More conference realignment talk

[MU82]

Actually, Shaka wanted the Bucks job, but Marquette wouldn't let him out of his contract.

[Scoop Snoop]

Brother Dgies' Scenario on How Realignment will Play out:

1) The SEC welcomes Clemson, North Carolina, Florida State and Miami to the fold. Claims it solidifies the conference, creates more natural rivalries and strengthens the conference's reach throughout the Southland. Alabama goes 12-0 and defeats Georgia for the 2026 conference Championship, its fourth in a row. Nick Saban says he signed a new five-year agreement making him the Joe Biden of college football coaches.

2) The Big12 merges with the remnants of the Pac12, making a national super-conference extending from Orlando to Seattle. While the PAC12's largest markets are Orlando, Denver, Seattle and San Francisco, the amount of network programming is substantial enough that it becomes the third super-conference joining the SEC and BIG. By 2026, Colorado plays Washington for the Conference Championship. Washington is ranked Number 1 in the nation and uses Amazon's NIL money to poach four of Nick Saban's 2025 superstars. Oregon, now a Big 20 member, uses Nike money to poach Georgia five-star recruits, setting up a battle in 2027 between Oregon and Washington for what is expected to be an all BIG12 National Championship.

3) Not to be left-behind, Notre Dame and the BIG finally merge in 2026. Notre Dame immediately reduces its non-conference schedule to one game -- Navy. Notre Dame is joined by Virginia in the BIG. In 2027, with a BIG schedule that features USC, Ohio State, Michigan, Indiana, Iowa, UCLA, Rutgers, Purdue and Maryland, Notre Dame goes 6-6 and the alumni call for leaving the BIG. Unfortunately, Notre Dame has given the BIG an assignment of rights until 2400, consistent with all other BIG schools.

4) Seeing money floating around like water and amateurism relegated to tiddly winks and online gaming competition, member institutions pull the plug on the NCAA in 2027. The BIGs and the SEC announced that in 2028, member institutions will compete for the FoxSports cup, awarded to the top college football team in the nation.

5) Left out in the cold, Duke, Virginia Tech, NC State, Wake Forest, Boston College, Syracuse, Pitt merge with the Big East and renounce football forever in 2029. "We had a hell of a run," said ACC Commissioner Archibald Bunker, "but we're looking forward to joining the Big East for basketball and non-rev sports. We hope our associate membership in the Non_Football college world will allow us to be competitive again." In 2030, Duke University has its first winning basketball season since 2023-2024, as Marquette University wins its third consecutive League of All Big Schools National basketball Championship, defeating Kentucky 138-70. Coach Shaka Smart turns down an offer to become head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks.

Does Wojo finally attain his dream of being HC at Duke? Where is Buzz in all of this? It's important to honor the Scoop tradition of being totally obsessed with our past coaches.

[Oldgym]

3) Not to be left-behind, Notre Dame and the BIG finally merge in 2026. Notre Dame immediately reduces its non-conference schedule to one game -- Navy. Notre Dame is joined by Virginia in the BIG. In 2027, with a BIG schedule that features USC, Ohio State, Michigan, Indiana, Iowa, UCLA, Rutgers, Purdue and Maryland, Notre Dame goes 6-6 and the alumni call for leaving the BIG. Unfortunately, Notre Dame has given the BIG, now called the NBCUniversal Conference an assignment of rights until 2400, consistent with all other BIG schools.

I think the only thing missed was an inevitable rebrand or sale of conference naming rights.

[dgies9156]

Actually, Shaka wanted the Bucks job, but Marquette wouldn't let him out of his contract.

Thought about that but the last time that happened was in the 1970s.

[dgies9156]

Does Wojo finally attain his dream of being HC at Duke? Where is Buzz in all of this? It's important to honor the Scoop tradition of being totally obsessed with our past coaches.

5) Conference realignment has resulted in several programs repositioning themselves in basketball. After years of not mattering, basketball at the University of Washington suddenly matters. With Amazon and Microsoft NIL money, Washington suddenly attracts a team of eight five-star recruits. Head Coach Buzz Williams said, "haaaaillll, they deserve every dime they can get."

6) In 2026, after several years of living off severance from Marquette University, former Duke Blue Devil and MU Coach Wojo was announced as the new head basketball coach at the University of Wisconsin-Superior. "I just love the idea of living in such a gracious place as Superior," said Wojo.

