Pitino: our weak football teams protect the Big East

[CL82]

Bite me Rick

I thought about putting this in the St. John's rivalry thread.

“If you have a very strong football program you have the chance of being poached, like the Mountain West right now is going through it,” Pitino said in response to a question from NJ Advance Media on Tuesday. “We don’t have strong football programs so...”

"We’re fining UConn for thinking of leaving, they’re getting a major fine,” joked Pitino, who has enjoyed a colorful but heated rivalry with UConn coach Dan Hurley since Pitino’s return to the Big East last season.

On the other hand, his Athletic Director said that the prospect of losing Connecticut was scary and the Big East needs to be aggressive about finding extra revenue streams for Connecticut.

 

[Jaydumo20]

Yes! Alabama and Ohio State prop up the Marylands and Vanderbilts of the world, why should the big east not prop up uconn. Also, it's about time we stopped being afraid of football, or treating it's dominance as a forgone conclusion. The men's and women's tourneys are way more popular across the country, and with casuals, than any national championship game or bowl game.

imo, bowl games kinda suck. The rose bowl doesn't even touch a mid major play in game. (I know, I know, "it doesn't suck if your team is in it though" ..blah blah."
Only the parents of the kids in the 3rd grade Christmas pageant are enjoying those shenanigans.

 

[prankster]

Football has the potential to generate a lot of revenue.

Football also has a huge overhead cost, when delivering a D-1 product.

I sometimes wonder where the break even point is and what that even looks like as dollars.

NIL is a whole different financial forrest I cannot even begin to comprehend.

But to give serious consideration to BE programs in terms of profit margins, what does Villanova or Providence look like. No football, now or ever. Minimal(?) NIL. What kind of overall sports money actually in the black (if any)?

 

[Austin316]

Idk what people are expecting teams in the BE conference to say… they don’t want anyone to leave. It’s a strong Bball conference. You remove UConn and it’s still a great conference but not as strong. They want us to do poorly in football so we stay. We win (in Bball), the conference wins. We leave, the conference loses.

 

[awy]

college football seems like a thing because there's a lot of strong brands with rabid fanbases tied to their localities. this makes for a product that can capture the all important live tv audience. it's hard to develop such a following overnight, but BE teams can try this with committed CBB fanbases. their failure to generate revenue from the following has been the problem.

 

[CL82]

Football has the potential to generate a lot of revenue

In that's even independent of a P4 media distribution rights deal. if we could actually turn out a consistent decent product and fill or nearly fill Rentschler Field we could generate $7 million annually. For those who think we will never fill the stadium, I remind you there were, I believe, 31 sellouts at the Rent in its first decade of operation and many more games that 38,000 or so attended.

Now come up for those of you who say that $7 million wouldn't make football solvent, you are absolutely correct, but it would make its annual deficit pretty much the same as men's basketball.

 

[ted920]

Idk what people are expecting teams in the BE conference to say… they don’t want anyone to leave. It’s a strong Bball conference. You remove UConn and it’s still a great conference but not as strong. They want us to do poorly in football so we stay. We win (in Bball), the conference wins. We leave, the conference loses.

UCONN, being that its so important to the conference and a major reason for the TV contract bump, should get a larger % of the revenues than the other schools. Something akin to what Gonzaga gets in the WCC (I don't mean quite that great deal but a % more than the typical BE school). Im sure the rest of the BE schools will not like it but to keep us and our prestigious programs, they need to pony up and pay UCONN.

 

[Hey Adrien!]

I don't really have much to say aside from the fact that I love being in a basketball-centric conference.

Yes, I realize it affects the bottom-line, but for me as a UConn MBB fan first, I freakin' love the Big East.

 

[CL82]

I don't really have much to say aside from the fact that I love being in a basketball-centric conference.

Yes, I realize it affects the bottom-line, but for me as a UConn MBB fan first, I freakin' love the Big East.

Me too, to be honest. I've said this a few times, but I would be both relieved and depressed if we ever were to get a P4 offer. I'd be relieved because as things currently stand, the financial future of our athletics department has a huge question mark looming over it. But I'd be a little disappointed too, because I enjoy the big east and the opportunity to see so many road games.

 

[AllHusky]

Football has the potential to generate a lot of revenue.

Football also has a huge overhead cost, when delivering a D-1 product.

I sometimes wonder where the break even point is and what that even looks like as dollars.

NIL is a whole different financial forrest I cannot even begin to comprehend.

