A UConn Guide to the Big East

[AllAbout5]

Added FS1 to my channel favorites. It’s a little early but I want to be ready.

I’m going to watch a lot of Big East this year just to scout who’s good

UConn 4
Villanova 3
Georgetown 1
Marquette 1

Combined they actually have 1 more than UConn.

 

[Dream Jobbed 2.0]

It will be nice to truly have some conference pride and not be thinking “Crap if Cincinnati beats UCLA they’re going to the Big12” every time there’s a big OOC game

 

[aburks41]

The Big East has 6 of its first 8 members.

Boston College? No real history there. Butler is way better and went to 2 finals in a row. BC is squat.

Cuse? We all love to hate Cuse. The Big East is better with Cuse, so that's a loss.

We aren't so different than the glory days of the 80s Big East, except that UConn and Nova are established blue blood champions with multiple titles.

Pitt? Pitt. Never went to a Final Four as a Big East member (thanks Scottie Reynolds) and, like BC, has sucked in the ACC.

Marqutte is solid. Xaxier, Creighton, and Butler have rabid fans (wait till you see Creighton fans in NYC!).

DePaul pads all of our wins.

The Big East is essentially the Big East. Some frauds have come and gone, but the core of the Big East is strong, and only stronger this week.

View attachment 44218

wait...Depaul only has 54 conference wins in 40(!!!) YEARS??? How is that even possible?

 

[Dream Jobbed 2.0]

wait...Depaul only has 54 conference wins in 40(!!!) YEARS??? How is that even possible?

Well they’ve been in the conference for 15 years is probably the first reason.

 

[tzznandrew]

UConn 4
Villanova 3
Georgetown 1
Marquette 1

I assume he means all sports because otherwise that was a dumb post.

 

[CL82]

Technically we are not back. This is the first time since the formation of the original Big East UConn has changed leagues.

You are correct of course but just sit back buy into the coming home mythology.

 

[CL82]

Irrelevant? You were in the AAC! And not even that good there.

Uh, I guess we should have done more, but there was no left to play.

 

[RichZ]

Villanova and Pitt were not original members

Please refresh my memory.
I recall that Holy Cross was one of the original invitees, bu they declined.
Villanova and Pitt were invited after that. But did they join before or after the first BE basketball season, which as far as I'm concerned is the actual beginning of the BE.

 

[unclejohn]

Welcome back from a Marquette fan. OK, technically you never left. But the conference you just abandoned could not possibly have been called the Big East.

Add me to those who have mixed emotions about your return. I mean, you are coming, so welcome. But whenever the question has been raised about UConn returning, I have been ambivalent. I have been in the category of “when they get rid of football.” My thought was that as soon as UConn got an offer from a major football conference, they would be out the door. I assume Val Ackerman and the school administrators have thought about that and made some provision for it, most likely financial. (Edit: Yes, clearly they did, to the tune of $30 million. I wrote this a couple days ago, but had to wait until I was approved to post it.)

But there is another problem. The makeup of the conference has changed. Yes, there will be seven familiar teams, and the conference will once again have six of its first eight members. But UConn will now be the only state school. It dwarfs the rest in size. There was more of a mix of state and private schools and larger and smaller schools when the conference split apart. The Catholic seven went out and found three more that fit their own profile. I think I am one of many who said that UConn was the only state school that should even be considered for membership. (Get lost VCU.) Private religious schools simply have different missions and needs than large state universities.

But you are back. Another thing that has changed, and for the better, is that this is a men’s basketball conference. Yes, it will be great to have your women back. But the driving force is men’s basketball. The three new members all got in because they were solid basketball programs and were committed to staying that way. That is why some other candidates did not make the cut. Every school is committed to having a quality men’s basketball team. Somebody has to lose of course, and teams will take turns on the bottom in a given year or two or three. But there are no South Floridas or East Carolinas, there only because they have a football team and are not all that worried about basketball. More likely you will see those bottom-dwelling teams getting markedly better, like Providence and Seton Hall have recently.

