1.25 million. I don't think getting sufficient crowds there would be anywhere near as big a challenge as in Amherst or Boone.

I agree the limited student/alumni body is a factor, but I also suspect the 44th-largest metro area in the country would love to have a place to watch big-time college football on fall Saturdays.

App State does not have a challenge at all getting people to go to games. They were 1st in FCS in average attendance again at just over 26,000 people per game and in total attendance at just over 205,000 people for the year.

 

[URI]

And URI continues to spend money on a shitty football program instead of pursuing hockey

There is literally no way URI could take the immediate monetary hit to upgrade from club hockey to D1 while also killing football.

 

[WayBackVazquez]

Richmond is also very different from UMass and Appalachian State, etc. in that it is within a city of 204,000 with an SMSA of 1.25 million. I don't think getting sufficient crowds there would be anywhere near as big a challenge as in Amherst or Boone.

I agree the limited student/alumni body is a factor, but I also suspect the 44th-largest metro area in the country would love to have a place to watch big-time college football on fall Saturdays.

I dunno, I'm of the belief that outside of the traditional powerhouses or at least traditional in-state marquee schools, college football fandom is determined by whether you or someone in your family attended -- and even that isn't always enough. The 3rd-largest metro area doesn't pay any attention to the actual big-time college football being played in its backyard on fall Saturdays, even though it has about 10 times the population and probably more than 10 times the local alumni as Richmond.

 

[DJnVa]

I think Richmond just built that stadium too, with 8000 capacity. It'd be a tough sell to bump it up 2.5x larger.

 

[Infield Infidel]

I dunno, I'm of the belief that outside of the traditional powerhouses or at least traditional in-state marquee schools, college football fandom is determined by whether you or someone in your family attended -- and even that isn't always enough. The 3rd-largest metro area doesn't pay any attention to the actual big-time college football being played in its backyard on fall Saturdays, even though it has about 10 times the population and probably more than 10 times the local alumni as Richmond.

They could do it, but it would take a whole lot of work connecting with the community. Baylor and Tulsa are the only private school I can think of that have done it well (outside of top-20 metros like Dallas, Miami, LA, etc). Post-probation, Baylor has done a lot to connect with the Waco community and it's paid dividends. Also doesn't hurt to be in a major conference like Baylor.

I don't really see that for Richmond, despite the quality of their program

 

[MoVaughndotORG]

I think Richmond just built that stadium too, with 8000 capacity. It'd be a tough sell to bump it up 2.5x larger.

Another problem aside from the small alumni and the small stadium is the fact that a big number of alumni go back to Jersey and Philly and Boston after school is done. Of my extended group of friends, I think one guy's parents actually lived within an hour drive of campus. And the people who were from VA already had family ties to UVA or Tech. We would rather wake up and watch college football on tv than take the ten minute drive downtown.
The only basketball games that were a hard ticket to get were when we played Wake Forest, so it wasn't like the locals were beating down the door for their hometown team against just anyone.
I would love to see UR make the jump but I have a hard time envisioning a largely apathetic public all of a sudden giving a hoot. Umass has an enormous alumni population that is from MA and stays in MA. Richmond has a fraction of that who don't care about football when they are there and then go back home when they graduate.

 

[DJnVa]

Rumors starting to hit Twitter (including from a Richmond Times-Dispatch reporter) that ODU is announcing a move to CUSA today.

I would assume it's for the Olympic sports only, with football to follow with a June announcement. Wonder if they are making an immediate jump a la VCU.

 

[RedOctober3829]

Rumors starting to hit Twitter (including from a Richmond Times-Dispatch reporter) that ODU is announcing a move to CUSA today.

I would assume it's for the Olympic sports only, with football to follow with a June announcement. Wonder if they are making an immediate jump a la VCU.

Why would it be for the Olympic Sports only? The only reason they want to move is because they want to have FBS football.

 

[RedOctober3829]

Old Dominion heading to Conference-USA. News conference set for later today. CAA needs to go after Davidson and Charleston.

https://twitter.com/#!/GoodmanCBS/status/203123442386612225

 

[Awesome Fossum]

Why would it be for the Olympic Sports only? The only reason they want to move is because they want to have FBS football.

From what I understand, if the football team moves prior to June 1, they would ineligible for the 2012 FCS playoffs.

 

[RedOctober3829]

From what I understand, if the football team moves prior to June 1, they would ineligible for the 2012 FCS playoffs.

David Teel‏@DavidTeelatDP

#ODU officials believe Monarchs WILL be eligible for FCS playoffs in 2012.

 

[DJnVa]

Why would it be for the Olympic Sports only? The only reason they want to move is because they want to have FBS football.

