The View From Section 241 -- the NBE

[jrazz12]

The athletic department is not a one program operation.

I believe in the strength of our athletic programs, our national brand and reputation, our TV pull across multiple programs in the largest media market in the world and more, and our ability to not only survive but thrive as an independent program in this ridiculous and shifting college sports landscape.

Apparently you do not, and you'd rather throw a pity party for yourself over one program, rather than be confident and supportive of the viability of that very program. The irony abounds.

We either make it as an independent worthy of the top echelon of AD's, or we prove we never deserved the invite all along. Either way, we have our answer.

 

[John]

I believe in the strength of our athletic programs, our national brand and reputation, our TV pull across multiple programs in the largest media market in the world and more, and our ability to not only survive but thrive as an independent program in this ridiculous and shifting college sports landscape.

Apparently you do not, and you'd rather throw a pity party for yourself over one program, rather than be confident and supportive of the viability of that very program. The irony abounds.

We either make it as an independent worthy of the top echelon of AD's, or we prove we never deserved the invite all along. Either way, we have our answer.

Ironically the same can be said for your confidence in the basketball program.

 

[businesslawyer]

I believe in the strength of our athletic programs, our national brand and reputation, our TV pull across multiple programs in the largest media market in the world and more, and our ability to not only survive but thrive as an independent program in this ridiculous and shifting college sports landscape.

Apparently you do not, and you'd rather throw a pity party for yourself over one program, rather than be confident and supportive of the viability of that very program. The irony abounds.

We either make it as an independent worthy of the top echelon of AD's, or we prove we never deserved the invite all along. Either way, we have our answer.

That's totally nonsensical. There are at least two dozen P5 programs who couldn't make it as a football independent. Those are the schools we want to take on. Not Michigan and Alabama and Oklahoma.

 

[jrazz12]

That's totally nonsensical. There are at least two dozen P5 programs who couldn't make it as a football independent. Those are the schools we want to take on. Not Michigan and Alabama and Oklahoma.

And on Earth 2, we're already in that conference with the Marylands and Virginias and Iowas. Though I disagree they couldn't make independence work on their end.

But our reality was and is bleak any way you slice it. So as of last week, here are our options:

1) sit around and wait and monitor, because that's gone so well in the past. Stay in this southern misfit conference and swallow an absolutely atrocious media deal that once again screws us and locks us in for 13 years. Hemorrhage finances and first downs at alarming rates and pray that a historically mediocre Edsall can turn us into world beaters. Pray for a P5 to be impressed enough by a 7-5 football team to offer an invite if they expand in a couple of years, despite no legitimate business reason why they would now. Or,

2) move all sports to a fiscally beneficial and fan appropriate conference that we have history with that helps all programs but football and to a minimum detriment, baseball. Use our history with SNY to enter another lucrative contract in the metro area that showcases a number of our programs, coaches shows, etc, including a football team that now needs to schedule aggressively. Use our broadcast rights and men's and women's hoops scheduling to book football games we control against both regional and broader programs looking for NY influence. Allow the football program to recover with that selective scheduling. Take control of our future, for better or worse.

I don't really see a 3rd option, though I'd be open to hearing one. And if I'm choosing between rolling the dice with Randy and an unpredictable NCAA environment, or taking a proactive approach to our finances and program positioning, I'm choosing the latter all day.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

That's totally nonsensical. There are at least two dozen P5 programs who couldn't make it as a football independent. Those are the schools we want to take on. Not Michigan and Alabama and Oklahoma.

UConn has had approximately 17 years to get someone to invite UConn to a major conference. In that time, UConn won 3 National Championships in men's basketball, 7 in women's basketball, and made a BCS bowl. During that time, 15 schools have joined P5 conferences, some of them with dogscalito athletic programs (see Colorado), and most of them with decidedly mediocre programs (pretty much all the rest). Yet they were invited to the big time, and we were not.

UConn is like the 30 year old middle reliever that is still in AA hoping for the call up. It is time to move on. We are not getting into a P5 conference.

 

[businesslawyer]

UConn has had approximately 17 years to get someone to invite UConn to a major conference. In that time, UConn won 3 National Championships in men's basketball, 7 in women's basketball, and made a BCS bowl. During that time, 15 schools have joined P5 conferences, some of them with dogscalito athletic programs (see Colorado), and most of them with decidedly mediocre programs (pretty much all the rest). Yet they were invited to the big time, and we were not.

UConn is like the 30 year old middle reliever that is still in AA hoping for the call up. It is time to move on. We are not getting into a P5 conference.

