What Would Be Your DREAM/PERFECT Big East?

[Aughnanure]

Just curious on what everyone's ideas of a perfect Big East conference would be? Would it be expanded to include more regional teams for Marquette? More basketball-onlies? Or would a reduced version be better (i.e. no TCU)? Would it be separated into divisions or pods? etc.,

Try to be somewhat realistic, Alabama isn't going in the Big East in anyone's dreams.

[TallTitan34]

Without thinking about scheduling....

1) Marquette
2) Louisville
3) Cincinnati
4) DePaul
5) Notre Dame

1) Syracuse
2) UConn
3) Georgetown
4) Villanova
5) Providence

1) Pittsburgh
2) West Virginia
3) Rutgers
4) Seton Hall
5) South Florida

1) TCU
2) Kansas
3) Kansas State
4) Missouri
5) Random School

[muhs03]

A perfect split. Add Xavier and Dayton. Round-robin schedule (today's schedule isnt fan friendly, rivalry friendly and doesnt determine a true champion).

[GGGG]

Ugh...a 20 team BE would be terrible.

My *perfect* BE would be an 8-12 team league of basketball schools, but one that would not be put behind recruiting wise due to lack of football $$$.  (The oftentimes maligned "Catholic conference."  Not because they are Catholic, but because we would be with schools that are like us.)

Since I don't think that is possible, the 16 team league we had the last few years is the best we could hope for.

[Tulsa Warrior]

You have to add football teams.  

With what I'm hearing in Oklahoma the best bet and most likely scenario for the Big East would be adding Baylor and Iowa State.  They seem like the odd schools out if the Big 12 falls apart.  I like the addition of Baylor because of Buzz's ties to Texas.  Baylor also has a following across the Lone Star State and that would create a buzz for the Big East.  Iowa State is a good football and basketball fit.   They have no where else to go if the B12 dissolves.  The Texas Wronghorns can write their own ticket....PAC 12, SEC, ACC or independent.

Texas, Texas Tech, OU and Oklahoma State may move as a block to the PAC 12.  Dumb idea but......$

Missouri would kill to be part of the B10 but the B10 apparently is not interested.  SEC could be a go.

The B12 will not add a Houston, Texas El Paso or North Texas -- that would be viewed as a step down.  Kansas and K State would head west if they had a choice.  Ironcially they would be a great football and basketball fit if not a good geographic fit for the Big East.  Most of the remaining B12 schools do not want to give back TV money because it is already allocated and in some cases spent.  There are outstanding bonds for construction projects and that will take the issue into the courts if something cannot be worked out.

[TallTitan34]

I would love to add Xavier.

[bilsu]

Those 19 teams with no divisions. Play everyone once. I do think Notre Dame as long as they remain independent in football are a potential destabilizing factor. I would like the Big East to be set, when this current scrambling is done. Whether it is the Big East (not likely) or another conference, I would want Notre Dame to become a full member of some conference.

[Marqus Howard]

I still wish we had Boston College and Virginia Tech. Not so much Miami though...

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

Without thinking about scheduling....

1) Marquette
2) Louisville
3) Cincinnati
4) DePaul
5) Notre Dame

1) Syracuse
2) UConn
3) Georgetown
4) Villanova
5) Providence

1) Pittsburgh
2) West Virginia
3) Rutgers
4) Seton Hall
5) South Florida

1) TCU
2) Kansas
3) Kansas State
4) Missouri
5) Random School

BC or Maryland and if no then add Houston or UCF as the random team and you have a good major media market spread for the TV contract(s) or an expanded BEN.  Looks like things are headed towards bigger conferences so I don't want to see us relegated to a 8-12 team basketball-only conference.  I like attending the "MU road games" on my home turf in the current Big East.

[TallTitan34]

Without thinking about scheduling....

1) Marquette
2) Louisville
3) Cincinnati
4) DePaul
5) Notre Dame

1) Syracuse
2) UConn
3) Georgetown
4) Villanova
5) Providence

1) Pittsburgh
2) West Virginia
3) Rutgers
4) Seton Hall
5) South Florida

1) TCU
2) Kansas
3) Kansas State
4) Missouri
5) Random School

Ha I forgot to add St. Johns.  Looks like I don't need the random school afterall!  