Because they would delay football's move one year to stay eligible for the FCS playoffs this year then enter CUSA football the same time as Charlotte, making schedule easier.

Either way, it's not an immediate jump.

I guess they can announce now but not submit the paperwork until after June 1 to stay eligible.

Pretty cool that a program playing their 4th year of football even has to make the choice about competing for a national title.

 

[mabrowndog]

I put together a Google spreadsheet to track all the conference movements in NCAA basketball (Div 1 only), football (FBS & FCS) and hockey (D-I, D-II and D-III).

I wanted to keep it as simple as possible, but I'm open to suggestions. Let me know any errors/omissions.

 

[DJnVa]

Davidson and Stony Brook are rumored to be going to the CAA. Also heard possibly UNH.

 

[mabrowndog]

UNH is already in the CAA (football). Are the rumors that they'd jump from America East to CAA in everything else but hockey?

Stony Brook moving back to the CAA in football makes sense, with Liberty looking to leave the Big South. Otherwise, like UNH, they'd be moving all their other sports from America East.

Davidson's a curious case. They're in the non-scholarship Pioneer for FCS football. Would they be moving their program to scholarship level? Or would they be a non-football CAA member? I'm sure they're seeing the writing on the wall with a number of SoCon members in position to jump to FBS and leave the conference. But other than a fleeting flirtation with basketball prominence in the Stephen Curry years (2006-08), I'm not sure what they bring to the table for the CAA. Before the Curry era, Davidson hadn't won an NCAA game since the Lefty Driesell regime in '69, and they'd made just 3 appearances in the tourney in the nearly three-decade interim. Seems like they'd be a better fit for the Patriot League.

 

[jmanny24]

I put together a Google spreadsheet to track all the conference movements in NCAA basketball (Div 1 only), football (FBS & FCS) and hockey (D-I, D-II and D-III).

I wanted to keep it as simple as possible, but I'm open to suggestions. Let me know any errors/omissions.

This is very helpful, only a couple potential things to add, New Orleans is staying Independent for 2012-13, and something to keep an eye on, Katz thinks Davidson and CofC should be the prime targets of the CAA.

http://collegehoopshaven.wordpress.com/

 

[mabrowndog]

This is very helpful, only a couple potential things to add, New Orleans is staying Independent for 2012-13, and something to keep an eye on, Katz thinks Davidson and CofC should be the prime targets of the CAA.

http://collegehoopshaven.wordpress.com/

Thanks for the heads-up on UNO. Their reversal of course in March didn't get much publicity. Some further speculation on their next moves:

They could possibly join the Southland Conference which currently includes Louisiana schools Northwestern State, McNeese State, Nicholls State and Southeastern Louisiana. A return to the Sun Belt Conference, which includes Louisiana-Lafayette and Louisiana-Monroe, is not out of the question.

The Southland currently has 12 members but will lose Texas State, Texas-San Antonio and Texas-Arlington at the end of the current school year. Oral Roberts will join the league in 2012 and Houston Baptist will join the Southland in 2013. UNO could become the 12th member, equaling the league's current membership.

UNO was a charter member of the Sun Belt Conference before leaving the conference in 1979 to become an independent.

The Privateers joined the American South Conference in 1987 and rejoined the Sun Belt when the two leagues merged in 1991. UNO officially left the Sun Belt on July 1, 2010.

As for Davidson & CoC, your link has nothing on that. Is there a specific entry that mentions it?

 

[RedOctober3829]

UNH is already in the CAA (football). Are the rumors that they'd jump from America East to CAA in everything else but hockey?

Stony Brook moving back to the CAA in football makes sense, with Liberty looking to leave the Big South. Otherwise, like UNH, they'd be moving all their other sports from America East.

Davidson's a curious case. They're in the non-scholarship Pioneer for FCS football. Would they be moving their program to scholarship level? Or would they be a non-football CAA member? I'm sure they're seeing the writing on the wall with a number of SoCon members in position to jump to FBS and leave the conference. But other than a fleeting flirtation with basketball prominence in the Stephen Curry years (2006-08), I'm not sure what they bring to the table for the CAA. Before the Curry era, Davidson hadn't won an NCAA game since the Lefty Driesell regime in '69, and they'd made just 3 appearances in the tourney in the nearly three-decade interim. Seems like they'd be a better fit for the Patriot League.

Davidson is a very good basketball program. They have been one of the best SoCon teams over the past decade. 11 regular season titles since 1996. The Stephen Curry years were their glory years, but they've been very competitive in the SoCon. Bob McKillop is one of the most respected coaches in the world not just in this country.

