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Nice job by Mike… worth the whole read.
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-> As Mora spoke, though, others on campus were preparing to at least consider the possibility of conference realignment that would place the athletic department, and therefore the football program, in the top tier of college athletics. The Big 12 is looking to stabilize its place in the Power Five landscape through expansion, and UConn is being considered as a member for, among other things, its Northeast footprint and substantial basketball success.
An invitation could be in the works. It could come over the summer. It might never come at all. And if that’s the case, there is the possibility for another opportunity once the music starts up again, given the continually shifting nature of an unstable national model. But for now, there appears to be some fire under all the Big 12 smoke, andUConn might have to consider leaving the Big East and its basketball-centric platform. <-
-> “Eventually, I would love, from a football standpoint, for us to be a Power Five program,” Mora said. “I see some of the push-back that people have when there are rumors out there because of the Big East and basketball, and I can appreciate that. I don't have the history here at UConn or in the Northeast or in the Big East to understand all the complexities of it and the history and the emotions that's been involved with the change. I'm ignorant to some of that stuff. So I just see it through the glass of the head football coach that says he wants to be in a Power Five conference and compete for a championship. But I know this: It's not up to me.” <-
-> “What are things that are harder to accomplish here?” Mora said. “You look at our facilities, we have everything we need. The way we travel is first-class. The way we feed our players is first-class. Our ability to acquire a first-rate staff is great. I would say if there's one thing, it's just when we're in a recruiting battle — and this happens too often — we’ll be in a battle and we'll be winning that battle; and the kids come on campus and love the campus and love the facility; they meet the people and they love the people; they see our vision and they love our vision. And then a Power Five team walks in at the last minute and fulfills their dream of playing Power Five football, and we lose him. That's really, to me, been the only obstacle. Every day there's little picky things, but a true obstacle? That's the only obstacle we've seen. The good news is we've been in the fight. We'll start winning some of those battles. We'll start pulling people away from the Power Five teams as we become more successful as a program.” <-
Assisted access <<
-> As Mora spoke, though, others on campus were preparing to at least consider the possibility of conference realignment that would place the athletic department, and therefore the football program, in the top tier of college athletics. The Big 12 is looking to stabilize its place in the Power Five landscape through expansion, and UConn is being considered as a member for, among other things, its Northeast footprint and substantial basketball success.
An invitation could be in the works. It could come over the summer. It might never come at all. And if that’s the case, there is the possibility for another opportunity once the music starts up again, given the continually shifting nature of an unstable national model. But for now, there appears to be some fire under all the Big 12 smoke, andUConn might have to consider leaving the Big East and its basketball-centric platform. <-
-> “Eventually, I would love, from a football standpoint, for us to be a Power Five program,” Mora said. “I see some of the push-back that people have when there are rumors out there because of the Big East and basketball, and I can appreciate that. I don't have the history here at UConn or in the Northeast or in the Big East to understand all the complexities of it and the history and the emotions that's been involved with the change. I'm ignorant to some of that stuff. So I just see it through the glass of the head football coach that says he wants to be in a Power Five conference and compete for a championship. But I know this: It's not up to me.” <-
-> “What are things that are harder to accomplish here?” Mora said. “You look at our facilities, we have everything we need. The way we travel is first-class. The way we feed our players is first-class. Our ability to acquire a first-rate staff is great. I would say if there's one thing, it's just when we're in a recruiting battle — and this happens too often — we’ll be in a battle and we'll be winning that battle; and the kids come on campus and love the campus and love the facility; they meet the people and they love the people; they see our vision and they love our vision. And then a Power Five team walks in at the last minute and fulfills their dream of playing Power Five football, and we lose him. That's really, to me, been the only obstacle. Every day there's little picky things, but a true obstacle? That's the only obstacle we've seen. The good news is we've been in the fight. We'll start winning some of those battles. We'll start pulling people away from the Power Five teams as we become more successful as a program.” <-
