Pitt and Syracuse apply to join ACC

[UConn990411]

Yeah, I definitely don't think Rutgers over UConn is an obvious choice.

 

[upstater]

Rutgers over UConn is an obvious choice for any conference. Rutgers = better TV market, AAU membership. As for Louisville/Cincy/USF as possibilities over UConn, it all has to do with TV market. The ACC simply does not need UConn's television market. There is no real money to be gained there that is not also available by expanding into Ohio with Cincy or grabbing more of Florida with USF. In terms of recruitment, a conference would much rather deepen ties to Cincinnati, Tampa, and such over Hartford/New Haven.

As for WVU, if the SEC does not grab them, I would think they would be a more palatable option for the ACC over UConn as well, both geographically and in terms of athletics.

It does not matter if UConn does more research than Indiana or Nebraska. Up until last year, both of those schools were in the American Association of Universities. Indiana still is. AAU membership is pretty much required for Big 10 membership.

So stupid. The Big10 Presidents are the ones that voted Nebraska out.
And, you're the one that claimed Uconn didn't do as much research as the Big10 schools, now you're backpedaling.
Besides, you have no idea what the AAU is or does. Why is it so important? It's not. I can tell you that most schools gear up for Carnegie and Federal benchmarks a lot more than they do for the AAU.

 

[teresias216]

I never claimed UConn did less research. You did. I claimed that the Big 10 has high academic requirements of member institutions (in this case AAU membership). The AAU is important in this discussion because the Big 10 has said in the past that it is important. We do not get to decide standards here as we are looking in from the outside.

 

[uchusky32]

Espn radio announced pitt could make formal announcement today. With all these rumors for us to get caught with our pants down is a major blunder. Someone needs to be held accountable.

 

[Peacefrog]

Espn radio announced pitt could make formal announcement today. With all these rumors for us to get caught with our pants down is a major blunder. Someone needs to be held accountable.

How about holding our athletic director of late responsible? Oh wait, Hathaway has already been shown the door.

 

[upstater]

I never claimed UConn did less research. You did. I claimed that the Big 10 has high academic requirements of member institutions (in this case AAU membership). The AAU is important in this discussion because the Big 10 has said in the past that it is important. We do not get to decide standards here as we are looking in from the outside.

Yeah they value the AAU so much that the Presidents voted Nebraska out of the AAU!! And they offered a spot to a non-AAU school. The irony of course is that you have no clue what the AAU is or does!

 

[caw]

I'd think Herbst should have some decent ACC connections given her background and she seems pretty involved in the athletics at UConn.

UConn does bring a lot (academics are good, strong basketball programs, decent football) but it doesn't bring the thing everyone wants: a big TV market. I guess it might also make some sense if Cuse/Rutgers/Pitt/BC are all in the ACC due to the regional rivalries that exist. Put them+UConn+Maryland+Virginia+Virgina Tech in a sub-conference and have FSU+Duke+NC State+UNC+Georgia Tech+Miami+Wake Forest+Clemson in the other sub-conference. ND and Texas would bring more to the table than Rutgers or UConn though.

 

[upstater]

I'd think Herbst should have some decent ACC connections given her background and she seems pretty involved in the athletics at UConn.

UConn does bring a lot (academics are good, strong basketball programs, decent football) but it doesn't bring the thing everyone wants: a big TV market. I guess it might also make some sense if Cuse/Rutgers/Pitt/BC are all in the ACC due to the regional rivalries that exist. Put them+UConn+Maryland+Virginia+Virgina Tech in a sub-conference and have FSU+Duke+NC State+UNC+Georgia Tech+Miami+Wake Forest+Clemson in the other sub-conference. ND and Texas would bring more to the table than Rutgers or UConn though.

ND and Texas have their own networks though.

New Haven, Hartford, Bridgeport, Stamford, add it all up, not a small market. The state is a about 1 1/2 hour's drive in all directions from the center. That's 3.6 million people. A very large city.

 

[teresias216]

Yeah they value the AAU so much that the Presidents voted Nebraska out of the AAU!! And they offered a spot to a non-AAU school. The irony of course is that you have no clue what the AAU is or does!

