+- CSNbbs (https://csnbbs.com)
+-- Forum: Active Boards (/forum-769.html)
+--- Forum: AACbbs (/forum-460.html)
+---- Forum: Archives (/forum-400.html)
+----- Forum: AACbbs Archives (/forum-418.html)
+------ Forum: Cincinnati Archives (/forum-932.html)
+------ Thread: UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1 (/thread-638313.html)
Pages: 1 2
UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1 - ctipton - 06-30-2013 09:46 AM
UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1
06/28/13 at 11:26am by Tom Groeschen
![[Image: American.jpg]](http://cincinnati.com/blogs/uc/files/2013/06/American.jpg)
The University of Cincinnati officially will say goodbye to the Big East and become part of the American Athletic Conference on Monday (July 1).
League administrators have pushed for the new conference to be called “The American” instead of the AAC. In UC’s case, the school plans no formal ceremony to mark the occasion.
The American will add full members Central Florida, Houston, Memphis and SMU on July 1; East Carolina, Tulane and Tulsa on July 1, 2014; and football-only member Navy on July 1, 2015.
In 2013, the members are Cincinnati, UConn, South Florida, Louisville, Rutgers, Central Florida, Temple, Houston, Memphis and SMU.
UC enters the new league as one of its flagship members, after the recent success of the Bearcats’ football and men’s basketball programs. UC athletic director Whit Babcock said the school cannot afford to take that distinction for granted.
“The league that we’re in is going to be hard enough, and while we’re in it we darn sure better win it,” Babcock recently told The Enquirer. “Just like the Big East elevated Cincinnati’s game, I think the (American) will elevate SMU, Houston, Central Florida, East Carolina and all that because, remember, they’re coming into a league where now they’re making more money and we’re going to make the same or slightly less over time (than UC made in the Big East).
“They’re getting $3 (million) to $4 million more per year and you can make a difference with that. The challenge for us is that if we have a leadership position in this league, let’s not take for granted that we can’t get passed. They’re coming.”
http://cincinnati.com/blogs/uc/2013/06/28/uc-officially-joins-the-american-on-july-1/
RE: UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1 - Bearcat Otto - 06-30-2013 04:04 PM
Where's the celebration on Fountain Square?
RE: UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1 - Bearcats#1 - 06-30-2013 08:30 PM
(06-30-2013 04:04 PM)Bearcat Otto Wrote: Where's the celebration on Fountain Square?
LOL
RE: UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1 - Bruce Monnin - 07-01-2013 06:48 AM
(06-30-2013 04:04 PM)Bearcat Otto Wrote: Where's the celebration on Fountain Square?
Xavier is having it today.
RE: UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1 - #41 - 07-01-2013 09:28 AM
I still love that the logo has what appears to be a falling star in the center. Couldn't be a more appropriate image for this joke of a conference.
RE: UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1 - Nellie - 07-01-2013 09:33 AM
I've decided to embrace "The American" until I don't have to. We can all ***** and moan, but it is completely out of our hands...I'm a Bearcats fan, I could give a Rats ass about any other teams in their conference...no matter the conference. I'm not one who will cheer for other teams simply because they are in the same conference as UC (see: most SEC /Big 10 fans)...just hope to dominate the American in football and basketball and land somewhere better down the line. I'm over being worried about it...
RE: UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1 - rosewater - 07-01-2013 10:33 AM
(07-01-2013 09:33 AM)Nellie Wrote: I've decided to embrace "The American" until I don't have to. We can all ***** and moan, but it is completely out of our hands...I'm a Bearcats fan, I could give a Rats ass about any other teams in their conference...no matter the conference. I'm not one who will cheer for other teams simply because they are in the same conference as UC (see: most SEC /Big 10 fans)...just hope to dominate the American in football and basketball and land somewhere better down the line. I'm over being worried about it...
Me too. All is not lost. Many of the teams have had top 25 appearances in the last 5 years: Cincy, Usf, UCF, Houston. I know there are other potential shoes about to fall with athletic funding and a potential total exclusion from the P5 conferences. I cannot control this and I am tired of worrying.
