B1G

[CTGoonie]

Interesting article from the Detroit Free Press here.

Basketball and the further growth potential it brings to the Big Ten Network will dictate the conference's expansion strategy. It's inevitable the conference will balloon to 16 teams. It's only a matter of time before Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany comes knocking on the ACC door again, this time looking to poach two teams to join the soon ACC-departed Maryland in the Big Ten.

Common sense suggests Georgia Tech and Virginia as the most logical candidates for relocation, but there remain whispers among administrators that the Big Ten's angling for the biggest basketball catch possible -- Duke and North Carolina.​

That would effectively kill the ACC, while also helping Delany "stick it" to Notre Dame for jilting him again for the Irish's partial football conference relationship with the ACC.​

It's highly unlikely such a coup could occur, but even the remote possibility of such a flip speaks to the Big Ten's commitment to removing all doubt that it desires cementing its reputation as a basketball powerhouse.

Pssst. Big Ten, there's a basketball powerhouse available that is not in the ACC either....

 

[metsfan2323]

Interesting article from the Detroit Free Press here.



Pssst. Big Ten, there a basketball powerhouse available that is not in the ACC either....

Yup, not to mention what adding UCONN does to the B1G's Women's basketball league. Something that should not be overlooked.

 

[Vuce]

That is a glimmer of hope. Specifically mentioning basketball is a huge thing. Yes they would love to get Dook and UNC but would those schools jump and destroy the ACC? Uconn is ready willing and able. The Big Ten would get a top 5 program in men's and women's basketball. Ga tech and Virginia gives them some markets but nothing outstanding in terms of football or hoops. I like the Virginia and Uconn pairing to make the move. Virginia is not too far south where the SEC rules and the Big Ten also gets their basketball powerhouse with he Huskies.

 

[CTEagle]

Stop it with the women's basketball. If Uconn gets into a real league it won't be due to women's sports.

 

[uconnric]

Stop it with the women's basketball. If Uconn gets into a real league it won't be due to women's sports.

It'll be a factor, but not a major one. These leagues need programming to fill their network time. If you are going to have women's bb, you may as well make it as good as you can.

 

[tzznandrew]

Stop it with the women's basketball. If Uconn gets into a real league it won't be due to women's sports.

Oy. I totally agree. People can't care less about it if you don't live in CT or TN.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

Women's hoops for a major conference (in terms of valuing additions) would be an ancillary benefit. We would be kidding ourselves believing it would be viewed as anything beyond that. It would be similar to getting free oil changes for the duration of ownership when buying a new car. It's a very nice little benefit but it had little weight in the decision making process.

 

[RoderickSpode]

It's probably even less important than free oil changes. I like your analogy, but I'd compare women's ball to an extra coffee pot in the dealer's service waiting room.

 

[upstater]

Stop it with the women's basketball. If Uconn gets into a real league it won't be due to women's sports.

Did someone say it would be due to women's sports? No. So why twist things?

Anyone who thinks UConn women's bball doesn't matter has his head inserted in A N U S. On SNY, it's been the highest rated show on ALL of TV including the networks in market with over 1 million cable TV sets.

If you think that's nothing, you know nothing.

 

[HuskyDogArt]

florida will leave the sec when bama, uga, tenn, uk and lsu go with it to join uva, unc, wvu, psu, unj and uconn in my dream league.

Since we are dreaming...lets add Hawaii (tropical paradise to play football in), stanford, Oregon and aTm to the league!!

 

[ruskin]

Stop it with the women's basketball. If Uconn gets into a real league it won't be due to women's sports.

While you count up all your ACC hockey titles Eagle have you ever heard the words "sexual discrimination" or "Title IX"? There is quite the case to be made that CR could blow up one of the few self-sufficient women's basketball programs in the country. This will not make folks like your Sen. Warren very happy. Getting UConn's women's basketball program into a safe/better place is very much a piece of this puzzle. Like your boy Flipper running his mouth and laying the groundwork for a very plausible anti-trust/anti-monopoly action.

As you were. . .

 

[The Funster]

Stop it with the women's basketball. If Uconn gets into a real league it won't be due to women's sports.

Well yeah, you're in a real league and outside of hockey, you suck at all the other sports.

 

[WestHartHusk]

Let's get the mojo rolling from our new favorite internet poster BuffaloLion:

murrmurr wrote:

bagoodboy wrote:
If the Big can't get UNC to join with UVa, then rather than trying to convince GT to live on a remote island or gain a marketable share of Boston and praying that either would force the cable companies to cooperate, it would make more sure thing $ sense to go for St Louis and Kansas City. That's right, grab Missouri from the SEC. This would be a big power play that the SEC might not mind losing all that much. Especially since this would allow them to invite UNC, Duke, and VT, and still stay at 16.
That would open the door for FSU, Miami, Clemson, and GT to the B12, with the possible later additions of UL and NCSU, or even Syracuse, whomever.

