TCU to the Big East

[TallTitan34]

Will it help?  Now Buzz can promise some local homecoming games to Texas recruits.

Good point Litehouse.

[bilsu]

Good point Litehouse.

I do not know exactually where TCU is, but I am sure there are a lot of players from Texas that do not live anywhere near TCU. So it may not be a local game for them.

[TallTitan34]

Forth Worth I believe.

[Chicago_inferiority_complexes]

Like Xavier?

How about an all Catholic division?!?! Haha.

[HouWarrior]

I do not know exactually where TCU is, but I am sure there are a lot of players from Texas that do not live anywhere near TCU. So it may not be a local game for them.

TCU is in Fort (not Forth-lol) Worth, and given the weather (warmer here), and distance: TCU is no more than 250 miles from any major Texas city, and it is 1200 miles to next closest BE city....yes parents will consider TCU a "local" game worth attending, and TCU will be a local game for them.

I am in DFW tomorrow, after my 50 minute flight from Houston.A typical commute for many of us.

[Golden Avalanche]

Interesting conjecture around the conference has the Big East going to 12 football teams including Villanova's step up and then asking Georgetown, St. John's, and Notre Dame to stay along with a fourth school to get a conference at 16.

Not sure what pull Cottingham has at the table but it sure can't hurt that based on performance, Marquette should be front of the line for that fourth spot.

[GGGG]

TCU is in Fort (not Forth-lol) Worth, and given the weather (warmer here), and distance: TCU is no more than 250 miles from any major Texas city, and it is 1200 miles to next closest BE city....yes parents will consider TCU a "local" game worth attending, and TCU will be a local game for them.

While I agree with your larger point, Louisville is only 870 miles from Fort Worth...the next closest BE city.

[brewcity77]

Not sure what pull Cottingham has at the table but it sure can't hurt that based on performance, Marquette should be front of the line for that fourth spot.

Based on performance, yes, but I'm always leery of going up against Providence if it comes to staying in the conference. Seton Hall and DePaul could easily go away, but Providence has been so influential with the formation of the conference and its administration over the years that I'd hate to be staring them down if the rest of the conference did decide it was time for push to come to shove.

[Golden Avalanche]

Based on performance, yes, but I'm always leery of going up against Providence if it comes to staying in the conference. Seton Hall and DePaul could easily go away, but Providence has been so influential with the formation of the conference and its administration over the years that I'd hate to be staring them down if the rest of the conference did decide it was time for push to come to shove.

Exactly. PC is our main competition which is why we have to hope Cottingham has built some friends these last couple of years because it will be a battle.

[HouWarrior]

Interesting conjecture around the conference has the Big East going to 12 football teams including Villanova's step up and then asking Georgetown, St. John's, and Notre Dame to stay along with a fourth school to get a conference at 16.

Not sure what pull Cottingham has at the table but it sure can't hurt that based on performance, Marquette should be front of the line for that fourth spot.

I have done all the web searching I can, and I havent found a word of this---what is the source of your "interesting conjecture around the conference"? Thanks

[GGGG]

If they drop to 12 teams, we don't stand a chance unless ND sticks up for us. Traditions run too deep. I have not heard anything about this so I would be surprised if this is going anywhere.

[ChicosBailBonds]

Interesting conjecture around the conference has the Big East going to 12 football teams including Villanova's step up and then asking Georgetown, St. John's, and Notre Dame to stay along with a fourth school to get a conference at 16.

Not sure what pull Cottingham has at the table but it sure can't hurt that based on performance, Marquette should be front of the line for that fourth spot.

There is definitely a scenario that has been discussed with at least one of the schools potentially recruited on the football side that could lead to 3 more schools added (in addition to TCU). 

What that does on the basketball side is unknown.

[Mr. Nielsen]

I don't think the Big East wants any BB school to leave. Maybe Seton Hall.

