(02-18-2021 10:00 PM)Arch Stanton Wrote:  

(02-18-2021 04:01 PM)Captain Bearcat Wrote:  

(02-18-2021 03:13 PM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(02-18-2021 11:39 AM)BearcatJerry Wrote:  The one thing about the "New" Big East (the current conference, whatever you want to call it), is that--until they added UConn, and apart from UConn--is that it was a highly homogeneous conference. All the member schools were of similar size, mission, and governance: private, parochial schools. Athletically, all the "New" Big East members had Basketball as their highest priority sport...Villanova has FB at the FCS level, Butler and Georgetown have non-scholarship FB squads...so the Conference is able to focus promoting that mission.

How UConn fares in the Conference will be largely how well UConn, as a dis-similar institution (a large, State/Public) can find their footing. I think that clearly the Big East is a superior conference to the AAC, so UConn fans have to be happy that they moved back up in Conferences. But the fact is still there that UConn is an odd fit for the rest of the Big East Conference.

As a fan of "old" Big East hoops, I don't think the Big East views UConn as an odd fit. To the contrary they are an original Big East hoops team and have long histories with the core Big East members. They really fit like a glove because of that 30+ year shared history before the split.

UConn returning was like welcoming back a Prodigal Son. Still a full-fledged member of the family despite the sojourn. Syracuse would be too, but we know they aren't coming back.

That said, it is true that UConn has longer-term goals that do not involve the Big East. Unlike all other Big East schools, the Big East is not their "destination" conference. Surely, they have a long-run goal of building up football to get invited to a Power league like Syracuse and Pitt did. If that day comes we know they will leave, but we will enjoy them while they last with us.

The "Old" Big East worked so well because it did what no other conference could do: it dominated watercooler conversation in the largest & wealthiest city in the country.

With 3 schools in the metro area, plus Syracuse & UConn, the old Big East was the only conference that could accomplish that.

The only conference even close to that dominance with any megalopolis is the Big Ten's dominance of Chicago. The Big 10 has 3 giant schools within 2 hours, plus a school in the city itself. But Chicago is less than half the size of New York.

You could make an argument that the SEC has a lot of pull in Atlanta, or the Big 12 has a lot of pull in Dallas, or the PAC has a lot of pull in San Francisco. But New York is as big as Atlanta, DFW, and the whole Bay Area combined.

St. Johns owned NYC during their final four run season. I remember watching the St. Johns games that season with my dad. St Johns is the only college team to take over NYC. It is a shame they have languished for so long especially with the Knicks being putrid and nobody caring about the Nets. I bet St. Johns if they can start performing at a high level they could start selling out MSG again.

The Big East Feast was the Sports Illustrated cover when there were 3 Big East Final Four Teams.

And lest we forget, the Memphis State Tigers, then a clean program led by Dana Kirk, was the fourth team in that 1985 Final Four.