(01-13-2016 06:11 PM)CarlSmithCenter Wrote:  

(01-13-2016 06:03 PM)connecticutguy Wrote:  Here's a possible rumor. The AAC divides into two conferences. One is best of the rest in football. The other is made of academically elite colleges. Rice, Army, Air Force and Georgetown join the academic focused conference.

Wouldn't you have to have at least seven teams in each of the offshoot conferences that had played together for a while to maintain an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament? I don't think a group of schools can just announce that they are forming a new league and then be assured of an autobid, which would seem to be hugely import, especially for the academically elite set of schools in your scenario. I guess you have a scenario where the less prominent football schools beg, borrow and steal there way into the new Big East and started a football league under that conference's auspices but I doubt very much that any of the Catholic 7 would want to go down the hybrid membership road again, especially with the relatively poor quality of basketball played by the non-SMU private schools in the AAC.

The group that breaks off into a new conference has to be at least six schools who played together for five years. Division I rules require seven active members (i.e. no recent Division II call-ups) and FBS requires eight full members. There is a specific number of sports, including team sports, the conference has to sponsor for each gender.

The schools left in the AAC can be of any number, but they have to reload to at least the minimum numbers stated above.

Georgetown isn't leaving the Big East. There is also no reason for the AAC to split. Any new FBS conference would not be included in the CFP contract, so that makes it a non-starter.

(01-14-2016 03:40 PM)jgkojak Wrote:  The ACC is now the one ripe for poaching - the B12 teams have their cake and eat it too - so the next frontier - going to 16 - is where the B1G and SEC go to retain their superiority -

So I see the SEC going after Florida State (for FSU, better travel, more reliable top opponents) and NC State (similar travel, get out of UNC shadow)

The B1G goes after Georgia Tech (AAU school, Atlanta metro area - travel to major metro hubs easier than places like Penn St) and Virginia (also AAU, top academics), UNC (probably won't happen), then pick 'em from the ACC AAU programs-
small chance the B1G goes after GT or VA and then KS

The poached ACC adds UConn (no brainer), and Cinci to get to 12, then offers to WVU when GOR is up, not sure who 14 is

The Pac and B12 then remain quite stable - B12 grabbing BYU if WVU goes east.

The ACC would not willingly vacate the Atlanta market. They'll hold their nose and add Georgia State.

(01-14-2016 09:39 PM)chargeradio Wrote:  

(01-14-2016 03:40 PM)jgkojak Wrote:  The ACC is now the one ripe for poaching - the B12 teams have their cake and eat it too - so the next frontier - going to 16 - is where the B1G and SEC go to retain their superiority -

So I see the SEC going after Florida State (for FSU, better travel, more reliable top opponents) and NC State (similar travel, get out of UNC shadow)

The B1G goes after Georgia Tech (AAU school, Atlanta metro area - travel to major metro hubs easier than places like Penn St) and Virginia (also AAU, top academics), UNC (probably won't happen), then pick 'em from the ACC AAU programs-
small chance the B1G goes after GT or VA and then KS

The poached ACC adds UConn (no brainer), and Cinci to get to 12, then offers to WVU when GOR is up, not sure who 14 is

The Pac and B12 then remain quite stable - B12 grabbing BYU if WVU goes east.

The ACC would not willingly vacate the Atlanta market. They'll hold their nose and add Georgia State.