Bowl math

[Vowelguy]

I think there is a good chance that the bowls largely come to an end. With a 12 team playdown (and I would not be surprised if that number increases over time), kids opting out in droves, and the marginal economics for most of these bowls - why continue with them?

As long as they get sufficient TV ratings, they will continue.

 

[bobbyinaz]

As long as they get sufficient TV ratings, they will continue.

As long as the casinos post betting lines on them, they will continue.

 

[RSTuthill]

My conclusion from reading all this discussion is that UConn will definitely be invited to a bowl and that which one will be determined on next Sunday or shortly after? Why not sooner? Is UConn likely to be playing a conference champion or runner-up? Guessing not, although perhaps a G5 conference champion or runner up. Are all bowl invites held in abeyance until next Sunday?

 

[CJasmer]

Sooner or later we need to get into a conference if we want the security of bowl tie-ins, TV revenue sharing, etc. But that means either playing a G5 conference schedule with a G5 conference that would take us as football-only, or continuing to hold out hope that CR will keep shifting and we finally get an invite into a P4 conference for all sports. For that to happen, the football program needs to win consistently and prove it is worth something on its own to other conferences (independent of our hoops program or other sports). The B12 keeps snubbing us based on our weak football reputation (and probably Northeast culture bias too).

I am still puzzled about the ACC. The ACC is the best fit for UConn.

 

[BugsyCT]

I am still puzzled about the ACC. The ACC is the best fit for UConn.

They don’t want us. That’s been apparent for 20 years. Best hope is they crumble with more CR and get desperate.

 

[Tenspro2002]

I am still puzzled about the ACC. The ACC is the best fit for UConn.

We need enough of the 2003-2013 generation of ACC leaders (and BE defectors) to die off. It's that simple.

 

[ZooCougar]

We need enough of the 2003-2013 generation of ACC leaders (and BE defectors) to die off. It's that simple.

It would be bittersweet. I hate that conference so much. I can't overstate this.

 

[CJasmer]

They don’t want us. That’s been apparent for 20 years.

But why? The conference has always been a basketball first conference. None of the schools draw consistently large crowds for football except Clemson, FSU, maybe Virginia Tech and Louisville.

 

[UConnDan97]

But why? The conference has always been a basketball first conference. None of the schools draw consistently large crowds for football except Clemson, FSU, maybe Virginia Tech and Louisville.

It's that there are enough people who don't want us. We know that includes BC. We believe that includes Florida State and Clemson, who couldn't care less about basketball. When you add up the "no" votes, it's enough to block us.

This is a similar story to the Big12, but at least there we have a commissioner who is actively trying to help...

 

[ScottVib]

My conclusion from reading all this discussion is that UConn will definitely be invited to a bowl and that which one will be determined on next Sunday or shortly after? Why not sooner? Is UConn likely to be playing a conference champion or runner-up? Guessing not, although perhaps a G5 conference champion or runner up. Are all bowl invites held in abeyance until next Sunday?

The official announcements are generally held off to the "selection show" as people don't know which teams will cascade to them. There may be links, but nothing will be official until then.

 

[ZooCougar]

But why? The conference has always been a basketball first conference. None of the schools draw consistently large crowds for football except Clemson, FSU, maybe Virginia Tech and Louisville.

Because they are topped off with northeastern schools with middling football programs.

We don't really have anything that they the don't already have (their perception).

They hate us. I think we spoiled their basketball hopes enough times that there is bad feelings. Oddly, the school UConn fans hate the most has been our biggest ally in the past.

 

[ZooCougar]

It's that there are enough people who don't want us. We know that includes BC. We believe that includes Florida State and Clemson, who couldn't care less about basketball. When you add up the "no" votes, it's enough to block us.

This is a similar story to the Big12, but at least there we have a commissioner who is actively trying to help...

Clemson
FSU
NC State
Miami
BCU
and probably Syracuse because Syracuse


The "Nerd" Schools have been in our corner before. Duke, Wake and so on.

 

[RSTuthill]

It's that there are enough people who don't want us. We know that includes BC. We believe that includes Florida State and Clemson, who couldn't care less about basketball. When you add up the "no" votes, it's enough to block us.

This is a similar story to the Big12, but at least there we have a commissioner who is actively trying to help...

I thought BC has flipped on the question. No?

 

[UConnTrumbull]

But why? The conference has always been a basketball first conference. None of the schools draw consistently large crowds for football except Clemson, FSU, maybe Virginia Tech and Louisville.

The ACC commish even said last summer that football is more important to them. Basketball-first historically, not in reality.

 

[UConnDan97]

Clemson
FSU
NC State
Miami
BCU
and probably Syracuse because Syracuse


The "Nerd" Schools have been in our corner before. Duke, Wake and so on.

Is Miami definitely part of that? Does that go back to Donna Shalala?

 

[ZooCougar]

Is Miami definitely part of that? Does that go back to Donna Shalala?

1000%

 

[UConnDan97]

1000%

You know, every now and again, I have this thought exercise of "What would have happened if Miami never left the Big East?"

One could make a credible argument that Miami, and Miami alone, was responsible for all of conference realignment.

During their time in the Big East, they finished in the AP top 6 seven times in thirteen years, with two of those years being the AP #1 (they haven't finished AP top 6 since joining the ACC by the way).

They were truly the anchor program of the Big East, and the conference had a strong football brand (VA Tech under Beamer, West Virginia, etc). Losing the anchor is what started the dominoes to fall. Once the Big East started to crumble to make this contrived "P5", it was the beginning of the end for most major conferences (including the PAC12, apparently).

