Blaudschun--Catholic Schools Met in NYC...

[Dann]

the uss connecticut has declared war on the bball schools, just becuase. we have always wanted them gone but we might as well bomb them on there way out. maybe we will let gtown go free...

 

[HuskyJJ]

If MSG could get out of their deal with the BE as a result of this all blowing up, and B1G is interested in getting it as their championship venue, adding UConn/Cuse sure wouldn't hurt..

 

[The Viking]

If MSG could get out of their deal with the BE as a result of this all blowing up, and B1G is interested in getting it as their championship venue, adding UConn/Cuse sure wouldn't hurt..

It would sicken me to see us still left out in the cold while the ACC mo-fo's are using MSG even if it's for every other year arrangement with the southern schools. We should be playing hoops in that building. PERIOD.

 

[huskyniner]

Someone wake me up when this is all over. I can't take it.

 

[ZooCougar]

Well, we always knew it would be the basketball schools that would get tired of the constant misdirection plays from the FB schools. I guess we can look forward to a "national all sports conference." Or are we looking at UConn being in a conference with

UMass
Buffalo
Temple
East Carolina
Memphis
USF
UCF
Cincinnati.

I have started pushing for this on the realignment board. Except I think we need some Texas in there in order to be more appealing to Texas Bowls. Houston and SMU gives us 10 schools.

Desperate times call for smart measures. I like this as a football conference. I don't believe Boise/SDSU will ever happen. I do not like this as a basketball conference.

Secondly, Cincy and UConn should try to get in on the Catholic School thing for basketball. It would make any basketball contract more lucrative for all.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

the uss connecticut has declared war on the bball schools, just becuase. we have always wanted them gone but we might as well bomb them on there way out. maybe we will let gtown go free...

Exactly how many fronts does this war have?

 

[ZooCougar]

Exactly how many fronts does this war have?

Exactly. It's messed up, but the tables may have turned. No we might need them more than they ever needed us.

I am a football first guy, but strategically we are screwed if we don't take measures to keep the basketball program in the best possible league in a conference tournament that is close to CT. If these guys leave and they somehow swipe MSG and we aren't involved then have really done disservice to the fans.

Anyone ever wonder how willing our fans will be to travel to a conference tourney in New Orleans, Memphis or Orlando? I don't want to know the answer to that question.

 

[tzznandrew]

If this happens, the ACC/B1G have to move.

There's no point in adding a diminished UConn or Cincy. They'll die in a basketball conference with those schools. If your long term plan includes them, one way or the other (as a replacement, etc.), time to get them so that they can still compete in your league when the come around.

 

[tzznandrew]

Exactly. It's messed up, but the tables may have turned. No we might need them more than they ever needed us.

I am a football first guy, but strategically we are screwed if we don't take measures to keep the basketball program in the best possible league in a conference tournament that is close to CT. If these guys leave and they somehow swipe MSG and we aren't involved then have really done disservice to the fans.

Anyone ever wonder how willing our fans will be to travel to a conference tourney in New Orleans, Memphis or Orlando? I don't want to know the answer to that question.

I would suggest joining them for bb, and playing in the NNNNBE for football only--but would the catholics want us? They'd know we'd leave at first opportunity...

 

[ZooCougar]

I would suggest joining them for bb, and playing in the NNNNBE for football only--but would the catholics want us? They'd know we'd leave at first opportunity...

I have no idea if they want us. But why would you pass on two schools like Cincy and UConn even if you knew you would have them only temporarily.

I am resigned to expecting that UConn will be an outlier like BYU is or TCU was for a time. Maybe forever. Might as well embrace it.

If we can continue to give the athletes, students and fans a chance at playing PC, Georgetown, Seton Hall etc.. then we push for it hard. Playing Tulane does nothing for us.

In football we need to make a new conference. Maybe for OOC we need to play as many scrubs as possible to boost the win count. The Bill Snyder smoke and mirrors strategy is a proven method of success.

 

[jdubct]

Who has the rights to the Big East name? If the 7 schools exit the conference, will they each owe the $10 million exit fee?

 

[uconNYC]

I think its a fairly strait forward scenario. The Catholic 7 would add 3 more Catholic Schools (Xavier, Dayton, SLU) along with Cincy and UConn. Once Cincy and UConn leave for a Big 5 conference, they would be replaced by Butler and Creighton.

For football, Cincy and UConn would be football only in a conference with all the CUSA schools (just like SDSU, Boise State and East Carolina).

