Ranking the NNBE

[nelsonmuntz]

The incoming teams are not looking good at all.

1) Cincinnati - This team looks very good right now. Will be ranked tomorrow.

2) Rutgers - Arkansas win not looking as impressive, but this team still is playing well this year, and playing a lot smarter with Coach IROC in the NFL.

3) Louisville - ugly wins over FIU and USM, but what other Top 25 team would even be on the road against two teams like that back to back. Winning on the road is tough.

4) Boise -there is usually no such thing as a bad win, but today's game was a bad win. New Mexico is one of the worst 10 teams in FBS, and they almost beat Boise.

5) South Florida - same old USF. Lots of talent, plays with their head up their butts.

6) UCF - Must be something in the water in the Orlando to Tampa corridor, because this is another team that is very talented and plays with its head completely up its butt. A win over Missouri would have been the difference between a great season and an OK one.

7) UConn - says something about the rest of the list that UConn is #7.

8) SDSU - blew winnable games against Washington and SJSU, and in a battle with Fresno tonight. Only wins are over Army and North Dakota.

9) Temple - young team showing some promise, but very young.

10) Houston - at least they beat Rice.

11) SMU - defense is improving, but Garrett Gilbert is horrendous.

12) Navy - looking like service academies of old. I am cooling on the idea of adding any more.

13) Memphis - may be the worst FBS team.

 

[Fishy]

I can't argue with any of that.

Very curious scheduling for Louisville.

 

[Adios]

The fact Cincinnati rose back out of obscurity and competes with Ohio State speaks volumes. All we need is a damn competent coaching staff. I am pleasantly surprised with how well Butch Jones is doing. Skip Holtz will very likely be gone. I am hearing he is not well-liked in Florida. Garrett Gilbert should have NEVER been given the reigns. What the was June Jones thinking?

All in all, our conference is not all that bad. Looks strange on paper, but we can play. Look at how well the ACC and B1G are doing this year.

 

[Pudge]

I look at Value as Program ... as well as some Power Ranking today. Can this Program be a Neilson draw? Can it pull in its Market & expand? Grow our Fanbase?

1) Louisville - They have a fully engaged Program. Recruiting is going well & they are drawing 55,000 in their newly expanded stadium. I understand how Cincinnati is playing better. But, to my way of thinking, Louisville has great value as a draw/as a Program. They are really doing a lot of things well. They are going to be challenged by Cincinnati & Rutgers on the Field. By Rutgers as a Value Program ... and maybe Boise.

2) Rutgers - They still have an undercurrent of Hype in my opinion. But they are largely filling their Stadium. And, they are marching to a bigger & better position in the NYC metro market. No great leaps; just a bunch of steps here & there. On the field, we can see that choosing Flood has looked very good. They aren't as messy ... which we saw with Schiano. And, Flood (I believe) will get better as this year goes on. An impressive start to 2012.

3) Cincinnati - Great on the field. My reservation is that I think they have peaked in their appeal on the regional market. But, they play well on TV when they have a big stage. Glad they are with us.

4) Boise -New Mexico ain't that bad; Bob Davies ain't that bad. Boise is down ... indisputably. But, Peterson is a Program builder that will keep them up. Valuable to NBE.

5) South Florida - Drew over 69,000 for a major event in-state game. Played decently. But ... they just are not near their potential given the guys that have gone through that Program. And, columnists & fans are calling for Skip Holtz's head. Not a bad run ... but they need a good second act. They drew over 40,000 for both Chattanooga & Rutgers. They still have POTENTIAL as a solid program. Not going anywhere too; that is a benefit in this hodgepodge conference.

6) UCF - They had the newly SEC Missouri come to town ... and drew 35,000. They had over 40,000 for FIU. They play well at Ohio State. Compete with Missouri. Hell yeah ... they are above us. Lots of talent; some good years ahead.

7) UConn - We are not playing well; and the natives are restless. Going from Edsall - who actually had us buying into a young program - to PP doesn't feel right tonight. I like a lot of what we've built; but, we need to find an identity here & I think we have real danger if we let this linger for long. Manual is key; can he make a few right moves. If they do, I think we can be a 50,000 seat Home; and be a factor traveling ... as we mature as a fanbase. Now, I am discouraged.

8) Navy - You don't have to worry about Navy. They will be solid; but, never a conference winner for the next decade. Losing to San Jose State (who beat San Diego State the previous week) is not awful; and losing to Penn State & Notre Dame? So, I think they are fine. And did not deserve the denigration in Nelson's post. They get 34-35,000 like clockwork in Annapolis; get well covered by the Baltimore & Washington media. Will draw big attention when good. Can be a draw to a good segment of the national audience regualarly.

