realignment nightmare

[Bald Husky]

Football, football, football. How in the world did we get to this point, where football is controlling all college sports, not just football. Who is running these universities, the Presidents, Chancelors, or is it the Athletic directors? Next year the BIG10 will have 18 teams, the SEC will have 16. They are not conferences now, but alliances. How can athletic departments afford for all sports to travel across the country for a soccer game, or a track meet, or a volleyball match? Ridiculous, but the sign of the times. The Big East isn't really hurt by this because of no football (don't say UConn, at least not yet). The ACC is in trouble because of their TV package, with some teams threatening to leave. Well, let them leave, because these teams are all about football, and sorry ACC, but basketball is what the conference is known for, not football. To get with the times, I believe that the ACC should merge with the Big East. The ACC was always the best basketball conference in the country, and the Big East is all about basketball. The ACC can play football during the fall, while the Big East and the rest of the ACC can compete in all other sports. By merging, UConn will be able to revive the great rivalries with Notre Dame, Louisville, Syracuse, VT, and that hated school, Boston College. This would be the best college basketball conference in America, hands down, and would put UConn in a P5 league, where they should have been all along. Things are happening fast, and the ACC has to see the handwriting on the wall before they end up like the PAC12. This would be the best, and frankly, the only scenario for UConn.

 

[oldude]

In recent days UConn has been listed as a potential candidate for the ACC should FSU, Clemson and other Big Time football schools leave the conference for the SEC. But don’t be mistaken, any school that the ACC brings in must have a D1 football program. So that basically leaves out anyone else in the BE from making that jump.

 

[Bald Husky]

In recent days UConn has been listed as a potential candidate for the ACC should FSU, Clemson and other Big Time football schools leave the conference for the SEC. But don’t be mistaken, any school that the ACC brings in must have a D1 football program. So that basically leaves out anyone else in the BE from making that jump.

The reason to merge would be to ensure that the conference would survive, for all sports, not just football. There aren't any more football schools left for them to bring in, unless they raid the mid-majors. They still have enough football schools to make the conference viable, but they may not be able to survive as a major conference unless they expand, like the BIG10, SEC, and the BIG12. What happened this past year is a little scary to me, as true conferences may be going away.

 

[Ozimoto]

Football drives TV contracts which in turn drives athletic department revenue. Until NCAA basketball can generate the TV packages that football does, football will remain king and basketball only schools will be left to fight over the scraps. Beyond the national "power" leagues (I agree they aren't really "conferences" anymore) rising travel costs, most schools will have to return to smaller, more compact regional conferences for non-revenue sports to survive (using regional divisions within conferences would help somewhat).

As the better talent gets drained by the super leagues, (more TV exposure, more NIL opportunities, ease of transfer) the entire face of college athletics will change and the overall opportunities for athletes that don't play football or basketball are going to become more and more limited. They will have to as athletic department budgets become more strained. Non revenue sports will start to disappear or become club level enterprises. If you like the concept of student athlete vs. athlete student, that might not be a bad thing in the long run.

 

[Rowdy831]

Football, football, football. How in the world did we get to this point, where football is controlling all college sports, not just football. Who is running these universities, the Presidents, Chancelors, or is it the Athletic directors? Next year the BIG10 will have 18 teams, the SEC will have 16. They are not conferences now, but alliances. How can athletic departments afford for all sports to travel across the country for a soccer game, or a track meet, or a volleyball match? Ridiculous, but the sign of the times. The Big East isn't really hurt by this because of no football (don't say UConn, at least not yet). The ACC is in trouble because of their TV package, with some teams threatening to leave. Well, let them leave, because these teams are all about football, and sorry ACC, but basketball is what the conference is known for, not football. To get with the times, I believe that the ACC should merge with the Big East. The ACC was always the best basketball conference in the country, and the Big East is all about basketball. The ACC can play football during the fall, while the Big East and the rest of the ACC can compete in all other sports. By merging, UConn will be able to revive the great rivalries with Notre Dame, Louisville, Syracuse, VT, and that hated school, Boston College. This would be the best college basketball conference in America, hands down, and would put UConn in a P5 league, where they should have been all along. Things are happening fast, and the ACC has to see the handwriting on the wall before they end up like the PAC12. This would be the best, and frankly, the only scenario for UConn.

You can have the best BB program in the land and it still won't make enough revenue to pay for all the other athletic programs at your school. Football is the sport people watch on TV and the one advertisers are willing to pay millions to be a part of each weekend. It is the sport TV companies pay multiple billions to get the rights to broadcast to the fans. When you don't have a viable football program no major conference is going to bring you in and share their football revenue.

