Hate to burst your bubble

[weyuo]

Hate to burst everyone's bubble but the last two(11 &12) teams going into the Big 12 will be Houston and SMU. Just as TCU had one foot in and one foot out the Big East door so do these schools. Boise St will never be a long term member in the Big East! Neither will San Diego St.

The best thing UConn can do for itself at this point is secede from the Big East and lead the charge for a new Northern football conference to include UConn, BC, Pitt, Cuse, WVU, Penn St, MD, Notre Dame, Temple, Louisville, Cincy and....... one more that wants to be included, is not a geographical nightmare and can compete in both football and basketball(the 2 real TV $$$ sports). Tell me that doesn't benefit each of the schools mentioned more than what lies ahead for each now. If you put those schools together in a conference the TV money will follow ... with a vengeance. The basketball conference would reign supreme and within a decade the football conference would be one of the 4 best conferences. Add 4 more teams in the future (Ohio St would be a very nice target) and your looking at one of the super conferences everyone is predicting.

 

[junglehusky]

I mean, I don't disagree that it could be in those schools' interest to be part of a northeastern league, but the suicidal risks outweigh the negligible chance of pulling it off. Basketball success aside, UConn isn't truly a national power, andI don't think Notre Dame has the pull to get create a new conference anymore, either, even if they wanted to, which they don't.

 

[sportsart]

Crack kills.

 

[TRest]

The B12 could have added Houston and SMU anytime in the last 10 years. I hope they do, but it's doubtful.

 

[upstater]

That would be an excellent result for the league. Any Big East fan would rather retain Louisville and Cincy over Houston and SMU.

 

[weyuo]

"I mean, I don't disagree that it could be in those schools' interest to be part of a northeastern league, but the suicidal risks outweigh the negligible chance of pulling it off."

I don't buy suicidal risks. Who wants to see WVU vs Kansas when WVU vs Pitt is a long standing rivalry? Are you saying Penn St vs Pitt would not be more intriguing every year than Pitt vs UNC, or NC ST? UConn vs BC once a year to determine who actually is the best D-1 football team in New England wouldn't sell out? Come on man get your head out of the sand. You add Notre Dame to the league and you may as well write that BCS qualifier good as done. Cincy vs Louisville, Cuse vs BC, MD vs WVU.... those are game watching rivalries that are as much border battles as they are recruiting wars. And.... more importantly ratings giants placed strategically amongst other league battles.

Football goes from September till January. Competitive college basketball from January till April. What other conference could carry ratings high enough to compete with a Northern conference like that from September through March Madness? Suicidal? What's suicidal is what is going on now with schools that should be aligned selling themselves to whoever makes the first offer. Pitt, Cuse, WVU.... they are selling themselves cheap when they could be part of something special, part of the solution to the malignancy that is college sports today.

 

[AJC88]

Schools leaving their conferences would have to front huge $$$ to join this experiment. In a time of schools cutting budgets and increasing tuitions, I don't know that they take the chance.

I would love to see this league though, as I do agree it would be great to watch for about 8 months of the year.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

From a purely hypothetical standpoint, where would this 12 team all sports conference rank in terms of a) Football b) Basketball c) TV contract?

Boston College
Connecticut
Rutgers
Syracuse
Pittsburgh
Penn State
Maryland
Louisville
Cincinnati
West Virginia
Virginia Tech
Notre Dame

 

[upstater]

From a purely hypothetical standpoint, where would this 12 team all sports conference rank in terms of a) Football b) Basketball c) TV contract?

Boston College
Connecticut
Rutgers
Syracuse
Pittsburgh
Penn State
Maryland
Louisville
Cincinnati
West Virginia
Virginia Tech
Notre Dame

Take Louisville and Cincinnati out and add Miami and Florida St. Now you're talking about independents circa 1985.

 

[whaler11]

I have to admit Weyuo it's pretty funny that you left Rutgers out of your imaginary league.

