Non-Key Tweets

[UConnJim]

I think Foley will slash funding to UConn. He should be called out on it during a campaign debate so that we all can see where he stands. As a general rule, the GOP governors over the years has not been UConn friendly, going way back to my days at UConn when Mr. Meskill ( I don't think I spelled his name correctly), was the governor. At least Malloy, despite being a BC grad has been a friend to UConn.

This is ridiculous. Before 1990, UConn lacked an identity, so there was not much to rally around. When UConn men's and women's basketball took off, UConn became a point of pride for all of Connecticut and the state started to invest in UConn. The investment was in both academics and in athletics. No way the state invests in upgrading football without the success of UConn basketball.

Now, UConn is perceived to be an economic growth engine for the state. Nobody is going to slow that down.

Every politician in Connecticut understands the importance and political sway UConn now has in the state. Heck, Geno or Calhoun would probably be elected governor if they wanted to run.

 

[Stinger92860]

I don't think he will slash the capital budget. He may raise tuition, look for operational cost savings, etc. The state of CT has very few effective economic developer levers. The of the few tools is to bring UConn to a P5 conference so that the region has big time sports entertain and even more prestige in the world of higher ed. If you happen to rub elbows with major biz owners, you will hear that young talent continues to flock to i) good weather cities, ii) cities with pro sports or iii) select university cities. Pushing UConn to a P5 is frankly essential for the state's economic health.

Warm weather is nice, but young talent comes from all over the world to live and work in NYC.

 

[DarthGrumpy]

I don't think he will slash the capital budget. He may raise tuition, look for operational cost savings, etc. The state of CT has very few effective economic developer levers. The of the few tools is to bring UConn to a P5 conference so that the region has big time sports entertain and even more prestige in the world of higher ed. If you happen to rub elbows with major biz owners, you will hear that young talent continues to flock to i) good weather cities, ii) cities with pro sports or iii) select university cities. Pushing UConn to a P5 is frankly essential for the state's economic health.

Warmth may not be such a great thing when Los Angeles, San Diego, Las Vegas, and Phoenix all run out of water.

 

[buddy]

Warm weather is nice, but young talent comes from all over the world to live and work in NYC.

Yes and you can include young people from CT who come to seek their fortune is NYC. Yet they still are loyal to UConn and CT.

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

As a general rule, the GOP governors over the years has not been UConn friendly, going way back to my days at UConn when Mr. Meskill ( I don't think I spelled his name correctly), was the governor.

Wow, there's a revelation. Somehow, always thought buddy was a fairly recent UCONN graduate. So, possibly not even born during Meskill's early 70s governorship.

 

[buddy]

Wow, there's a revelation. Somehow, always thought buddy was a fairly recent UCONN graduate. So, possibly not even born during Meskill's early 70s governorship.

Homer Babbidge was president when I was there. That's how old I am. Now I feel silly being on this board. But...old men need something to do, since they are now old men!

 

[jostar1]

Greg Flugaur @flugempire · Sep 15
Dennis Dodd has an article out today talking about how difficult it will be for a 1 loss Independent Football team to make playoffs/top bowl

Greg Flugaur @flugempire · Sep 15
The new world of College Football makes Independence an albatross that no program will want to carry around if options present themselves...

Greg Flugaur @flugempire · Sep 15
In the last couple of weeks I gave out information that ND has come to this realization and no one should be shocked by 2017 ND is in ACC

Greg Flugaur @flugempire · Sep 15
A 1 loss ND will be slighted vs. 1 loss major 5 conference schools under new criteria over and over again. Changes are coming for The Irish

 

[upstater]

Greg Flugaur @flugempire · Sep 15
Dennis Dodd has an article out today talking about how difficult it will be for a 1 loss Independent Football team to make playoffs/top bowl

Greg Flugaur @flugempire · Sep 15
The new world of College Football makes Independence an albatross that no program will want to carry around if options present themselves...

Greg Flugaur @flugempire · Sep 15
In the last couple of weeks I gave out information that ND has come to this realization and no one should be shocked by 2017 ND is in ACC

Greg Flugaur @flugempire · Sep 15
A 1 loss ND will be slighted vs. 1 loss major 5 conference schools under new criteria over and over again. Changes are coming for The Irish

It's almost as though the Irish must be hoping for perpetual 2 loss seasons as the best outcome.

