Today in Conference Reallignment

[GGGG]

The FBS Sun Belt announced that Idaho and New Mexico State will not longer be "football only" members after 2017.  They were members of Sun Belt (FCS) and WAC (no football) respectively for the rest of their sports.

So with these moves, and with UMass's ejection from the MAC as a football only member, that means that there is only one remaining "football only" arrangement in FBS.  Hawaii is a member of the Mountain West for football, but the Big West for the rest of its sports programs.

[JamilJaeJamailJrJuan]

Relevant.

[GGGG]

I should have put it in the Superbar, but it is relevant as long as people think UConn and their ilk can join the BE and play football elsewhere.

[MerrittsMustache]

I should have put it in the Superbar, but it is relevant as long as people think UConn and their ilk can join the BE and play football elsewhere.

UConn, Hawaii, BYU, Memphis...Looks like a good start for a new football-only conference. Who am I missing?

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

I've reading some rumors about UConn & Cincinnati to the Big 12 when Texas's Longhorn Network is rebranded as the Big XII Network.

[mu03eng]

I think it's relevant because it starts to bring conference realignment to a close which is important to the Big East and cements the conference format as "survivable".

I'm not sure the Big 12 expands though....they got their championship game without having to dilute their revenue amongst an additional two teams.

Side note: I think it's hilarious how hard and far Texas has fallen as a valued brand since the Longhorn Network launched in both football and basketball.

[Marcus92]

UConn, Hawaii, BYU, Memphis...Looks like a good start for a new football-only conference. Who am I missing?

That's hilarious. Imagine a 14-hour connecting flight (one way) for every Huskies-Warriors matchup. I believe Army is a football independent, as well.

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

I think it's relevant because it starts to bring conference realignment to a close which is important to the Big East and cements the conference format as "survivable".

I'm not sure the Big 12 expands though....they got their championship game without having to dilute their revenue amongst an additional two teams.

Side note: I think it's hilarious how hard and far Texas has fallen as a valued brand since the Longhorn Network launched in both football and basketball.

From what else I read is if they don't start a conference network then Oklahoma is gone.  The TV partners want "national" which the Big XII is not now and UConn is an easy get into the NYC market.

Also, reading rumors Big10 will make another push for ACC teams because there is speculation over a GORs out clause with the ACC Network being dead over the Commish ceding rights to Raycom Sports (which is run by his son?).     

[Marcus92]

Chad Forde: College basketball is headed for a disaster of Biblical proportions.
Mark Emmert: What do you mean, "Biblical?"
Jay Bilas: What he means is Old Testament, Mr. President, real wrath of God type stuff.
Chad Forde: Exactly.
Jim Nantz: Fire and brimstone coming down from the skies! Rivers and seas boiling!
Bill Raftery: Forty years of darkness! Earthquakes, volcanoes...
Verne Lundquist: The dead rising from the grave!
Chad Forde: Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together...mass hysteria!
Mark Emmert: All right, all right! I get the point!

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

Conference realignment is never over. Fortunately, were pretty well insulated at the moment. Unless the acc decides to add basketball only members. Don't think they will but we can kiss Georgetown goodbye if they do.

I still think there will be another major conference shift in the next 15 years. On par with the shifts we saw a few years ago. Gotta be ready to be a taker and not a giver if that comes to pass.

[bradley center bat]

Alot will happen if the Big 12 expansion happens.

[rocket surgeon]

    this may sound kinda "grassy knoll", but does anyone see football at the high school and college level being

  "concusioned" out of existence over say, the next 10-15 years?   no?  ok, just thought i'd throw that out there.

don't get me wrong, i love football, but will high school be able to afford it in the near future if/when the lawsuits

start flying and mommy and daddy are blaming juniors blabbering on getting hit in the melon one too many

times.  ya never know as they all seem to be trying to grab that cash with both hands right now and quickly

how 'bout dem packas-ayn'a

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

    this may sound kinda "grassy knoll", but does anyone see football at the high school and college level being

  "concusioned" out of existence over say, the next 10-15 years?   no?  ok, just thought i'd throw that out there.

don't get me wrong, i love football, but will high school be able to afford it in the near future if/when the lawsuits

start flying and mommy and daddy are blaming juniors blabbering on getting hit in the melon one too many

times.  ya never know as they all seem to be trying to grab that cash with both hands right now and quickly

how 'bout dem packas-ayn'a

I don't know how much football will change but the concussion epidemic will definitely change it somehow

[source?]

