Delany on East Coast pre-expansion push: espn

[huskyrob1]

Missouri is the only other #16 candidate available. The SEC does not have a GOR.

I do think the Big 10 would add just 1 if it wanted to (it sat at 11 for years), but if it wanted 2, it would grab Missouri and UConn. St. Louis is an attractive market.

I wish the SEC would start talking about a GOR just to shake the tree a little and see whether the Big 10 would make a move. The SEC would replace Missouri with Cincinnati and not bat an eyelash. I think the northern SEC schools would even like to be in Ohio, because they are confident they can kick the Big 10's butt in their own backyard when it comes to recruiting.

All that matters is the dollars though, and I don't see how UConn or Missouri generate an extra $45MM for the Big 10.

The SEC taking Cincinnati is like the PAC 10 taking San Diego State. Not gonna happen.

 

[tduconn]

My BIGGEST fear in all this is Maryland wins its ACC suit, and BIG entices Pittsburgh and Syracuse to change alliances. Pittsburg is in close proximity to the BIG footprint, Syracuse will become the NY BIG franchise........good basketball, decent size stadium, gives BIG a presence in NY state, and Syracuse FB can possibly grow quicker than UConn.

My BIGGEST relief will come when Herbst and Manuel announce a move. I have small lungs, and can't hold my breath too long for this to happen.

 

[Husky25]

My BIGGEST fear in all this is Maryland wins its ACC suit, and BIG entices Pittsburgh and Syracuse to change alliances. Pittsburg is in close proximity to the BIG footprint, Syracuse will become the NY BIG franchise...good basketball, decent size stadium, gives BIG a presence in NY state, and Syracuse FB can possibly grow quicker than UConn.

My BIGGEST relief will come when Herbst and Manuel announce a move. I have small lungs, and can't hold my breath too long for this to happen.

Boeheim is 69 years old. If people were afraid of what UConn was to become after Coach Calhoun retired, they have to be kept up nights wondering the same thing about Syracuse. What does Syracuse have to offer an 18 year old athlete over a school competing for his/her services. The Carrier dome is outdated and is reported to be falling apart. It's a private school, so the State won't support it over UB or Binghamton. Finally weather-wise, it is probably in the worst part of the country. Storrs is Shangri-La by comparison.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

@tduconn I wouldn't worry about Pitt to the B1G. They wouldn't double dip in PA. I could see Syracuse getting an invite based on NY State / NYC population.

I think in my ideal world we'd go to the B1G with Cuse and Rutgers and the basketball tournament back at MSG.

 

[The Funster]

My BIGGEST fear in all this is Maryland wins its ACC suit, and BIG entices Pittsburgh and Syracuse to change alliances. Pittsburg is in close proximity to the BIG footprint, Syracuse will become the NY BIG franchise...good basketball, decent size stadium, gives BIG a presence in NY state, and Syracuse FB can possibly grow quicker than UConn.

My BIGGEST relief will come when Herbst and Manuel announce a move. I have small lungs, and can't hold my breath too long for this to happen.

I don't think the B1G would take Pitt or Syracuse. Pitt is redundant with PSU. For years Cuse fans said that they were always going to end up in the Big 10 but I think that ship has long since sailed. I think Syracuse brings less to the table than UConn does. Sure, they have the Dome but not much else over UConn.

Even if that did happen, I'd be OK. We'd get into the ACC, at least.

 

[CL82]

Boeheim is 69 years old. If people were afraid of what UConn was to become after Coach Calhoun retired, they have to be kept up nights wondering the same thing about Syracuse. What does Syracuse have to offer an 18 year old athlete over a school competing for his/her services. The Carrier dome is outdated and is reported to be falling apart. It's a private school, so the State won't support it over UB or Binghamton. Finally weather-wise, it is probably in the worst part of the country. Storrs is Shangri-La by comparison.

Well where else can you learn the 2-3 zone as well as you can at Cuse. I mean that's a skill that is very useful post college in the NBA.

 

[RegisteredUconn]

I really think that in a short period (within 10 years) the P5 will become a corporation. It's not because of college sports necessarily but because the new business models for Higher Education.

I have no idea what the "new business models" for higher education are, but do you foresee some of the state super-universities like a Michigan or a North Carolina taking a bigger on-line approach, something along the lines of a Phoenix? Could be a great way to supercharge UConn's alumni rolls and interest in our sports offerings nationwide.

 

[upstater]

I have no idea what the "new business models" for higher education are, but do you foresee some of the state super-universities like a Michigan or a North Carolina taking a bigger on-line approach, something along the lines of a Phoenix? Could be a great way to supercharge UConn's alumni rolls and interest in our sports offerings nationwide.