Again, please don't use ad hominem attacks against me, as it adds nothing to the argument. I understand the exception they have made for Notre Dame in the past, however, that is also a situation in which Notre Dame has had long and deep ties to the Big 10 both athletically and academically. As for voting out Nebraska, I think it would be wrong to both presume that they either knew Nebraska would be losing member status when they were invited to the conference or that the Big 10 member institutions would disregard the ranking criteria of the AAU in regards to the vote on Nebraska's status as an AAU member. As I have stated several times now, the Big 10 has consistently mentioned AAU status as one of the benchmarks any new member would be judged upon, and while they could make exception to the rule for UConn, there is not much to go on to believe that would be a possibility.

 

[upstater]

Again, please don't use ad hominem attacks against me, as it adds nothing to the argument. I understand the exception they have made for Notre Dame in the past, however, that is also a situation in which Notre Dame has had long and deep ties to the Big 10 both athletically and academically. As for voting out Nebraska, I think it would be wrong to both presume that they either knew Nebraska would be losing member status when they were invited to the conference or that the Big 10 member institutions would disregard the ranking criteria of the AAU in regards to the vote on Nebraska's status as an AAU member. As I have stated several times now, the Big 10 has consistently mentioned AAU status as one of the benchmarks any new member would be judged upon, and while they could make exception to the rule for UConn, there is not much to go on to believe that would be a possibility.

What are you talking about? It's all on record. The current head of Amherst college, head of the CIC at the time, said she'd be lyoing if she said academics had a role in Nebraska's admittance. In fact, Mary Sue Coleman was head of the committee that kicked Nebraska out, and the vote for Nebraska's exclusion was scheduled long before Nebraska was added to the Big10. They were in danger long ago. In fact, there's some controversy as to whether the vote was postponed 6 months so that Wisconsin and Michigan could round up enough votes to oust Nebraska. It's not a mystery why they were aligned against Nebraska. It gets the vast majority of its research grants in agriculture, and those grants are not counted by Carnegie, for instance, because they are doled out as political pork; they don't go through review for excellence at all. When you have former presidents and the head of the CIC telling you the AAU didn't figure into the equation, you're going to believe the B10's window dressing instead? What is the AAU anyway? Do you even know? It has nothing to do with academics. It's a cabal of lawyers, and their offices are in Washington, DC. They're lobbyists!

 

[NHUConnfan]

I'd think Herbst should have some decent ACC connections given her background and she seems pretty involved in the athletics at UConn.

UConn does bring a lot (academics are good, strong basketball programs, decent football) but it doesn't bring the thing everyone wants: a big TV market. I guess it might also make some sense if Cuse/Rutgers/Pitt/BC are all in the ACC due to the regional rivalries that exist. Put them+UConn+Maryland+Virginia+Virgina Tech in a sub-conference and have FSU+Duke+NC State+UNC+Georgia Tech+Miami+Wake Forest+Clemson in the other sub-conference. ND and Texas would bring more to the table than Rutgers or UConn though.

Yeah? Tell that to ESPN. Maybe not for football, but UConn basketball is wildly popular in New York City. And especially after Kemba's heroics, NYC has reasons to keep its eyes on UConn.

 

[teresias216]

Yeah? Tell that to ESPN. Maybe not for football, but UConn basketball is wildly popular in New York City. And especially after Kemba's heroics, NYC has reasons to keep its eyes on UConn.

UConn sway in NYC is going to be diminished at some level after all of this. Remember no Big East means no Big East tournament at MSG, no games vs. St. John's and Seton Hall in the city, etc. The question becomes whether UConn offers more access to the NYC market than Rutgers or Syracuse.

 

[NHUConnfan]

UConn sway in NYC is going to be diminished at some level after all of this. Remember no Big East means no Big East tournament at MSG, no games vs. St. John's and Seton Hall in the city, etc. The question becomes whether UConn offers more access to the NYC market than Rutgers or Syracuse.

Big East basketball will still exist. And Big East basketball will still be one of the best conferences.

As far as the NYC market, it's pretty split evenly between Cuse, UConn, and Rutgers. Rutgers has the Jersey crowd, Cuse has the upstaters, and UConn has the rich guys in Connecticut.

 

[sledog]

Anything but the ACC!

 

[MTHusky]

Anything but the ACC!

Our choices are limited.