 

[HuskyHawk]

It's almost as though the Irish must be hoping for perpetual 2 loss seasons as the best outcome.

It's pretty clear that a playoff spot will be very difficult for them. They will still get a nice bowl, but increasingly, that will be a consolation prize.

Look at this season. Oregon and FSU are nearly locks. OU is close to that. There are 7 SEC teams with reasonable hopes right now. The Big Ten is almost out of it already unless Nebraska runs the table.

 

[gioff23]

I think everyone is overstimating the difficulty factor. There may be a P5, but there are certain schools w/in that club that get special handling, and will continue to do so. I do not see ND joining a conf., esp the ACC, as a FT member. Besides, do they have better odds of making playoff w/in conference?

 

[pj]

I think they might lobby for an 8-team playoff before they join a conference. This 4-team playoff is going to leave a lot of pissed off teams.

 

[uconndennis]

I think they might lobby for an 8-team playoff before they join a conference. This 4-team playoff is going to leave a lot of pissed off teams.

This. There will be an 8 team playoff well before ND joins a conference

 

[UConnJim]

In the past 20 years, ND has only had one season, 2012 when they finished the regular season undefeated, where they would be a contender for a playoff slot, and they did play for the BCS championship. In fact, 2012 was the only year that ND has finished in the final Coaches poll top 10 in the past 20 years. The last time ND finished the regular season with 1 loss was in 1993. when they lost to BC at home in the regular season finale. Brian Kelly has been in the regular season: 7-5, 8-4, 12-0, 8-4. It is very hard to play a national schedule as you see many different playing styles. Thus, I don't think we will see ND in a playoff controversy in the near future. And, if ND not being in a conference became an issue for the playoff, and recruiting, they would aggressively push to move to an 8 team playoff.

The 1993 season would have been the ultimate playoff test as here is how the teams stood at the end of the regular season:

Auburn 11-0, Nebraska 11-0, West Virginia 11-0, Florida St. 10-1, Notre Dame 10-1, Texas A&M 10-1, Wisconsin 9-1-1, Ohio St. 9-1-1, Tennessee 9-1-1. (By the way, there was no championship game per se, but #1 FSU beat #2 Nebraska in the Orange Bowl.) The final 4 would probably been Auburn, Nebraska, Florida St., and Notre Dame as the undefeated Big East champ would have been screwed and the Southwest Conference was weak that year.

 

[HuskyHawk]

This. There will be an 8 team playoff well before ND joins a conference

I think we'll get an 8 team playoff, and when we do, bowls will mean much less. It is going to be interesting.

 

[UConn9604]

I think we'll get an 8 team playoff, and when we do, bowls will mean much less. It is going to be interesting.

If they don't play the first round of games at on-campus stadiums, or sites convenient to one or more of the teams, the crowds will look a lot like our 2013 Memphis game in a few years. It's one thing to ask 1,000-2,000 fans from each school to travel up to three times in three weeks in hoops (first-round, Sweet 16 and Final Four), particularly for the first two, which are played in 15,000-20,000 seat stadiums. It's quite another to ask 10,000-15,000 of those same fans to travel three times to three different NFL-sized stadiums, all in the dead of winter, back-to-back-to-back. If the ticket-buying requirements aren't relaxed, schools will get killed financially.

 

[Dooley]

I think they might lobby for an 8-team playoff before they join a conference. This 4-team playoff is going to leave a lot of pissed off teams.

You beat me to the punch! However, I'll say this: while ND might lobby for a 8 team playoff, conference schools Presidents might not want that. It would mean adding at least another week to the season and that's a tough sell when the school's athletes are supposedly students. Look how long it took them to relent about a 4 team playoff despite years/decades of public outcry about not having a "true champion" (in some years). I suppose they could eliminate a bye week here and there but TV execs like this so that they can entice some schools/conferences to play Thursday/Friday night games. You can't ask college teams to play a Thurs/Fri night game after having just played the previous Saturday. The pros don't like doing it and they get real paid (Beck voice).

 

[Dooley]

But yeah, I can see ND (and a few others) lobby hard for a 8 or more team playoff. ND would rather have a 8 team playoff than join a conference, even if it means adding another week to the season or putting players safety at risk. As we have all seen, ND is chin deep in academic scandals with their part-time conference mate UNC over fake classes. They can no longer try to hide behind "what's in the best of interest of student athlete" rhetoric that others do.