[jmayer1]

NM

[Litehouse]

My perfect Big East would be the current line-up without South Florida for 15 teams.  Split into 3 groups of 5, play everyone in your group twice, and everyone else once.

1) Marquette
2) Louisville
3) Cincinnati
4) DePaul
5) Notre Dame

1) Syracuse
2) UConn
3) Georgetown
4) Villanova
5) Providence

1) Pittsburgh
2) West Virginia
3) Rutgers
4) Seton Hall
5) Saint Johns

[GGGG]

Adding more football teams will be a long term losing proposition for bball schools. They get marginalized even further and lose power within the conference.

[Aughnanure]

I would selfishly love to see us in a division with Kansas, Ks St, Mizzou. Mine removes Seton Hall, adds in Xavier and has the conference get to 16 fb schools to remain stable. TCU, Houston, Central Florida, South Florida are all in the same division ensuring everyone gets at least 2 road trips to Florida or Texas every year for recruiting.


UCONN
Syracuse
Providence
UMASS

St. John's
Rutgers
Villanova
Georgetown

Pittsburgh
West Virginia
Cincinnati
Xavier

Kansas
Kansas St
Missouri
Marquette

TCU
Houston
South Florida
Central Florida

Memphis
Louisville
DePaul
Notre Dame

[Buzz Williams' Spillproof Chiclets Cup]

Dream World
My ideal Big East, if economics of college sports were no issue, would be the present 16-team Big East setup (ergo, no TCU), but "trading" South Florida to the ACC for Boston College. If a basketball school had to be dropped, it would be Seton Hall, and in exchange, I'd like to pick up Butler. Seton Hall doesn't seem willing to devote the resources necessary to compete at this level, and I love the idea of MU and the Big East giants playing conference games in February at Butler Fieldhouse.

Real World (See also: Football rules the day, we have to take TCU and one other Big 12 misfit)
In the real world, accepting the premise that USF is here for good, we're going to take TCU, and end up being the port in the storm for at least one Big 12 "Last kid picked," then I would want to pick up Baylor. Baylor gives TCU a regional rival more than Iowa State does, and isn't subject to the whims of the Texas legislature as a private school, like many of the Big East schools.

I would also want to balance this out by adding two basketball schools, zeroing in on Xavier and Butler. If Xavier doesn't want in, thinking their situation is pretty good being the big fish in the A-10 pond, then I want SLU. Yes, their basketball program hasn't been top-flight recently, but every conference needs a whipping boy, they open up a new TV market and have a 12,000 seat arena that would instantly be one of the scariest arenas in the Big East if they got decent.

This would give us 10 basketball schools and 10 football schools.  Football plays a 9-game schedule, alternating the home/aways every year. ie: 5 home games on year, 4 the next. If necessary, teams are split into two-team groups to alternate the extra home game every year, with emphasis on preserving rivalries.
Baylor-TCU
Louisville-Cincinnati
Pitt-West Virginia
UConn-Syracuse
Rutgers-USF


Basketball plays a 20-game league schedule with one mirror game.

20-team Big East
UConn
Syracuse
Rutgers
Pitt
West Virginia
Louisville
Cincinnati
Baylor
TCU
USF
Providence
Seton Hall
St. John's
Georgetown
Villanova
Notre Dame
DePaul
Marquette
Butler
Xavier/SLU

[mug644]

My perfect Big East would be the current line-up without South Florida for 15 teams.  Split into 3 groups of 5, play everyone in your group twice, and everyone else once.

1) Marquette
2) Louisville
3) Cincinnati
4) DePaul
5) Notre Dame

1) Syracuse
2) UConn
3) Georgetown
4) Villanova
5) Providence

1) Pittsburgh
2) West Virginia
3) Rutgers
4) Seton Hall
5) Saint Johns

That's basically what we have right now, except that your idea would be that the mirror opponents would be fixed year in and year out. I can't imagine teams--especially those in the 2nd group, which includes 4 teams that are consistently in the top half or even top third of the conference--going for that. Pittsburgh would be happy though. (That said, it would be great to strengthen those regionally rivalries by assuring 2 games per year.)

[bilsu]

My perfect Big East would be the current line-up without South Florida for 15 teams.  Split into 3 groups of 5, play everyone in your group twice, and everyone else once.

