Lunardi down to 3 Big East teams in

[Marquette_g]

LOL.  Please let's make a wager on this.   No way Shanks and Hill let it fail.  Absolutely no way...I've known these men for many years and you can bet your life savings FS1 will be here in four years.

Fair enough, then I guess we will watch our team compete in a mid-major on a second-tier television network for the foreseeable future.

As for the NCAA and the basketball contract, that is a two-way street.  The NCAA needs the power-football schools as much as the football-schools need the NCAA.  A basketball tournament without those schools isn't much of a tournament.  In fact those schools could potentially leave the NCAA and conduct their own tournament with the 64 members that remain. 

[JamilJaeJamailJrJuan]

Fair enough, then I guess we will watch our team compete in a mid-major on a second-tier television network for the foreseeable future.

Hahaha...whaaaaa?  The Big East is far from a Mid Major and FS1 has been nothing but a great get for the BE. 

This year was not ideal as a starting point for BE basketball, but it is going to be one of the best 3 conferences in good years, and in bad years (like this year), the BE will still be in the top 5.  That is not a MM. 

[MU82]

The thing that jumped out to me from Lunardi's forecast is that Georgetown -- a team we beat twice -- is in the "Next Four Out."

Ah, what might have been.

[KenoshaWarrior]

If SJU and Providence get in that means that Marquette did not do it's job in the last few games. 

[Coleman]

Hahaha...whaaaaa?  The Big East is far from a Mid Major and FS1 has been nothing but a great get for the BE. 

This year was not ideal as a starting point for BE basketball, but it is going to be one of the best 3 conferences in good years, and in bad years (like this year), the BE will still be in the top 5.  That is not a MM. 

+1

Its not the old Big East. But its not a mid major either. As mentioned before, this conference will never be out of the top 5. The conference is having a down year and is #4.

Fox Sports 1 is not ESPN in terms of exposure. But we are getting crazy money from this contract. Its as good as MU could have hoped for with the dissolution of the old Big East.

[keefe]

Not going to care how many teams get in from this young conference because this conference wont be here in 4 years.

What's Val going to do with the furniture? Garage sale?

[ChicosBailBonds]

Fair enough, then I guess we will watch our team compete in a mid-major on a second-tier television network for the foreseeable future.

As for the NCAA and the basketball contract, that is a two-way street.  The NCAA needs the power-football schools as much as the football-schools need the NCAA.  A basketball tournament without those schools isn't much of a tournament.  In fact those schools could potentially leave the NCAA and conduct their own tournament with the 64 members that remain. 

Not really, the NCAA doesn't control college football to the extent people think, it's a great fallacy.  They do at the lower divisions, but not the Football Bow Division.  Sure they control many of the rules and compliance, but the dollars are another thing altogether.

If you think playing in the 4th best basketball conference in the country is mid major, well then nothing is going to make you feel any better.  No football schools are going to take a basketball only school, it adds no value to them.  Yes, those football schools could leave and conduct whatever they wish, of course what are they going to do with all of their Olympic sports, what network is going to pony up the money to watch Nortwestern vs Washington State....etc, etc. At the end of the day, the football conferences only have so much depth in basketball and while the top teams are great, filling out a 64 team field with football only schools will look like the sham the bowls are today.....lots of unworthy product.

[chapman]

Time to tank for the tournament shares.  Follow the DePaul model.

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

The talk about the BEast folding and FS1 failing is baseless. The BEast is insulated from football realignment. We are at the top of the food chain for basketball only schools.

This is a down year for the BEast. If you look at the recruits the conference is bringing in, we will be moving up from 4th best to 3rd or 2nd. We have more top 100 recruits than any other conference besides the ACC. And almost half of the ACC's are going to Duke/UNC.

[Eldon]

What's Val going to do with the furniture? Garage sale?

Cancel the lay-a-way

[Marquette_g]

At the end of the day, the football conferences only have so much depth in basketball and while the top teams are great, filling out a 64 team field with football only schools will look like the sham the bowls are today.....lots of unworthy product.

True, but a basketball tournament of just the football schools is a lot better than a basketball tournament of all non-football schools. The last non-football school to win a NCAA basketball title was Connecticut in 1999.  So the football schools still hold quite a bit of power over the NCAA on the basketball side.

[keefe]

Cancel the lay-a-way

I didn't realize Ikea had a layaway plan

[mu03eng]

The Big East is 4th in conference RPI and closer to 3rd than they are 5th.  I would be surprised if the Big East got less than 4.  In fact I think they get precisely 4.  The bubble is extremely mediocre this year so they are going to have to take questionable teams.  I don't see a ton of upsets out of the conference tournament so there should be a large pool of at-large bids.

I don't think MU will be the 4th bid from the BEast but I think one of the teams will be.

[ChicosBailBonds]

True, but a basketball tournament of just the football schools is a lot better than a basketball tournament of all non-football schools. The last non-football school to win a NCAA basketball title was Connecticut in 1999.  So the football schools still hold quite a bit of power over the NCAA on the basketball side.

I guess in 2024 they can give it a try.  Or, if they wish to do it sooner than that, the basketball only schools can split the CBS Turner contractual dollars in the meantime while the football schools try and create their own basketball tournament and find their own broadcaster and rights fees associated with it.

[wardle2wade]

The Big East is 4th in conference RPI and closer to 3rd than they are 5th.  I would be surprised if the Big East got less than 4.  In fact I think they get precisely 4.  The bubble is extremely mediocre this year so they are going to have to take questionable teams.  I don't see a ton of upsets out of the conference tournament so there should be a large pool of at-large bids.

I don't think MU will be the 4th bid from the BEast but I think one of the teams will be.

These are my sentiments exactly.