So there is no longer any tension between the football schools and the non-football schools. You of course are concerned about where your football team will wind up. Good luck with that. The rest of us do not know or care. It would be better if you never mentioned you had one, and maybe everyone will forget. Don’t ask that games be rescheduled or something to accommodate your football team. Not happening. Football is what broke the conference up. Of course, it was also what allowed us to get in, too.

The P-5 expected/hoped that the Big East would fade into obscurity after the reconfiguration. That did not happen. The BE has more than held its own. But it is a step down from when I thought it was at its best, the sixteen-team behemoth that regularly dominated the polls. claimed three #1 seeds in the NCAA tournament one year, and placed eleven teams another. You will not see the kind of murderers’ row that resulted in Notre Dame losing something like five or six in a row, all to ranked teams. At Marquette, we miss Louisville. It was always fun to play West Virginia and watch to see if Huggy Bear would spontaneously combust, and even if you hate the Domers, Mike Brey is a great coach. We don’t miss Pittsburgh. Their fans are all as and the currently suck anyway. A lot of traditionally good teams who could be counted on to be ranked three years out of five and make frequent deep runs in March are gone. But it is still true that there are no easy Big East games. (DePaul is better than they look, and improving.)

What has also changed is that the conference is at a distinct disadvantage vis-a-vis the Power 5. Football just brings in so much money. So Chris Holtman left Butler for Ohio State and Chris Mack left Xavier for Louisville. Val Ackerman has done a great job as commissioner, but she made a revealing comment in an interview recently that “We think we can still attract quality coaches.” In other words, she pretty much conceded that football schools can throw outrageous sums of money at BE coaches to pirate them away. That is the reality

So far, the new configuration of the Big East has done pretty well. This year, there might have been some question whether the AAC was stronger in basketball. They had an up year. The BE had a down one. Usually it is not in question. Providence and DePaul are going to be better than Tulane and East Carolina just about every year. So welcome back. But if you expect to walk in and take over, or if you expect walk-overs against Butler, Xavier, and Creighton, you’re in for a surprise.

 

[Redmen9194]

Close but not quite. Providence, St. John's, Syracuse and Georgetown originally had Holy Cross and Rutgers on the invite list, along with BC, UConn and Seton Hall. Both Holy Cross and Rutgers declined. The original seven were BC, SJU, UConn, G'Town, The Hall, Cuse, and Providence. A year after the league started playing, Nova joined to make it 8. When Penn State was voted down in the mid eighties, Dave Gavitt sought admission for Pitt to give the football independents another football school to schedule and it satisfied the basketball only schools because Pitt had a good program and was in a major city. Most consider the nine schools as the original Big East even though Nova and Pit were later additions.

 

[CL82]

Please refresh my memory.
I recall that Holy Cross was one of the original invitees, bu they declined.
Villanova and Pitt were invited after that. But did they join before or after the first BE basketball season, which as far as I'm concerned is the actual beginning of the BE.

I love this graphic because it not only shows when people joined, it shows how few ended up the NBE.

 

[John]

I forgot how often Pitt choked in the NCAA Tournament.

Yes they choked. However I believe that they definitely made us better. Despite the March issue they were good and God were they tough teams.

 

[GemParty]

Last year they dumped JoeD 1080 & switched to ESPN radio. Will that remain via IMG once UConn is a Fox product?

 

[alphasigko]

This move back to the BE can only help Hurley's recruiting efforts! Well done UConn Athletic Department!

 

[Nebraskan18]

Welcome back Huskies! I've been following the discussion on here and there is a lot of misinformation regarding the conference you will be joining next year. So here is a little guide for you...

