Key tweets, and it's all gone to Hell.

[LoyalFanCT]

There are no Football powerhouses in the B12 besides the two that are leaving. The remaining schools bring in half the current ACC viewership for the lowest of the P4. The fact that Gonzaga was even considered for an invite just shows Yormark is emphasizing Basketball

And given the shift to basketball, of all those schools who is the most appealing?

How about Arizona, Oklahoma State, Utah, WV and Kansas just to name a few top football programs. Gonzaga was tossed out as an option quicker than UConn. I don't think there has been a shift to basketball in the B12. Yormark's proposal was a flop. Let's see what the ACC can offer UConn.

 

[Fishy]

UConn needs to work with WSU and OSU to get a football only conference going. Throw out some feelers to Delaware, Temple and UMass. If the NCAa doesn't want to sanction it, take them to court. Chances are we'd win.

Just like when we rejoined the BE, we gotta take our destiny into our hands.

No one will want this. No one. Washington State and Oregon State do not even have a conference right now and they won’t want this.

They will be their own league and with FB make more money than they are going to make in the BE.

They will make more money in the CFP payments that fall to them than we make all-in.

All of the scenarios people cook up for UConn always seem to involve other schools doing everything counter to their own best interests.

I don't understand why everyone here is so quick to put UConn down. We are the reigning national champions, currently 4th highest school in basketball revenue (ahead of even UK, IU, Kansas, and everyone's seemingly favorite B12 candidate Louisville). We are in a state with a large population density where everyone is about an hour from the capital where UConn plays, it's a golden market (and even more so when you consider UConn is big enough to do this in NYC)

Why is the idea that we would get a call from Yormark so unappealing to everyone here? Yes we've been ignored in the past but college athletics have changed more in the past 3 years than they ever have. The B12 is not gonna remain relevant in Football, Basketball is their new destiny

And hey whaddya know, we are the overall #1 seed and poised for a repeat. The cherry on top of the UConn sundae.

You guys need to have more faith in this school, a lot more

Have you followed realignment at all over the past 20 years?

 

[cellocgg]

No one will want this. No one. Washington State and Oregon State do not even have a conference right now and they won’t want this.



They will make more money in the CFP payments that fall to them than we make all-in.

All of the scenarios people cook up for UConn always seem to involve other schools doing everything counter to their own best interests.


Have you followed realignment at all over the past 20 years?

Have you followed realignment in the past year? The B12 and ACC are dead for Football, this is our best chance yet

 

[UConnJim]

he remaining schools bring in half the current ACC viewership for the lowest of the P4.

If you take out games against FSU and Clemson for the ACC and Texas and Oklahoma for the Big 12, the Big 12 football ratings are somewhat higher than for the ACC.

 

[How Sway?!]

No one will want this. No one. Washington State and Oregon State do not even have a conference right now and they won’t want this.

AD Dave has been more than vocal on the FB only conferences. There's a tv deal to be had, especially considering there could be ET and West Coast windows. With the G5 automatic qualifier now at play, a fb conference would at worst have the third best odds of making it to the playoff.

 

[cellocgg]

How about Arizona, Oklahoma State, Utah, WV and Kansas just to name a few top football programs. Gonzaga was tossed out as an option quicker than UConn. I don't think there has been a shift to basketball in the B12. Yormark's proposal was a flop. Let's see what the ACC can offer UConn.

That is not true.

Also, so much for Football powers. Some of our Basketball games get more views

 

[cellocgg]

If you take out games against FSU and Clemson for the ACC and Texas and Oklahoma for the Big 12, the Big 12 football ratings are somewhat higher than for the ACC.

Clemson must've carried hard or the ACC doesn't care about Football as much as you all think

 

[UConnJim]

That is not true.

Also, so much for Football powers. Some of our Basketball games get more views

You have to be careful when analyzing TV data as there are many puts and takes. For example, if a team plays on the ACC Network, the games are not rated so they are not used in the averages shown on the chart. So, if you played 3 games on an ESPN network and 9 on the ACCN, your average viewers in the chart are going to be much higher because they are based on 3 games on one of the most widely distributed networks. And, what about the network? If you play on FS1, your ratings are going to be lower than if you are on FOX. And time slots? They matter as well.

