If true, and Memphis and Cincinnati are off to the B12, this could open up a spot in the AAC for Umass.
If Umass is added, it becomes an annual AAC game, and it would be good for both schools as well as good for New England College football too.
Umass football is in its infancy in attempting to move up the college pecking order, and it needs a local rival in football. BC won't ( or can't) fill that role. But Umass could. As a Massachusetts , born and raised, sports fan, I'd like to see these 2 N.E. Public schools in the same football league and playing each other each fall. Its better than watching BC- Wake Forest anyway. So this COULD be good news for those that would like to see a New England College Football rivalry perhaps take form now.. An annual Umass- Uconn football game is WAY better and potentially far more attractive in the future moving forward than an annual Uconn- SMU, or Uconn- Tulane football game, imo.
If true, and Memphis and Cincinnati are off to the B12, this could open up a spot in the AAC for Umass.
If Umass is added, it becomes an annual AAC game, and it would be good for both schools as well as good for New England College football too.
Umass football is in its infancy in attempting to move up the college pecking order, and it needs a local rival in football. BC won't ( or can't) fill that role. But Umass could. As a Massachusetts , born and raised, sports fan, I'd like to see these 2 N.E. Public schools in the same football league and playing each other each fall. Its better than watching BC- Wake Forest anyway. So this COULD be good news for those that would like to see a New England College Football rivalry perhaps take form now.. An annual Umass- Uconn football game is WAY better and potentially far more attractive in the future moving forward than an annual Uconn- SMU, or Uconn- Tulane football game, imo.
Get out of my face with this steaming pile of silver lined bullsht.If true, and Memphis and Cincinnati are off to the B12, this could open up a spot in the AAC for Umass.
If Umass is added, it becomes an annual AAC game, and it would be good for both schools as well as good for New England College football too.
Umass football is in its infancy in attempting to move up the college pecking order, and it needs a local rival in football. BC won't ( or can't) fill that role. But Umass could. As a Massachusetts , born and raised, sports fan, I'd like to see these 2 N.E. Public schools in the same football league and playing each other each fall. Its better than watching BC- Wake Forest anyway. So this COULD be good news for those that would like to see a New England College Football rivalry perhaps take form now.. An annual Umass- Uconn football game is WAY better and potentially far more attractive in the future moving forward than an annual Uconn- SMU, or Uconn- Tulane football game, imo.
Are you implying that Memphis Football is competent and UCONN Football is not? If so, then you must believe one or two years defines a program.It is an interesting rumor - it would surprise me, but not completely shock me. It's at least in the plausible category (unlike those old rumors of the Big 12 going after Florida State). The threshold question for me is whether the Big 12 wants to expand at all in the first place.
To be sure, football still does matter here. You have to look at the whole football-related picture just like Rutgers. Rutgers certainly doesn't have a great on-the-field football history. However, the state of New Jersey was the largest non-Sun Belt/Southern football recruiting base (which, along with TV markets, is what commissioners like Jim Delany is really referring to when they talk about "demographics") that wasn't already in the Big Ten. #2 on that list was the state of Maryland. Those certainly weren't the ONLY factors involved (as the TV markets were the number one consideration for the B1G), but they were big ones that university presidents and ADs have actually been very open about. So, it was still a football-driven expansion for the Big Ten even if marquee football programs weren't necessarily added.
In the same vein, the Memphis area is also one of the strongest per capita football recruiting regions in the country. In fact, both Memphis and Cincinnati would instantly be the two best football recruiting areas in the Big 12 outside of the state of Texas.
At the same time, Memphis has shown to be at least football *competent* this year. Any school with a great hoops fan base (which includes UConn, Memphis, UNLV, New Mexico, San Diego State, etc.) combined with competent football becomes more intriguing in conference realignment. The football program just can't be down in the dumps horrific or else even the greatest basketball in the world can't compensate for that. Too many schools that I've listed above have the great hoops fan base, but not the competent football.
If true, and Memphis and Cincinnati are off to the B12, this could open up a spot in the AAC for Umass.
If Umass is added, it becomes an annual AAC game, and it would be good for both schools as well as good for New England College football too.