So with these moves, and with UMass's ejection from the MAC as a football only member, that means that there is only one remaining "football only" arrangement in FBS.  Hawaii is a member of the Mountain West for football, but the Big West for the rest of its sports programs.

Huh, when did Navy leave the AAC?

[Herman Cain]

    this may sound kinda "grassy knoll", but does anyone see football at the high school and college level being

  "concusioned" out of existence over say, the next 10-15 years?   no?  ok, just thought i'd throw that out there.

don't get me wrong, i love football, but will high school be able to afford it in the near future if/when the lawsuits

start flying and mommy and daddy are blaming juniors blabbering on getting hit in the melon one too many

times.  ya never know as they all seem to be trying to grab that cash with both hands right now and quickly

how 'bout dem packas-ayn'a

Too many people love football in the lower demographics and are willing to have their kids take the risks.

[Herman Cain]

Conference realignment is never over. Fortunately, were pretty well insulated at the moment. Unless the acc decides to add basketball only members. Don't think they will but we can kiss Georgetown goodbye if they do.

I still think there will be another major conference shift in the next 15 years. On par with the shifts we saw a few years ago. Gotta be ready to be a taker and not a giver if that comes to pass.

I agree we are pretty well insulated. In addition the Presidents of the Big East schools are keen on making the conference a defined academic brand so they can keep justifying their ridiculously high tutions.So I see the Big East as the most stable conference.

[GoldenWarrior11]

I would love to see the freak out at UConn if they get left behind in realignment for a third time (2003-2004 and 2012-2013).  Being in a conference with Tulane, East Carolina, UCF, SMU, Houston and Tulsa is a huge disadvantage for them in football and basketball, not to mention their student-athletes and fans.  Their membership in that league is just not sustainable.

[GGGG]

Huh, when did Navy leave the AAC?

Good catch.

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

I would love to see the freak out at UConn if they get left behind in realignment for a third time (2003-2004 and 2012-2013).  Being in a conference with Tulane, East Carolina, UCF, SMU, Houston and Tulsa is a huge disadvantage for them in football and basketball, not to mention their student-athletes and fans.  Their membership in that league is just not sustrightble.

We complain about how our conference schedule has lost a lot of marquis games. I can't imagine what UConn fans say about theirs.

[GoldenWarrior11]

UConn has absolutely nothing in common with any of the other AAC schools.  Nothing athletically, academically, geographically or institutionally.  It'd be hilarious if it wasn't so sad that UConn literally sold its soul in hopes of advancing football.

Oh well.  I'm more than happy with our current collection of Big East schools.

[keefe]

I don't know how much football will change but the concussion epidemic will definitely change it somehow

I was talking with the Chair of the UW Mechanical Engineering Department last week and he mentioned the work his side company has done on a new football helmet. According to Dr. Per Reinhall his company is bringing radical new engineered solutions to fight sports-related TBI.

Per took last semester off after his company won an award from GE and Under Armour for their shock absorption technology.

Never underestimate the ingenuity of engineers!

http://depts.washington.edu/uwc4c/news-events/combatting-concussion-new-football-helmet-innovation-from-university-of-washington-startup-wins-head-health-challenge-ii/

[ChicosBailBonds]

UConn's Future Conference Membership A Key Topic During Intro For New AD David Benedict

Published March 2, 2016 Font Size   Resize Small Resize Normal Resize Large   |  Print  |  Share  |     

Benedict said he believes the American has put together a strong conference
Many questions asked of new UConn AD David Benedict yesterday at his introductory press conference "focused on the task of getting" the school into a Power Five conference, but Benedict "walked the line between putting UConn in position to be a part of the next stage of conference realignment and not disrespecting the American Athletic Conference," according to Jim Fuller of the NEW HAVEN REGISTER. Benedict said, "I think it is important for us to be good partners with our current conference. I think the American has done a great job putting together a very strong conference in a very short period of time and we are going to be great members to that conference. At the same time, we are going to make sure we position ourselves so we can remain competitive nationally in all of our sports." He added, "This is a Power 5 or if you want to refer to it as an Autonomy 5 program all day every day." UConn President Susan Herbst said of Benedict, "He knows amazing people. He knows people at that level, and it is very important to us" (NEW HAVEN REGISTER, 3/2).

