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2003: A10 discusses Booting the Bonnies
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IWokeUpLikeThis Offline
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Post: #1
2003: A10 discusses Booting the Bonnies
How would realignment be different 2003-today if this had followed through? Do DePaul/Marquette have a stint in the A10?

Quote:The Atlantic 10 might discuss the possibility of dumping St. Bonaventure from the conference at its April meetings after some believe the program embarrassed the league by refusing to finish its season, sources told ESPN.com on Wednesday.

It is unlikely that the Bonnies would be dropped, but the issue will be discussed after the presidents of the Atlantic 10 schools were livid with the Bonnies' decision Tuesday to quit, leaving remaining opponents Massachusetts and Dayton in the lurch. St. Bonaventure was scheduled to play at UMass on Wednesday and at home against Dayton on Saturday.

On Feb. 24, A-10 athletics directors found out that junior forward Jamil Terrell was ineligible and never should have played for St. Bonaventure. As a result, the ADs spoke to the university presidents about the forfeiture of games. The Bonnies accepted the penalty and forfeited their six A-10 victories, but kept Terrell -- a reserve junior-college transfer -- on the bench during last Saturday's victory over George Washington.

Then the presidents went a step further by banning the Bonnies from the A-10 tournament. This move caught the athletic directors off guard, considering there had been no precedent for barring a team from a tournament because of an ineligible player who was no longer eligible to play.

What unfolded from Monday to Wednesday is still being uncovered but is growing more bizarre each day.

Sources said the Bonnies held a team meeting late Monday night with the coaching staff and some administrators present. The players were then told they were banned from the A-10 tournament. Sources said the players held their own meeting afterward and that four underclassmen decided they didn't want to play, then left school for spring break.

By Tuesday morning, the upperclassmen who wanted to play -- junior Marques Green and seniors Patricio Prato and Robert Cheeks -- were left without enough teammates to play Wednesday. A bus company was put on hold while St. Bonaventure tried to round up enough players to send to Amherst, Mass. By late Tuesday, the school announced it was shutting its season down.

The A-10 is desperately trying to find out why administrators didn't demand that players stay put and where the coaching staff stood on the matter. Calls to the university to speak with the coaching staff have gone unanswered. Sources said players and coaches are under a gag order.

In the conference's eyes, the lack of leadership from St. Bonaventure president Robert Wickenheiser, who was in California, to head coach Jan Van Breda Kolff does not help the Bonnies' case. The words "lack of institutional control" -- which incorporate not just a lack of leadership but the university's admission of a player who didn't meet academic standards -- are being voiced throughout the A-10.

As late as Wednesday, sources said some St. Bonaventure players realized their mistake and were attempting to rectify the situation by asking back on the team to finish the season.

But the damage has been done and there is intense anger throughout the league. Complicating the matter was a report out of Cincinnati that Dayton didn't want to play at St. Bonaventure for fear of their team's safety.