Not close to the point. But thanks.

 

[businesslawyer]

And on Earth 2, we're already in that conference with the Marylands and Virginias and Iowas. Though I disagree they couldn't make independence work on their end.

But our reality was and is bleak any way you slice it. So as of last week, here are our options:

1) sit around and wait and monitor, because that's gone so well in the past. Stay in this southern misfit conference and swallow an absolutely atrocious media deal that once again screws us and locks us in for 13 years. Hemorrhage finances and first downs at alarming rates and pray that a historically mediocre Edsall can turn us into world beaters. Pray for a P5 to be impressed enough by a 7-5 football team to offer an invite if they expand in a couple of years, despite no legitimate business reason why they would now. Or,

2) move all sports to a fiscally beneficial and fan appropriate conference that we have history with that helps all programs but football and to a minimum detriment, baseball. Use our history with SNY to enter another lucrative contract in the metro area that showcases a number of our programs, coaches shows, etc, including a football team that now needs to schedule aggressively. Use our broadcast rights and men's and women's hoops scheduling to book football games we control against both regional and broader programs looking for NY influence. Allow the football program to recover with that selective scheduling. Take control of our future, for better or worse.

I don't really see a 3rd option, though I'd be open to hearing one. And if I'm choosing between rolling the dice with Randy and an unpredictable NCAA environment, or taking a proactive approach to our finances and program positioning, I'm choosing the latter all day.

Except that's not the choice. In option one, the choice is to spend more money, make better hires and win again. Not just to sit still and be the worst team in football history. who was urging that? In option two, you are presenting a scenario that there is no reason to think exists for football. Dimauro and Waylon (boy, those three words hurt) have it right. The choice has been made to get rid of FBS football. The leaders just don't have the balls to say it. Instead, they're pulling the plug on the lifesaving devices and getting ready to say the patient died of natural causes.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Except that's not the choice. In option one, the choice is to spend more money, make better hires and win again. Not just to sit still and be the worst team in football history. who was urging that? In option two, you are presenting a scenario that there is no reason to think exists for football. Dimauro and Waylon (boy, those three words hurt) have it right. The choice has been made to get rid of FBS football. The leaders just don't have the balls to say it. Instead, they're pulling the plug on the lifesaving devices and getting ready to say the patient died of natural causes.

I think independence is an upgrade for the football program over the AAC. I have been consistent on that for years, and the results prove it. If we are looking for someone to blame for the death of the football program, it should be anyone that was against joining the Big East and going football independent 5-7 years ago.

 

[Padutch5]

Do you know anyone with kids under the age of 20? Youth football participation in the northeast is dropping dramatically, and that trend will only continue. If a test is ever developed to diagnose CTE in living people, football will become a fringe sport. I think we are 5-10 years from a major high school in the state of Connecticut shutting its football program down because of head injuries.

If it is ever determined that universities knew the prevalence of CTE in their players and buried the information, university presidents and athletic directors could go to jail.

Football will not be driving the bus for much longer.

I only disagree with you on one thing. It will not take 5to 10 years for a major high school to shut down football. Schools across the state are seeing their numbers of football players decline while lacrosse and soccer squads are growing quickly. I was amazed at the season ticket holders around me at UCONN football who indicated they would not let their sons play football.

 

[Husky25]

Could this be step 1 to blowing it up?

 

[Excalibur]

I'm not guaranteeing it, but yes, I think it could be. Better than the current path of losing $40+ mill per year.

It only will make financial sense if they shutter the football program completely. Football’s losses will mount in independent status.

 

[upstater]

I went back to add to the post...

If the P5 loses their amateur status, they will have to compensate the players. That's a huge expense for dwindling revenues and no reason for colleges and universities to foot that bill (but also hopefully no avenue to regain access to the NCAA. As has been posted recently, Spite is a powerful reaction). It will truly make "collegiate" football a semi-pro endeavor.

Philly is an east coast city. The Midwest starts at Pittsburgh. I truly don't know what their attitude is, but my guess is no. All of those major cities have franchises at the highest level.

Again, it is a pipedream, but if college football burns itself down, with the ever-growing concerns of CTE, it may spell the end of the game as we know it. Contingent on what happens with UConn, I kinda wouldn't mind if that came to pass.

I mention Philly because it is Penn State's base.

 

[Excalibur]

Right. I guess Ollie was a terrible coach too, even though he is one of the fastest coaches to a championship in history. And Auriemma must suck at his job too because that program is struggling to recruit now.

