AAC & Grant-of-Rights

[Towney007]

Not Houston. But Cincy and UCF? To Villanova? YES!!!!

What are you talking about? Villanova is ranked 49th. G'Town is ranked #22nd.

Cincinnati is #147. UCF is #165.

 

[upstater]

What are you talking about? Villanova is ranked 49th. G'Town is ranked #22nd.

Cincinnati is #147. UCF is #165.

Who cares?

I'm talking about the academics at these schools. Not how impressed USNWP is with Villanova SAT scores.

I mean, you called Villanova a major research university. I think you're the first ever to do that.

(I didn't say a thing about Georgetown).

 

[ConnHuskBask]

Yes, our basketball programs and well, all of our other programs are a lot more successful.

You're still dodging the question. Your claim was that continuing to run our football program is to the detriment of UConn Men's Basketball.

Can you clarify, how football contributed to the men's basketball program finishing under .500 for the last two seasons.

Unless you want to back off your claim and admit you were misguided. That's fine too.

 

[upstater]

A UCF, UConn-less AAC is not as appealing to advertisers.

And if it's this easy, then why the need for he GoR anyway?

It's got a huge influence on it. No TV network is paying out money on a conference that's as stable as a two legged table.

I know that when schools drop out it is less appealing to TV networks.

That wasn't my question.

I asked, why would a network care about GORs when the networks already protect themselves with contract language in case of dropouts?

 

[HawkHusky]

I haven't read the article (just the summary posted on Reddit) but it doesn't even mention UConn in the "premier" programs right? Reddit said it was USF UCF Cincinnati Memphis Houston.

My guess is this is more about football and keeping teams like UCF, Memphis, Houston, Cincinnati involved in the league.

Every school needs to agree to a GOR. Why would UConn sign a GOR that will result in them making less than those 5 schools?

 

[Towney007]

Who cares?

I'm talking about the academics at these schools. Not how impressed USNWP is with Villanova SAT scores.

I mean, you called Villanova a major research university. I think you're the first ever to do that.

(I didn't say a thing about Georgetown).

Yes, I agree -we have way more in common with Memphis Community College than Georgetown and Villanova. Got it.

 

[Towney007]

I know that when schools drop out it is less appealing to TV networks.

That wasn't my question.

I asked, why would a network care about GORs when the networks already protect themselves with contract language in case of dropouts?

It's a good question. Why do you think they'd want Mike Aresco to do that?

 

[CallMeBruce]

You're still dodging the question. Your claim was that continuing to run our football program is to the detriment of UConn Men's Basketball.

Can you clarify, how football contributed to the men's basketball program finishing under .500 for the last two seasons.

Unless you want to back off your claim and admit you were misguided. That's fine too.

The primary issue was bad coaching, but the league is going to continue to hurt recruiting. Additionally, the insane travel required to play in this league probably doesn't help our players stay fresh.

 

[hardcorehusky]

Why we need football to succeed:

1. Football drives 80% of the revenue in college sports.
2. Schools in the Big 5 conferences get paid anywhere between $24 million -$52 million a year(Pac 12 and ACC up to Big Ten) from their conference based on reports
3. The AAC contract was put together as the conference was being created- meaning the worst time possible.
4. UCF, Memphis, Houston, etc have had great years in football and now the eyeballs are starting to turn to AAC games.(Great for negotiations)
5. The next contract has the ability to dwarf this one- but even at $10M a school is dwarfed by other conferences(See # 2).
6. UCONN needs to get its act together in football and basketball because there are additional Tier 3 rights(SNY, radio) that are above the conference figures and are a source of much needed revenue. Also, if there is a realignment- being good helps perception but that is it.
7. The Big East got a great contract from Fox but I am not sure that will happen again(look at ratings)
8. Google, Twitter, Facebook, You Tube will all be in the game while ESPN and Fox look to keep them out.(competition raises contracts).
9. UCONN football made money until Randy left the first time. Attendance alone was close to $40K and with seat donations- the school was taking in about we are missing(not losing) about $900,000 a home game from empty seats.
10. The Big Ten took Rutgers due the school being contiguous to Pennsylvania, the number of tv sets that could get the Big Ten Network and most importantly- Rutgers being part of the AAU which all the Big Ten schools save Nebraska(which lost its certification) are part of. If sports winning has anything to do with that equation, Rutgers would be where they were(and probably in the AAC). UCONN is not AAU certified and even if everything went right budget wise for the next 5 years- probably couldn't get it for another 10 years at the earliest(it is a process that needed to be started 20 years sooner(just like football D 1-A).
11. Conference realignment additions are driven by TV for the most part. Fox and ESPN directed the Big 12 to stay put. Espn told the ACC to expand. Don't get me going on what happened internally 2 x there.

