UConn's proposed 2015 BE Division

[ZooCougar]

I'm really happy with the grouping. It gives us toeholds in TX, CA and TN for recruiting. It also gives us national exposure. My only disappointment is that Boise isn't in it. An added bonus for me is to finally be in a red division.

I love your sense of sarcasm. You are being sarcastic, right?

 

[ConnHuskBask]

Carl, you are insane.

You paint this out to be some grand plan coming to fruition through Big East leadsership.

Its not.

Its making the worse out a sh1tty situation. I don't care how you choose to interpret this dumpster fire.

As if we weren't already financially and competitively, now as fans we get to look forward to a home slate of San Diego State, SMU and Memphis.

That's just fcking awesome.

 

[Jimmy Serrano]

Carl, you are insane.

You paint this out to be some grand plan coming to fruition through Big East leadsership.

Its not.

Its making the worse out a sh1tty situation. I don't care how you choose to interpret this dumpster fire.

As if we weren't already financially and competitively, now as fans we get to look forward to a home slate of San Diego State, SMU and Memphis.

That's just fcking awesome.

I will give Carl credit. He's been consistent about this realignment stuff. Always trying to find the gold watch in the steaming pile.

 

[uconNYC]

Hate the zipper divisions. For those that say it will give us exposure in TX and CA - I think it actually overextends our recruiting. I rather be in a division with both USF, UCF and concentrate our non-northeast recruiting to Florida (possibly Georgia)

 

[ShakyTheMohel]

Maybe I am naive, but with Aresco in charge I am going to assume that whatever alignment we end up with is what is best for the conference. Although the 2015 alignment doesn't feel natural, Aresco is in charge and he knows what will help the conference get the best TV deal which means the best chance for conference long term viability.

The old BE regime...I would be much more skeptical. Until I see otherwise, I am going to trust that Aresco knows what he is doing.

 

[Adios]

The proposed divisions are absurd for 2015. If there is one thing that you can take to the bank if the Big East gets an opportunity to screw up they won't miss it.

Having Paul Tagliabue didn't prevent recent defections. Just saying. I could imagine presidents would have been listening to him over Marinatto.

 

[Carl Spackler]

Carl, you are insane.

You paint this out to be some grand plan coming to fruition through Big East leadsership.

Its not.

Its making the worse out a sh1tty situation. I don't care how you choose to interpret this dumpster fire.

As if we weren't already financially and competitively, now as fans we get to look forward to a home slate of San Diego State, SMU and Memphis.

That's just fcking awesome.

No, I'm not painting it to be anything other than it is. You just can't get over your wanderlust for WVU, Cuse and Pitt. I thought my description was pretty clear. 15 years ago, the UConn BOT voted to upgrade to 1-A football, based on an invitation extended by the Big East conference to join in 2005, and about a full year of feasibility study, most of which was headed up by Roy Kramer - former commish of the SEC, and founder of the BCS system. We joined a conference, who's leadership, led the conference from what it was in the 1990s, to what it became as of fall 2011. Our own university leadership went right along with it, to the point, where I was pretty clear, in September 2011, we were all standing around having had our shorts and underwear pulled down around our ankles in front of a huge crowd.

Our conference leadership, and our own university leadership has changed, and is doing the best they can with the hand they were dealt from teh past 15 years of activity.

I just prefer to look at things and find the positive, and see a ton of positive for the future here, for a program like ours, and make no mistake, understanding what our program really is, makes this conference look a lot better than it seems.

 

[jdb50]

Recruits from Texas, Florida, the west coast would get 2 trips home every 4 years minimum. I think we should go to 3 crossover games a year plus the 6 in division which would shorten the rotation. As for the home schedule we don't know how good SDSU, Memphis and SMU will be. Breaking out of our regional mentality has more upside for the conference. The travel to away games does become more difficult. Playing Navy and the option every year will be a pain in the neck.

 

[CL82]

Would it really have been that hard to go old school/new school?

East:
UConn
Rutgers
Cincy
Louisville
USF
UCF
Navy

West:
Boise
SDSU
SMU
Houston
Steaming pile of Memphis
Temple
Team TBD (hopefully BYU or Air Force)

How can you this up so badly?

That would be pretty much optimal. I could live with it even if they swapped UCF for Temple. But what's been proposed is a complete shitfest.

 

[Carl Spackler]

BTW - that 1996 feasibility study commissioned by Roy Kramer for upgrading UConn football, was very clear on two things. #1. UConn, had all the makings of a significant state college football program, that was similar to any of the other programs in the SEC or in other conferences around the country - and #2. The biggest danger to the future of UConn football, was to remain affiliated with an intercollegiate sports conference, that did not prioritize and understand the importance of football in athletics.

So if you don't like where we're at right now, you've got nobody to blame, but the former leadership of both our own university and our conference.

Thankfully, both have changed, and for the better, and they're playing the hand they were dealt, the best they can.

 

[Waquoit]

Nobody in that division scares me.

Spoken like a fan that doesn't buy season tickets. It's a steaming pile of crap.

And being in a division that doesn't "scare" you is a bad thing. It's like when I played pick-up hoop. The best was when I was the 4th (or 3rd in some cases) best player on the team. Being the worst meant you wouldn't see the ball. Being one of the two best meant it wasn't a very good game.