The Cincinnati Enquirer quoted Dayton president Daniel Curran saying that he had "expressed safety concerns to the Atlantic 10." According to the newspaper's report, Curran was concerned that fans would be upset about St. Bonaventure's ban from the tournament. It was suggested that the game be played elsewhere but it wasn't pursued once the players bagged the season Tuesday.
01-10-2018 01:45 AM
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templefootballfan Offline
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Post: #2
RE: 2003: A10 discusses Booting the Bonnies
wasn't he the guy who took welding classes.
01-10-2018 03:14 AM
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C2__ Offline
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RE: 2003: A10 discusses Booting the Bonnies
Why would DePaul and Marquette leave C-USA? It had a nice balance of football and basketball schools? Aside from Xavier, Dayton and to a lesser extent, Duquesne, the A-10 was an east coast conference. They only left C-USA because it no longer made sense...that and it had a chance to go to the Big East, which was a full fledged major conference.
01-10-2018 07:47 AM
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The Cutter of Bish Offline
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RE: 2003: A10 discusses Booting the Bonnies
Yeah, the way CUSA split, there was a definite pecking order to it. And while DePaul failed to show up, and USF was just to get the football schools back into FL because they couldn't recruit in their own territory (or, maybe a more palatable choice than, say, ECU, Memphis, or USM), the move was validated. SLU and Charlotte really failed to thrill in the A10. It really took one coach to get SLU back out there, but they've been without a pulse leading into Majerus and now after. "They can't all be hits;" I'd take DePaul over St. Louis even knowing what would happen 10+ years later.
(This post was last modified: 01-10-2018 09:21 AM by The Cutter of Bish.)
01-10-2018 09:20 AM
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C2__ Offline
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RE: 2003: A10 discusses Booting the Bonnies
If Charlotte had a football program, they'd have been taken, so USF lucked out there.
01-10-2018 09:38 AM
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C2__ Offline
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RE: 2003: A10 discusses Booting the Bonnies
Or maybe both get added.
01-10-2018 09:40 AM
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GoldenWarrior11 Offline
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Post: #7
RE: 2003: A10 discusses Booting the Bonnies
Marquette never considered, nor was considered, for A-10 expansion during this time. Due in large part of the 2003 Final Four run with Wade/Diener, and the relationship between Tom Crean and Mike Tranghese, Marquette was included in the Big East expansion wave of Cincinnati, Louisville, South Florida and DePaul from C-USA. While Marquette had prior conference affiliations with Xavier and Dayton, the fact remained that Conference USA (at this time) was miles ahead of the A-10, not only in terms of annual bids, but prestige and reputation as well.
(This post was last modified: 01-10-2018 10:44 AM by GoldenWarrior11.)
01-10-2018 10:43 AM
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Frank the Tank Offline
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RE: 2003: A10 discusses Booting the Bonnies
C-USA prior to the 2003 ACC/Big East conference realignment was an excellent basketball conference and very clearly in a higher tier over the A-10 at the time (and generally considered to be a power conference for basketball alongside the then-BCS AQ conferences). Why would have DePaul and Marquette even considered the A-10 when (a) C-USA in the pre-Big East raid timeframe was much stronger and valuable and (b) they then received Big East invites? The OP's hypothetical question doesn't make sense.
01-10-2018 02:05 PM
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C2__ Offline
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RE: 2003: A10 discusses Booting the Bonnies
Miles ahead is exaggerating things but there was no logical incentive to leave C-USA of that era for the A-10. It would have been a lateral move for an east coast based conference.
01-10-2018 02:12 PM
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Cyniclone Offline
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Post: #10
RE: 2003: A10 discusses Booting the Bonnies
(01-10-2018 02:05 PM)Frank the Tank Wrote:  C-USA prior to the 2003 ACC/Big East conference realignment was an excellent basketball conference and very clearly in a higher tier over the A-10 at the time (and generally considered to be a power conference for basketball alongside the then-BCS AQ conferences). Why would have DePaul and Marquette even considered the A-10 when (a) C-USA in the pre-Big East raid timeframe was much stronger and valuable and (b) they then received Big East invites? The OP's hypothetical question doesn't make sense.

Agreed. Charlotte (and particularly Saint Louis) wasn't leaving for the A-10 because they thought it was better for their basketball programs than CUSA 1.0.
01-10-2018 02:29 PM
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The Cutter of Bish Offline
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RE: 2003: A10 discusses Booting the Bonnies
Yeah, the A10 was a haphazard mess that, honestly, benefited from the football landscape at that time, and then the Big East's football/full-membership growth. Sure, I remember when WVU, Rutgers, Penn State, and VT were a part of it. They were virtual non-contributors or NIT-fare. It definitely was a place to be for some...others were lucky to be there. But still a stepping stone, or place-holder, and far more then than now.

Original CUSA was legit. You had the Metro and Great Midwest interwoven, and it took two good basketball conferences and made it into a super one. A lot different than the A10 and its motley crew of football independents or BEF-only members.
01-10-2018 03:21 PM
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Michael in Raleigh Offline
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Post: #12
RE: 2003: A10 discusses Booting the Bonnies
How was C-USA able to force out Charlotte and Saint Louis in 2005? Did those schools leave by choice?
01-10-2018 03:51 PM
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Cyniclone Offline
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RE: 2003: A10 discusses Booting the Bonnies
(01-10-2018 03:51 PM)Michael in Raleigh Wrote:  How was C-USA able to force out Charlotte and Saint Louis in 2005? Did those schools leave by choice?

I can't find anything definitive but it sounds like CUSA made a decision to be a football conference, and Charlotte/St. Louis were privately nudged to find a more appropriate sports home. They weren't officially expelled, but it definitely sounds like one of those moves you make to avoid having someone force the issue for you.
01-10-2018 04:26 PM
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The Cutter of Bish Offline
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RE: 2003: A10 discusses Booting the Bonnies
All things considered, Charlotte was fine. They left and found their way back in, with a good consolation prize in between.

