Thoughts on UConn joining the new Big East?

[Mudge1026]

Any thoughts of UConn joining the new Big East? What is the difference in payout AAC vs Big East? Is Div football that important to keep, considering its an upstart program? I would think there would be better recruiting opportunities in the Big East. Can anybody that follows recruiting comment on mens recruiting now vs when UConn was a Big East member? Anybody have any insight as to UConn joining a Power Five league? I'm sure that would be the reason why UConn would keep Div 1 football.

I'm not fan like all of you on this board, but have rooted for UConn along with all the other original Big East schools since the league's inception. If UConn isnt offered an invitation to the ACC or Big 10 I am hoping UConn turns its attention to the new Big East. UConn vs Nova or UConn vs Georgetown, renewing those rivalries would be awesome plus all the older schools still in the conference. I'd be interested in your thoughts?

 

[the Blades]

This has been covered Ad nauseam for years...There is no interest... for a ton of reasons you can look up. But it's a Catholic hoops league, on a station( Fox1) that no one watches... Uconn has outgrown it and has invested over 150 million in a football upgrade, the same upgrade Villanova thought about but couldn't afford....so they ain't going FB independent and the AAC is probably better in FB than the old Big East...hell undefeated Houston( until Uconn knocked them off) beat Florida St in a New Years Bowl..........but these guys would love to tell you plenty more Uconn Conference Realignment Board

also about that men's recruiting thing it hasn't hurt Uconn one bit.... here's a link: ...2016 Basketball Team recruiting Rankings - Uconn # 5 in the Country
and Uconn has already renewed old rivalries with Georgetown & Cuse last year and is even playing Cuse and BC in FB this year...it's called OOC scheduling

 

[Mudge1026]

This has been covered Ad nauseam for years...There is no interest... for a ton of reasons you can look up. But it's a Catholic hoops league, on a station( Fox1) that no one watches... Uconn has outgrown it and has invested over 150 million in a football upgrade, the same upgrade Villanova thought about but couldn't afford....so they ain't going FB independent and the AAC is probably better in FB than the old Big East...hell undefeated Houston( until Uconn knocked them off) beat Florida St in a New Years Bowl..........but these guys would love to tell you plenty more Uconn Conference Realignment Board

also about that men's recruiting thing it hasn't hurt Uconn one bit.... here's a link: ...2016 Basketball Team recruiting Rankings - Uconn # 5 in the Country
and Uconn has already renewed old rivalries with Georgetown & Cuse last year and is even playing Cuse and BC in FB this year...is called OOC scheduling

Thanks for the info, I havent followed UConn closely and was just wondering. My thought would be, do you expect the AAC to survive in its current make-up long term? The schools are from all over the Country and UConn has no real rivalries other than maybe Cinn. If there is no invite from the Big Ten or ACC my fear is UConn could get hurt long term in the AAC. Maybe UConn football is forced to be an independent because of the AAC's demise. I would think the Big East could save your mens basketball program.

 

[Dr.O1]

BE is a short term solution. We need a home. Not time share

 

[the Blades]

Thanks for the info, I havent followed UConn closely and was just wondering. My thought would be, do you expect the AAC to survive in its current make-up long term? The schools are from all over the Country and UConn has no real rivalries other than maybe Cinn. If there is no invite from the Big Ten or ACC my fear is UConn could get hurt long term in the AAC. Maybe UConn football is forced to be an independent because of the AAC's demise. I would think the Big East could save your mens basketball program.

Welcome to the world of College Re-alignment... the rivalries that have been killed sucks across the board, just ask the Big 12 ( no TEX or OK vs. Neb)....WVU in the Big 12 ?, Louisville, KY and Notre Dame in the "Atlantic Coast " Maryland out ?. But Uconn has bigger plans than the Big East and like I said this is more than about playing basketball in a conference where most teams don't even own the arena they play in.....As Doc said Uconn needs a long term solution for all their sports.......Is the AAC ideal ?... no.. but they play FB at the highest level so it is what it is.......Cincy, Temple and Navy are fine for now as "local rivals".........The ones you mentioned the B1G ( which would be for all-sports including their Hockey team), ACC, or even the Big 12, since the travel is mostly the same as the AAC, is the long term goal as a member of a P-5 conference. More movement from other schools in the P-5 is bound to happen which could be a good thing for Uconn, but they can't go backwards to the BE..... Uconn's AD has already talked about it being a non-starter.......especially when guys like former Marquette coach Buzz Williams is talking about the reason he left the Big East... that the : P-5 could separate away completely in a few years, just as they have done in Football..... for basketball too.

The geography was killed along time ago when teams started leaving the real Big East back in 2003, finally including the catholic schools who left too. Uconn was the only original one who stayed ( it's the reason they ended up with millions in exit fee money)....Now the BE has Creighton (NE), Butler(IN) Marquette (WI), Depaul (IL) ??? ...not exactly "East" either. The lower AAC is weak but so were the bottom feeders in the BE for years...Uconn will be fine where ever they compete because they win championships and you asked about recruiting so that's self explanatory.

In the last 20 years there has been 13 BE appearances in the Final 4, 10/11 of those appearances are by teams no longer in the Big East. Uconn had 4 of them plus a 5th appearance as well as their 4th national championship coming out of the American in 2014. If you ask me it is the other way around, Uconn and a few others like Cuse and Ville saved the BE. And Nova's SR recruiting class was brought in to play in the old Big East just like some of Uconn's NC team was a few years ago. So long term who knows ???