The "super" universities will be able to retain reputation and prestige at the expense of the vast majority of state schools that will become training centers and/or bureaucratic wastelands. Michigan will charge $30k a year tuition and draw students from across the country. They don't need to become for-profit like U. Phoenix. Actually nobody does. The administrators of plenty of non-profits get paid handsomely. But given hat is going on in higher education across America, I can see absolutely no ideological obstruction to a private corporation running college sports.

 

[RegisteredUconn]

The "super" universities will be able to retain reputation and prestige at the expense of the vast majority of state schools that will become training centers and/or bureaucratic wastelands. Michigan will charge $30k a year tuition and draw students from across the country. They don't need to become for-profit like U. Phoenix. Actually nobody does. The administrators of plenty of non-profits get paid handsomely. But given hat is going on in higher education across America, I can see absolutely no ideological obstruction to a private corporation running college sports.

I didn't use Phoenix because of its for-profit status, but as an example of doing degree work remotely from the main campus, including home. UConn, for example could partner with community colleges across the country, offering local groups of students courses delivered on big screens with leaders doing the job grad students do on-campus.

 

[upstater]

I didn't use Phoenix because of its for-profit status, but as an example of doing degree work remotely from the main campus, including home. UConn, for example could partner with community colleges across the country, offering local groups of students courses delivered on big screens with leaders doing the job grad students do on-campus.

Since everything is metrics inclined these days, I am going to say that I doubt it. So far, the results of MOOCs have been beyond abysmal. The necessary technology and training to run really good MOOCs is beyond the capability of the lower tier universities, and the top tier won't want to do it because they don't have to.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Just two thoughts to add.

1. While I don't know that UConn and Mizzou produce enough revenue to prevent their addition from being dilutive to the Big Ten, I think it is likely Mizzou would leave the SEC for the Big Ten in a nanosecond. Not because the league is better, and maybe not even for the immediate financial gain, but because MIssouri as an institution wants to view itself as being comparable to its neighbors to the North, like Illinois, and not to the South, like Arkansas.

2. Can we please never again hear the crazy notion that we're not in the ACC because we didn't want to beat out LV for that slot because we already know the invite to the Big Ten is coming. I think it is absolutely clear that the UConn administration wanted the ACC invite and in fact had heard from sources they mistakenly believed that it was coming. Might it be a good thing we're not already locked in the ACC -- that is possible (I don't believe it but it's possible), but reinventing history is just dumb.

I generally agree, but Mizzou is a very conflicted place. St. Louis is absolutely Big Ten country, borders Illinois and has tons of Chicago connections. In fact Mizzou itself gets tons of kids from Chicago. KC is Big XII (Big 8 before that) central, and while the Big 10 has some appeal, not as much. Springfield and the Ozarks are probably a good fit for the SEC. So I'm not sure how quickly they would leave, if at all. If Mizzou and Kansas were going to the B1G, it would be pretty fast. Mizzou and UConn? Missouri can fit anywhere. It borders two B1G states, two SEC states and three Big XII states (with Iowa counting).

People don't often think of it this way, but St. Louis is about the same distance from each of Chicago, Indianapolis, Memphis and Nashville. Springfield is closer to Fayetteville, Arkansas than to KC or St. Louis. U Arkansas is quite popular in southern MO (my 2nd cousin from Carthage MO decided to go there).

 

[babysheep]

If PSU's 50k students don't come from big cities, then where do they come from? The middle of the state is basically bare.

They come from Philly mostly, some from Pittsburgh.

Many, many people from Jersey go there from my experience.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

The SEC taking Cincinnati is like the PAC 10 taking San Diego State. Not gonna happen.

Cincinnati and SDSU are not comparable. If you don't see why i don't want to waste time explaining it to you.

 

[Waquoit]

I read these threads for fun. But I have yet to see one plausible scenario that gets us out of the American. Again, we are like Cliff Robertson in Charly. We hit the big-time and thrived but it's all slipping away.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Cincinnati and SDSU are not comparable. If you don't see why i don't want to waste time explaining it to you.

How are they not? Urban state universities with limited local appeal, and sports teams that are more successful than the norm for such schools. Cinci has better historical programs on average, but SDSU has had success in both basketball and football. Neither school has any significant appeal beyond the 50 mile radius of its campus. SDSU is probably in much better shape there, as it has less local competition and most grads stay in SD.

 

[Fairfield_1st]

It's kinda part of the straight flush of disaster that UConn has drawn from the start on realignment.

Well put. I'm holding out hope, albeit slim, that maybe the B1G would go to 3 pods of 5 in the short term until they figure out 16.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

I read these threads for fun. But I have yet to see one plausible scenario that gets us out of the American. Again, we are like Cliff Robertson in Charly. We hit the big-time and thrived but it's all slipping away.

I tend to agree with you, and I am sure that staying in the AAC and waiting to be saved is a failing strategy.

