BCS 2.0 will be 6 bowls, with guaranteed spot for highest Big East/non-AQ

[BlueDogs]

This falls into the category of no leadership again. The squeaky wheel gets the grease, and why UConn (and the State AG) don't pursue antitrust is beyond me. Drop a suit in Federal court and stop this dead in its tracks. This will become a Congressional issue and get resolved through laws much like the Professionsl leagues which has antitrust exemptions as long as certain there is a union. In this case, there has to be equal representation among all A1 schools with clear entrance rules. A playoff system and ranking system is installed and the best get to play wherever they are from. This is nothing but a big money grab and attempt to control tv revenue at the expense of others. At least in BB, teams can show up and make their case on the floor.

 

[RMoore1999]

I am confused. Aresco has repeatedly told us there's no "Big 5", only a "Big6". Turns out there is a "Big 6" (5 Contract conferences plus ND), and a "little 5". What happened, Mike?

 

[huskymedic]

The USA Today writers view: http://m.usatoday.com/article/news/1700455

 

[BlueDogs]

All I know is somebody ought to be fighting like hell to save the 100 Million plus in this program which is about get royally flushed. Starts with getting rid of losers at the coaching helm, and driving like hell to get into a power conference (including paying up to get in). It means going to court to stop the new BCS system and doing everything else that makes it clear UConn will not be relegated to second class citizenship. We need fighters now more than ever.

 

[noeynox]

I guess the true measure will be how much money the big east gets to divvy up between all the teams in the conference. Anyone have any idea if it will be less than the big east currently gets from the BCS set up?

I've read both articles and still feel like the big east has been told to jump on the short bus.

 

[metsfan2323]

This seems like great news to me. I don't understand the subdued reaction in the Boneyard, this is even better then creating a 7th bowl because it is less watered down. The Big East will own this bid 9 out of 10 years.

The last 14 months have really turned into a positive for Big East football:

1) We now have a playoff which gives an undefeated Big East champion a chance to compete for a championship. Before the playoff there was almost no chance.

2) The football conference is now better then ever and will be on par with the ACC if BYU joins. The 8 team Big East with its 7 conference games was a disaster. We lost WVU but picked up Boise and Syracuse and Pitt are no more exciting than Temple in Football so good riddance to them.

3) While no longer having an auto-bid to the BCS, when you look at the competition it becomes obvious that the Big East will almost always be represented in one of the big 6 bowls.

4) Most importantly we now have a real commissioner and the Catholic schools no longer have a choke hold on the conference.

 

[BG79]

Still just can't see how this is a positive. This is a fantastic deal for the MWC, CUSA, MAC, Sunbelt, they go from no real opportunity to legitimate BCS opportunity a huge gain for them. For us, we go from AQ status to relegated to this mess. Teams get one shot at a BCS bowl and they need to not only ensure they win the Big East but also make sure they rank higher than any team from the other 4 conferences I listed above. It's a tall order, not an impossible one but certainly there are going to be many years where the Big East champion will not be in a BCS bowl. I don't know how this will help with recruiting, it is a tall order attracting recruits as it was now that there is no surefire AQ and it's basically institutionalized that the Big East is a marginal conference it'll only get more difficult.

 

[metsfan2323]

Football upgrade was such a waste. Halcyon promises of homecoming weekends against major programs, star-studded matchups with Miami/VT, regional rivalries with BC and Syracuse...replaced with Temple and Memphis.

The fact that you wish the Rent were never built says more about you then it does about the Big East. BTW Miami, VT, Boston College and Syracuse all stink in case you haven't noticed.

 

[SAMCRO]

The BE champ went from an automatic seat to having to qualify over 5 other conferences. Yayyy!