1) Marquette
2) Louisville
3) Cincinnati
4) DePaul
5) Notre Dame

1) Syracuse
2) UConn
3) Georgetown
4) Villanova
5) Providence

1) Pittsburgh
2) West Virginia
3) Rutgers
4) Seton Hall
5) Saint Johns

Whether you like football or not the perfect Big East will have to have 12 football teams. This only has 7 plus Notre Dame and Villanova. The league would eventually fail or look for expansion.

[GGGG]

Why does the perfect BE "have to have 12 football teams?" 

Furthermore I am not exactly sure what expansion brings to the conference from a basketball money perspective.  Does the addition of Kansas, Kansas State and Missouri make the BE more valuable?  Undoubtedly.  Does it make it that much more valuable that we can now divide the pot an additional three ways?  Not sure about that...

And it also may enhance the football television revenue with a BE Championship Game, but MU sees none of that.  And frankly being a minority basketball school in a conference that increasingly relies on football money is *not* a good thing for Marquette.

[Litehouse]

Whether you like football or not the perfect Big East will have to have 12 football teams. This only has 7 plus Notre Dame and Villanova. The league would eventually fail or look for expansion.

I suppose it's symantics, but if we have to consider football, then it wouldn't be my "perfect" arrangement.  In my "perfect world", college football would take a back seat to basketball, and lacrosse too, so I really wouldn't give a damn about the football side.

[Litehouse]

That's basically what we have right now, except that your idea would be that the mirror opponents would be fixed year in and year out. I can't imagine teams--especially those in the 2nd group, which includes 4 teams that are consistently in the top half or even top third of the conference--going for that. Pittsburgh would be happy though. (That said, it would be great to strengthen those regionally rivalries by assuring 2 games per year.)

True, but I really like what we have now with the exception of South Florida.  Someone mentioned swapping USF for BC, which would be even better yet for me.

[bilsu]

I suppose it's symantics, but if we have to consider football, then it wouldn't be my "perfect" arrangement.  In my "perfect world", college football would take a back seat to basketball, and lacrosse too, so I really wouldn't give a damn about the football side.

I do not give a damn about the football side either. However, the goal of all these conferences is to have a conference champioship game, which means a minimum of 12 football teams.

[Litehouse]

Furthermore I am not exactly sure what expansion brings to the conference from a basketball money perspective.  Does the addition of Kansas, Kansas State and Missouri make the BE more valuable?  Undoubtedly.  Does it make it that much more valuable that we can now divide the pot an additional three ways?  Not sure about that...

I think it does.  Adding Kansas alone brings enough value to justify bringing K-State and Mizzou with then.  Kansas has a huge national fanbase.  K-State and Mizzou also have huge basketball followings, but they're more limited to their respective states.

Plus, it adds more central time zone opportunities to stagger gametimes for TV doubleheaders.

[Litehouse]

I do not give a damn about the football side either. However, the goal of all these conferences is to have a conference champioship game, which means a minimum of 12 football teams.

Which gets back to symantics and what DREAM/PERFECT means.  The NCAA should get rid of the 12 teams for a championship game rule.  If that rule is driving this, it could mean the end of the NCAA.

Anyway, if we have to consider football, I'd go with the current line-up, plus TCU, add Kansas, K-State, and Mizzou for all sports, and add Texas in everything but football (they can stay independent like ND).  Then we have 12 for foootball and 21 for basketball, go to a 20 game schedule and play everyone once.

[Big Papi]

I do not give a damn about the football side either. However, the goal of all these conferences is to have a conference champioship game, which means a minimum of 12 football teams.

Why do you need 12 teams to have a conference championship game?  Why can't you have 10 teams, everyone plays everyone once and championship game is in a neutral setting pitting 1 vs 2.  And if it is an NCAA rule, it is a stupid rule.  This way, the Big East can expand to 20 teams, 10 football/basketball schools and 10 basketball only.  Breakup divisions that way too.  Add two from Xavier, Butler, St. Louis.  Put the onus on the football schools to create better football programs.  Win/win all the way around. 

[GGGG]

Stupid or not, it is an NCAA rule - you need 12 for a championship game.

But a championship game isn't going to be a huge moneymaker for the BE anyway.  To avoid an ACC-like embarrassment, they would likely have to hold it on a campus site somwhere.  The Pac 12 is doing the same thing.