If UConn wants to be a viable athletic department (financially) they need to put a ton of resources into football and hope the team rises to the level of interest for the big conferences. Like you pointed out it won't be long until there is only going to be 2 or 3 in the whole country and you will have to be a part of those to get part of a lucrative national TV deal.

 

[Skeets]

Except maybe for UConn, absorbing any Big East team into a power conference alliance makes absolutely no sense. A mid major would bring more to the table than a Big East non-UConn school.

A couple of years ago there was some talk about Villanova going D1 in football. I guess nothing became of that?

 

[Kolumbo]

Football, football, football. How in the world did we get to this point, where football is controlling all college sports, not just football. Who is running these universities, the Presidents, Chancelors, or is it the Athletic directors? Next year the BIG10 will have 18 teams, the SEC will have 16. They are not conferences now, but alliances. How can athletic departments afford for all sports to travel across the country for a soccer game, or a track meet, or a volleyball match? Ridiculous, but the sign of the times. The Big East isn't really hurt by this because of no football (don't say UConn, at least not yet). The ACC is in trouble because of their TV package, with some teams threatening to leave. Well, let them leave, because these teams are all about football, and sorry ACC, but basketball is what the conference is known for, not football. To get with the times, I believe that the ACC should merge with the Big East. The ACC was always the best basketball conference in the country, and the Big East is all about basketball. The ACC can play football during the fall, while the Big East and the rest of the ACC can compete in all other sports. By merging, UConn will be able to revive the great rivalries with Notre Dame, Louisville, Syracuse, VT, and that hated school, Boston College. This would be the best college basketball conference in America, hands down, and would put UConn in a P5 league, where they should have been all along. Things are happening fast, and the ACC has to see the handwriting on the wall before they end up like the PAC12. This would be the best, and frankly, the only scenario for UConn.

This makes perfect sense and I agree, except for the part where it should have read, "The Big East was always the best basketball conference in the country, and the ACC is all about basketball"

The ACC football schools would have to accept that they would be a distant 4th conference and at a big $$ disadvantage, and I don't think they will accept that any time soon. The additions of Calford and SMU make no sense, the ACC is completely off the rails.

 

[DFW HOYA]

In recent days UConn has been listed as a potential candidate for the ACC should FSU, Clemson and other Big Time football schools leave the conference for the SEC. But don’t be mistaken, any school that the ACC brings in must have a D1 football program. So that basically leaves out anyone else in the BE from making that jump.

Butler, Georgetown, and Villanova all have Division I football programs, albeit in FCS.

 

[Chin Diesel]

When you start off a discussion/argument with this statement: "Football, football, football. How in the world did we get to this point, where football is controlling all college sports, not just football. ", there's really no need to read any further.

It's obvious that whomever makes that statement has not been following college athletics for the past 30 years and any discussion points are going to be old and outdated.

 

[Stinger92860]

Since we are dreaming in this thread, I believe there should be football only and basketball only conferences. These conferences should split from the NCAA. The Olympic sports can go back to being regional. I know this potentially hurts baseball at a school like UConn, but football and basketball bring in the lions share of revenue. Taking basketball from the NCAA also provides 900 million of yearly revenue placing basketball on par with football. We do it now for Hockey and it may be the future anyway.

 

[CajunHusky]

Since we are dreaming in this thread, I believe there should be football only and basketball only conferences. These conferences should split from the NCAA. The Olympic sports can go back to being regional. I know this potentially hurts baseball at a school like UConn, but football and basketball bring in the lions share of revenue. Taking basketball from the NCAA also provides 900 million of yearly revenue placing basketball on par with football. We do it now for Hockey and it may be the future anyway.

schools should be allowed to associate individual sports with conferences that meet their competitive reality.

The networks and big football conferences are going to fight this though. Contracts bundle along with football broadcast rights the "lesser sports" because networks need the programming to fill off season air time.

The Power 5 Football revolution ruined collegiate sports.

 

[oldude]

The reason to merge would be to ensure that the conference would survive, for all sports, not just football. There aren't any more football schools left for them to bring in, unless they raid the mid-majors. They still have enough football schools to make the conference viable, but they may not be able to survive as a major conference unless they expand, like the BIG10, SEC, and the BIG12. What happened this past year is a little scary to me, as true conferences may be going away.

You’re suggesting reconstituting the ACC just like the OBE, with football and non-football members. Just like the OBE, the football members will eventually seek greener pastures ($$$).

There are a number of schools with D1 football programs that have been mentioned as potential candidates for a restructured ACC, including two leftovers from the Pac12, several remaining members of the AAC, as well as UMASS.

UMass is an interesting example for a school like UConn. They are a football independent playing in the non-football A-10 conference. UMass just bolted the A-10 for the football playing MAC, a mid-major D1 conference. The move was entirely about football, and I have no doubt that if UMass is subsequently offered an opportunity to jump to the ACC, they would do so in a heartbeat.