[Newsdreams]

Does Wojo finally attain his dream of being HC at Duke? Where is Buzz in all of this? It's important to honor the Scoop tradition of being totally obsessed with our past coaches.

Crean sucks....

[brewcity77]

I think the biggest question is the ACC Grant of Rights. If ND goes B10, perhaps 8 of the 14 remaining ACC schools could vote to dissolve the league? Clemson, FSU, Miami, Louisville to the SEC. UNC, Virginia, Georgia Tech, Duke to the ACC. For the SEC, they would generally consolidate the south, add rivals for South Carolina, Florida, & Kentucky, and add football brands. For the Big 10, they add four AAU members, expand their footprint south & east, & keeping the UNC/Duke rivalry would make both coming more likely.

I would guess the B10 also then adds Stanford, Oregon, & Washington to get to 24 & then both the ACC and Pac-12 are killed. Arizona, ASU, Colorado, & Utah to the Big 12 as previously rumored, leaving a 24-team B10, 20-team SEC, & 16-team Big 12.

That would leave Syracuse, BC, Pitt, Va Tech, NC State, Wake, Wazzu, and Cal out in the cold. The question for them is if they pursue football in a mediocre American/Mountain West style league where brand reach and licensing rights will be limited, or follow the UConn model, farm out your football as a high priced buy game for the big boys, and look to more lucrative basketball contracts.

For those that flirted with recent football success, like Pittsburgh or Wake, it could be a tough decision. For those who perennially suck at football and could get $7-10M in basketball rights and farm out their football program for high major buys at $1-2M per game it might be worth moving to the Big East.

Also, if the P5 contracts and tries to break off their own basketball tournament, Greg Sankey tipped their hand. They would look to cut out the one bid leagues. So FBS leagues like CUSA, the MAC, and the Sun Belt (along with all the non-FBS low majors) would be left out rather than legit basketball powers like us.

[WhiteTrash]

I think the biggest question is the ACC Grant of Rights. If ND goes B10, perhaps 8 of the 14 remaining ACC schools could vote to dissolve the league? Clemson, FSU, Miami, Louisville to the SEC. UNC, Virginia, Georgia Tech, Duke to the ACC. For the SEC, they would generally consolidate the south, add rivals for South Carolina, Florida, & Kentucky, and add football brands. For the Big 10, they add four AAU members, expand their footprint south & east, & keeping the UNC/Duke rivalry would make both coming more likely.

I would guess the B10 also then adds Stanford, Oregon, & Washington to get to 24 & then both the ACC and Pac-12 are killed. Arizona, ASU, Colorado, & Utah to the Big 12 as previously rumored, leaving a 24-team B10, 20-team SEC, & 16-team Big 12.

That would leave Syracuse, BC, Pitt, Va Tech, NC State, Wake, Wazzu, and Cal out in the cold. The question for them is if they pursue football in a mediocre American/Mountain West style league where brand reach and licensing rights will be limited, or follow the UConn model, farm out your football as a high priced buy game for the big boys, and look to more lucrative basketball contracts.

For those that flirted with recent football success, like Pittsburgh or Wake, it could be a tough decision. For those who perennially suck at football and could get $7-10M in basketball rights and farm out their football program for high major buys at $1-2M per game it might be worth moving to the Big East.

Also, if the P5 contracts and tries to break off their own basketball tournament, Greg Sankey tipped their hand. They would look to cut out the one bid leagues. So FBS leagues like CUSA, the MAC, and the Sun Belt (along with all the non-FBS low majors) would be left out rather than legit basketball powers like us.

A lot makes sense to me. I don't like it but nobody is asking me. One of the things I like about sports is the underdog and knowing schools or pro teams have a chance to compete. Funny how if this came to pass years ago schools Army would be a player in all of this and Miami, who I believe came very close to dropping football in the 70's, would not be on any ones radar. Maybe Temple could become Miami or the Gonzaga of football years ago, but all the door are being shut permanently now. Just my opinion but I don't like it.

[Viper]

5) Conference realignment has resulted in several programs repositioning themselves in basketball. After years of not mattering, basketball at the University of Washington suddenly matters. With Amazon and Microsoft NIL money, Washington suddenly attracts a team of eight five-star recruits. Head Coach Buzz Williams said, "haaaaillll, they deserve every dime they can get."