RE: UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1 - moosebean11 - 07-01-2013 11:48 AM
We join "The American" ...on Canada Day. Somehow fitting.
RE: UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1 - KCat - 07-01-2013 01:17 PM
During all this re-alignment, no fan base has had to endure what the UC fans have gone through.. We are now in a new conference and have had to watch our cross town rival take our place in our old league.... That is kinda rough...
RE: UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1 - eroc - 07-01-2013 01:56 PM
just clicked on the link that was formerly for the b.east blog on espn and it redirects me to the College football nation blog. F.ESPN!!
RE: UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1 - mac6115cd - 07-01-2013 01:59 PM
(07-01-2013 01:56 PM)eroc Wrote: just clicked on the link that was formerly for the b.east blog on espn and it redirects me to the College football nation blog. F.ESPN!!
Yep, just adds insult to injury. Here's hoping every team in the American wins all their OOC games. It's the only way to get respect.
RE: UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1 - CliftonAve - 07-01-2013 02:01 PM
(07-01-2013 01:56 PM)eroc Wrote: just clicked on the link that was formerly for the b.east blog on espn and it redirects me to the College football nation blog. F.ESPN!!
They got rid of it this morning without even giving the teams the courtesy of a warning or a goodbye. Andrea Adelson is now covering the ACC full-time and the Big East twitter account has been deactivated.
RE: UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1 - eroc - 07-01-2013 02:13 PM
(07-01-2013 02:01 PM)CliftonAve Wrote:(07-01-2013 01:56 PM)eroc Wrote: just clicked on the link that was formerly for the b.east blog on espn and it redirects me to the College football nation blog. F.ESPN!!
They got rid of it this morning without even giving the teams the courtesy of a warning or a goodbye. Andrea Adelson is now covering the ACC full-time and the Big East twitter account has been deactivated.
in a way, i'm glad. Bennett, Adelson and later Fortuna sucked at their jobs and their apathy for teams that weren't leaving the B.East conference was palpable. The oral servicing they provided Louisville was downright gross. Completely unprofessional and i'm glad they are some other fanbases problem. i hope UC kicks arse and forces ESPN to cover them. Granted, it'll be slanted coverage emphasizing any negatives that they can against UC but it'll still be sweet to force their hand.
RE: UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1 - #41 - 07-01-2013 03:17 PM
Welcome to obscurity -- the word "American" does not appear in one place on ESPN's College Football homepage on the inaugural day of the conference.
But no, it's cool -- ESPN will give the league so much legitimacy and respect because they own the rights to it.
RE: UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1 - bearcatfan - 07-01-2013 03:29 PM
The Stanford blog has apparently been appointed to be the new temporary home of the AAC blog -
http://espn.go.com/blog/stanford-football/post/_/id/7643/phil-steele-picks-oregon-usc-in-pac-12#comment
RE: UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1 - 123az - 07-01-2013 03:29 PM
RIP UC athletics?
RE: UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1 - rath v2.0 - 07-01-2013 03:44 PM
Meh...
Demotion Day.
RE: UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1 - marcuscan - 07-01-2013 05:11 PM
gotta love Deadspin. Always catching ESPN slipping.
http://deadspin.com/9-out-of-10-schools-on-this-espn-map-are-in-the-wrong-p-638308073?utm_campaign=socialflow_deadspin_facebook&utm_source=deadspin_facebook&utm_medium=socialflow
mc
RE: UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1 - bearcatdp - 07-01-2013 10:28 PM
Well, ESPN.com just lost me. No reason to go there when CBSSports is just as good, now that neither has a The American. I will watch the games but won't be going to ESPN.com anymore.
RE: UC officially joins ‘The American’ on July 1 - SuperFlyBCat - 07-02-2013 10:28 AM
In the last two years, just about everything that could have gone wrong for the old Big East -- relaunched Monday as the American Athletic Conference -- did exactly that.
Once the Big East turned down that $130 million annual deal from ESPN in 2011, the realignment avalanche poured on the conference's Providence, R.I., office. The league lost football members to the Big 12, Big Ten, ACC and Mountain West. The deal with ESPN shrunk nearly sevenfold for a conference left with a few tenured members and old Conference USA parts.