EAGLE EYE: In Hartford, Paul Doyle notes Herbst when introducing Benedict "talked about his commanding presence and diverse background." Benedict is the 12th AD in UConn history and "is very much an outsider after spending his career everywhere but the Northeast." Herbst said, "I find that people who have been around the nation like that -- myself included -- you pick up best practices and you pick up different ideas." Doyle reports Benedict "agreed to a contract that runs through June 30, 2021," and he will "be paid a base salary of $450,000 with the ability to earn $100,000 in bonuses." There is a retention bonus of $50,000 per year if he "stays for five years." UConn "interviewed nine candidates, all within the past week." Benedict said, "Fundraising will be critical to us. That is the only revenue opportunity for us that is totally uncapped" (HARTFORD COURANT, 3/2).

TO-DO LIST: In Hartford, Jeff Jacobs writes his first impression of Benedict is that he "is bright." Jacobs: "He is disciplined. He is concise. And he is careful, really careful." Benedict has "seen all sides of the crazy collegiate landscape at a handful of different schools." He has "touched little money" and he has "touched big money, overseeing the daily operation" of a $120M-a-year program at Auburn and negotiating a nine-year, $81M deal with Under Armour (the biggest such deal in the SEC). Jacobs: "What Benedict must do is best position the athletic department financially. What Benedict must do is keep the athletic department on the solid course it is on academically. What Benedict must do is best position the school for new or restructured venues. What Benedict must do is help make football into FOOTBALL." That "means more fans at games," as well as "assuring a continued rise in fortunes that started last season." What Benedict must do is "continue the school's current campaign of selling its presence in the New York area in case the Big 12 decides that the biggest market is a determining factor in its expansion" (HARTFORD COURANT, 3/2).

STAYING A WHILE? In Connecticut, John Nash noted a promise Benedict made to his 13-year-old sons "was one of the moments that really jumped out from his introductory press conference." Benedict said, "I promised them we're not going anywhere for a really long time." Benedict's history at several different schools "could spell out some sort of trouble, but it could also spell out a top-notch, highly valued up-and-comer, climbing the career ladder because of his talents and success" (THEHOUR.com, 3/1). Also in Connecticut, Gavin Keefe writes under the header, "Benedict Brings Passion, Experience To UConn Job."

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

I also heard in announcing the new AD, UConn took out an advertisement in the Dallas Morning News as well as 9 billboards in Texas (maybe the Dallas area). 

[TSmith34, Inc.]

Too many people love football in the lower demographics and are willing to have their kids take the risks.

Well, someone just got an invitation to the next Beer Summit at Chico's White Lives Matter Ranch in Idaho.

[Buzz Williams' Spillproof Chiclets Cup]

Conference realignment is never over.

This is truth.

Apologies for the long post, but when conference realignment is read comprehensively, narratives begin to emerge. Arguably, the roots of the reformed Big East can be traced all the way back to the formation of the Big East Conference in 1979.

1979: Big East forms with BC, UConn, GTown, PC, St. John's, Seton Hall, and Cuse. Villanova joins the following year, and Pitt joins in 1982.

1982: There were seven power conferences. The Big Ten had 10 members; so did the SEC, and what is now the Pac-12. The ACC only had 8. The Big Eight had 8 members, and the Southwest Conference had 9. That year, Penn State applied for Big East membership. However, their membership was rejected due to fear of watering down the basketball brand.

1989: Seven years Later, the Big East changed position, and sought to become a major football conference, but only 3 schools played Division I football. Temple, Rutgers, West Virginia and Virginia Tech were added as football-only members, and Miami joined in all sports. The 4 football-only members parked their other sports in the Atlantic 10 Conference. The Big East had its first major demarcation between football schools and basketball schools. The league had 8 members for football, and 10 for basketball.

1990: Three huge developments. First, Notre Dame signs its TV contract with NBC. Second, the SEC expands, taking Arkansas from the Southwest Conference, and South Carolina from the Metro Conference. This allows the SEC to take advantage of an NCAA rule allowing conferences with 12 or more members to split into two divisions, and hold a football championship game. Such a game would prove to be extremely lucrative and the model for other conferences. The Southwest Conference was reduced to 8 teams in Texas, limiting the league's exposure. Finally, 8 years after being rejected by the Big East, Penn State agreed to join the Big Ten Conference, becoming that league's first new member since Michigan State was added in 1950. They began competition in 1993.

1991: Florida State follows South Carolina's lead, and leaves the Metro Conference for the ACC.

1994: Texas, Texas Tech, Texas A&M, and Baylor announced they were leaving the Southwest Conference to join eight Big Eight schools to form the new Big 12 Conference. No doubt inspired by the SEC's already-lucrative championship game, the Big 12 could now hold a similar game. Only Houston, SMU, Rice, and TCU remained, and the Southwest Conference would dissolve following the 1995-96 school year.