[Henry Sugar]

Nate Silver weighs in, mostly looking at the football impact of TCU.

http://fivethirtyeight.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/12/01/will-the-big-east-and-t-c-u-live-happily-ever-after/

[bilsu]

Interesting conjecture around the conference has the Big East going to 12 football teams including Villanova's step up and then asking Georgetown, St. John's, and Notre Dame to stay along with a fourth school to get a conference at 16.

Not sure what pull Cottingham has at the table but it sure can't hurt that based on performance, Marquette should be front of the line for that fourth spot.

I do not see them keeping Notre Dame under this senario, because there will always be a risk that Notre Dame decides to join the Big 10. If they were to downsize the conference, they are going to make sure it is stable. Therefore Notre Dame would be out. Notre Dame would have to join in football (in that case they would be one of the 12 football schools) or leave.

[Golden Avalanche]

I do not see them keeping Notre Dame under this senario, because there will always be a risk that Notre Dame decides to join the Big 10. If they were to downsize the conference, they are going to make sure it is stable. Therefore Notre Dame would be out. Notre Dame would have to join in football (in that case they would be one of the 12 football schools) or leave.

Stability has been, and always will be, an elusive characteristic with this conference.

If the Big East couldn't strong arm Notre Dame into a football membership over the last six years of realignment, why do you think they will strong arm them in the future?

Considering all the wild crap going on with conferences now, their hopes for the future aren't so far-fetched.

[bilsu]

Stability has been, and always will be, an elusive characteristic with this conference.

If the Big East couldn't strong arm Notre Dame into a football membership over the last six years of realignment, why do you think they will strong arm them in the future?

Considering all the wild crap going on with conferences now, their hopes for the future aren't so far-fetched.

I do not think they have tried to stong arm Notre Dame in the past. The premise I was responding to was the fact that the Big East will invite enough schools to get to 12 football teams and then jettison some basketball only schools to stay at 16 total teams. The strong arm that should come is to give Notre Dame the choice of being the 12th football school or leaving the conference. This scenario only develops, if the Big East decides to drop schools. I simply do not see dropping schools and keeping Notre Dame as a basketball only school. As long as Notre Dame is independent in football they are a risk to leave. My gut feeling is that they would refuse to join the Big East in football. At some point it will be significantly more financially lucrative for them to join the Big 10 than it will be to remain independent or join the Big East. That day might come when they lose their BCS bowl status. I see the next step in these wars being the big conferences targeting Notre Dames' special BCS status. Once that happens Notre Dame will be pushed into a BCS conference. The Big East goal in the end should be to have a stable conference. Once you have cut teams it would not be smart to keep Notre Dame without football, because they will always be a threat to hurt conference stability. As Marquette fans, I think we have to hope Notre Dame joins in football or leaves. I do not like our chances of being one of the four remaining basketball only schools, if Notre Dame is claiming one of the four spots.

[PaintTouches]

Sorry to break up the comment flow but I ran across this in Luke Winn's power rankings and thought it was pretty interesting.

Panthers coach Jamie Dixon -- known as TCU's miracle man in 1986 -- apparently instigated the Horned Frogs' jump to the Big East. In a press conference to announce the move on Monday, TCU athletic director Chris Del Conte said the idea came from a discussion between him and Dixon at a TCU-Baylor football game in September -- "and from there it was a dream that became a reality."

Dixon confirmed it later on Monday, saying, "We tossed things around, and I said, 'Hey, why don't you join the Big East conference?' [Del Conte] looked at me like I'm crazy at first. But that's kind of how it got started, people reaching out to different people."

(Of course, it also mattered that TCU had football team worthy of an at-large BCS bid, and the Big East was desperate for more football teams, especially one sitting in the nation's No. 5 TV market. But the Dixon story is nice, and the first time the Panthers and Horned Frogs meet in basketball, we'll hopefully be treated with a higher-res version of his famed '86 postgame interview -- probably to distract us from a 20-point rout.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/luke_winn/12/02/power.rankings/index.html?eref=twitter_feed