WHAT'S THE SAME -

1.) The Big East Tournament is still the best conference tournament in the country. We have the numbers to actually back it up. This last season, The Big East Tournament had the best average attendance out of every tournament in the country. In fact, every session was sold out except for one which got pretty close. Same was true for the year before when we were also number one in average attendance and beat out the Big Ten who played at the Garden the week prior and the ACC who was in Brooklyn. Even St. John's was selling out the Garden multiple times during the season and had huge attendance numbers there. In fact, despite attempts by the ACC and the Big Ten to get the Garden to host there tournaments in the future, the Garden extended the Big East Tournament contract and is in discussions with St. John's to schedule all Big East Conference games at MSG.

2.) The Love / Hate Relationship has survived. Like the old version, Big East fans root hard for their conference mates in the non-conference slate and in the NCAA tournament. But once conference play tips, the hatred is tough to top. It's still a street brawl every night, which brings me to number three....

3.) Big East refs still suck. Won't even get into it but look at a few games from last season. If Hurley likes getting ejected, he'll find a few reasons to do so.

4.) The basketball is excellent. The Big East has been in the top five of all conferences consistently since 2013. Two national championships, several players of the year, two number 1 seeds in the NCAA tourny in 2018, and a round robin schedule that has fostered real rivalries. We have never had a losing season against the schools playing in the Football Five conferences as a group and have generally put half our teams in the tourney on average.

WHAT'S CHANGED

1.) The obvious - membership. No more Cuse and Pitt. Now you will see Creighton, Xavier and Butler. They have been excellent additions and road wins in their arenas are hard to come by. Cintas is a mad house, Hinkle has some type of magic game in and out, and say hello to 18k Blue Jay fans in Omaha that fill stands each night. I know you guys think you are going to waltz in and start winning championships right away with that UConn ego (hate part is creeping in here), but it will be very tough. You'll see.

2.) FOX. The Fox coverage of the Big East is phenomenal. Now, the rub is that the ratings are not as strong as ESPN. But who cares? The real question is can I see my team on national TV whether I'm in Storrs or in Los Angeles. St. John's had just about every single game on TV last season - conference and non-conference. The Fox channels are available across the country. No more ESPN3 or ESPN+. So when you tell a kid his family can watch every game from the comfort of home if they want, that's a good thing. And FOX markets the Big East in a big way. I'm sure the commercials featuring UConn will be over the top. So don't worry about TV - you're in a better spot than you were for sure.

3.) The Commish - Val Ackerman is the best commissioner in the sport. Not even close. She is quiet, but tough as they come and really advocates for the league. She secured the Garden extension while the Big Ten and ACC were at the doorstep, she was able to negotiate expansion of the league to take in a major program of national stature (there's that love I was mentioning), and you will see her at your games walking around talking to the fans. She does a great job.

That's basically it. The Big East is glad you are coming home. It's going to be a lot of fun for everyone.

And a final reminder... WE HATE CREIGHTON WITH ALL OUR HEARTS

 

[WestCoastHusky]

I’m going to watch a lot of Big East this year just to scout who’s good

Combined they actually have 1 more than UConn.

Dan Hurley needs to fix that soon.

 

[Zissou]

And a final reminder... WE HATE CREIGHTON WITH ALL OUR HEARTS

Well, at least you are better then they are in football. Ya got that going for ya.

 

[FlakeyFoont]

I'm bummed that I am going to miss out on hating Chris Mullin as a rival coach as much as I hated him as a rival player.

 

[Zissou]

Please refresh my memory.
I recall that Holy Cross was one of the original invitees, but they declined.
Villanova and Pitt were invited after that. But did they join before or after the first BE basketball season, which as far as I'm concerned is the actual beginning of the BE.

The original 4 were Providence (Gavitt), St. Johns, Georgetown, and Cuse. They invited the others in for formation of the conference. Seton Hall, UConn, and BC accepted invites and were part of the first season (7 teams).

Rutgers turned down an initial offer as it felt closer to its Eastern Eight affiliation with Penn State. The eastern Eight at the time was Villanova, Duquesne, Penn State, West Virginia, George Washington, Massachusetts, Pittsburgh, and Rutgers.