Bottom line- football drives the academic bus. UCONN gets paid the same from the conference tight now regardless of record.

 

[HuskyHawk]

It is so much easier to recruit in Kansas than Connecticut though. There are so many programs that were not threats to talent during Randy 1.0. Since then UConn has taken ten steps back and other regional programs have sky rocketed (BC, Syracuse, Temple). I just don't see him getting that momentum back. Hope I am wrong.

BC was actually better during Randy 1.0 than they are now. Syracuse had Donovan Williams and some good teams as well. He may not succeed, but that won't be why. KU is fighting much bigger fish for recruits. K-State in state, Mizzou and Arkansas in the SEC now, OU and a much improved Oklahoma State to the South, Colorado to the west and two B1G teams to the north in Nebraska and Iowa. Plus Iowa State, Colo State etc.

College Football is all about what you do with the talent you get. How many times was UT terrible despite great recruiting classes. Look at the basket case that FSU has become. They are still out recruiting UCF. Randy used to be good at maximizing what he got from his talent.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

The primary issue was bad coaching, but the league is going to continue to hurt recruiting. Additionally, the insane travel required to play in this league probably doesn't help our players stay fresh.

So let's get this straight. Men's basketball brought this upon itself.

-Kevin Ollie became and albatross and was removed for the best coach on the market in Dan Hurley, to coach in the AAC.
-Our recruiting class for next year is highly ranked, and Penny Hardaway just landed the top recruit in the nation. Both in the AAC.
-Our insane travel, yup it is pretty crazy that we have to send our kids all over the country. With that said, in the New Big East, you have Marquette in Wisconsin, Creighton in Nebraska, Depaul in Illinois and Xavier in Ohio. The 1980s Big East, this is not.

The AAC is a worse basketball league than the Big East. The AAC is a worse football league than the Old Big East. There are no arguments there.

With Dan Hurley righting the ship we can be as successful in the AAC or Big East and the football team hasn't a damn thing to do with it.

 

[Towney007]

You're still dodging the question. Your claim was that continuing to run our football program is to the detriment of UConn Men's Basketball.

Can you clarify, how football contributed to the men's basketball program finishing under .500 for the last two seasons.

Unless you want to back off your claim and admit you were misguided. That's fine too.

Your attachment to trashing the basketball program just seems like flailing. And how the basketball program has done the last two years really doesn't mean anything. Hasn't helped, but poll your average American or do common word association and say 'UConn' chances are the person will say 'basketball'. At the end of the day we're in this conference because of football with the hopes of more TV revenue.

TV networks want stability. Aresco wants this to insure stability. No one will sign it. We won't get a better TV deal at the end of the day. And the point of all this to keep some silly starving artists dream of a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow you've signed up to ride for 10-15 years is the epitome of being bonkers. The program isn't even self-sustaining anymore. I'm not even sure most *want* the program to turn around anymore.

Either way, the idea that football's our magic carpet ride to the promised land is dead as a doornail.

 

[upstater]

Yes, I agree -we have way more in common with Memphis Community College than Georgetown and Villanova. Got it.

If this is how you post, twisting what people say, you can have the last word and end up talking to yourself here.

 

[upstater]

The primary issue was bad coaching, but the league is going to continue to hurt recruiting. Additionally, the insane travel required to play in this league probably doesn't help our players stay fresh.

Travel to Milwaukee, Omaha, Indianapolis, Chicago is not much different than travel to Dallas, Houston, Tulsa, New Orleans.

Our ideal of course is to join a league full of travel to Florida and North Carolina.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

Your attachment to trashing the basketball program just seems like flailing. And how the basketball program has done the last two years really doesn't mean anything. Hasn't helped, but poll your average American or do common word association and say 'UConn' chances are the person will say 'basketball'. At the end of the day we're in this conference because of football with the hopes of more TV revenue.