To hear “American” commissioner Mike Aresco tell it, however, things probably could have been worse.
The ACC's grant of rights shielded the American from further poaching. Aresco calls the ACC's move a “big deal.” Had the Big Ten raided the ACC again, longest-tenured American members UConn, Cincinnati and USF would have been the prime replacement candidates. Lose two more, and maybe the incoming Conference USA schools for 2014 -- East Carolina, Tulsa and Tulane -- would have stayed in Conference USA. Navy joins the American in 2015 to make a 12-team football league.
A clean break with the Catholic 7 basketball schools that kept the namesake, thus avoiding litigation, helped the American finalize an ESPN deal in early 2013 instead of prolonging the instability, Aresco said.
There was extra cash from the Catholic 7 naming rights, and the American distributed revenue from NCAA men's basketball tournament “units” left behind by the basketball schools.
“It could have been a messy situation,” Aresco said.
Fair or not, the American was widely perceived as the nation's sixth-best football conference before the defections, only this is the last year with BCS automatic-qualifying status. Now, the dividing line between the five power conferences and the smaller “Group of 5,” where the American finds itself, is clearly cut by more than $100 million from now to 2020.
This leaves the American with no choice but to get creative and, well, win.
There's enough left to do just that, Aresco said.
“All I've ever wanted for this group is a chance,” Aresco said, “and we have a chance.”
Aresco isn't calling this a new conference but a successor to the old Big East. With UConn, Cincinnati and USF still on the roster, perhaps the succession plan is fitting.
But the American must welcome the new-league feel of this week after what became a perpetual break-up scene, only with no one left to carry out the boxes.
Pitt and Syracuse's move to the ACC finally became official this week. Louisville, a top-10 contender for 2013, still has one more year. Heck, Cincinnati president Santa J. Ono might still be sending holiday cards to ACC brass.
For once, there's not a divorce to finalize or a name to rebrand or a logo to draw up.
“We've done a lot of conference calls,” joked Aresco about his tenure that started in August.
The American's basketball lineup is still impressive, and Cincinnati football is coming off five double-digit-win seasons in the last six years. Tulsa has been a winning program for much of the last decade. Several other football programs have shown glimpses, including new addition UCF. USF briefly ranked No. 2 in 2007.
But the league could use a cornerstone football program, which would help in future media rights negotiations in 2020.
There will be chances for upset non-conference wins and jockeying for a College Football Playoff “New Year's Day” bowl that produces a higher end-of-season payout.
Starting in 2014, the American is fighting with the Mountain West, MAC, Conference USA and Sun Belt for one CFP spot.
“It's going to depend on what we do on the field, but I think we're pretty good,” Aresco said.
UConn athletics director Warde Manuel says two keys for the American are staying positive and growing the value.
“How you play and what you do will help determine the future,” Manuel said. “By then, we can be better as a conference and extract more value in media rights once your television partner sees what we're doing as a conference and you hope you're in a position to be stronger and have proven success.”
Aresco knows realignment could surface again one day, and he's not hiding from that possibility. If someone feels they found a better car, that person should buy it -- as long as you know the current home is a “great place,” he says.
“We're going to be OK,” Aresco said. “I think the biggest thing is this is a good group of schools that didn't -- obviously, they are not in one of those five [power] conferences -- but they felt this was the best home for them.”
Bowl developments: The American is talking with the Pac-12 about partnering on a start-up bowl in the Miami area, Aresco said.
“They are looking at it,” Aresco said. “They are still debating how many tie-ins they want to have. It's an attractive proposition for them.”
The BBVA Compass Bowl (Birmingham, Ala.) and Military Bowl (Annapolis, Md.) are likely destinations for the American, Aresco said. The Beef O'Brady's (St. Petersburg, Fla.) and Liberty (Memphis, Tenn.) are possibilities
http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/blog/jeremy-fowler/22609565/american-athletic-conference-finally-gets-its-chance-after-brutal-two-years