One of the issues that UConn will have to deal with is the bar gets progressively higher with each new addition. 15 and 16 are going to get a lot more scrutiny than 13 or 14 because they could very well be the final additions to the conference. Plus the money that the Big 10 and ACC are generating is so much more than it was just a few years ago so any new addition has a higher figure they need to hit before they can pay for themselves and any extra they generate will be sliced up into even more pieces. When BC joined the ACC, they needed to add about $8 million to the conference annually. Syracuse and Pitt had to break $15 million, Rutgers and Maryland about $20 million. UConn, if they were join the ACC now would need to generate about $25 million in added revenue or about $30 million in the Big 10. That's just to break even on the add but no one is getting invited to just break even so the actual figure will need to be higher. I don't know that they create that much value by themselves which is why I think they'll have to wait for a Notre Dame or a defection, neither of which seems likely right now.

(04-14-2014 12:39 PM)IceJus10 Wrote:  Louisville is the ONLY real Gang of Five program to get the call-up. Everyone else who has realigned has previously been with the major programs over the YEARS... UTAH was with Arizona and Arizona State for decades in the WAC before those other two joined the PAC and then UTAH followed in later with some football successes. TCU was with TEXAS and the gang in previous alignments, before football success in the last decade got them included again. Rutgers was in AQ conferences from the start of the AQ; Rutgers, despite not being all that good has been playing with the big boys since the 1800's... Then West Virginia, Syracuse, Pitt, and Maryland all just hopped from one AQ to another. UCONN just started playing with the big boys last decade.

Louisville lucked out with football success at the right time and the ACC needed a filler for Maryland and their programs across the board are winners with big budget / big time commitment and support. No other Go5 is even remotely close to that level of success across the board.

It's true that Rutgers football history goes back to the 1800's. But then, so does Princeton's, and I don't see anybody suggesting that they have been relevant for a very long time. As a younger man, I followed college football avidly. And, though I grew up 35 miles from New Brunswick, I was only vaguely aware that they still fielded a football team. Maybe that's because the local newspapers didn't bother to cover them.

Still, they are way ahead of UConn in that respect. UConn's relevance around NYC water coolers is pretty recent, and I doubt it extends beyond hoops. In the '60's, when I was working and going to school in NYC, I'm not sure if anybody was aware that Connecticut had a state university, much less if it fielded sports teams. They did have Yale, though, if that counts.

So the Huskies are the real Johnny-come-latelies for all but younger fans. To be sure, they have done remarkably well - almost as well as another newcomer in the west, Boise State. Maybe, in another decade or two, they will be looked upon as athletic peers by ACC schools. But for now, they are only TV sets, and the jury is out on how many of those would be ACC TV sets when it comes to football.

(04-14-2014 09:36 AM)Melky Cabrera Wrote:  One of these conferences is going to move on UConn sooner or later. I thought it would be 8-10 years down the road. But the move of the Big ten into NJ and the competition that creates suggests that it will be sooner rather than later. It will be interesting to see who's going to blink first.

I just don't see it. If the B1G or ACC was interested in UConn, why haven't they invited them by now? Rutgers gives the B1G plenty of NYC coverage, while Syracuse does the same for the ACC. Syracuse has a big athletic following in NYC, in both basketball and football. They can "pack the garden" at least as effectively as UConn.

UConn missed its chance when the B1G decided that Rutgers was a better ACC 'block' and a better conduit to NYC. IMO they don't need UConn for that and neither does the ACC.

In effect, UConn is redundant for both.

(04-14-2014 01:26 PM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(04-14-2014 09:36 AM)Melky Cabrera Wrote:  One of these conferences is going to move on UConn sooner or later. I thought it would be 8-10 years down the road. But the move of the Big ten into NJ and the competition that creates suggests that it will be sooner rather than later. It will be interesting to see who's going to blink first.

I just don't see it. If the B1G or ACC was interested in UConn, why haven't they invited them by now? Rutgers gives the B1G plenty of NYC coverage, while Syracuse does the same for the ACC. Syracuse has a big athletic following in NYC, in both basketball and football. They can "pack the garden" at least as effectively as UConn.

UConn missed its chance when the B1G decided that Rutgers was a better ACC 'block' and a better conduit to NYC. IMO they don't need UConn for that and neither does the ACC.

In effect, UConn is redundant for both.

I would wait until after the BTN battles cablevisison and the rest of the NYC carriers to determine if UConn is redudant for the B1G. Some in North Jersey and Western PA have already lost YES, so simply relying on the YES/BTN package may not be a sure thing either.

This is of course completely ignoring the 30th largest media market in the country, but I realize we are focusing on NYC.