TV networks want stability. Aresco wants this to insure stability. No one will sign it. We won't get a better TV deal at the end of the day. And the point of all this to keep some silly starving artists dream of a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow you've signed up to ride for 10-15 years is the epitome of being bonkers. The program isn't even self-sustaining anymore. I'm not even sure most *want* the program to turn around anymore.

Either way, the idea that football's our magic carpet ride to the promised land is dead as a doornail.

How am I trashing the basketball program? I stated their record the past two seasons and said they are responsible for their own failures.

I'm an equal fan of both men's hoops and football and both programs will sink or swim on their own.

Our resignation to the AAC has done far more harm to football than it has to basketball, but our electing to drop football and move all sports to the Big East will resign our athletic department to a second tier status forever.

 

[upstater]

With Dan Hurley righting the ship we can be as successful in the AAC or Big East and the football team hasn't a damn thing to do with it.

The AAC is a worse football league than the old Big East? Not sure about that one, given the performance of UCF, USF, Huston and Memphis recently.

 

[Pudge]

We play schools because they have more in "common" with our student population? What a quaint concept.


We play for excellence. We field a team ... we aim for championships and be the best we can be. Pride in our athletes wearing Blue. The kids that didn't go to UConn - whom we know - were bratty Private school twerps. We cared for the Hoop team and the Daily Campus. I don't feel I had much in common with the Georgetown kids I saw when I walked their campus (or BC - including my sister); I don't feel the Georgetown Hoop team of that era had much in common with the kids on campus either. Not true at UConn.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

The AAC is a worse football league than the old Big East? Not sure about that one, given the performance of UCF, USF, Huston and Memphis recently.

I posted this on the football board a few times, but the highest final season Sagarin rating for the American isn't above the lowest final season Sagarin rating for the Old Big East.

The American is a good football league, but the old league was definitely better.

 

[yukonfan4]

We officially sold our soul to the devil when we scheduled the football game against BC at Fenway Park for $1.125 million.

BC blocked us from joining the ACC yet we crawled back to them with our tail between our legs and accepted a pay off just so they can embarrass us on national tv. do we have any self respect whatsoever?

we're doing the same thing with clemson next year. how is it ok that the majority of our football revenue comes from getting assaulted on the field and then paid for our troubles? it's akin to a hush money settlement with our chronic abusers. there is no honor in this- we might as well be prostitutes!

 

[Guapo]

We play schools because they have more in "common" with our student population? What a quaint concept.


We play for excellence. We field a team ... we aim for championships and be the best we can be. Pride in our athletes wearing Blue. The kids that didn't go to UConn - whom we know - were bratty Private school twerps. We cared for the Hoop team and the Daily Campus. I don't feel I had much in common with the Georgetown kids I saw when I walked their campus (or BC - including my sister); I don't feel the Georgetown Hoop team of that era had much in common with the kids on campus either. Not true at UConn.

Don’t be a fool.

UConn associating with schools like Georgetown and BC in the 80’s and 90’s absolutely helped improve the school’s reputation.

Conference affiliation is about more than sports.

 

[HawkHusky]

One of the AAC schools leaked this story. I hope it was us.

 

[Guapo]

1979: UConn decides to leave “big state schools with which it has much in common” in URI, UMass, UNH etc to join a bunch of small private catholic schools plus Cuse (large private) because it would form a bigger and better basketball conference.

2018: the New Big East is a bigger and better basketball conference than the AAC. Should UConn make the same decision?

 

[Ajs120102]

 

[CallMeBruce]

Travel to Milwaukee, Omaha, Indianapolis, Chicago is not much different than travel to Dallas, Houston, Tulsa, New Orleans.

Our ideal of course is to join a league full of travel to Florida and North Carolina.

It's plainly obvious to any non-liar with a brain that NBE travel would be worlds better than AAC travel.

 

[Towney007]

1979: UConn decides to leave “big state schools with which it has much in common” in URI, UMass, UNH etc to join a bunch of small private catholic schools plus Cuse (large private) because it would form a bigger and better basketball conference.

2018: the New Big East is a bigger and better basketball conference than the AAC. Should UConn make the same decision?

Absolutely not because being aligned with academic powerhouses like Memphis Community College and USF is everything because bad football.