Of course, it would have been nice if they actually did something in the A10 instead of just taking space in it. At least the A10 was able to replace them with Davidson...who actually cares about basketball.
01-10-2018 04:28 PM
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Tom in Lazybrook Offline
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RE: 2003: A10 discusses Booting the Bonnies
(01-10-2018 01:45 AM)IWokeUpLikeThis Wrote:  How would realignment be different 2003-today if this had followed through? Do DePaul/Marquette have a stint in the A10?

Quote:The Atlantic 10 might discuss the possibility of dumping St. Bonaventure from the conference at its April meetings after some believe the program embarrassed the league by refusing to finish its season, sources told ESPN.com on Wednesday.

It is unlikely that the Bonnies would be dropped, but the issue will be discussed after the presidents of the Atlantic 10 schools were livid with the Bonnies' decision Tuesday to quit, leaving remaining opponents Massachusetts and Dayton in the lurch. St. Bonaventure was scheduled to play at UMass on Wednesday and at home against Dayton on Saturday.

On Feb. 24, A-10 athletics directors found out that junior forward Jamil Terrell was ineligible and never should have played for St. Bonaventure. As a result, the ADs spoke to the university presidents about the forfeiture of games. The Bonnies accepted the penalty and forfeited their six A-10 victories, but kept Terrell -- a reserve junior-college transfer -- on the bench during last Saturday's victory over George Washington.

Then the presidents went a step further by banning the Bonnies from the A-10 tournament. This move caught the athletic directors off guard, considering there had been no precedent for barring a team from a tournament because of an ineligible player who was no longer eligible to play.

What unfolded from Monday to Wednesday is still being uncovered but is growing more bizarre each day.

Sources said the Bonnies held a team meeting late Monday night with the coaching staff and some administrators present. The players were then told they were banned from the A-10 tournament. Sources said the players held their own meeting afterward and that four underclassmen decided they didn't want to play, then left school for spring break.

By Tuesday morning, the upperclassmen who wanted to play -- junior Marques Green and seniors Patricio Prato and Robert Cheeks -- were left without enough teammates to play Wednesday. A bus company was put on hold while St. Bonaventure tried to round up enough players to send to Amherst, Mass. By late Tuesday, the school announced it was shutting its season down.

The A-10 is desperately trying to find out why administrators didn't demand that players stay put and where the coaching staff stood on the matter. Calls to the university to speak with the coaching staff have gone unanswered. Sources said players and coaches are under a gag order.

In the conference's eyes, the lack of leadership from St. Bonaventure president Robert Wickenheiser, who was in California, to head coach Jan Van Breda Kolff does not help the Bonnies' case. The words "lack of institutional control" -- which incorporate not just a lack of leadership but the university's admission of a player who didn't meet academic standards -- are being voiced throughout the A-10.

As late as Wednesday, sources said some St. Bonaventure players realized their mistake and were attempting to rectify the situation by asking back on the team to finish the season.

But the damage has been done and there is intense anger throughout the league. Complicating the matter was a report out of Cincinnati that Dayton didn't want to play at St. Bonaventure for fear of their team's safety.

The Cincinnati Enquirer quoted Dayton president Daniel Curran saying that he had "expressed safety concerns to the Atlantic 10." According to the newspaper's report, Curran was concerned that fans would be upset about St. Bonaventure's ban from the tournament. It was suggested that the game be played elsewhere but it wasn't pursued once the players bagged the season Tuesday.

The Bonnies hung on by a thin thread. This is true. To their credit, they've come back from that.
01-10-2018 04:33 PM
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Kittonhead Offline
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RE: 2003: A10 discusses Booting the Bonnies
(01-10-2018 03:21 PM)The Cutter of Bish Wrote:  Yeah, the A10 was a haphazard mess that, honestly, benefited from the football landscape at that time, and then the Big East's football/full-membership growth. Sure, I remember when WVU, Rutgers, Penn State, and VT were a part of it. They were virtual non-contributors or NIT-fare. It definitely was a place to be for some...others were lucky to be there. But still a stepping stone, or place-holder, and far more then than now.

Original CUSA was legit. You had the Metro and Great Midwest interwoven, and it took two good basketball conferences and made it into a super one. A lot different than the A10 and its motley crew of football independents or BEF-only members.

A-10 conference wide respect grew with the Xavier/Dayton addition in the 90's.

CUSA 1.0 was about where the the AAC is today, a major basketball conference. Charlotte at the time was a solid bb school an a player on the national TV package under Bobby Lutz.
01-10-2018 06:00 PM
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