(12-11-2012 02:53 PM)cuseroc Wrote:  

(12-11-2012 01:57 PM)4x4hokies Wrote:  I wouldn't assume that Louisville can sustain what they have going. All it takes is losing their coach as has been proven recently.

I think Louisville being in the Acc now will further strengthen their efforts in retaining their coach. If Louisville were still stuck in the BE, does Charlie Strong decide to turn down the Tenn job? We'll never know, but I think he would have been very concerned about being stuck coaching in a league that is no longer viable.

Yeah, and the extra $14M/year that U of L will be getting from the ACC (vs. Big East) should help them PAY the coaches, too!

We have a coach down at our minor league affiliate in Bowling Green now, getting his shoulder warmed back up, in case CCS does leave for the SEC in the next few years.....That along with the ACC, more $$$, and our AD we'll be fine.

(12-11-2012 01:30 PM)Hokie Mark Wrote:  This might be the biggest reason for rethinking the divisions - let's rank the teams:*

It leans to much toward the Atlantic division, IMO. Even assuming Va Tech gets back (which I do), I don't see FSU, Clemson, or Louisville falling off. I'm just not sure if there is a better way to do this. Thoughts?

* I've copied Andre Adelson's list because I couldn't find fault with it.

I have three thoughts to share:

#1. You won't hear any complains from UofL fans about being in the Atlantic Division. I can not wait to have those teams on the schedule every season and I know many of my fellow Cardinal fans are ecstatic about our schedule as well.

#2. I think it is important to point out that Adelson's rankings were for the end of the 2012 regular season only and that it wasn't a straight apples-to-apples comparison (UofL, Cuse, and Pitt all played in a different conference this season after all). If you ranked teams based on historical success or where they were five years ago, the rankings would look completely different. Because success can be (and usually is) cyclical, I'm not sure basing divisional alignments off of one or two seasons is necessarily the best move.

#3. Setting up divisions can be extremely complicated because there are a ton of factors to consider. You want divisions to be balanced but also have to keep in mind that programs tend to cycle through periods of success and mediocrity/failure. You have to consider recruiting (most programs will want access to Florida) and which rivalry games to keep (expansion usually kills off a few). You have to consider what games TV wants to see every year (FSU - Miami is a bigger draw than Duke - Wake Forest).