Frankly I like this better than the current situation as we get the best of both worlds. We play the same teams in football, but basketball does not get watered down by Tulane, Houston, etc.

 

[ZooCougar]

Who has the rights to the Big East name? If the 7 schools exit the conference, will they each owe the $10 million exit fee?

Not if they vote to dissolve the conference.

 

[Marty Jackson]

well, i guess warde has a little bit more monitoring to do on his plate.

"Those schools are concerned about the defection of the core of the Big East basketball conference–Syracuse, Pittsburgh, Louisville and Notre Dame as well as the expansion of the conference in football to 12 teams and the inclusion of schools such as Central Florida, Memphis, SMU, Houston and Temple in basketball."

In truth, can you blame them? the money they're going to receive, maybe $1-3m is that going to be worth it when the extra travel is factored in? trips to texas, florida, for the privilege of playing smu, houston, ucf, usf?

that 1-3m figure represents 10% of the ad budgets of the catholic schools. for them, at some point it isn't about the tv revenue.

if they do split, and the fb schools stick around, uconn's bb conference becomes:

uconn/temple/memphis/ucf/usf/tulane

smu/houston/??fresno state??/colorado state?/ecu??

i usually am not pessimistic, but i can't see uconn's athletic budget of $64m ( the highest by far of any current big east school, or new entrant) being sustained.

warde manuel and susan herbst. what a heavy burden to bear for two people, but that burden is rightfully placed, and i hope that their talents and efforts make us soon call them exceptional leaders. we have played games here, conjuring the most fancy of scenarios, some are rooted in logic, some in conspiracy, others hope. in the end, we as a fanbase are powerless to change things.


"A good plan violently executed now is better than a perfect plan executed next week."–George Patton

i sure hope herbst has delany's ear about what a great leader patton was.

dont foget cincy...

 

[jdubct]

Not if they vote to dissolve the conference.

And that would depend on how many votes of the existing members are necessary to dissolve the conference. I imagine this was a topic of discussion among the basketball schools.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Blowing up...

http://www.cbssports.com/collegebas...tball-members-meet-discuss-possible-breakaway

Note $$$ amount difference from above article. ($80m v.$60m)

Brett McMurphy (@McMurphyESPN)
12/11/12, 12:25 AM
If Big East gets $80M TV deal, hoop schools would get less $ than currently do RT @AlexOPunk: @McMurphyESPN @espn do they not like money?

Brett McMurphy (@McMurphyESPN)
12/11/12, 12:27 AM
Source told @ESPNAndyKatz MSG may get out of Big East tourney deal if league continues changing membership

Edit add...

Brett McMurphy (@McMurphyESPN)
12/11/12, 12:32 AM
Big East source: "Basketball schools not thrilled w/Tulane & what they will do to lRPI. They would have fallen off ledge if we added ECU"

This tells me that ESPN has an offer out to the Hoops only schools that will keep them competitive financially if they split off. $50MM a year gets a 10 team basketball conference $5MM/year each, for the price of 3 all sports schools in the ACC. That is a pretty good financial decision for ESPN.

It is amazing that the entire ESPN engineered realignment has ended up destroying 3 athletic programs, one of whom is located about 50 miles from ESPN's headquarters.

 

[whaler11]

They wouldn't need to spend anywhere near $50 million on that conference. $25-30 and some up front cash would get it done yesterday.

 

[Doggie Style]

Wow. It would be a good league on its own, but do they really think that they would thrive without having UConn, Cincy, Memphis, Temple, and UCF in the league??? I think they need those schools now more than ever, because I'm not confident that the "Catholic A-10" would even get the same money as they are getting in the current contract, much less more money...

' It would be a good league on its own, but do they really think that they would thrive without having UConn....' You lost me after Uconn.......

 

[Doggie Style]

Exactly how many fronts does this war have?

Strategically thinking, this a perfect scenario.... We can now attack in EVERY direction!!

 

[HuskyHawk]

Who has the rights to the Big East name? If the 7 schools exit the conference, will they each owe the $10 million exit fee?

No they don't. They have a 2/3 majority at present, b/c Cuse, RU and Pitt can't vote, nor can the incoming schools. So they can dissolve the league if they want. No exit fee. But they have to do it before CFU, Tulane, SMU, Temple, Houston and Memphis come in. That's why this is coming up now.