How long did it take Pasqualoni to get a job after UConn fired him? Apparently the NFL didn't share our opinion of him. Is it possible that it wasn't the coaches' fault?

Especially since quite a few of us predicted years ago that all three programs would struggle in the AAC?

Nelson thinks Ollie was great. Got it.

 

[Adios]

So what? We recruit PA all the time. And NJ, Maryland, Florida and Texas. All FBS schools recruit nationwide.

We've played USF in the original BE and the AAC. Up until this downturn for the past few seasons our record against them was very competitive. We beat Louisville on the road when Tedy Bridgewater was their QB, and we were a mediocre team.

We can compete, our administration has just quit on the program, which is ironic because they're the ones who are responsible for where it is today. It seems like sabotaging the program has been their goal all along.

Basketball fans: "Waaaaaa, we don't like teams in the AAC, waaaaaaa. We failed at football!!!!!1!1"

It's amazing how dense and in denial humans can be. For a New Big East schedule.

"YEAH MAN, PLAYING PROVIDENCE COLLEGE IS GONNA BE LIKE GOING TO THE FINAL FOUR AGAIN!!!1@1"

 

[Excalibur]

1/27/2007 FSN New York

Providence

L 72–84

13–7 (2–5)

Hartford Civic Center (16,294) Hartford, Connecticut

Dumb. Twelve years ago is irrelevant, and that number is tickets sold in an era where 95 percent of the attendees were season-ticket holders. That stopped before the AAC came around.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Nelson thinks Ollie was great. Got it.

Excalibur thinks Auriemma sucks. Got it.

 

[Adios]

You keep repeating yourself - if it was so easy to get the right staff every piss poor program would do it. There's been three shots at it post RE1 and it's been 3 whiffs and the program has prevailing headwinds that other programs may not have - budget, recent history, location, support, etc, etc.

Come on man have just be a little honest with yourself. It's not that easy.

Cincy and Temple have been having luck. Cincys present run started with Rick Minter. They were historically garbage before, if I am correct.

Competent coaches go a long way but seems difficult for us to find as of recently.

Look at how Randy presents himself now. As if he's the answer. Not saying I agree with him but recruiting is getting back to where it was, and we could have been a middling team in the AAC at worst. ECU got into the conference on their merits in football. But they're not doing well in the conference so far, as well.

 

[gtcam]

1/27/2007 FSN New York

Providence

L 72–84

13–7 (2–5)

Hartford Civic Center (16,294) Hartford, Connecticut

Were you really there in 2007?, I was. And you did cherry pick that game for your purpose
It's a game vs PC those games always sold out and would today - witness the "charity game" at the casino 2 years ago
Look at UConn vs DePaul, The Hall, even St Johns and BC in the down years - not close to sell outs
Yes there will be an uptick in the 1st year but if UConn doesn't improve or the competition lacks interest the crowds won't come - especially to the XL
And if you are here just to piss on the football team, take your buddy BY#### and head back to where your heart and head live - in UConn basketball only
It's a shame there are fans and especially alumni who think like you

 

[Excalibur]

Excalibur thinks Auriemma sucks. Got it.

Possibly your dumbest post ever.

So only a Geno could have competed in the American. Got it.

By the way, none of the WBB “rivals” are in the new big east. This move does nothing for Geno from a competitive or recruiting standpoint.

 

[Chief00]

I should say as well - I didn't mean my post as a "aha! got ya!", even though it obviously came off that way. You're a respected poster on here. Just wanted to apologize for that.

I am predicting that Gampel will go back to being a consistent sell out and that the XL Center will be in the teens for league play and sell out for the bigger games. I think those points are both very fair.

I really think this is going to invigorate the fanbase, particularly h/t @Chief00 the casual fan, who probably makes up 90% of the arena as opposed to the 10% of us diehards on here (many of which, self included, don't live in the state anymore).

Interesting % of Casual Fans. Regardless of the exact number it’s clear they are essential to success. That’s why Chief has always advocated and tried to accommodate the Casual Fans. Granted, it can be frustrating or annoying at times - but big picture we must make it work.

 

[Hornet22]

Pasqualoni is not a good head coach in college football anymore. He proved that at Syracuse in the end and UConn.

This is a silly argument that you have made.

Ollie won a flukey championship with Calhoun’s leavings.

Similar to Chucky (Gruden) in Tampa winning the chip with Dungey’s team.

 

[businesslawyer]

Interesting % of Casual Fans. Regardless of the exact number it’s clear they are essential to success. That’s why Chief has always advocated and tried to accommodate the Casual Fans. Granted, it can be frustrating or annoying at times - but big picture we must make it work.