If the B1G's southern strategy doesn't work out (and it seems to be hitting some road bumps) I think this might not be a far fetched as it initially sounds.​

The more time that goes by the stronger the wall Swofford and ESPN will build to keep the ACC together. It'll still lose a piece or two, but will be fine.

I'm thinking that UVA is ready to go, B1G wishes UNC would abandon ship but won't, GT is likes the B1G but can't really afford to and doesn't want to be on an island, so that leaves Boston College and UConn; UConn supplements the NYC market, which Rutgers already provides, while BC would get them more into the New England markets.

You may not realize it, but UConn's campus is only half the distance from Boston that Morgantown is to Charleston. UConn is actually 55 miles closer to Boston than it is to New York City. Not only does UConn have a market presence in Boston, but they absolutely blow every other New York City area team out of the water with their New York City basketball ratings.

UConn and Hartford (where they play football) has easy access to the rest of New England, and, if they were given a Big Ten presence, would deliver the entire of New England to the Big Ten. BC would become even less relevant than they are now. You are comparing a state flagship institution with basically no other competition in their own state to a private institution with competiting loyalities from numerous other colleges withing their own city.

The potential of UConn 25 to 50 years out if they are in the Big Ten is off the charts. Within 5 years, if the Big Ten added BOTH Virginia AND UConn, the Big Ten would probably dominate College Basketball having locked up the rich recruiting grounds from New York City to Richmond.

The Big Ten would be absolutely out of their mind to take Boston College over UConn.

 

[CTMike]

I'm naturally biased but damn that man talks a lot of sense. I love you BuffaloLion... (Platonically)

 

[jrazz12]

Let's get the mojo rolling from our new favorite internet poster BuffaloLion:


The potential of UConn 25 to 50 years out if they are in the Big Ten is off the charts. Within 5 years, if the Big Ten added BOTH Virginia AND UConn, the Big Ten would probably dominate College Basketball having locked up the rich recruiting grounds from New York City to Richmond.

Come on Delaney. You HAVE to see this right?

 

[The Funster]

BuffaloLion is my hero.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Did someone say it would be due to women's sports? No. So why twist things?

Anyone who thinks UConn women's bball doesn't matter has his head inserted in A N U S. On SNY, it's been the highest rated show on ALL of TV including the networks in market with over 1 million cable TV sets.

If you think that's nothing, you know nothing.

Yep. Women's hoop doesn't matter much, but it matters the most to the one league with a network in need of content. UConn women are most valuable to the B1G. And, as we've seen with ND, being in a league with them allows the other schools to recruit better and upgrade. Put UConn in the B1G and inside 3 years, the B1G is the dominant league for women's hoops. Ratings would be up across the board.

 

[mavblues]

You guys still haven't figured out who BuffaloLion is?

Warde Manuel came to Uconn from _________ (Buffalo)
Warde's family is a descendant of the Mayan culture. In the Proto-Mayan language, "Manuel" or "Manu-El" roughly translates as "Lion-hearted".

 

[Waquoit]

You guys still haven't figured out who BuffaloLion is?

No, but I am familiar with Buffalo chips.

 

[HuskyHawk]

You guys still haven't figured out who BuffaloLion is?

Warde Manuel came to Uconn from _________ (Buffalo)
Warde's family is a descendant of the Mayan culture. In the Proto-Mayan language, "Manuel" or "Manu-El" roughly translates as "Lion-hearted".

This thread identifies him/her as Penn State fan. We had some other supporters in that thread as well.

 

[jostar1]

Let's get the mojo rolling from our new favorite internet poster BuffaloLion:

murrmurr wrote:

bagoodboy wrote:​

If the Big can't get UNC to join with UVa, then rather than trying to convince GT to live on a remote island or gain a marketable share of Boston and praying that either would force the cable companies to cooperate, it would make more sure thing $ sense to go for St Louis and Kansas City. That's right, grab Missouri from the SEC. This would be a big power play that the SEC might not mind losing all that much. Especially since this would allow them to invite UNC, Duke, and VT, and still stay at 16.​

That would open the door for FSU, Miami, Clemson, and GT to the B12, with the possible later additions of UL and NCSU, or even Syracuse, whomever. ​

​

If the B1G's southern strategy doesn't work out (and it seems to be hitting some road bumps) I think this might not be a far fetched as it initially sounds.​

The more time that goes by the stronger the wall Swofford and ESPN will build to keep the ACC together. It'll still lose a piece or two, but will be fine.

I'm thinking that UVA is ready to go, B1G wishes UNC would abandon ship but won't, GT is likes the B1G but can't really afford to and doesn't want to be on an island, so that leaves Boston College and UConn; UConn supplements the NYC market, which Rutgers already provides, while BC would get them more into the New England markets.