But to give serious consideration to BE programs in terms of profit margins, what does Villanova or Providence look like. No football, now or ever. Minimal(?) NIL. What kind of overall sports money actually in the black (if any)?

Villanova plays FCS football, I-AA. Benedict was approached about going back to I-AA way back when he first got here, and he said, we lose less at I-A than I-AA. Providence on the other hand plays neither FB or Baseball, so should they do what UConn is doing in hoops, they'd be in pretty good shape $$

 

[dvegas]

Villanova plays FCS football, I-AA. Benedict was approached about going back to I-AA way back when he first got here, and he said, we lose less at I-A than I-AA. Providence on the other hand plays neither FB or Baseball, so should they do what UConn is doing in hoops, they'd be in pretty good shape $$

Villanova is also consistently a top-20 FCS team that makes the playoffs, something UConn wasn't when they played at that level

 

[August_West]

UCONN, being that its so important to the conference and a major reason for the TV contract bump, should get a larger % of the revenues than the other schools. Something akin to what Gonzaga gets in the WCC (I don't mean quite that great deal but a % more than the typical BE school). Im sure the rest of the BE schools will not like it but to keep us and our prestigious programs, they need to pony up and pay UCONN.

That aint gonna happen at this time, nor should it in my estimation. The New BigEast actually built themselves a nice little brand while we were away screwing around in the AAC purely for Football reasons, and the wish upon a star that a P4 conference would make us an offer. That proved to be total folly on both counts. At least we recognized it and got back to where we should be Basketball wise. It is the smartest move UConn has made as an Athletic Department (non coaching hire related). What you are proposing might have a little more teeth if we were there from the beginning, but we weren't. All those other programs have a lot more sweat equity in getting the conference to where it is today than UConn does. That has to count for something. Of course UConn makes the conference way better. They know that too, but it is not the time to go that route when we have only been back for 3 years, and have already publicly humiliated ourselves and the league with the Big12 shenanigans. Maybe in a few more years it can be revisited.

 

[August_West]

I don't really have much to say aside from the fact that I love being in a basketball-centric conference.

Yes, I realize it affects the bottom-line, but for me as a UConn MBB fan first, I freakin' love the Big East.

Amen brother.

 

[Jaydumo20]

That aint gonna happen at this time, nor should it in my estimation. The New BigEast actually built themselves a nice little brand while we were away screwing around in the AAC purely for Football reasons, and the wish upon a star that a P4 conference would make us an offer. That proved to be total folly on both counts. At least we recognized it and got back to where we should be Basketball wise. It is the smartest move UConn has made as an Athletic Department (non coaching hire related). Wphat you are proposing might have a little more teeth if we were there from the beginning, but we weren't. All those other programs have a lot more sweat equity in getting the conference to where it is today than UConn does. That has to count for something. Of course UConn makes the conference way better. They know that too, but it is not the time to go that route when we have only been back for 3 years, and have already publicly humiliated ourselves and the league with the Big12 shenanigans. Maybe in a few more years it can be revisited.

100% Print this out and make posters. Sell them on the BY, so we can all look at it when we get weepy over back to back nattys but no big bowl games. The goal is to win nattys. We'll never win a football natty. Neither will Rutgers, Maryland, Missouri, Vandy, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, Northwestern, Kentucky, Arkansas etc.

Man, we barely enjoyed #6 before we started to fret over what's next.
It's like dating your dream girl but the whole time fearing she's gonna leave you. This fanbase can 'Costanza' with the best of em.

 

[Kenny11]

Lol a funny image came into my head of Shaka smart calling our prized football recruits to negatively recruit against uconn football

 

[BigFanCT]

Can anyone give me a breakdown of the Alabama’s and Ohio Sts revenue vs lower conference members? How much more do they get than the lower tiered?

 

[willie99]

Yes! Alabama and Ohio State prop up the Marylands and Vanderbilts of the world, why should the big east not prop up uconn. Also, it's about time we stopped being afraid of football, or treating it's dominance as a forgone conclusion. The men's and women's tourneys are way more popular across the country, and with casuals, than any national championship game or bowl game.

imo, bowl games kinda suck. The rose bowl doesn't even touch a mid major play in game. (I know, I know, "it doesn't suck if your team is in it though" ..blah blah."
Only the parents of the kids in the 3rd grade Christmas pageant are enjoying those shenanigans.