I'm sorry -- in my thread all fans, casual or otherwise, UNDERSTAND THAT YOU CAN'T TALK ABOUT YOURSELF IN THE THIRD PERSON.

Grow up.

 

[Husky25]

Similar to Chucky (Gruden) in Tampa winning the chip with Dungey’s team.

Gruden won vs. his old team. There is a John Lynch Super Bowl soundbite where he says the Tampa Defense knew exactly what Oakland was doing. Bill Callahan didn't change Gruden's signals.

 

[ZooCougar]

Gruden won vs. his old team. There is a John Lynch Super Bowl soundbite where he says the Tampa Defense knew exactly what Oakland was doing. Bill Callahan didn't change Gruden's signals.

There’s no way he could be that incompetent.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

Were you really there in 2007?, I was. And you did cherry pick that game for your purpose
It's a game vs PC those games always sold out and would today - witness the "charity game" at the casino 2 years ago
Look at UConn vs DePaul, The Hall, even St Johns and BC in the down years - not close to sell outs
Yes there will be an uptick in the 1st year but if UConn doesn't improve or the competition lacks interest the crowds won't come - especially to the XL
And if you are here just to piss on the football team, take your buddy BY#### and head back to where your heart and head live - in UConn basketball only
It's a shame there are fans and especially alumni who think like you

Lmfao. Never thought Id see a grown man so triggered by the attendance number from a basketball game 12 years ago.

The post I was replying to said quite literally that a 13-7 UConn playing Providence in January wouldn't draw better than ECU or USF.

Not sure why you and @Excalibur had mental breakdowns over it.

 

[Nostical]

Why not BYU? You're not serious, are you? Delusion won't solve any of our problems.

Not literally "BYU" but we can certainly do better than the doomsayers are predicting. It's not delusional to believe that when the dust settles this football program can remain viable. Don't be shocked if we get a better TV deal than anticipated and more scheduling help from FOX than presumed.

 

[Excalibur]

There’s a lot of stupidity being thrown around here depending on how you feel about this move. I think a few things need to be cleared up:

1) The AAC is not and will not be as good a basketball conference as the New Big East. Furthermore, basketball outside of the top P5 programs is a regional recruiting game, and playing in a southern conference is an issue if you are recruiting mainly in the Northeast.

2) that said, the conference situation was an impediment to our success in MBB, but nowhere near the main cause of our recent disaster seasons. Similar story for football. Pasqualoni failed before the AAC, with teams that had talent.

3) Football independence will not be better, either from a financial or competitiveness standpoint. Stop thinking that it will be.

4) this doesn’t help or hurt the women’s team. Both conferences are bad, and we recruit nationally not regionally.

5) if a split does come between the p5 and everyone else, nobody will bat an eyelash save for a few local media folks if the Big East isn't included. More likely scenario is that there is no split, but the competitive imbalance will increase with the NBE being on the wrong side of it.

 

[whaler11]

There’s a lot of stupidity being thrown around here depending on how you feel about this move. I think a few things need to be cleared up:

1) The AAC is not and will not be as good a basketball conference as the New Big East. Furthermore, basketball outside of the top P5 programs is a regional recruiting game, and playing in a southern conference is an issue if you are recruiting mainly in the Northeast.

2) that said, the conference situation was an impediment to our success in MBB, but nowhere near the main cause of our recent disaster seasons. Similarly story for football. Pasqualoni failed before the AAC, with teams that had talent.

3) Football independence will not be better, either from a financial or competitiveness standpoint. Stop thinking that it will be.

4) this doesn’t help or hurt the women’s team. Both conferences are bad, and we recruit nationally not regionally.

5) if a split does come between the p5 and everyone else, nobody will bat an eyelash save for a few local media folks if the Big East isn't included. More likely scenario is that there is no split, but the competitive imbalance will increase with the NBE being on the wrong side of it.

How can they be less competitive in football.

Did people stop watching like 5 years ago?

 

[Excalibur]

How can they be less competitive in football.

Did people stop watching like 5 years ago?

We’ve been saying “it can’t get worse” for 6 years. It can always get worse. We can get blown out playing a worse schedule with 7-8 road games per year.

 

[whaler11]

We’ve been saying “it can’t get worse” for 6 years. It can always get worse. We can get blown out playing a worse schedule with 7-8 road games per year.

it probably can’t get worse than last year. this year will probably be similiar.

how was pulling a warde going to improve things?