 

[cellocgg]

You have to be careful when analyzing TV data as there are many puts and takes. For example, if a team plays on the ACC Network, the games are not rated so they are not used in the averages shown on the chart. So, if you played 3 games on an ESPN network and 9 on the ACCN, your average viewers in the chart are going to be much higher because they are based on 3 games on one of the most widely distributed networks. And, what about the network? If you play on FS1, your ratings are going to be lower than if you are on FOX. And time slots? They matter as well.

The ACCN broadcast 40 games per season and there are 90 total games among 15 teams. that's about 44% of games, meaning each team will feature in about 5 games on the network. But usually, the big matchups are on ESPN

If they can't reach big viewership on main ESPN channels then I doubt the ACC Network contributes much

 

[CL82]

I think UConn is up next for Big 12 expansion

 

[Buffett10]

How about Arizona, Oklahoma State, Utah, WV and Kansas just to name a few top football programs. Gonzaga was tossed out as an option quicker than UConn. I don't think there has been a shift to basketball in the B12. Yormark's proposal was a flop. Let's see what the ACC can offer UConn.

Kansas a top football program?? Since when?

 

[cellocgg]

Kansas a top football program?? Since when?

That's another good point. Kansas was right on UConn FB level, maybe even worse on average for longer. Why is it ok for them to use basketball to justify their inclusion but everyone here just loses their when we do the same?

 

[LoyalFanCT]

Kansas a top football program?? Since when?

Kansas was ranked 23rd in FBS by the AP last season. Much better than UConn.

 

[jostar1]

That's another good point. Kansas was right on UConn FB level, maybe even worse on average for longer. Why is it ok for them to use basketball to justify their inclusion but everyone here just loses their when we do the same?

They don't have to use basketball to justify their inclusion. Kansas and other bad football schools have been grandfathered in their conferences. They aren't going to be thrown out. Lucky for them. Unfortunately, our conference was destroyed by the ACC and ESPN.

 

[ZooCougar]

None of the ACC big boys are going to the B12, absolutely none. That leaves us competing with these likely leftovers:

Pitt, Syracuse, Lousville, BC, VT, Wake, and Duke

I can see Duke and VT making the B12, but theres no way the others receive an invite before UConn. They haven't done anything in years and aren't suddenly moving the needle

Plus UConn's conference buyout will be tiny compared to the rest and not hard to stomach

You are clueless

 

[ScottVib]

That's another good point. Kansas was right on UConn FB level, maybe even worse on average for longer. Why is it ok for them to use basketball to justify their inclusion but everyone here just loses their when we do the same?

They don't use basketball to justify their inclusion.. they've been a member of the Big XII and it's predecessor conference since 1907 (they are actually a charter member of the conference)

 

[Drew]

In the last three seasons, Kansas has beaten both Oklahoma at home (2023) and Texas on the road (2021). They pay their football coach $7M annually in base salary. I am about 99% sure that Lance Leipold makes more than our entire coaching staff budget. They also have a strong enough NIL program to keep Jalon Daniels in Lawrence despite other high-end programs wanting him.

We are not in the same stratosphere as KU in football.

 

[cellocgg]

In the last three seasons, Kansas has beaten both Oklahoma at home (2023) and Texas on the road (2021). They pay their football coach $7M annually in base salary. I am about 99% sure that Lance Leipold makes more than our entire coaching staff budget. They also have a strong enough NIL program to keep Jalon Daniels in Lawrence despite other high-end programs wanting him.

We are not in the same stratosphere as KU in football.

I think he meant the 15 years Kansas was awful until this past season

 

[Hoophound]

In the last three seasons, Kansas has beaten both Oklahoma at home (2023) and Texas on the road (2021). They pay their football coach $7M annually in base salary. I am about 99% sure that Lance Leipold makes more than our entire coaching staff budget. They also have a strong enough NIL program to keep Jalon Daniels in Lawrence despite other high-end programs wanting him.

We are not in the same stratosphere as KU in football.

Yes, but this goes back to opportunity. How can we compete without a major conference and paycheck? We stopped competing with Power Conference schools when we were no longer in one. We were just fine in the Big East football conference. We were actually good.