 

[jmanny24]

Thanks for the heads-up on UNO. Their reversal of course in March didn't get much publicity. Some further speculation on their next moves:



As for Davidson & CoC, your link has nothing on that. Is there a specific entry that mentions it?

Sorry for the confusion Dog that was a shameless plug for my blog. Katz mentions Davidson and CofC towards the bottom here: http://espn.go.com/m...lege-basketball and in a tweet: ESPNAndyKatz

45]Drexel coach Bruiser Flint was told ODU move was for 2013-14. CAA better get Charleston and Davidson or this may never be more than 1bid lg.​

45]​

http://collegehoopsh....wordpress.com/​

 

[DJnVa]

The UNH thing was a rumor heard from someone that competes in a non-revenue sport at UNH. Not much there yet, but I've heard UNH thrown out on CAA forums.

Coastal Carolina is a good bet for the CAA as well.

The link below even mentions BU. http://espn.go.com/c...-conference-usa

 

[mabrowndog]

Katz mentions Davidson and CofC towards the bottom here: http://espn.go.com/m...lege-basketball and in a tweet: ESPNAndyKatz

45]Drexel coach Bruiser Flint was told ODU move was for 2013-14. CAA better get Charleston and Davidson or this may never be more than 1bid lg.​

​

Thanks for that.

Sorry for the confusion Dog that was a shameless plug for my blog.

I'm sure you didn't mean any harm, but posters have been banned here for giving "shameless plugs" to their own blogs or sites. If there's content that's relevant to the topic at hand, linking to it probably won't be a problem so long as it's not some transparent bait for mouse clicks. But just tossing the link into your posts might not be the best idea.

EDIT - I believe you can add a blog/site URL to your signature.

 

[jmanny24]

[/indent]

Thanks for that.




I'm sure you didn't mean any harm, but posters have been banned here for giving "shameless plugs" to their own blogs or sites. If there's content that's relevant to the topic at hand, linking to it probably won't be a problem so long as it's not some transparent bait for mouse clicks. But just tossing the link into your posts might not be the best idea.

EDIT - I believe you can add a blog/site URL to your signature.

Yeah my bad on that, I tried adding it to a sig but it came up saying I can add 0 urls, oh well, sorry to derail. I actually have a bunch (20) or so interview requests out to schools involved in realignment for a feature, unfortunately I haven't gotten much reply yet. I did get 2 defiant no comments from Denver (WAC) and Texas-Pan American (Great West)

 

[Bernie Carbohydrate]

Coastal Carolina is a good bet for the CAA as well.

The Coastal Carolina Board of Trustees just voted to give the school president full authority to negotiate and sign a conference deal. The Big South, never a premier conference, is shrinking, as Liberty is already out the door.

 

[RedOctober3829]

Jon Rothstein

Don't discount Stony Brook as a possible addition down the road for the CAA. Tremendous facilities on the way. Up and coming program.

https://twitter.com/#!/JonRothstein/status/203124218219601921

 

[DJnVa]

Boise St sticking with Big East.

http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/blog/brett-mcmurphy/19084842/boise-state-sticks-with-plan-to-join-big-east-in-2013

 

[RedOctober3829]

Stony Brook to begin construction in June on a $21.1 million arena.

http://www.newsday.com/sports/college/stony-brook/stony-brook-to-begin-21-1m-arena-renovation-1.3728108#disqus_thread

 

[Captaincoop]

The state senator who chairs the Higher Education Committee allowing Stony Brook to name its football stadium after him...nice ethics. Great move by Stony Brook, though. Looks like it paid off.

 

[RedOctober3829]

Texas has been courting Notre Dame carefully since the summer of 2010. Will the Irish finally feel compelled to jump into the Big 12, which would require its own set of surgical tools (because Notre Dame's NBC contract doesn't expire until after the 2015 season).

For Notre Dame to join the Big 12 in football any time before that, the Big 12 would have to create some unique revenue-sharing formula for one or two years that would allow Notre Dame to share in some of the Big 12's money, but not all of it, for Tier 1 and Tier 2 in football.

There would also have to be some caveat about what slot Notre Dame would qualify for in the postseason out of the Big 12, since the Irish's schedule would still be more of an independent's schedule. Would Notre Dame be able to qualify at no higher than the Big 12's No. 3 slot for a bowl game unless its BCS ranking put the Irish in the Top 4, thus qualifying ND for a proposed four-team playoff? And would Notre Dame even qualify for the new Big 12-SEC bowl game if its in the Big 12 in everything but football?

There's a lot of work that would need to get done to accommodate the Irish, who have some locks in its schedule (USC and Navy) that ND won't want to part with. (Other rivalries on their schedule are more expendable than you'd think.)