TV

Right, wrong or indifferent, as much as we all might hate it, it's all about media money

Having said that, women's basketball is seemingly in a rapid growth spurt and I believe football has to plateau, especially with most of the country being left behind

Every boom is followed by a bust. Life is more about a pendulum than it is one directional

 

[Jaydumo20]

TV

Right, wrong or indifferent, as much as we all might hate it, it's all about media money

Having said that, women's basketball is seemingly in a rapid growth spurt and I believe football has to plateau, especially with most of the country being left behind

Every boom is followed by a bust. Life is more about a pendulum than it is one directional

Yes. I unfairly left out the TV aspect. It is a big factor for sure. But you hit it right regardless. I've said over and over, the women's games rise is gonna help us and cbb a ton. Especially if Paige and Azzi take CCs place this year.
And football is so oversaturated. In physics, when you oversaturate... only one place to go from there.

 

[TyroneShoo]

I have been told (and most feel the same way) by someone well connected for the big conference realignment …women’s basketball means as much as volleyball, lacrosse or field hockey. It will never be a factor in the consideration…..it will always be mentioned in the explanation afterward Seems they retro fit a force fed narrative that women’s sports is part of the financial equation. It just is not. Heck, men’s basketball usually seems like it barely is.

the best college football program in the big east probably loses its first game today. Against Maryland. Getting 17 1/2….also feels like Md should cover that number

 

[willie99]

The trajection of the women's game is hard to miss. Doesn't matter what people still think, everything is pointed upwards. Money will follow, at each and every level without exception.

Of course, it's not football money. But you have to play the hand your dealt

 

[dennismenace]

I was suprised at how much interest there is now by men in women's bb. I have met a number of guys recently who wouldn't even look at womens college hoop despite the success of Uconn women but Caitlin Clark mania seems to have everyone's attention now. Is this being driven mainly by ESPN? Some of these guys are more pro football or MLB so it is kind of surprising.

 

[superjohn]

The trajection of the women's game is hard to miss. Doesn't matter what people still think, everything is pointed upwards. Money will follow, at each and every level without exception.

Of course, it's not football money. But you have to play the hand your dealt

With Caitlin Clark hysteria there has been an all out push across media to promote the sport and to capitalize on it but I'm not totally sold on the lasting power. I tried to watch it during the summer because there's nothing else to watch and I'm obsessed with basketball but it's still not a good product IMO.

 

[superjohn]

That aint gonna happen at this time, nor should it in my estimation. The New BigEast actually built themselves a nice little brand while we were away screwing around in the AAC purely for Football reasons, and the wish upon a star that a P4 conference would make us an offer. That proved to be total folly on both counts. At least we recognized it and got back to where we should be Basketball wise. It is the smartest move UConn has made as an Athletic Department (non coaching hire related). What you are proposing might have a little more teeth if we were there from the beginning, but we weren't. All those other programs have a lot more sweat equity in getting the conference to where it is today than UConn does. That has to count for something. Of course UConn makes the conference way better. They know that too, but it is not the time to go that route when we have only been back for 3 years, and have already publicly humiliated ourselves and the league with the Big12 shenanigans. Maybe in a few more years it can be revisited.

Butler, Creighton, and Xavier have been in the Big East for 11 seasons.

Marquette and DePaul have been in the Big East for 19 seasons.

UConn has been in the Big East for 38 seasons and won the league 5 men's basketball national championships. I think it's safe to say we've put in more sweat equity than all of them and have brought more credibility, money, and prestige to the league than any other program.

 

[dvegas]

You can't spell Pitino or Putz without a "P"

 

[UConnTrumbull]

That aint gonna happen at this time, nor should it in my estimation. The New BigEast actually built themselves a nice little brand while we were away screwing around in the AAC purely for Football reasons, and the wish upon a star that a P4 conference would make us an offer. That proved to be total folly on both counts. At least we recognized it and got back to where we should be Basketball wise. It is the smartest move UConn has made as an Athletic Department (non coaching hire related). What you are proposing might have a little more teeth if we were there from the beginning, but we weren't. All those other programs have a lot more sweat equity in getting the conference to where it is today than UConn does. That has to count for something. Of course UConn makes the conference way better. They know that too, but it is not the time to go that route when we have only been back for 3 years, and have already publicly humiliated ourselves and the league with the Big12 shenanigans. Maybe in a few more years it can be revisited.

Honestly the biggest folly of all time is the American selling the Catholic 7 the rights to the name “Big East”… call it the Big North and the whole view of the conference goes out the window.