(03-20-2017 11:03 AM)The Cutter of Bish Wrote:  AAC's problem isn't the lack of basketball programs, it's the emphasis on football those programs made at the expense of their basketball, or the inability to reconcile scheduling in the non-conference.

Like, I don't envy Temple's situation. I think, for them, to retain their basketball identity, they had to either drop more of the major games they could book (which Temple was fantastic at doing) or beef up their non-conference with as much of the A10 as possible, keeping in mind that four of their games are already set for them. That's just really difficult to pull off. I don't know if going to the AAC will ultimately be the best move they could have made for all of their athletics, but I think Temple basketball was more pronounced in the A10, and that they got more freedom in that old conference because they kind of had two extra non-conference games they now don't, with St. Joe's and La Salle. And, while it wasn't like everyone in the A10 was a monster program, I don't know how ECU, Tulane, and some of the others line up against Fordham, George Mason, or Duquesne. At least with the A10, your bottom was still a good regional tie for recruiting. I doubt Temple will be reaping recruits from the Carolinas, Florida and Texarkana.

I dont know if its that bad. Lets look at Temples current situation (which would be similar to anyone in the AAC). You have an 18 game conference schedule (just like the A10). Temple would have solid games vs UConn, Memphis, Cinci, and SMU (that's likely 8 of their games). Then the middle tier of the AAC (Tulsa, Houston, and UCF) represent decent games (probably 6 more of their games)---so that isn't too bad either. So, the big issue is the games against USF, Tulane, and ECU (somewhere between 3-6 games). Basically, 8 of 11 teams are investing big dollars and showing significant financial support of their basketball programs. Those programs are looking pretty good and form the basis of a solid basketball league.

So, their conference schedule situation isn't really that bad. Additionally, that pretty decent situation improves significantly with an extra couple of games with Wichita. So, Temple isn't in a bad spot in my opinion. Temples issue isn't really the financial commitment of the league to basketball or their conference schedule. Temples issue of late is how they are doing against that schedule. I think they will be fine.