 

[businesslawyer]

Maybe I am naive, but with Aresco in charge I am going to assume that whatever alignment we end up with is what is best for the conference. Although the 2015 alignment doesn't feel natural, Aresco is in charge and he knows what will help the conference get the best TV deal which means the best chance for conference long term viability.

The old BE regime...I would be much more skeptical. Until I see otherwise, I am going to trust that Aresco knows what he is doing.

This. They are choosing how they break the league up based on what gets us better TV deals. No one gives a rats ass if people on the Boneyard understand why this works better for the networks.

 

[Dann]

i want to play cincy, lville, usf and rutgers every year. play temple is good also and a cross with bsu. this stinks. they need to get to 16 fball schools and split it east/west.

 

[JayRU09]

Yeah, you guys are getting shafted there. But if it brings in more revenue then so be it. But I don't understand pairing the school furthest east with the school furthest west.

 

[Dann]

sdsu/bsu/uh/smu/memphis + unr/byu/. get it done commish

 

[CTMike]

Carl, you can type all day long about how we have the state support to be SEC level, but the fact remains that the SEC isn't playing this slate of turds. Feel free to try and keep polishing them though.

 

[ZooCougar]

Spoken like a fan that doesn't buy season tickets. It's a steaming pile of crap.

And being in a division that doesn't "scare" you is a bad thing. It's like when I played pick-up hoop. The best was when I was the 4th (or 3rd in some cases) best player on the team. Being the worst meant you wouldn't see the ball. Being one of the two best meant it wasn't a very good game.

I can't really come up with a truly appealing lineup with any of the prospective teams.


Welcome to the new Nuevo Big East.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

This. They are choosing how they break the league up based on what gets us better TV deals. No one gives a rats ass if people on the Boneyard understand why this works better for the networks.

How do you figure that breaking up any semblance of geographic cohesion and rivalries is better for TV?

Do you trust any decision that this conference would make?

It just doesn't add up.

 

[Adios]

Yeah, you guys are getting shafted there. But if it brings in more revenue then so be it. But I don't understand pairing the school furthest east with the school furthest west.

How are we getting shafted any less than you? We'd have Navy, you'd have Temple.

 

[Carl Spackler]

Carl, you can type all day long about how we have the state support to be SEC level, but the fact remains that the SEC isn't playing this slate of turds. Feel free to try and keep polishing them though.

I'm not polishing anything, why is that so hard for y'all to grasp? This conference slate, is the hand that leadership of both our university and conference from the mid 1990s through 2011 has handed us.

What should ahve you all annoyed, is not that we're dealing with this now, because it really is the best we can do, we are one of the kids that's been left standing at the side of the gym at the 8th grade dance, while everybody else is dancing, and we've gathered up as many of the other boys and girls that weren't dancing and are starting our own party. We have a lot more in common with the football programs in this new conference, than we do with the football programs in any other high revenue football conference.

It's that it should have, and could have been prevented so many times, so long ago, that should have people pissed off, not that we are moving forward with this now, as best we can.

But you can't change the past, you can only learn from it, so it learn from it, and suck it up, and as I said before - get ready for the UConn - Southern Methodist, UConn Sand Diego State, to go along with Uconn Louisville, UConn Rutgers, UConn Navy.........

You know what the common theme in there is? UCONN. That's who I go to see, who I want to see win, and why I buy tickets. It's nice to get a big name opponent on the schedule, but I go to see UConn play.

For people as old as I am, that have been around football in the northeast as long as I have, the changing schedules are a part of life. We've only played a Big East schedule for 8 years, and that schedule had changed conference opponents three times already.

I don't know what conference stability is like, and the way the college football post season is changing, this conference probably won't last longer than the TV deal either.

 

[JayRU09]

How are we getting shafted any less than you? We'd have Navy, you'd have Temple.

Boise and Cincy more than make up for that.

 

[businesslawyer]

How do you figure that breaking up any semblance of geographic cohesion and rivalries is better for TV?

Do you trust any decision that this conference would make?

It just doesn't add up.

Do I understand personally why it's better for TV? No. Do I have any reason to doubt that the new Commissioner is making this decision in conjunction with TV (as opposed to just being a moron)? No, I don't. And neither do you.

 

[uconNYC]

I just can't see the NNBE going from geographic divisions the first two years to the zipper divisions after 2015. They'll probably do one or the other from the start so scheduling has some continuity. In the article it mentions that the zipper idea was something that was floated in September. Since then, on several occasions, Aresco has mentioned he likes geographic divisions as they are more fan friendly. My gut tells me we'll eventually have geographic divisions.

 

[JayRU09]

I think if BYU comes in then the East/West balance of power is a little better, and therefore just sending Louisville or Cincy to the west would make for fairly even divisions and would prompt the league to stick with East/West Divisions.

RU, UCONN, CINN, NAVY, TEMPLE, USF, UCF

vs.

BOISE, SDSU, UL, SMU, HOUSTON, MEMPHIS, BYU

Not bad.

 

[Adios]

Boise and Cincy more than make up for that.

Hope to see you in the championship game...