 

[upstater]

I wrote on the basketball board that UConn should be in contact with BYU and Boise and Cincy about a loose conference where everyone sells their own TV rights.

Those 4 schools are likely better off selling their own rights than sharing them with bb-only schools or football schools such as Tulane and such.

For UConn, this would mean negotiating a deal with SNY and ESPN.

One of the things that confounds me about Aresco is that he keeps adding football schools. At this stage, they should simply strive to keep the league small, 9 or 10 members tops, and if you do that, you can actually remain viable for a good period of time. There are at least 9 decent schools out there for such a conference:

UConn
Cincy
USF
UCF
Boise St.
BYU
SMU
Navy
Air Force

Add Temple or Houston or San Diego St. if you must, but I wouldn't.

 

[Doggie Style]

I wrote on the basketball board that UConn should be in contact with BYU and Boise and Cincy about a loose conference where everyone sells their own TV rights.

Those 4 schools are likely better off selling their own rights than sharing them with bb-only schools or football schools such as Tulane and such.

For UConn, this would mean negotiating a deal with SNY and ESPN.

One of the things that confounds me about Aresco is that he keeps adding football schools. At this stage, they should simply strive to keep the league small, 9 or 10 members tops, and if you do that, you can actually remain viable for a good period of time. There are at least 9 decent schools out there for such a conference:

UConn
Cincy
USF
UCF
Boise St.
BYU
SMU
Navy
Air Force

Add Temple or Houston or San Diego St. if you must, but I wouldn't.

Not a shot in hell at getting BYU, I dont think.......

 

[uconNYC]

I wrote on the basketball board that UConn should be in contact with BYU and Boise and Cincy about a loose conference where everyone sells their own TV rights.

Those 4 schools are likely better off selling their own rights than sharing them with bb-only schools or football schools such as Tulane and such.

For UConn, this would mean negotiating a deal with SNY and ESPN.

One of the things that confounds me about Aresco is that he keeps adding football schools. At this stage, they should simply strive to keep the league small, 9 or 10 members tops, and if you do that, you can actually remain viable for a good period of time. There are at least 9 decent schools out there for such a conference:

UConn
Cincy
USF
UCF
Boise St.
BYU
SMU
Navy
Air Force

Add Temple or Houston or San Diego St. if you must, but I wouldn't.

Olympic sports need a home, so UConn has to align with the Catholic schools for that. What's wrong with Catholic 7 + Xavier, UConn and Cincy? A ten team league means you play everyone twice. 2x Georgetown, Nova, SJU, Marquette, Xavier and Cincy would be awesome. Even PC and Seton Hall are interesting. DePaul is the only dud on the schedule.

Football goes independent or football only in one of the smaller conferences. On average we have the 3rd highest attendance amongst non-Big 5 conference schools (BYU and ECU ahead of us). Any of the smaller conferences would be thrilled to have us.

 

[TRest]

I wrote on the basketball board that UConn should be in contact with BYU and Boise and Cincy about a loose conference where everyone sells their own TV rights.

Those 4 schools are likely better off selling their own rights than sharing them with bb-only schools or football schools such as Tulane and such.

For UConn, this would mean negotiating a deal with SNY and ESPN.

One of the things that confounds me about Aresco is that he keeps adding football schools. At this stage, they should simply strive to keep the league small, 9 or 10 members tops, and if you do that, you can actually remain viable for a good period of time. There are at least 9 decent schools out there for such a conference:

UConn
Cincy
USF
UCF
Boise St.
BYU
SMU
Navy
Air Force

Add Temple or Houston or San Diego St. if you must, but I wouldn't.

The new football members (online fans anyway) seem hell-bent to stage a poorly attended BE championship game so keep casting the nets for crappy football programs. I find it hard to believe that the basketball schools are alarmed by the addition of Tulane, and the football schools were actually for it.

 

[mattp]

I was surprised that they said the catholic bball schools only expect about $1mil on their next TV deal whether they stay or leave. If that's the case it'd be crazy for them to sign up for trips to SDState, Tulane, and the like. $1mil will get eaten right up by travel costs. I think if they do split I'd like to see us go with them for all sports except football.

This NNBE makes more sense as a football only conference than it does an all sports conference and I'd like to see it go in that direction. The NNBE could probably cobble together $5-8m per football school and we'd get another $1m from bball and a couple million from our deals with SNY and what not. About $10m/year won't quite put us on even footing with the B1G and ACC schools, but I think that's what we'll have to make do with until we get somewhere else.