You may not realize it, but UConn's campus is only half the distance from Boston that Morgantown is to Charleston. UConn is actually 55 miles closer to Boston than it is to New York City. Not only does UConn have a market presence in Boston, but they absolutely blow every other New York City area team out of the water with their New York City basketball ratings.

UConn and Hartford (where they play football) has easy access to the rest of New England, and, if they were given a Big Ten presence, would deliver the entire of New England to the Big Ten. BC would become even less relevant than they are now. You are comparing a state flagship institution with basically no other competition in their own state to a private institution with competiting loyalities from numerous other colleges withing their own city.

The potential of UConn 25 to 50 years out if they are in the Big Ten is off the charts. Within 5 years, if the Big Ten added BOTH Virginia AND UConn, the Big Ten would probably dominate College Basketball having locked up the rich recruiting grounds from New York City to Richmond.

The Big Ten would be absolutely out of their mind to take Boston College over UConn.

Plus, in an earlier post, he said that Delany has a report that shows this.

"UConn would end up being a gold mine in the Big Ten. That may suprise some people, but the recently done study Delany did was EXTREMELY positive looking 25 to 50 years out."

 

[tzznandrew]

Plus, in an earlier post, he said that Delany has a report that shows this.

"UConn would end up being a gold mine in the Big Ten. That may suprise some people, but the recently done study Delany did was EXTREMELY positive looking 25 to 50 years out."

What I don't buy: that anyone cares 25-50 years out. Who knows what things look like then? 5-10, 10-15, I can buy projecting out that much. No body projects out 25-50. It's so absurd it makes me think the person is joking.

 

[jostar1]

BuffaloLion also wrote:

No question about it. UConn is big longshot. But as I said. If it's between one of the 3 northeast schools, they win out on most of the metrics. Not all, but I would say 80 to 90 percent.

The 3 major on the surface disadvantages UConn has, if you look deeper into the metrics, become negligible. Especially if you look 25 to 50 years out.

1.) Notre Dame's preference for Boston College: Is one additional televised Notre Dame game every two years offset by UConn's ability to deliver New York City basketball ratings, and deliver football ratings in all of New England? Very much so.

2.) Smaller state population than Massachusetts or New York: Yes, but the demographics are not normal in UConn's case. They ARE, basically New York City's basketball school, and, in football, are closer to roughly 12 million more people within a 150 mile radius than BC is. Easy access to their stadium from all parts of New England, INCLUDING most of Massachusetts.

Just as a point of reference, Penn State has a 110,000 seat stadium that is in the middle of the mountains in the middle of nowhere about 150 miles from Pittsburgh and 200 miles from Philadelphia. With a Big Ten presence, UConn has unlimited potential for growth. BC and Syracuse (neither being state flagship institutions and both having numerous competiting Universities within their regions) have far more limited growth potential.

3.) Hockey: Boston College is the defending NCAA Champion and the one thing BC has that the Big Ten envies. However UConn has a Division One Hockey team too, and with the increased exposure UConn would get on the Big Ten Network, and the additional funding coming into their athletic program, they would be able to upgrade their facilities.

BC won't be National Champions forever, and the Big Ten already has VERY VERY VERY good Hockey. Even though UConn isn't close to BC right now, within 10 to 20 years, they could easily surpass them with the increased assets and exposure available to them by being a member of the Big Ten. At the very least, UConn would still give the Big Ten a larger presence in New England for recruiting purposes.

As you say, "a big if". But if we're JUST comparing the 3 northeast schools, UConn is a no brainer.

 

[OkaForPrez]

What I don't buy: that anyone cares 25-50 years out. Who knows what things look like then? 5-10, 10-15, I can buy projecting out that much. No body projects out 25-50. It's so absurd it makes me think the person is joking.

I agree, but it makes sense as a tie-breaker between otherwise equal programs (say programs that bring near term returns within 0-3? 0-5? Million of each other over the next 5-10 years). In that regard its worth the assessment and I would believe through my blue colored glasses that Delaney would not only note this but come away with that conclusion. The often spoken about B1G criteria are attributes that could be defined as key long term growth drivers (research endowments, state backing, deep rooted alumni bases, sizeable markets white space for growth (i.e. no direct market competition).

What Uconn has done in their football infancy is part of this indicator of potential. What they did in terms of developing themselves academically and in basketball is an indicator of this potential.

If we believe we can deliver tv market revenue competitive with other options over the next 10 years given our geography and are competitive enough on the field to not dillute content (debateable) over that period, then our upside has to be competitive against anyone else in the conversation.

 

[jostar1]

What I don't buy: that anyone cares 25-50 years out. Who knows what things look like then? 5-10, 10-15, I can buy projecting out that much. No body projects out 25-50. It's so absurd it makes me think the person is joking.

Delany said it himself.

Delany added that the Big Ten wouldn’t rush into its decision because, “You’re trying to figure out what you’re going to be for the next 25 to 50 years.”

http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/sp...ten-commissioner-jim-delany-no-news-here.html