 

[ddminct]

Ohio State won't come if they are in the league

 

[alexrgct]

No one in the Big XII has any desire to add two schools who have not proven they're capable of sustained success and who bring up the rear in terms of carrying markets they Big XII already carries. Add to that the lingering ill feeling around the death penalty days at SMU and the fact Texas hates Houston and refuses to schedule them, and I'd be shocked to see this develop.

 

[Jericho]

Hate to burst your bubble on this crazy league that will never happen...

 

[CTMike]

"I mean, I don't disagree that it could be in those schools' interest to be part of a northeastern league, but the suicidal risks outweigh the negligible chance of pulling it off."

I don't buy suicidal risks. Who wants to see WVU vs Kansas when WVU vs Pitt is a long standing rivalry? Are you saying Penn St vs Pitt would not be more intriguing every year than Pitt vs UNC, or NC ST? UConn vs BC once a year to determine who actually is the best D-1 football team in New England wouldn't sell out? Come on man get your head out of the sand. You add Notre Dame to the league and you may as well write that BCS qualifier good as done. Cincy vs Louisville, Cuse vs BC, MD vs WVU.... those are game watching rivalries that are as much border battles as they are recruiting wars. And.... more importantly ratings giants placed strategically amongst other league battles.

Football goes from September till January. Competitive college basketball from January till April. What other conference could carry ratings high enough to compete with a Northern conference like that from September through March Madness? Suicidal? What's suicidal is what is going on now with schools that should be aligned selling themselves to whoever makes the first offer. Pitt, Cuse, WVU.... they are selling themselves cheap when they could be part of something special, part of the solution to the malignancy that is college sports today.

I bid you well in your quest to convince the schools to make this happen.

 

[coachcap]

Someone started sipping the spiked holiday eggnog a little early.

 

[weyuo]

I have to admit Weyuo it's pretty funny that you left Rutgers out of your imaginary league.

That imaginary league consists of schools that can compete in the 2 TV money sports, football & basketball. That is what the attraction for big TV deals would be and big TV money is what would attract those teams. When was the last time Rutgers men's hoops made the "Big Dance"?

 

[weyuo]

Unfortunately most of you are right, a league like that will never materialize. It would be too fan friendly and we all know that fans are always the last thing considered. Instead UConn fans can look forward to trips to Houston, Boise and San Diego where they can cheer their hearts out with a handful(at best) of other Husky faithful. And..... look at all the cash local CT business will rake in from the hordes from Boise.

 

[huskyrob1]

Unfortunately most of you are right, a league like that will never materialize. It would be too fan friendly and we all know that fans are always the last thing considered. Instead UConn fans can look forward to trips to Houston, Boise and San Diego where they can cheer their hearts out with a handful(at best) of other Husky faithful. And..... look at all the cash local CT business will rake in from the hordes from Boise.

UCONN will not be in any "Northern League" or the Big East by 2014 as they will have already accepted an invite from the ACC or the Big 10. With the news of the upgrade to the mens hockey program and Herbst still trying to get AAU membership, my money is on the Big 10.

 

[Vowelguy]

Hate to burst everyone's bubble but the last two(11 &12) teams going into the Big 12 will be Houston and SMU. Just as TCU had one foot in and one foot out the Big East door so do these schools. Boise St will never be a long term member in the Big East! Neither will San Diego St.

Yeah because the Southwest Conference worked out so well, they want to try it again.

 

[HuskyHawk]

If UConn and Rutgers went to the B1G, that would truly be the Big North. If to the ACC that would blanket the whole East. Louisville is neither north nor east. Virginia and Kentucky are the south.

This league could have materialized many years ago. It's too late now.

 

[willie99]

LOL

inside source no doubt

just wondering, why did the SWC fold again? and is this position consistent with the B12's desire to not be the SWCII?

PS: the polite thing to do would be to notify the Louisville President and AD that they're not going. just sayin, y'know