The expansion process is largely a black box to outsiders.

That said, the fact that UConn has nothing FOIA-able isn't good news for UConn fans. When things are in the exploratory, hypothetical conversations and wink-and-a-nod stage, you can keep things deniable. But if any sort of movement is imminent, I'd say it's harder to keep things verbal and informal, or keep things on a separate set of books managed through a donor.

Cincy has documents to produce, but I don't know that Cincy has a better shot at the Big 12. (I really have no idea who they take out of BYU, Houston, Memphis, UConn, Cincy, maybe a USF/UCF?).

But Cincy's in a different spot than UConn. UConn's numbers are what they are, and I'm pretty sure everyone in major college athletics knows them. State flagship, elite basketball program, 20-year old FBS program, FB and BB attendance, WBB actually a factor.

Cincy, on the other hand, had to force themselves into the discussion, and did so last round with the ACC.

So I read a little bit into this news, but not much. This was one of hte most relevant BE4evah threads ever. (Note that this is because many of them are just terrible.)

It's already been reported UConn is going through Mike Tranghese for conference realignment contacts and discussions. Maybe BE4evah can serve him with a subpoena to produce the documents.

(02-17-2016 12:05 PM)Hank Schrader Wrote:  It's already been reported UConn is going through Mike Tranghese for conference realignment contacts and discussions. Maybe BE4evah can serve him with a subpoena to produce the documents.

Another person that doesn't quite get it. Any information that Tranghese shares with UConn must be produced. And I don't know where talk of subpoenas came from? The Hartford Courant filed a FOIA request. UConn replied there were no relevant documents.

(02-17-2016 11:27 AM)johnbragg Wrote:  The expansion process is largely a black box to outsiders.

That said, the fact that UConn has nothing FOIA-able isn't good news for UConn fans. When things are in the exploratory, hypothetical conversations and wink-and-a-nod stage, you can keep things deniable. But if any sort of movement is imminent, I'd say it's harder to keep things verbal and informal, or keep things on a separate set of books managed through a donor.

Cincy has documents to produce, but I don't know that Cincy has a better shot at the Big 12. (I really have no idea who they take out of BYU, Houston, Memphis, UConn, Cincy, maybe a USF/UCF?).

But Cincy's in a different spot than UConn. UConn's numbers are what they are, and I'm pretty sure everyone in major college athletics knows them. State flagship, elite basketball program, 20-year old FBS program, FB and BB attendance, WBB actually a factor.

Cincy, on the other hand, had to force themselves into the discussion, and did so last round with the ACC.

So I read a little bit into this news, but not much. This was one of hte most relevant BE4evah threads ever. (Note that this is because many of them are just terrible.)

It should be noted that most of those Cinci documents are over a year old. It may simply be that these schools have learned how to eliminate the paper trail after a slew of embarrassing email dumps from other college officials (obtained via FOIA requests) that have been splashed across various media outlets.

(02-17-2016 12:54 PM)BE4evah Wrote:  

(02-17-2016 12:05 PM)Hank Schrader Wrote:  It's already been reported UConn is going through Mike Tranghese for conference realignment contacts and discussions. Maybe BE4evah can serve him with a subpoena to produce the documents.

Another person that doesn't quite get it. Any information that Tranghese shares with UConn must be produced. And I don't know where talk of subpoenas came from? The Hartford Courant filed a FOIA request. UConn replied there were no relevant documents.

Yes, I am the one that doesn't quite get it. That means a lot coming from such a valued member of this online community.

You blatantly missed the obvious contradiction. If there are really no documents that exist why would Tranghese be on the payroll for conference realignment related matters.

Frankly, until someone has seen the FOIA request none of us know the scope of the request was. There are many creative ways to not disclose information that you do not want to get out. You need an extremely well crafted request to actually get the information you are looking for.

Lastly, UConn released emails following an FOIA request after the SU/Pitt departure. It's obvious the University learned from that mistake.

UConn has made their case to the big12.

So, all of this Cincy talk is from documents tare more than a year old.

Yeah, I think people jumped the shark on all of this.

(02-17-2016 03:00 PM)Nebraskafan Wrote:  So, all of this Cincy talk is from documents tare more than a year old.

Yeah, I think people jumped the shark on all of this.

It's been going on at least that long.

The far more interesting documents would be those related to Rutgers. Were any promises made to the B10? Were there internal documents warning about the character/actions of school officials and student athletes? Maybe the local NJ paper ought to push for these and see what they reveal about the dumpster fire athletic of an athletic program. Maybe, they will even involve Gov. Chris Christie.

(02-17-2016 02:29 PM)OkaForPrez Wrote:  UConn has made their case to the big12.

And it was at dinner in November when UConn's president has dinner with KSU's president. And the rumor mongering commenced. LOL.

Maybe UConn's contact with B12 officials has been via phone or in person.

(02-17-2016 10:24 PM)BullsFanInTX Wrote:  Maybe UConn's contact with B12 officials has been via phone or in person.

I do believe all school business has to be with sanctioned devices for censorship purposes. Only way they could keep it off the books is if a rep came to them.

(02-17-2016 09:10 PM)KUGR Wrote:  

(02-17-2016 02:29 PM)OkaForPrez Wrote:  UConn has made their case to the big12.

And it was at dinner in November when UConn's president has dinner with KSU's president. And the rumor mongering commenced. LOL.

Or via an entire business case provided at the time of the big 12's initial inquiry which took place immediately following last years cfp snub.