 

[Padutch5]

NCAA will cease to be a governing body in the next 5 years so it will be a sad day for the thousands of student athletes who play sports not BB or FB

There is a good. Case to be made that the NCAA has already ceased to be the governing body. It however will continue to count its revenues until the next shoe drops.

 

[Drew]

Yes, but this goes back to opportunity. How can we compete without a major conference and paycheck? We stopped competing with Power Conference schools when we were no longer in one. We were just fine in the Big East football conference. We were actually good.

How has Houston, Cincinnati, James Madison, Tulane, UTSA, etc etc etc competed in football without being in a big conference? Don’t just give me “well geography!” - they are paying coaches at the top top end of the G5 and have made an administrative commitment to being good in football. Tulane was a dead program until Dannen and Fritz arrived and massively upped the commitment to the program, including building a brand new OCS and significantly increasing the amount of funds allocated to the program for everything from the on-field staff, behind the scenes resources, recruiting budget, and everything in between.

UConn has NEVER committed institutionally to supporting the football program at a high level. And that statement INCLUDES our time in the Big East. The only exception to that maybe is Burton‘s contributions for the practice facility and locker room but guess what, everyone and their mother has an IPF and nice locker room these days. These are table stakes to even be able to play the game. We have completely failed at developing a reliable and noteworthy donor base to support the program on top of the funds received from the state and media contracts. You can’t just rely on your TV deal to fund the program- any serious program in 2024 has multiple sources income coming from high-end donors to fund everything from NIL to facility increases, salaries, etc.

From the moment the shovel went into the ground in East Hartford, this program was DoA because of the lack of vision and understanding of what was happening in college athletics. Being in the Big East certainly masked a lot of the lack of institutional understanding of and commitment to football, but the last 11 years have shone a light on just how badly managed the program is. Everything that we have won and accomplished in FBS from the sell out crowds to the Fiesta Bowl to the Myrtle Beach and Gasparilla Bowls have been done in spite of terrible football leadership, not because of it.

 

[LoyalFanCT]

How has Houston, Cincinnati, James Madison, Tulane, UTSA, etc etc etc competed in football without being in a big conference? Don’t just give me “well geography!” - they are paying coaches at the top top end of the G5 and have made an administrative commitment to being good in football. Tulane was a dead program until Dannen and Fritz arrived and massively upped the commitment to the program, including building a brand new OCS and significantly increasing the amount of funds allocated to the program for everything from the on-field staff, behind the scenes resources, recruiting budget, and everything in between.

UConn has NEVER committed institutionally to supporting the football program at a high level. And that statement INCLUDES our time in the Big East. The only exception to that maybe is Burton‘s contributions for the practice facility and locker room but guess what, everyone and their mother has an IPF and nice lockerroom these days. These are table stakes to even be able to play the game. We have completely failed at developing a reliable and noteworthy donor base to support the program on top of the funds received from the state and media contracts. You can’t just rely on your TV deal to fund the program- any serious program in 2024 has multiple sources income coming from high-end donors to fund everything from NIL to facility increases, salaries, etc.

From the moment the shovel went into the ground in East Hartford, this program was DoA because of the lack of vision and understanding of what was happening in college athletics. Being in the Big East certainly masked a lot of the lack of institutional understanding of and commitment to football, but the last 11 years have shone a light on just how badly managed the program is. Everything that we have won and accomplished in FBS from the sell out crowds to the Fiesta Bowl to the Myrtle Beach and Gasparilla Bowls have been done in spite of terrible football leadership, not because of it.

Drew raises some very important points. UConn's Board of Trustees has to realize that a competitive football program will help improve the university on several fronts. Almost all of the nation's leading public research universities have FBS football programs and many of them are very competitive on the field.

 

[UConn Dan]

Once upon a time, there were tweets that were key in this thread.

 

[Buffett10]

Kansas was ranked 23rd in FBS by the AP last season. Much better than UConn.

So 1 yr makes them a top program? So does that mean JMU is gonna jump Uconn in realignment?

 

[LoyalFanCT]

So 1 yr makes them a top program? So does that mean JMU is gonna jump Uconn in realignment?

When UConn gets into the top 25 I will call them a top program too. Kansas gives UConn a model which we can emulate.