 

[huskymedic]

Still just can't see how this is a positive. This is a fantastic deal for the MWC, CUSA, MAC, Sunbelt, they go from no real opportunity to legitimate BCS opportunity a huge gain for them. For us, we go from AQ status to relegated to this mess. Teams get one shot at a BCS bowl and they need to not only ensure they win the Big East but also make sure they rank higher than any team from the other 4 conferences I listed above. It's a tall order, not an impossible one but certainly there are going to be many years where the Big East champion will not be in a BCS bowl. I don't know how this will help with recruiting, it is a tall order attracting recruits as it was now that there is no surefire AQ and it's basically institutionalized that the Big East is a marginal conference it'll only get more difficult.

The Big East AQ was gone whether today's events occurred or didn't occur.

This seems to b the best of crappy circumstances (consistent raiding during realignment, crappy football, or crappy vision in Providence).

 

[BG79]

The Big East AQ was gone whether today's events occurred or didn't occur.

This seems to b the best of crappy circumstances (consistent raiding during realignment, crappy football, or crappy vision in Providence).

Not really any reason for anyone to be excited about this though. The reports that the Big East won on this are ridiculous, we got shafted good and hard. What happened to a 7th game option? I'd much rather have that with an AQ than this pile of garbage we were sold regardless if it is a marginally better bowl. People want to look back on Boise States past accomplishments and assume that it will equal a Big East team being the winner at large. Things are different now, they don't have the same team/qb/oc that they had then and now they're going to have a more difficult schedule. All our teams have a more difficult path to a great record than the other teams in the 4 other scrub conferences. Since this is all about national ranking the conference standings are essentially meaningless now. There is no benefit to winning the conference when you already have 2 or more losses.

Think of it like this, now what incentive at all is there to schedule any sort of remotely tough out of conference opponent? Yeah the money is good from getting a Michigan or a Notre Dame to come to town but with this format we're shooting ourselves in the foot by giving up what very well might be a loss.

 

[RMoore1999]

This seems like great news to me. I don't understand the subdued reaction in the Boneyard, this is even better then creating a 7th bowl because it is less watered down. The Big East will own this bid 9 out of 10 years.

The last 14 months have really turned into a positive for Big East football:

1) We now have a playoff which gives an undefeated Big East champion a chance to compete for a championship. Before the playoff there was almost no chance.

2) The football conference is now better then ever and will be on par with the ACC if BYU joins. The 8 team Big East with its 7 conference games was a disaster. We lost WVU but picked up Boise and Syracuse and Pitt are no more exciting than Temple in Football so good riddance to them.

3) While no longer having an auto-bid to the BCS, when you look at the competition it becomes obvious that the Big East will almost always be represented in one of the big 6 bowls.

4) Most importantly we now have a real commissioner and the Catholic schools no longer have a choke hold on the conference.

"It was a possibility up until the end," said Big East commissioner Mike Aresco of the seventh bowl. "But this was a better plan for us. It gives us the same guaranteed access for our conference champion. We'll work out the revenue. We'll be fine."

It wouldn't be "guaranteed" this year with LA Tech competing with Louisville or RU for the spot. Aresco's goal was for a BE v. B12/pac12 bowl. His comments are the best spin he can put on a sad situation that officially relegates the BE to 2nd class status.

 

[noeynox]

Still just can't see how this is a positive. This is a fantastic deal for the MWC, CUSA, MAC, Sunbelt, they go from no real opportunity to legitimate BCS opportunity a huge gain for them. For us, we go from AQ status to relegated to this mess. Teams get one shot at a BCS bowl and they need to not only ensure they win the Big East but also make sure they rank higher than any team from the other 4 conferences I listed above. It's a tall order, not an impossible one but certainly there are going to be many years where the Big East champion will not be in a BCS bowl. I don't know how this will help with recruiting, it is a tall order attracting recruits as it was now that there is no surefire AQ and it's basically institutionalized that the Big East is a marginal conference it'll only get more difficult.

This exactly how I'm seeing it as well. Even if we get more money as a conference from this latest incarnation of the BCS, if the gap in revenue between us and the acc continues to grow were in serious trouble.

 

[Jimdish255]

For Aresco to use the word "guaranteed" to describe this tells me 2 things. First is that this deal is so bad he had to misrepresent it in his spin to try to sell anyone who is paying attention. Secondly he thinks we're too stupid to know the meaning of the word guaranteed. The ACC knows the meaning of the word guaranteed, we know the meaning of the word failure.