 

[Stinger92860]

@tduconn I wouldn't worry about Pitt to the B1G. They wouldn't double dip in PA. I could see Syracuse getting an invite based on NY State / NYC population.

I think in my ideal world we'd go to the B1G with Cuse and Rutgers and the basketball tournament back at MSG.

We have 1M more TV households than Syracuse, approximately 3.5X to the Syracuse amount and we are in the NYC DMA. I repeat we are in the NYC DMA.

 

[Dooley]

Why can't the B1G go to 15 for now just by adding UCONN? They were at 11 for years before they brought in Nebraska.

I would say UCONN basketball moves needles. Give UCONN football a few years of B1G scheduling and this area will go dogsh1t crazy.

 

[woomba]

Unless there is a NCAA rule change the only way to make 15 schools work is to have unbalanced divisions - the scheduling implications of that makes the idea very unattractive to most schools.

The situation with 11 schools is a bit different in that they didn't need to split into divisions until Nebraska joined and this also allowed them to host a CCG.

 

[huskyrob1]

Why can't the B1G go to 15 for now just by adding UCONN? They were at 11 for years before they brought in Nebraska.

I would say UCONN basketball moves needles. Give UCONN football a few years of B1G scheduling and this area will go dogsh1t crazy.

I think they might do just that, and maybe very soon. This summer before the season gets rolling is my guess. I mean no one in authority in CT (Senators, congressmen, or the Governor) has said anything about UCONN's predicament in the press, and none of them blew CT's horn in the press when we just won two NC's. I thought for sure someone was gonna blow the trumpet at the welcome home ceremony but yet no one did. Why? And do you think Jim Delaney just opened an office in NYC just to welcome Rutgers for ? I mean if the ACC invites UCONN tomorrow, they effectively lock the B1G out of the New York/New England market, and of course Jim Delaney and Susan Herbst know that. Also remember that the NY market is very important from a basketball sense, not just football, I mean the B1G might not be trying to compete with the Giants and Jets but might be competing with the Knicks, who have not been a factor in the NBA for decades. The Knicks cannot even fill the Garden anymore but the University of Connecticut can. NYC basketball fans want a winner and UCONN might be it, certainly not the Rutgers basketball team.

 

[sdhusky]

How are they not? Urban state universities with limited local appeal, and sports teams that are more successful than the norm for such schools. Cinci has better historical programs on average, but SDSU has had success in both basketball and football. Neither school has any significant appeal beyond the 50 mile radius of its campus. SDSU is probably in much better shape there, as it has less local competition and most grads stay in SD.

I would love to hear his logic. I know dozens of SDSU graduates

 

[Ldandy]

If Delany wanted any of Kansas, Mizzou, Pitt, or Syracuse, they would already be in The B1G. He wouldn't have waited for 3 of 4 of these schools to become ensnared in GOR deals before making his move. It flys in the face of all logic. He passed multiple times on all 4 and would pass again. His eye is firmly fixed on Flagship Eastern Schools not low population Midwestern's, Little brothers
with awful athletics, and has been privates. Only a UT or ND suddenly wanting to be total team players would avert his gaze.

 

[huskyrob1]

If Delany wanted any of Kansas, Mizzou, Pitt, or Syracuse, they would already be in The B1G. He wouldn't have waited for 3 of 4 of these schools to become ensnared in GOR deals before making his move. It flys in the face of all logic. He passed multiple times on all 4 and would pass again. His eye is firmly fixed on Flagship Eastern Schools not low population Midwestern's, Little brothers
with awful athletics, and has been privates. Only a UT or ND suddenly wanting to be total team players would avert his gaze.

Pitt would never get an invite to the B1G, think of Pitt as UCONN and Penn State as BC. They hate each other. No love lost between Pitt and OSU either.

 

[upstater]

If Delany wanted any of Kansas, Mizzou, Pitt, or Syracuse, they would already be in The B1G. He wouldn't have waited for 3 of 4 of these schools to become ensnared in GOR deals before making his move. It flys in the face of all logic. He passed multiple times on all 4 and would pass again. His eye is firmly fixed on Flagship Eastern Schools not low population Midwestern's, Little brothers
with awful athletics, and has been privates. Only a UT or ND suddenly wanting to be total team players would avert his gaze.

I'm not entirely convinced of the Kansas and Missouri part of that. I think the old OSU Pres. mentioned that they may have messed up on a school (sounded like he was talking about Mizzou). It's likelier that Delany was waiting for the right time to blow up the ACC and grab what he really wanted. He may still be waiting for that. But I think Kansas and UConn are still good pieces to have. The ACC is trumpeting to everyone that they are the best bball conference ever, and Kansas and UConn are two good chips to counter that argument should it ever be needed.