A New Year's Wish

[Gus Mahler]

Here's my wish for the new year:

That some school will bolt the ACC for the Big 12, leaving a vacancy that would naturally be filled by Connecticut. A whole bunch of old rivalries would be renewed, plus renewed connections with Duke and UNC, plus NC State, Clemson, etc.

What's your wish?

 

[HoopsFan21]

No one wants Connecticut. If they did we'd have been invited to one of the P5 conferences already. It's fun though... a school that no one wants just continues to dominate in athletics while climbing the academic ranks and expanding its campus. Have fun watching the school you apparently don't want raising yet another championship banner! UConn is like that Ellen chick Jerry was dating.

 

[Kaizen]

1st wish: everyone in UConn is healthy and injure-free
2nd wish: UConn undefeated and wins NC

 

[UcMiami]

Gus - I am split on this. I actually sort of like the Big10.

 

[CL82]

No one wants Connecticut. If they did we'd have been invited to one of the P5 conferences already. .

 

[UconnWBB]

Love all the previous wishes...mine is for Katie Lou to start showing that magic touch we've all been waiting for...

 

[SCGamecock]

No one wants Connecticut. If they did we'd have been invited to one of the P5 conferences already. It's fun though... a school that no one wants just continues to dominate in athletics while climbing the academic ranks and expanding its campus. Have fun watching the school you apparently don't want raising yet another championship banner! UConn is like that Ellen chick Jerry was dating.

I'll never understand why the ACC bypassed UCONN in favor of Pittsburgh during its last expansion. I get that Pitt is a great school academically, but according to most sources the last round was mostly athletic and geographic and in that regard UCONN makes WAY more sense than Pitt.. Your football programs are relatively similar but UCONN's overall basketball program is far superior. Plus UCONN is a flagship program in a eastern seaboard state. Yes, I know Pitt is in Pennsylvania but they seem more like a Big 10 school to me. Syracuse and UCONN would've been my additions. The ACC would've had an unquestionable hold on basketball, men and women's. Missed opportunity in my opinion.

 

[Jimbo]

I agree with UcMiami that the Big 10 would be the best possible destination. I wouldn't complain about an ACC invite either, but if a spot there opens up, I think it will be because the ACC decides to expand and not because one of their schools leaves for the Big 12, which seems to me the least stable of the P5 conferences.

Speaking of the Big 12, the conference realignment board has been abuzz because one or two journalists in Big 12 country have hinted recently that UConn might be on the Big 12's short list of expansion targets. If there's any truth to that, it would naturally make no geographic sense but still probably represent a step up from being in the AAC.

 

[Jim]

I'll never understand why the ACC bypassed UCONN in favor of Pittsburgh during its last expansion. I get that Pitt is a great school academically, but according to most sources the last round was mostly athletic and geographic and in that regard UCONN makes WAY more sense than Pitt.. Your football programs are relatively similar but UCONN's overall basketball program is far superior. Plus UCONN is a flagship program in a eastern seaboard state. Yes, I know Pitt is in Pennsylvania but they seem more like a Big 10 school to me. Syracuse and UCONN would've been my additions. The ACC would've had an unquestionable hold on basketball, men and women's. Missed opportunity in my opinion.

Boston College objected. Let's just say there has been some bad blood between UCONN and BC over the years, including the Connecticut Attorney General suing BC when it left the Big East to go to the ACC in 2005.

 

[Gus Mahler]

Gus - I am split on this. I actually sort of like the Big10.

Well, if your wish is to have UCONN in the Big 10 I will be happy to support you on that.

Truth be told, my personal preference would be to have UCONN join the Big 10. That reflects a pro-Big 10 bias--I'm from Illinois originally.

Of course, money is the big driver of all this, and it might very well be that if UCONN were to be extended an offer that it might be a better one than what the ACC might offer. After all, they have their own network. Beyond that, I chose the ACC above because I think it makes the most sense from UCONN's standpoint. The traditional rivalries are part of that, but I also think it would be less pressure on the UCONN football program. It also makes more sense geographically. I also think it makes sense from the ACC perspective to lock up the NY to Boston corridor of TV markets.

I note that UCONN's name has come up regarding the Big 12. That might be just a decoy or trial balloon. It makes no sense to UCONN other than obviously extracting them from the AAC. What I find interesting to think about, though, is whether such chatter might motivate the Big 10 to go ahead and act and grab UCONN before someone else does, if they were interested in UCONN at all. Probably these thoughts don't even rise above fantasy.

One more point I just remembered: Someone mentioned the Big 12 is the most unstable of the P5s. True. But this gives them more incentive to be aggressive and try to poach if they can and reach out where they are able. Maybe aggressive acts on their part will start some dominoes to fall eventually in UCONN's favor.

 

[Huskies Rule]

 

[ChicagoGG]

Title IV for Stewie, Mo and Morgan, 11 for Geno and CD....

And to go to the BIG 12....or however many of them there are...

 

[meyers7]

Meta

 

[HGN]

I would prefer the ACC for UConn.................The BIG10 is good . So is the BIG12. But geographically , its the ACC. Geography is one thing. But the $$Dollar has a louder voice. School presidents and AD's can say what they want about the UConn football program and facilities , but its UConn's basketball programs that they fear. That's the elephant in the room. Who wants to have UConn playing up and down the East Coast and Tobacco Road in the ACC taking all the best recruits with promises of them playing back home every year ?? But I think eventually they all will have to come to grips with either bring in UConn and get the accolades they bring or continue to tangle with UConn at March Madness and watch trophies go to the little old AAC.

JMHO.

 

[Jimbo]

One more point I just remembered: Someone mentioned the Big 12 is the most unstable of the P5s. True. But this gives them more incentive to be aggressive and try to poach if they can and reach out where they are able. Maybe aggressive acts on their part will start some dominoes to fall eventually in UCONN's favor.

I agree that the Big 12 would be better served by moving aggressively than by standing pat. I'm just not sure any school currently in another P5 conference would see the Big 12 as a step up and accept an invitation to move there. I think the Big 12 might be stuck picking from among non-P5 schools if it chooses to expand.

 

[RI Husky]

Love all the previous wishes...mine is for Katie Lou to start showing that magic touch we've all been waiting for...

My wish is for Courtney to start hitting the threes and fulfill her potential as a sharpshooter!

 

[Monte]

I would prefer the ACC for UConn.......The BIG10 is good . So is the BIG12. But geographically , its the ACC. Geography is one thing. But the $$Dollar has a louder voice. School presidents and AD's can say what they want about the UConn football program and facilities , but its UConn's basketball programs that they fear. That's the elephant in the room. Who wants to have UConn playing up and down the East Coast and Tobacco Road in the ACC taking all the best recruits with promises of them playing back home every year ?? But I think eventually they all will have to come to grips with either bring in UConn and get the accolades they bring or continue to tangle with UConn at March Madness and watch trophies go to the little old AAC.

JMHO.

You said it all! They do not want to lose to Uconn every year in BASKETBALL!