How does this benefit us? All it does is force the AAC to add 2 more schools to get back to 12.
I agree with PJ that it's unlikely the B12 would go past 12 & if they did it is doubtful UConn is on the list.
Get ready for Aresco to announce Umass & ODU joining the AAC
I will probably pick up voodoo and spend my days needling at Swofford and every BC alumni/administrator I can individually identify.
If true, and Memphis and Cincinnati are off to the B12, this could open up a spot in the AAC for Umass.
If Umass is added, it becomes an annual AAC game, and it would be good for both schools as well as good for New England College football too.
Umass football is in its infancy in attempting to move up the college pecking order, and it needs a local rival in football. BC won't ( or can't) fill that role. But Umass could. As a Massachusetts , born and raised, sports fan, I'd like to see these 2 N.E. Public schools in the same football league and playing each other each fall. Its better than watching BC- Wake Forest anyway. So this COULD be good news for those that would like to see a New England College Football rivalry perhaps take form now.. An annual Umass- Uconn football game is WAY better and potentially far more attractive in the future moving forward than an annual Uconn- SMU, or Uconn- Tulane football game, imo.
It is an interesting rumor - it would surprise me, but not completely shock me. It's at least in the plausible category (unlike those old rumors of the Big 12 going after Florida State). The threshold question for me is whether the Big 12 wants to expand at all in the first place.
To be sure, football still does matter here. You have to look at the whole football-related picture just like Rutgers. Rutgers certainly doesn't have a great on-the-field football history. However, the state of New Jersey was the largest non-Sun Belt/Southern football recruiting base (which, along with TV markets, is what commissioners like Jim Delany is really referring to when they talk about "demographics") that wasn't already in the Big Ten. #2 on that list was the state of Maryland. Those certainly weren't the ONLY factors involved (as the TV markets were the number one consideration for the B1G), but they were big ones that university presidents and ADs have actually been very open about. So, it was still a football-driven expansion for the Big Ten even if marquee football programs weren't necessarily added.
In the same vein, the Memphis area is also one of the strongest per capita football recruiting regions in the country. In fact, both Memphis and Cincinnati would instantly be the two best football recruiting areas in the Big 12 outside of the state of Texas.
At the same time, Memphis has shown to be at least football *competent* this year. Any school with a great hoops fan base (which includes UConn, Memphis, UNLV, New Mexico, San Diego State, etc.) combined with competent football becomes more intriguing in conference realignment. The football program just can't be down in the dumps horrific or else even the greatest basketball in the world can't compensate for that. Too many schools that I've listed above have the great hoops fan base, but not the competent football.
If true, and Memphis and Cincinnati are off to the B12, this could open up a spot in the AAC for Umass.
If Umass is added, it becomes an annual AAC game, and it would be good for both schools as well as good for New England College football too.
Umass football is in its infancy in attempting to move up the college pecking order, and it needs a local rival in football. BC won't ( or can't) fill that role. But Umass could. As a Massachusetts , born and raised, sports fan, I'd like to see these 2 N.E. Public schools in the same football league and playing each other each fall. Its better than watching BC- Wake Forest anyway. So this COULD be good news for those that would like to see a New England College Football rivalry perhaps take form now.. An annual Umass- Uconn football game is WAY better and potentially far more attractive in the future moving forward than an annual Uconn- SMU, or Uconn- Tulane football game, imo.
Don't hold your breath, because you won't get anything other than "stay the course" / "monitoring the situation" type comments - the chances UConn will could receive a BXII invite are close to zero. And that would still be true even if we cloned twenty Tom Jurich's and had them all running the UConn AD, board of trustees, president's office and got them elected as CT's governor and lieutenant governor. Our only hope to get in that conference would be a big expansion going for the East Coast with Temple/Cincy/ECU, which I would put at 0.01%.If this gains more traction and end of March Madness is expected announcement date, it gives Warden and Susan plenty of time to show they can be competent. Whether it's getting us in some P5 or leapfrog Memphis like Louisville did to us 2 years ago, the clock will be ticking. Any stay the course comments are failures in my book.
Will wait to see if this gains any more legs before truly worrying anymore.