 

[Sean]

The way I see it - the insistence on moving to a four team playoff meant that virtually no one will care about the bowls anyway.

So one year the BE champ might go to the Belk Bowl instead of the Cotton Bowl. Does it really matter that much? Either way, the bowls are even more clearly exhibitions than they used to be.

 

[Jimdish255]

The way I see it - the insistence on moving to a four team playoff meant that virtually no one will care about the bowls anyway.

So one year the BE champ might go to the Belk Bowl instead of the Cotton Bowl. Does it really matter that much? Either way, the bowls are even more clearly exhibitions than they used to be.

Well it's actually about the money because that has a huge impact on the long-term competitive prospects of a team or conference. And a 4 team playoff is way too small to avoid big controversy. The committee will take care of that.

 

[Point6]

I'm sure all the news is still a bit garbled but I saw or read that combined the little 5 will get one share of the ESPN $475M that will be less than one of the 5 equal shares that will be received by the "big 5" conferences (i.e., ACC and SEC will get the same share payout). The little 5 will have to figure out how to split their smaller share payout. If this is the case, the NNBE will have a hard time keeping up in a long run competition w/the ACC.

Another fear I have is the access we have under the little 5 arrangement will not translate to 2 teams in the premium bowls if our champ goes to the playoffs. As I understand the arrangement now, if the big 5 get a team in the playoff, their second best team goes to their respective "champion"contract bowl regardless of quality/merit. I suspect the little 5 access is just one of the 12 spots and it stops there even if that spot is a playoff spot.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

So the Big East didn't keep its AQ. Losing WVU and sending teams like UConn to the Fiesta Bowl took care of that. This is the best, by far, we could have hoped for.

By most accounts, the Big East will end up ahead financially with BCS revenue compared to where it was under the old system. The problem is, the Big 5 will end up way, way, way ahead. It is what it is.

The most important thing the Big East can do is get a good TV deal with NBC. Exposure will be the best recruiting tool the Big East has. Play at Maryland or Virginia and get buried on ESPN3, or play at UConn and get regular noon kickoffs on NBC. The money should be OK. The Boise AD quoted $8MM a year for Boise a week ago, which would indicate a $12 or $13MM deal for UConn. Huge improvement over where we are and keeps us in the game for the next round of realignment.

The risk is that a La Tech or Northern Illinois runs the table in a weak CUSA or MAC. That is a real risk, but even with 1 loss, those schools would not be viable because their computer rankings would suck. I think the MWC is still too tough with Nevada, Air Force, Fresno, Utah State, and Hawaii for schools to have a realistic shot of running the table.

I think it is also expected that schools across college football will upgrade their schedules because of the playoff. That will shuffle the rankings quite a bit.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Well it's actually about the money because that has a huge impact on the long-term competitive prospects of a team or conference. And a 4 team playoff is way too small to avoid big controversy. The committee will take care of that.

I am very angry we are not in the Big 10. Very angry.

 

[zls44]

 

[zls44]

The fact that you wish the Rent were never built says more about you then it does about the Big East. BTW Miami, VT, Boston College and Syracuse all stink in case you haven't noticed.

The state needed a modern, outdoor stadium. I say that as a selfish USMNT fan who likes seeing big-time international soccer in-state.

 

[Point6]

We are in the "club" - even if we can't use the golf course.​

 

[nelsonmuntz]

BYU will be writing its football program off if it stays independent.

 

[junglehusky]

I am very angry we are not in the Big 10. Very angry.

But would you rather stay in the NNBE than the ACC? Let me guess, your answer is yes because FSU and Clemson batted their eyes with someone else, something something instability? And never mind about the $$$.

 

[junglehusky]

We are in the "club" - even if we can't use the golf course.​

We are in the same "club" as Bowling Green and Troy State. A slightly better table away from the kitchen doors, but not in the VIP.