Still, there's been no consensus even in the Big 12 about how Notre Dame would be worked in - as a full football member or as a member in everything but football. All we know is that Texas athletic director DeLoss Dodds has been courting Irish athletic director Jack Swarbrick like a reluctant prom date for three years.

And sources say Dodds is telling some in the Big 12 he thinks Notre Dame is seriously looking at the Big 12. (The Big 12 went out of its way to inform Notre Dame of its plans with the SEC for a postseason bowl game.) Although, Dodds has told those same people it could take time for Notre Dame to join - like 2016 - after its current football contract with NBC is up.

And with the changing landscape as of Friday and the revenue generating separation that occurred when the Big 12 and SEC paired up for the postseason the way the Big Ten and Pac-12 have with the Rose Bowl - everyone is trying to figure out what makes sense.

One Big 12 source still isn't sure more is better.

"With this game with the SEC, we are set. We are good. Do we really need to go to 12, 14 or 16 - just to make more TV money?" the source said. "The more schools, the more you have to split up any additional money. At some point, it stops making financial sense."

Still others feel like D-Day is here for superconferences, and the Big 12 is in the best position to grow if football programs like Florida State and Clemson shake loose. (I've been told those two are starting to talk more about moving as a package deal out of the ACC.)

No one wants to see the ACC de-stabilize - unless it's absolutely meant to be. That's why it's incumbent on any school in the ACC that wants out, to initiate that move. The Big 12 doesn't want that blood on its hands.

Another Big 12 source told me Friday allies in the SEC have advised the Big 12 to really study whether it wants to grow beyond 12. Take that for what it's worth.

The Big 12 meetings in Kansas City are going to reveal a lot. The Big 12 has a five-year contract with the SEC for a game featuring its postseason champions, effectively killing the BCS bowl system. The Big 12 has a 13-year granting of rights that appears locked into its new Tier 1 TV deal with ABC/ESPN that should be announced by the end of the month.

One high-level Big 12 source said, "I think we'll end up at 12 and a half - to start with." That source speculated Florida State and Clemson could end up in the Big 12 or Florida State and Louisville after the very intense flirtation between the BIg 12 and Louisville when West Virginia was ultimately selected. Notre Dame would be the "half"in that equation until it's ready to give up its independence in football.
There are still a lot of details and consensus to reach before anyone can safely say who joins the Big 12, how many or when?

But there is the same kind of intensity to this summer's potential for realignment that we've seen the last two years. So it appears something big is about to happen - and the Big 12 appears to be in the middle of it once again - this time on the addition side rather than the subtraction side.

Stay tuned.

http://texas.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1367286

 

[JMDurron]

Thought this was a pretty good post on why the Big East never really stood much of a chance in today's college sports environment, and why other conferences might want to take care before trying too hard to capture the "northeastern market."

If you want a successful sport you need two types of fans: the big spenders, and the die hards. The big spenders are the guys with expense accounts. They can put an open bar in the suite on the company card. They'll pay extra for all sorts of licenses and fees and access to your players. Some of them dwell in that blurry NCAA violation space. The best ones get away with it.

Meanwhile, the die hards are the ones filling the stands, paying hard-earned money on even the smallest trinkets to feel a connection to the team. Harvey Updyke was a die hard. They disavow him, but Bama wouldn't be Bama without his ilk. And remember, you need both big spenders and die hards. If your sport only has big spenders then it's the Henley Regatta. If it only has die hards then it's a tractor pull.

Traditionally you can get the big spenders to flock to your program by getting them to go to your college. But, as noted earlier, big spenders in the Northeast don't want to send their kids to football schools. And the future big spenders; the strivers with high GPAs and strong SATs but middle- or lower-class parents? They're getting scholarships to the private colleges with FCS football teams or lower.

If you're valedictorian of your high school in Meriden, Connecticut and have the choice to go to UConn or Wesleyan on scholarship, you're not choosing UConn. UConn is a fine school but it doesn't draw the richest of the rich or the smartest of the smart. It has plenty of successful alumni, but not a critical mass. And you're more likely to see the scions of successful UConn grads go to Harvard or Yale than their equivalents in states to the south and west.

Schools in the Northeast don't draw the die hards either. The die hards are taken. For them, football is Sundays, not Saturdays. There's no reason to trudge to East Hartford or Piscataway on a Saturday afternoon because either a) the Yankees or Red Sox will be playing or b) it'll be too cold for you to stand outside for a team you don't care that much about to begin with.

It's probably covering things that everyone here already knows, but I thought it did so pretty well and very succinctly relative to other articles I've seen on the subject, and it was certainly more than I expected from a comedy/satire NCAA Football blog when I checked EDSBS this morning.