1996 Syracuse - Big East
1999 Connecticut - Big East NC
2003 Syracuse- Big East NC
2004 Connecticut- Big East NC
2007 Georgetown- Big East
2009 Connecticut- Big East ......Villanova - Big East
2010 West Virginia- Big East
2011 Connecticut- Big East NC
2012 Louisville- Big East
2013 Louisville- Big East NC......Syracuse- Big East
2014 Connecticut - American NC
2016 Villanova- Big East NC...... Syracuse- Atlantic Coast

 

[Mudge1026]

Welcome to the world of College Re-alignment... the rivalries that have been killed sucks across the board, just ask the Big 12 ( no TEX or OK vs. Neb)....WVU in the Big 12 ?, Louisville, KY and Notre Dame in the "Atlantic Coast " Maryland out ?. But Uconn has bigger plans than the Big East and like I said this is more than about playing basketball in a conference where most teams don't even own the arena they play in.....As Doc said Uconn needs a long term solution for all their sports.......Is the AAC ideal ?... no.. but they play FB at the highest level so it is what it is.......Cincy, Temple and Navy are fine for now as "local rivals".........The ones you mentioned the B1G ( which would be for all-sports including their Hockey team), ACC,or even the Big 12, since the travel is mostly the same as the AAC, is the long term goal as a member of a P-5 conference. More movement from other schools in the P-5 is bound to happen which could be a good thing for Uconn, but they can't go backwards to the BE..... Uconn's AD has already talked about it being a non-starter.......especially when guys like former Marquette coach Buzz Williams is talking about the reason he left the Big East... that the : P-5 could separate away completely in a few years, just as they have done in Football..... for basketball too.

The geography was killed along time ago when teams started leaving the real Big East back in 2003, finally including the catholic schools who left too. Uconn was the only original one who stayed ( it's the reason they ended up with millions in exit fee money)....Now the BE has Creighton (NE), Butler(IN) Marquette (WI), Depaul (IL) ??? ...not exactly "East" either. The lower AAC is weak but so were the bottom feeders in the BE for years...Uconn will be fine where ever they compete because they win championships and you asked about recruiting so that's self explanatory.

In the last 20 years there has been 13 BE appearances in the Final 4, 10/11 of those appearances are by teams no longer in the Big East. Uconn had 4 of them plus a 5th appearance as well as their 4th national championship coming out of the American in 2014. If you ask me it is the other way around, Uconn and a few others like Cuse and Ville saved the BE. And Nova's SR recruiting class was brought in to play in the Big East just like some of Uconn's NC team was a few years ago. So long term who knows ???

1996 Syracuse - Big East
1999 Connecticut - Big East NC
2003 Syracuse- Big East NC
2004 Connecticut- Big East NC
2007 Georgetown- Big East
2009 Connecticut- Big East ......Villanova - Big East
2010 West Virginia- Big East
2011 Connecticut- Big East NC
2012 Louisville- Big East
2013 Louisville- Big East NC......Syracuse- Big East
2014 Connecticut - American NC
2016 Villanova- Big East NC...... Syracuse- Atlantic Coast

Excellent write-up

 

[KhalidShockedTheWorld]

I don't think the situation is unique to the AAC. I think all of the conferences are in flux so to speak and unsettled. In my mind, it is inevitable that there will be some kind of antitrust litigation at some point in time due to the changed landscape in college athletics in the last 30 years. The law evolves and it hasn't caught up yet with all the changes that have happened.

 

[the Blades]

Interesting article from Providence regarding NCAA money, the American and Big East basketball not among the top money-makers

PROVIDENCE — Quick, which conference is raking in the most money from the NCAA’s billion-dollar TV contract?

Is it the Big East, the home of newly crowned national champion Villanova? Not by a long shot.
( In its first season the league earned six units and received $1.53 million. The league earned 11 units in 2015 so will be paid off 17 units /$4.43 million this spring. )

A great guess would be the Atlantic Coast Conference, the league that filled the Sweet 16 this March and absorbed many of the Big East’s marquee programs a few seasons ago. Wrong. How about the Big 12, the conference that seemingly always puts seven teams in the tourney? Not them either.

So which conference received a $29.3-million check from the NCAA’s $200-million basketball fund last spring? The American Athletic Conference, which still has its offices a jump shot away from the Rhode Island State House. The American’s take from the pot was the largest in the country, easily eclipsing the total earned by the Big 10 ($24.5 million) and the Big 12 ($20.1).

The so-called Catholic Seven ultimately chose to leave the remaining group and an agreement was reached that created two new leagues: a 10-member Big East and The American, which features holdovers Connecticut, Cincinnati and South Florida, plus additions Memphis and Tulsa.

As part of the agreement, the basketball only schools retained the Big East name, the right to play their conference tournament at Madison Square Garden and leftover unit money that remained with the schools that earned it, primarily Marquette and Villanova. But the American retained millions of dollars in NCAA units earned by schools ( that left) such as Louisville, West Virginia and Syracuse

Three years into the new world order, the Big East has the new national champion in Villanova, but the AAC continues to rake in millions from the good old days. Stretching back six seasons, the AAC is still getting paid for the efforts of six Final Four teams and three national championship runs: UConn in 2011 and '14 and Louisville in 2012.