Holy Cross was considered and there were discussions. They may or may not have been formally invited, but they did not have the interest and did not join.

Villanova joined in time for the start of the 2nd year, leaving the Eastern Eight for the new Big East. Villanova was a credible Div 1A football at the time (see Howie Long).

The formation of the Big East created a conflict for Penn State. JoePa floated forming a football centric eastern conference, but Cuse and BC prevented that by preferring to stay in the newly formed Big East. Without being able to pull them away, Penn State's back-up was to ask to join the Big East. The Big East was a basketball centric conference, and with Penn State's request they considered the expansion. Some thought Pitt would be a better basketball partner, and most thought that they should invite only one of the two rivals. Pitt was chosen over Penn State and joined in the conference's 4th year.

 

[auror]

and Howie Schwab reprises his role as the network’s bracketologist.

Wait the ESPN Stump the Schwab guy?

 

[RichZ]

The original 4 were Providence (Gavitt), St. Johns, Georgetown, and Cuse. They invited the others in for formation of the conference. Seton Hall, UConn, and BC accepted invites and were part of the first season (7 teams).

Rutgers turned down an initial offer as it felt closer to its Eastern Eight affiliation with Penn State. The eastern Eight at the time was Villanova, Duquesne, Penn State, West Virginia, George Washington, Massachusetts, Pittsburgh, and Rutgers.

Holy Cross was considered and there were discussions. They may or may not have been formally invited, but they did not have the interest and did not join.

Villanova joined in time for the start of the 2nd year, leaving the Eastern Eight for the new Big East. Villanova was a credible Div 1A football at the time (see Howie Long).

The formation of the Big East created a conflict for Penn State. JoePa floated forming a football centric eastern conference, but Cuse and BC prevented that by preferring to stay in the newly formed Big East. Without being able to pull them away, Penn State's back-up was to ask to join the Big East. The Big East was a basketball centric conference, and with Penn State's request they considered the expansion. Some thought Pitt would be a better basketball partner, and most thought that they should invite only one of the two rivals. Pitt was chosen over Penn State and joined in the conference's 4th year.

Thanks. I remembered that Pitt was late to the party, but didn't realize that Nova missed the first year.

 

[Big East Fa]

Wait the ESPN Stump the Schwab guy?

Yes. The past two season he has been on FOX/FS1.

 

[Guapo]

What rivalries have grown and or/developed since 2013 within the Big East?

Based on your interactions with some of the new fan bases, and your familiarity with UConn fans, which new team do you think we have the biggest chance of developing a rivalry with?

@Redmen9194 @Zissou @unclejohn

 

[Zissou]

What rivalries have grown and or/developed since 2013 within the Big East?

Based on your interactions with some of the new fan bases, and your familiarity with UConn fans, which new team do you think we have the biggest chance of developing a rivalry with?

@Redmen9194 @Zissou @unclejohn

I honestly think UConn-Providence might be a stronger rivalry this time around. In the early days of the Big East, Providence was better. Then UConn developed into a dominant program and was better. In the coming years I would guess that both programs will be very good and competitive.

What the Big East lacks right now is the black hat. We all loved to hate Cuse. There are fierce battles and great games, and we have rivalries, but we don't really have the hate these days. Seton Hall and their fans probably come closest at this time.

I don't see the new members (X, Creighton, Butler) as the greatest rivals. Great competitors, but not great rivals. We need more history with them.

 

[Omaha-Jays]

Creighton is the great unknown, but the commitment to athletics is there. Facilities in pretty much every sport are notable and might be matched by other large programs, but are rarely bettered. NBA quality arena, maybe the best college soccer stadium in the country, play baseball where the champ is crowned every year and have a practice facility that fits with any major program.

Basketball specific we love to score and rarely play defense, so if you are in for a shootout you will like playing the Jays.