6) In 2026, after several years of living off severance from Marquette University, former Duke Blue Devil and MU Coach Wojo was announced as the new head basketball coach at the University of Wisconsin-Superior. "I just love the idea of living in such a gracious place as Superior," said Wojo.

…Douglas Cty got it all!!, agreed, Brother Dgies?

[dgies9156]

…Douglas Cty got it all!!, agreed, Brother Dgies?

Well, I was born there!!!!

My ancestors are buried there.

Chili spends a lot of time there.

What else can you say?

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

That would leave Syracuse, BC, Pitt, Va Tech, NC State, Wake, Wazzu, and Cal out in the cold.

The Beavers would also be freezing their tails off in this scenario.

Also, if the P5 contracts and tries to break off their own basketball tournament, Greg Sankey tipped their hand. They would look to cut out the one bid leagues. So FBS leagues like CUSA, the MAC, and the Sun Belt (along with all the non-FBS low majors) would be left out rather than legit basketball powers like us.

Agreed with this. I don't see them reducing the size of the tournament and I don't see them going forward with an "everybody gets into the playoffs" format. I think they will hack off 150-250 low and mid majors and keep leagues like the Big East, AAC, A10, WCC, MWC, etc.

[Litehouse]

I think the biggest question is the ACC Grant of Rights. If ND goes B10, perhaps 8 of the 14 remaining ACC schools could vote to dissolve the league? Clemson, FSU, Miami, Louisville to the SEC. UNC, Virginia, Georgia Tech, Duke to the ACC.

That would leave Syracuse, BC, Pitt, Va Tech, NC State, Wake, Wazzu, and Cal out in the cold. The question for them is if they pursue football in a mediocre American/Mountain West style league where brand reach and licensing rights will be limited, or follow the UConn model, farm out your football as a high priced buy game for the big boys, and look to more lucrative basketball contracts.

I think NC State to the SEC and Louisville getting left out is more likely.  In my experience living in NC, NC State has a bigger fan base than UNC in the state.

[dgies9156]

Also, if the P5 contracts and tries to break off their own basketball tournament, Greg Sankey tipped their hand. They would look to cut out the one bid leagues. So FBS leagues like CUSA, the MAC, and the Sun Belt (along with all the non-FBS low majors) would be left out rather than legit basketball powers like us.

While it is fun to think that anyone in the NCAA basketball tournament can "win it all," the fact remains that once the games start, reality sets in. Sure, Loyola will make a deep run once in awhile, and a Miami of Ohio will, once in the school's history defeat a defending national champion. But by and large, Cindarella may be at the ball but she's an unnoticed wallflower.

I actually would rather see a tournament where more Power 5+ conference members compete. Cut it off long before UMBC shows up on a 16 line. It aint going to happen again. I'd rather see a marginal Marquette team get hot, like we did last January in regular season, and take down college basketball's sequoias, that a 60 point win by a one-or-two seed in what amounts to a warm-up bye game.

Of course, we've had our a*sses handed to us the last few years too!

[Scoop Snoop]

I think NC State to the SEC and Louisville getting left out is more likely.  In my experience living in NC, NC State has a bigger fan base than UNC in the state.

Interesting! I really thought UNC would be the winner of NC fandom.

I think UVA has the greatest presence in VA by a wide margin but when it comes to football, VT has a strong following. Orphaning them seems strange, but I guess it could happen. UVA alum are everywhere here and sometimes quite snobby, referring to UVA simply as "the university".

[MU82]

In my experience living in NC, NC State has a bigger fan base than UNC in the state.

Hmmm. Not sure I've seen evidence of this. Then again, I haven't seen evidence that would disprove it, either.

[dgies9156]

Five schools most likely to be orphaned:

Louisville:  It took an act of the Kentucky legislature to get Louisville to play Kentucky in basketball. There's no love loss between these institutions and I'd be surprised if Kentucky allowed Louisville into the SEC. The animosity between these schools make us and the Badgers look like a hippie love-in.

Oregon State: The Beavs are the Beavs. With Oregon maybe 40 miles down the road, the Beavs will be left at the North Pole with a sign hung around their neck, "adopt me."