1995: The remainder of the Metro Conference and Great Midwest Conference merged to form "Conference USA," a league of mid-sized athletic programs.  Saint Louis, UAB, Memphis, DePaul, Marquette, and Cincinnati joined from the Great Midwest. Tulane, Southern Miss, South Florida, Louisville, and UNC-Charlotte joined from the Metro Conference. VCU, Dayton, and Virginia Tech were left out of the merger. Houston was invited to join Conference USA, but was committed to playing in the final season of the Southwest Conference in 1995. Conference USA began competing in all sports except football. 

In the Big East,  Rutgers and West Virginia, previously football-only members, joined for all sports. Notre Dame joined the Big East for all sports but football. The Big East football membership held steady at 8, but basketball was now 13.

With the Big East football-only members upgrading to full membership, the A-10 had to replenish its ranks. The A-10 took in Dayton and Virginia Tech, who failed to make it through the Conference USA merger, as well as Xavier, Fordham, and LaSalle, bringing A-10 membership to 12 until Virginia Tech became a full member of the Big East in 2000. VT were replaced by Richmond in 2001 to keep the A-10 level at 12.

1996: Houston joins Conference USA, bringing that conference's membership to 6 for football, and 12 for all sports. The Big 12 hosts its first football championship game.

1997-98: East Carolina and Army join Conference USA as football-only members, bringing football membership to 8. Basketball membership holds steady at 11.

1999: The WAC, which had grown from a modest-sized conference to a ballooning 16-member league stretching from Louisiana to Hawaii after taken in refugees from the Southwest Conference, became simply too unwieldy. 8 members broke off to form the Mountain West Conference. Following the move, the NCAA Tournament, now faced with an extra automatic bid for a new conference, but wanting to keep the number of at-large bids the same, expanded the NCAA Tournament from 64 to 65 teams, adding a "play-in game."

2001: In an effort to bolster its football ranks, TCU joins Conference USA from the WAC. East Carolina upgrades to full Conference USA membership, bringing football to 9 schools, and a 13-team basketball competition.

2003: South Florida's football program completes its transition to Division I-A. They join Conference USA to bring football membership to 10. However, a critical domino falls. The ACC, seeking to emulate the SEC and Big 12, grabs Boston College, Virginia Tech, and Miami from the Big East.

The Big East compensates by adding Louisville, Cincinnati, South Florida, DePaul, and Marquette from Conference USA. UConn's football team completed its ascension to Division I-A. The Big East now had 8 football teams and 16 basketball teams.

The only two remaining non-football schools in Conference USA (Saint Louis and Charlotte) join the A-10, bringing that conference to 14 teams. Army abandoned Conference USA to become a football independent. TCU completed the C-USA defections by joining the Mountain West, bringing the MWC to 9 teams.

To stay alive, Conference USA raided various smaller conferences, adding Marshall from the Mid-American Conference, Central Florida from the Sun Belt, and Rice, Tulsa, UTEP, and Southern Methodist from the WAC. Conference USA now had 12 teams, and could stage a conference championship game in football.

The chain reaction continued. The WAC, now down to 5 members from 16 only 6 years prior (Hawaii, Nevada, Boise State, Fresno State, and Louisiana Tech), added Utah State and New Mexico State from the Sun Belt Conference. Idaho joined from FCS, bringing WAC membership back to 8.

2010: The Big Ten, seeking to add a lucrative conference championship game and expand its Big Ten Network, adds Nebraska to get to 12 members.

The Pac-10 would be the last major conference to add a championship game, but aimed to be the first 16-team superconference. Rumors swirled that the Pac-10 would try to get Texas, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, and either Texas A&M or Texas Tech. As a bridge to this move, the Pac-10 added Colorado from the Big 12. However, Texas ultimately decided to stay put in the Big 12, on the condition of keeping extra revenue derived from their Longhorn Network television channel. The Pac-12 settled for Utah.

Texas' non-move embittered Texas A&M. Not wanting to play second-fiddle to Texas, A&M opted to join the Southeastern Conference, becoming their 13th team. To balance out the SEC's divisions, Missouri was added from the Big 12, bringing that conference down to 8 teams, while the SEC grew to 14. The Big 12 was down to 8 teams.