If Miami said no, I truly believe we wouldn't have the mess we have right now. The fact that they haven't finished in the top 5 since then is my only true consolation...

 

[ScottVib]

For me (admittedly selfishly through a UConn fan lens) the bigger what if in respect to CR (at least for UConn) is what if the faculty (through the mid-90s they protested complaining that too much attention was already going to the athletic department with the early years of the rise of the basketball programs) wasn't successful in slowing UConn's FBS upgrade? A UConn football program with a few (lets say five) additional seasons in FBS and a BCS conference, presumably with the same or similar level of success may well have been harder to deny or been in a better spot to be that "New England" program to partner with Miami & Syracuse (later Virginia Tech) in the first attempted raid or in any of the subsequent moves (perhaps UConn's pedigree by then allows for a better claim to being the NY metro team for the Big Ten ahead of Rutgers).

UConn has been undeniably the strongest performing athletic department among the Northeastern schools involved in the 2000s era conference realignment, yet their lack of football history or focus has been the threat to the ability of that department (and the resulting improvement in the academic standards of the school, etc) to be able to continue the growth forward, perhaps having a few more years of solid success in their back pocket before things hit the fan might have changed things..

 

[ZooCougar]

You know, every now and again, I have this thought exercise of "What would have happened if Miami never left the Big East?"

One could make a credible argument that Miami, and Miami alone, was responsible for all of conference realignment.

During their time in the Big East, they finished in the AP top 6 seven times in thirteen years, with two of those years being the AP #1 (they haven't finished AP top 6 since joining the ACC by the way).

They were truly the anchor program of the Big East, and the conference had a strong football brand (VA Tech under Beamer, West Virginia, etc). Losing the anchor is what started the dominoes to fall. Once the Big East started to crumble to make this contrived "P5", it was the beginning of the end for most major conferences (including the PAC12, apparently).

If Miami said no, I truly believe we wouldn't have the mess we have right now. The fact that they haven't finished in the top 5 since then is my only true consolation...

Miami isn’t. The ACC is. It was brazen predation and showed everyone the potential of it. In the ACC’s case it realky hasn’t worked out.

They did it for Football. They thought adding VT and Miami would put them on par with the SEC.

Adding BC is still really puzzling.

 

[UConnDan97]

For me (admittedly selfishly through a UConn fan lens) the bigger what if in respect to CR (at least for UConn) is what if the faculty (through the mid-90s they protested complaining that too much attention was already going to the athletic department with the early years of the rise of the basketball programs) wasn't successful in slowing UConn's FBS upgrade? A UConn football program with a few (lets say five) additional seasons in FBS and a BCS conference, presumably with the same or similar level of success may well have been harder to deny or been in a better spot to be that "New England" program to partner with Miami & Syracuse (later Virginia Tech) in the first attempted raid or in any of the subsequent moves (perhaps UConn's pedigree by then allows for a better claim to being the NY metro team for the Big Ten ahead of Rutgers).

UConn has been undeniably the strongest performing athletic department among the Northeastern schools involved in the 2000s era conference realignment, yet their lack of football history or focus has been the threat to the ability of that department (and the resulting improvement in the academic standards of the school, etc) to be able to continue the growth forward, perhaps having a few more years of solid success in their back pocket before things hit the fan might have changed things..

That is a harder "what if". In that scenario, who is our coach? Skip Holtz, presumably? We wouldn't have had the magical run with Edsall 1.0, we don't know if we get Orlovsky, etc. Basketball, while having enjoyed some success up to the mid 90s, didn't have a lot of it. I'm not sure we get a much investment before the basketball success of the mid 90s.

But in the early 2000s, all Miami had to do was to say "no"...

 

[UCFBfan]

The ACC commish even said last summer that football is more important to them. Basketball-first historically, not in reality.

He says that so he can appease FSU and Clemson as they are openly trying to leave because it's not a strong football conference. It's seen as a bball first conference and he needs to give off the appearance that he doesn't see it that way. It's another reason they won't add us in this current CR climate. If they are clinging on to FSU, there's no way adding us helps their cause of showing them they are legit about strengthening football over basketball.

We are so beyond a perfect fit for the conference it's ridiculous. The profile fits perfectly in every aspect, including geography which means nothing nowadays. Top tier bball, football that can become competitive but not dominant, strong Olympic sports, high academics. The only thing we have that's different than over half the conference is we're a state school but so is UVA, UNC, NC St, and FSU. It is mind numbing that these idiots can't get over themselves and do what should be done.

 

[ZooCougar]

I think there is a good chance that the bowls largely come to an end. With a 12 team playdown (and I would not be surprised if that number increases over time), kids opting out in droves, and the marginal economics for most of these bowls - why continue with them?

Betting

 

[Kolumbo]

 

[Vowelguy]

My conclusion from reading all this discussion is that UConn will definitely be invited to a bowl and that which one will be determined on next Sunday or shortly after? Why not sooner? Is UConn likely to be playing a conference champion or runner-up? Guessing not, although perhaps a G5 conference champion or runner up. Are all bowl invites held in abeyance until next Sunday?

It’s a domino effect.

Suppose you are a bowl that gets to pick SEC 1. It might be Bama, but they might get picked for the playoff. If you don’t kniw then SEC 2-xx bowls can’t pick either (more or less). And so on and so on ….

All will be revealed next Sunday.

 

[RSTuthill]

The only thing we have that's different than over half the conference is we're a state school but so is UVA, UNC, NC St, and FSU.

Add Clemson, Va Tech, and Cal.