I have edited my original post to reflect the fact that the Hartford Courant request only asked for documents from Jan. 1, 2016 on. I find this to be pretty amazing.

http://www.courant.com/sports/college/hc...olumn.html
"This is a request under the Connecticut Freedom of Information Act for copies of all emails, letters, memos or other communications including text messages that were sent or received by Warde Manuel, Susan Herbst, Rachel Rubin or Mike Tranghese, and/or any other individuals associated with UConn or any of its allied organizations such as the UConn Foundation concerning UConn's entry into the Big 12 Conference and/or any Power Five conference. I request the above documents from Jan. 1, 2016, to the present."

(02-17-2016 10:24 PM)BullsFanInTX Wrote:  Maybe UConn's contact with B12 officials has been via phone or in person.

There would still be a trail if in person because I'm sure the UCONN reps would have to go somewhere to meet and state their case. You can only hide it in other conferences/meetings in the same city for so long.

Do phone records fall under the request does anybody know? For instance I'm sure the president's cell is paid for by the school so do those records have to be turned over?

So, what we really know is the documents related to Cinci are roughly a year old and there are no UConn documents within the last 2 months. Sounds to me like the two situations are the same.

I know the personal attacks will come out in force, but this was an interesting read. The author writes for NBC Sports, one of the premier sports news organizations in the world.

http://collegefootballtalk.nbcsports.com...ence-push/

By Kevin McGuireFeb 18, 2016, 10:16 AM EST
No evidence UConn has been making Power Five conference push

"It would seem, at this point, the Huskies have settled in with their new spot in the AAC."

"First, the more natural fit for UConn would be a conference that falls much closer within the school’s reach. If the ACC is not going to come calling to invite UConn to join former Big East allies Boston College, Syracuse, Pittsburgh, Virginia Tech and Miami, then UConn is more than likely stuck."

The journalist is making a couple of assumptions. First, as has been noted, the FOIA request was only for documents from January 1, 2016 through the date of the request which was in mid February. So really only one months' worth of documents. That certainly isn't an exhaustive search.

Second, on the geographic/cultural fit: There are some fans that think that geography does matter. The UConn president has stated something along these lines before.

I wonder if there is some merit to that:

Get invited to the Big 12 but never have the opportunity to join the Big 10 or ACC, the big cigars at UConn have chosen not to take that chance and stay in the AAC.

(02-18-2016 12:01 PM)BE4evah Wrote:  I know the personal attacks will come out in force, but this was an interesting read. The author rights for NBC Sports, one of the premier sports news organizations in the world.

http://collegefootballtalk.nbcsports.com...ence-push/

By Kevin McGuireFeb 18, 2016, 10:16 AM EST
No evidence UConn has been making Power Five conference push

"It would seem, at this point, the Huskies have settled in with their new spot in the AAC."

"First, the more natural fit for UConn would be a conference that falls much closer within the school’s reach. If the ACC is not going to come calling to invite UConn to join former Big East allies Boston College, Syracuse, Pittsburgh, Virginia Tech and Miami, then UConn is more than likely stuck."

The journalist is making a couple of assumptions. First, as has been noted, the FOIA request was only for documents from January 1, 2016 through the date of the request which was in mid February. So really only one months' worth of documents. That certainly isn't an exhaustive search.

Second, on the geographic/cultural fit: There are some fans that think that geography does matter. The UConn president has stated something along these lines before.

I wonder if there is some merit to that:

Get invited to the Big 12 but never have the opportunity to join the Big 10 or ACC, the big cigars at UConn have chosen not to take that chance and stay in the AAC.

So they hired Tranghese for what, then? No, McGuire is wrong (and has been completely unable to defend this nonsense on Twitter), and so are you. Tranghese was contracted through the UConn foundation, so he's paid an undisclosed amount, all external conversations are off the record, he works directly with Herbst but in an opaque fashion, and all of his correspondence with anyone of importance within the university can be claimed to be privileged because of the “business secrets” of his firm. This isn't UConn's first rodeo. They anticipated that FOI nonsense might be a bother, so they took steps ahead of time to make it a non-issue. The school is notorious for skirting FOI requests. This isn't the first time.

Kevin McGuire's is not some blogger writing in his mom's basement. He may be wrong as you say, but his credentials are impeccable. I don't know why message board posters always attack the journalists, as if they have an ax to grind with a particular school.

Kevin McGuire
@KevinOnCFB
Writer for @CFTalk on @NBCSports. Contributor: @AthlonSports @Comeback_Sports @TheStudentSect. Host of @No2MinWarning Podcast. @TheFWAA, @NFFNetwork member.
Philadelphia, PA
Kevin McGuire ‏@KevinOnCFB 40m40 minutes ago
I am not going to apologize for what I wrote or believing what I believe regarding #Uconn and P5 pursuits. But I must get back to work. 2/2
0 retweets 2 likes
Reply Retweet
Like 2
More
Kevin McGuire ‏@KevinOnCFB 41m41 minutes ago
#UConn fans, know that I respect your passion this morning. I honestly did not set out to get you all riled up, but I have. (1/2)


Summary
Experienced news writer covering and summarizing breaking news in college football for NBCSports.com's College Football Talk. Provide commentary and explain why the latest headlines in college football are important and what could happen as a result. Quick turnaround on news stories with unique angles and informed opinions when needed.
Experience
College Football Writer
NBC Sports
August 2013 – Present (2 years 7 months)
Contributing writer to NBCSports.com's official college football outlet, College Football Talk. Monitor college football headlines and offer updated commentary on top news stories in the sport. Also providing updated in-game analysis and recaps as well as full game recaps for top games on a regular basis. Constantly monitor multiple news sources through RSS, Twitter, Reddit and more.