The Big East, in a desperate gambit to appease its football membership, added TCU from the Mountain West Conference, bringing its football membership to 9, and all-sports membership to 17. However, West Virginia decided the Big 12 offered greener pastures, and made way for the plains, pulling the bottom jenga piece on the Big East's eventual demise. The Big East was back where it started, with 16 all-sports schools, and 8 football schools. The Mountain West was also back where it started, with 8 schools.

With West Virginia gone, and the football legitimacy of the Big East threatened, Pittsburgh and Syracuse moved to the ACC, bringing the ACC to 14 teams.  As a result of this move, TCU no longer felt like the Big East was a stable home for the program, and TCU applied for and was granted admission to the Big 12 Conference.  ACC membership stood at 14, The Big 12 was back from the brink with 10, and the Big East's membership stood at 13 for all sports, and 5 for football.

2011: Fearing a Big East power grab, the A-10 added Butler from the Horizon League, and VCU from the Colonial, temporarily bringing its membership to 15. BYU left the Mountain West, seeking to become a "Western Notre Dame" football independent. The MWC was down to 7 teams.

2012: In a desperate attempt to stabilize the football conference, the Big East expanded nationwide, promising to become a football conference capable of hosting a championship game by 2015. The league added SMU, Houston, and UCF as members in all sports, and Boise State and San Diego State in football only. The moves brought Big East football membership to 10, and all-sports membership to 16.  Conference USA's membership was reduced to 9. The Mountain West dropped to 5, as Boise State and San Diego State moved to place their other sports in smaller conferences. 

In response, the Mountain West raided the WAC for new members. Fresno State, San Jose State, Nevada, and Utah State were added as all-sports members, and Hawaii joined in football only. WAC membership was decimated, and the Mountain West grew to 10 teams, almost reaching the size of the old unwieldy WAC. The current iteration of the WAC was on life support, with only UTSA, Texas State, Idaho, and New Mexico State remaining.

The Big East offered full membership to Memphis and Temple, and to Navy for football only. With the loss of Temple, the Atlantic 10 would be back to 14. Conference USA was down to 8. The Big East football membership grew to 13, with an all-sports membership of 18. Among all-sports members, the basketball schools were outnumbered for the first time at 10-8.

Conference USA followed the Big East raid by raiding smaller conferences for 8 schools, doubling their membership to 16 as Charlotte and Old Dominion kickstarted FBS football programs, joining C-USA from the Atlantic 10 and Colonial Athletic Association respectively. The A-10 membership was reduced to 13. Conference USA also raided the WAC for UTSA and Louisiana Tech, reducing that league's membership to 2, leading to an announcement that the WAC would no longer sponsor college football. Conference USA also added Middle Tennessee State, Florida International, Florida Atlantic and North Texas from the Sun Belt Conference.

Notre Dame had enough of the Big East's new inferior membership, and moved to the ACC, gaining access to the ACC's bowl-tie-ins, and promising to play 5 games against ACC opposition a year. Notably, regular ND opponents BC, Pitt, Miami, Florida State, Georgia Tech, and Wake Forest were already in the ACC. The Big East's all-sports membership dropped to 17. The football membership remained unchanged at 13.

Concerned about Penn State's newfound isolation in ACC country, the Big Ten moved to add Maryland and the next day, added Rutgers. Big Ten membership stood at 14, The ACC dropped to 13, and Big East football membership dropped to 12, with the all-sports membership at 16.

The ACC adds Louisville to replace Maryland, spurning overtures from Connecticut and Cincinnati. The ACC was back to 14, and the Big East was down to 11 football schools, and 15 all-sports schools.

The Big East meekly responded; adding Tulane for all sports and East Carolina for football only. The football membership was up to 13, and the all-sports membership was up to 16.

Of the 16 all-sports Big East schools, 7 were basketball-first members who did not sponsor FBS football, and had been on the sidelines during this entire process. The football product was increasingly unstable, and the new additions were diluting the basketball product. Of the 9 remaining all-sports schools, 6 had not yet joined the conference and achieved full voting rights. Outgoing members Syracuse, Pittsburgh, Louisville, Rutgers, and Notre Dame no longer had voting rights, and new members Temple, Memphis, SMU, Houston, UCF, and Tulane did not have voting rights either. The basketball schools, for the first time in realignment, had a voting super-majority of 7-3, and could vote to dissolve the league. This window would close in July 2013 as Temple achieved full voting rights, and Memphis, UCF, Houston, and SMU joined the Big East. The basketball schools knew the time was now or never, and planned to leave the Big East. Xavier, Butler, and Creighton join the "Catholic 7" and the reformed Big East begins play in 2013-14.