Wazzu: Who in the heck wants to go to Pullman, WA? Where is Pullman, WA? Pullman makes State College, PA look like a New York City suburb. And, yes, I really know when Pullman is! The Cougs will be playing Boise State regularly faster than you can say, "realignment...."

Duke: Vulnerable only begins to describe the Blue Devils. The SEC has Vanderbilt and BIG has Northwestern. Yeah, their basketball team was a blue blood, but do you want to bet on the future with Coach K gone? They are Vanderbilt-class in football on a good day and might draw 16 television viewers on a warm Carolina fall afternoon unless they are playing Alabama. Look for Duke to end up in the Big East down the line.

Syracuse: The last time Syracuse football was competitive, Ernie Davis was their running back and I was 3. Coach Boeheim is nearing the end of the line and the basketball team has not been relevant since it left the Big East. Despite their claim to be New York City's team, they're not. In fact, if their fortunes in basketball continue to deteriorate, they won't be Syracuse's team either. Look for these guys to start dating Val and to begin looking to unwind that nasty divorce.

Honorable Mentions: Pitt, Boston College, any North Carolina institution not named UNC, Buzz Tech, Stanford, Cal, Vanderbilt.

[PBRme]

I'd agree with most of this but I seem to remember the VA legislature (through UVA) was involved in forcing the ACC to take VAtech if they wanted to expand.  They may make VA and VATech a package deal

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

I'd agree with most of this but I seem to remember the VA legislature (through UVA) was involved in forcing the ACC to take VAtech if they wanted to expand.  They may make VA and VATech a package deal

Maybe. But I read (I never verified) that Oklahoma had a state law that said that Oklahoma and Oklahoma State had to be in the same athletic conference and one couldn't leave without the other. I don't think the Pokes are getting into the SEC anytime soon.

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

Most of what I'm reading is that the B1G and SEC are done expanding for now. B12 might still try to poach from the P12. Guess we can put off the death of college sports for at least a few more years.

[CTEagle91]

Pitt, Louisville, and VA Tech would likely be welcomed to the Big 12 to complement WVA and Cincy. Miami also if they can't buy a seat in the SEC.
I agree with the schools you see left out, plus Wake.

[Scoop Snoop]

I'd agree with most of this but I seem to remember the VA legislature (through UVA) was involved in forcing the ACC to take VAtech if they wanted to expand.  They may make VA and VATech a package deal

Not doubting you but it's just I have not heard this before. Would the Virginia legislature want to gamble and require that the two go as a package? That might backfire.

[Uncle Rico]

Most of what I'm reading is that the B1G and SEC are done expanding for now. B12 might still try to poach from the P12. Guess we can put off the death of college sports for at least a few more years.

Title IX killed college sports.  I mean the SCOTUS TV ruling.  I mean the conference title games in football.  I mean the desegregation of sports.  I mean NIL.  I mean conference realignment.

[Dr. Blackheart]

Maybe. But I read (I never verified) that Oklahoma had a state law that said that Oklahoma and Oklahoma State had to be in the same athletic conference and one couldn't leave without the other. I don't think the Pokes are getting into the SEC anytime soon.

Maybe by then, the NCAA will hand down Bill Self’s lifetime ban.

[MU82]

Duke: Yeah, their basketball team was a blue blood, but do you want to bet on the future with Coach K gone?

Maybe. What's the bet?

Syracuse: The last time Syracuse football was competitive, Ernie Davis was their running back and I was 3.

Well, they were 35-14 and ranked 4 straight years when Donovan McNabb was QB there. So it is possible. But yes, to say their fortunes have faded would be an understatement.

[Billy Hoyle]

hate to say I told you so, but.... Outside of football, this has been a long term goal of the Power conferences and they have been discussing  this with CBS for a while:
 

Stadium/Field of 68's Goodman says at a recent DI Council meeting SEC Commissioner Sankey hinted at the potential of a hoops NCAA Tournament that may not include automatic qualifiers from some conferences. Goodman: "Sankey made it look like the NCAA Tournament may not look like the NCAA Tournament in a couple years. Meaning, that the little guys might not be involved anymore. All I’m saying is don’t be surprised if there’s a push … to not include the usual." Goodman adds that he talked to others involved in the meeting who disagreed with the assessment that Sankey was suggesting major change could be coming to tourney access. More. (link) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=83_idrdR6e8