 

[Stinger92860]

I think we'll get an 8 team playoff, and when we do, bowls will mean much less. It is going to be interesting.

IMO, 4 to 8 to 16. Too much money involved to not expand.

 

[Excalibur]

Besides, do they have better odds of making playoff w/in conference?

Yes

 

[HuskyHawk]

If they don't play the first round of games at on-campus stadiums, or sites convenient to one or more of the teams, the crowds will look a lot like our 2013 Memphis game in a few years. It's one thing to ask 1,000-2,000 fans from each school to travel up to three times in three weeks in hoops (first-round, Sweet 16 and Final Four), particularly for the first two, which are played in 15,000-20,000 seat stadiums. It's quite another to ask 10,000-15,000 of those same fans to travel three times to three different NFL-sized stadiums, all in the dead of winter, back-to-back-to-back. If the ticket-buying requirements aren't relaxed, schools will get killed financially.

Makes sense. Ultimately, I'd envision regionals like the NCAA, but with real geography. One Pacific, one south, one mid-Atlantic and one mid-west. Or round one could be on campus.

 

[UConnTrumbull]

Just saw this on twitter:
UConn's value to Connecticut: $3.4 billion year (Per Tripp Umbach)

 

[Waquoit]

If they don't play the first round of games at on-campus stadiums, or sites convenient to one or more of the teams, the crowds will look a lot like our 2013 Memphis game in a few years. It's one thing to ask 1,000-2,000 fans from each school to travel up to three times in three weeks in hoops (first-round, Sweet 16 and Final Four), particularly for the first two, which are played in 15,000-20,000 seat stadiums. It's quite another to ask 10,000-15,000 of those same fans to travel three times to three different NFL-sized stadiums, all in the dead of winter, back-to-back-to-back. If the ticket-buying requirements aren't relaxed, schools will get killed financially.

Since it's a play-off not a meaningless exhibition, I would imagine that there wouldn't be a ticket requirement at all. Wouldn't these games be a draw for the college football fan even if their team isn't in the game?

 

[Dooley]

Just saw this on twitter:
UConn's value to Connecticut: $3.4 billion year (Per Tripp Umbach)

This has B1G/AAU written all of it.

 

[freescooter]

If they don't play the first round of games at on-campus stadiums, or sites convenient to one or more of the teams, the crowds will look a lot like our 2013 Memphis game in a few years. It's one thing to ask 1,000-2,000 fans from each school to travel up to three times in three weeks in hoops (first-round, Sweet 16 and Final Four), particularly for the first two, which are played in 15,000-20,000 seat stadiums. It's quite another to ask 10,000-15,000 of those same fans to travel three times to three different NFL-sized stadiums, all in the dead of winter, back-to-back-to-back. If the ticket-buying requirements aren't relaxed, schools will get killed financially.

I've been saying this forever. Very few people are going to travel to that many games. The NFL gets that. It gives teams home field until the Super Bowl. I suspect that within a few years, the college playoff, whether 4 or 8 teams will ultimately go there, too for that reason. You are asking fans to travel 3-4 consecutive weeks. Week 1: Conference Championship game-depending on team and conference that can be a significant trip. then 2-3 playoff games. I am skeptical that these games will sell many tickets. Look more like the ACCCG than the Rose Bowl.

 

[DarthGrumpy]

I've been saying this forever. Very few people are going to travel to that many games. The NFL gets that. It gives teams home field until the Super Bowl. I suspect that within a few years, the college playoff, whether 4 or 8 teams will ultimately go there, too for that reason. You are asking fans to travel 3-4 consecutive weeks. Week 1: Conference Championship game-depending on team and conference that can be a significant trip. then 2-3 playoff games. I am skeptical that these games will sell many tickets. Look more like the ACCCG than the Rose Bowl.

I always pictured a college football playoff with the 1st round (8 teams) at the home of the highest seed (may a nearby pro stadium if warranted, such as Cincinnati playing at Paul Brown Stadium for example) and then the semi-finals and finals (say the 3 big bowls rotate – some combination of 1) Rose Bowl, 2) Phoenix, 3) Dallas, 4) New Orleans, and 5) Miami) at a neutral site as no one wants to travel that much and many cannot afford to do so.