 

[oldude]

Butler, Georgetown, and Villanova all have Division I football programs, albeit in FCS.

Big difference between FCS and FBS.

 

[Kolumbo]

You’re suggesting reconstituting the ACC just like the OBE, with football and non-football members. Just like the OBE, the football members will eventually seek greener pastures ($$$).

There are a number of schools with D1 football programs that have been mentioned as potential candidates for a restructured ACC, including two leftovers from the Pac12, several remaining members of the AAC, as well as UMASS.

UMass is an interesting example for a school like UConn. They are a football independent playing in the non-football A-10 conference. UMass just bolted the A-10 for the football playing MAC, a mid-major D1 conference. The move was entirely about football, and I have no doubt that if UMass is subsequently offered an opportunity to jump to the ACC, they would do so in a heartbeat.

Yes, but there are only so many pastures and they are crowded.

The Big East grew organically because the East Coast is different than the rest of the country. Highly populated with many Universities, some play football, some don't. ESPN came in and blew up the Big East. Now we come full circle, back to what brought football and basketball schools together in the first place.

 

[oldude]

Yes, but there are only so many pastures and they are crowded.

The Big East grew organically because the East Coast is different than the rest of the country. Highly populated with many Universities, some play football, some don't. ESPN came in and blew up the Big East. Now we come full circle, back to what brought football and basketball schools together in the first place.

Certainly, a hybrid ACC that incorporates all of the BE teams would be the best of all worlds for UConn and the rest of the BE. But I just don’t see it happening.

 

[billybud]

Maybe the best to hope for is a P2 football only forming leagues as a breakaway from the NCAA .... a separation of football and basketball from "all sports" and the creation of basketball P2 leagues with appropriate media bankrolling....

Other sports could go to regional conferences....

 

[uconnyankee]

Is this like a newbie Conference Realignment thread?

 

[John]

Is this like a newbie Conference Realignment thread?

Women's board just realized there's been some schools changing conferences.

 

[jostar1]

Women's board just realized there's been some schools changing conferences.

I don't recognize the names.

 

[Stinger92860]

schools should be allowed to associate individual sports with conferences that meet their competitive reality.

The networks and big football conferences are going to fight this though. Contracts bundle along with football broadcast rights the "lesser sports" because networks need the programming to fill off season air time.

this is how schools like Rutgers, etc. will be left behind.

 

[WestCoastHusky]

Maybe the best to hope for is a P2 football only forming leagues as a breakaway from the NCAA .... a separation of football and basketball from "all sports" and the creation of basketball P2 leagues with appropriate media bankrolling....

Other sports could go to regional conferences....

This is the way to go. It is not fair for all the non revenue sports to be dragged into this.

Football only and basketball only conferences can be formed to model after the NFL and the NBA while other sports stay regional.

It will solve many problems we have today.

 

[JohnFSilver]

Football, football, football. How in the world did we get to this point, where football is controlling all college sports, not just football. Who is running these universities, the Presidents, Chancelors, or is it the Athletic directors? Next year the BIG10 will have 18 teams, the SEC will have 16. They are not conferences now, but alliances. How can athletic departments afford for all sports to travel across the country for a soccer game, or a track meet, or a volleyball match? Ridiculous, but the sign of the times. The Big East isn't really hurt by this because of no football (don't say UConn, at least not yet). The ACC is in trouble because of their TV package, with some teams threatening to leave. Well, let them leave, because these teams are all about football, and sorry ACC, but basketball is what the conference is known for, not football. To get with the times, I believe that the ACC should merge with the Big East. The ACC was always the best basketball conference in the country, and the Big East is all about basketball. The ACC can play football during the fall, while the Big East and the rest of the ACC can compete in all other sports. By merging, UConn will be able to revive the great rivalries with Notre Dame, Louisville, Syracuse, VT, and that hated school, Boston College. This would be the best college basketball conference in America, hands down, and would put UConn in a P5 league, where they should have been all along. Things are happening fast, and the ACC has to see the handwriting on the wall before they end up like the PAC12. This would be the best, and frankly, the only scenario for UConn.

Did you just realize this?

Breaking News, Abe Lincoln to be at Ford’s Theatre tonight.

 

[CajunHusky]

This is the way to go. It is not fair for all the non revenue sports to be dragged into this.

Football only and basketball only conferences can be formed to model after the NFL and the NBA while other sports stay regional.

It will solve many problems we have today.

or like EuroLeague/EuroCup .....

 

[Chin Diesel]

Did you just realize this?

Breaking News, Abe Lincoln to be at Ford’s Theatre tonight.

Heard the play has a killer plot.