These 8 in my opinion ... are above the bottom layer of the Big 5. Duke, Wake. Syracuse. BC. Kansas. Washington State (maybe rising soon with Leach). maybe Colorado. Vanderbilt & Northwestern have risen off this category in recent years. Indiana???
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the NEXT 4 are all in need of some Strategic work. Just a good distance from the above 8.


9a) Houston - They seem to be able to draw a good 32,000 to their own place ... pretty easy this year. If they don't get back to where they were in 2011, does this stick. I don't know. Houston is building a new State-of-the Art facility; that 's great. But ... aren't we all wondering whether, after Briles then Sumlin, whether Levine was a good solid choice? After firing the OC after one game ... a move I liked ... they look like a definite work-in-process. They many never get back to where they've been. Playing at Reliant Stadium? Neutral - fine. But, they got the same 32,000 they got on campus ... approximate. Obvious talent. Like a lot of places, lots to do in Houston for entertainment/sports.

9b) SMU - They have a great schedule. Simple. But they have NOT captured the imagination of their community NOR their students. You would think a June Jones would be fun to watch. And, that Ford Stadium is a very nice facility with ample talent in their neighborhood. They played OK today against a good TCU team; but made far too many mistakes. SMU was better than you are giving them credit for from what I saw. They are in a weird year ... and I also don't get Gilbert. Future? They are another wildcard. Will they ever move to another level. I'd be betting against them.

9c) Temple - I like what I am hearing with Addazio & the Temple Program. They are really upgrading their recruiting pitch. Their facilities have been improved dramatically in the most recent years. And, they play a good brand of tough football. Coyer is fun to watch. I just don't think they know how to get greater Philly on board. Simple. I don't see how their future is all that impressive. I have some notion that they have put some good foundation in, however.

12) SDSU - Against North Dakota & San Jose State, they had 24,000 rattling around a Pro Stadium. They have had a long history of just keeping their head above water. It is so hard to capture the attention of a Southern Californa fanbase if you are exciting & winning. I think they play really good football ... I've seen them twice this year. But, I frankly have less hope that they will catch fire than Temple or Houston or SMU.


13) Memphis - may be the worst FBS team. Ok fine. But, for a really suck team, they draw OK. Almost 40,000 in a storm for their first game; 28k for Middle Tennessee. What IF ?? Easy to wonder what Providence was thiinking.

And if BYU was in this ranking? Might be number 1. Honestly. They draw 60,000 and they have a built in audience. On the field, they now play an exciting style ... and a great schedule for what they could as an independant.

Air Force ... I think the Service Academies are fine. They draw. And, the Michigans ... the Alabamas ... the Floridas will want to play them.

Fresno, Nevada, UNLV ... as a baseline versus San Diego State & Memphis? The first two are playing better. A good distance away from the first 8. Who else? Western Kentucky Ohio??? Big gap.​

 

[Dann]

Utsa hawaii ecu smiss uab tulane latech ulm tulsa a school from nm utah st colo st fresno

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Pudge,

The Big East and to some extent the ACC and MWC have always been a different value proposition for TV than the other leagues. The Big 4 leagues have the tradition, the big time programs, and the 60k+ in the stands every weekend (less so for the Pac 12 than the other 3 in attendance). The ACC attendance is less, and the Big East, even less. The Big East schools don't have the die hard fans in the stands, but they do have the casual fans watching on TV.

How does a TV network monetize 80k in the stands at an SEC game? It doesn't. Furthermore, what is the value to advertisers of the Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana markets? The SEC draws eyeballs, because it is a national brand, not a local one. The B1G has value because it is an incredibly powerful local brand in a region that still matters, at least for the next 15 years or so. The Big East is a weak local brand, in a region that is incredibly valuable. I don't have statistics for this, but I suspect that Lexus or BMW sell more cars in Connecticut than they do in Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana combined.

So the Big East addresses attractive markets, that are valuable to advertisers even with relatively shallow penetration. The Big East competes on the gridiron, because as we see this and every year, there is way too much talent out there for a few teams to corner the market. A good coach and an innovative system can find the players to compete at the highest level. The future Big East teams were added primarily for their market attractiveness, following a historically successful strategy for the conference. SDSU will never draw 50k fans consistently, no matter how good they get. But could they get a 5+ rating in the San Diego/Orange County/LA market if they were 10-1 going into the last weekend in a big matchup against Boise or Cincinnati? Absolutely. And with the talent in southern California, San Diego State will have access to the players, but in a better league than they have been in historically. A good coach would make a huge difference (see Steve Fisher).