(04-14-2014 01:53 PM)Hank Schrader Wrote:  

(04-14-2014 01:26 PM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(04-14-2014 09:36 AM)Melky Cabrera Wrote:  One of these conferences is going to move on UConn sooner or later. I thought it would be 8-10 years down the road. But the move of the Big ten into NJ and the competition that creates suggests that it will be sooner rather than later. It will be interesting to see who's going to blink first.

I just don't see it. If the B1G or ACC was interested in UConn, why haven't they invited them by now? Rutgers gives the B1G plenty of NYC coverage, while Syracuse does the same for the ACC. Syracuse has a big athletic following in NYC, in both basketball and football. They can "pack the garden" at least as effectively as UConn.

UConn missed its chance when the B1G decided that Rutgers was a better ACC 'block' and a better conduit to NYC. IMO they don't need UConn for that and neither does the ACC.

In effect, UConn is redundant for both.

I would wait until after the BTN battles cablevisison and the rest of the NYC carriers to determine if UConn is redudant for the B1G. Some in North Jersey and Western PA have already lost YES, so simply relying on the YES/BTN package may not be a sure thing either.

This is of course completely ignoring the 30th largest media market in the country, but I realize we are focusing on NYC.

Who's lost YES in NJ? None of the big cable providers here have dropped it. And what does western PA matter? That's Pirates territory with some overlap with the Indians in some areas. Yankee games are blacked out.

(04-14-2014 02:05 PM)prp Wrote:  

(04-14-2014 01:53 PM)Hank Schrader Wrote:  

(04-14-2014 01:26 PM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(04-14-2014 09:36 AM)Melky Cabrera Wrote:  One of these conferences is going to move on UConn sooner or later. I thought it would be 8-10 years down the road. But the move of the Big ten into NJ and the competition that creates suggests that it will be sooner rather than later. It will be interesting to see who's going to blink first.

I just don't see it. If the B1G or ACC was interested in UConn, why haven't they invited them by now? Rutgers gives the B1G plenty of NYC coverage, while Syracuse does the same for the ACC. Syracuse has a big athletic following in NYC, in both basketball and football. They can "pack the garden" at least as effectively as UConn.

UConn missed its chance when the B1G decided that Rutgers was a better ACC 'block' and a better conduit to NYC. IMO they don't need UConn for that and neither does the ACC.

In effect, UConn is redundant for both.

I would wait until after the BTN battles cablevisison and the rest of the NYC carriers to determine if UConn is redudant for the B1G. Some in North Jersey and Western PA have already lost YES, so simply relying on the YES/BTN package may not be a sure thing either.

This is of course completely ignoring the 30th largest media market in the country, but I realize we are focusing on NYC.

Who's lost YES in NJ? None of the big cable providers here have dropped it. And what does western PA matter? That's Pirates territory with some overlap with the Indians in some areas. Yankee games are blacked out.

Cablevision

The Cablevision Systems Corporation is an American cable television company with systems serving areas surrounding New York City. It is the eighth-largest cable provider in the United States, with most customers residing in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and parts of Pennsylvania.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cablevision

(04-14-2014 02:14 PM)HuskyU Wrote:  

(04-14-2014 02:05 PM)prp Wrote:  

(04-14-2014 01:53 PM)Hank Schrader Wrote:  

(04-14-2014 01:26 PM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(04-14-2014 09:36 AM)Melky Cabrera Wrote:  One of these conferences is going to move on UConn sooner or later. I thought it would be 8-10 years down the road. But the move of the Big ten into NJ and the competition that creates suggests that it will be sooner rather than later. It will be interesting to see who's going to blink first.

I just don't see it. If the B1G or ACC was interested in UConn, why haven't they invited them by now? Rutgers gives the B1G plenty of NYC coverage, while Syracuse does the same for the ACC. Syracuse has a big athletic following in NYC, in both basketball and football. They can "pack the garden" at least as effectively as UConn.

UConn missed its chance when the B1G decided that Rutgers was a better ACC 'block' and a better conduit to NYC. IMO they don't need UConn for that and neither does the ACC.

In effect, UConn is redundant for both.

I would wait until after the BTN battles cablevisison and the rest of the NYC carriers to determine if UConn is redudant for the B1G. Some in North Jersey and Western PA have already lost YES, so simply relying on the YES/BTN package may not be a sure thing either.

This is of course completely ignoring the 30th largest media market in the country, but I realize we are focusing on NYC.

Who's lost YES in NJ? None of the big cable providers here have dropped it. And what does western PA matter? That's Pirates territory with some overlap with the Indians in some areas. Yankee games are blacked out.

Cablevision

The Cablevision Systems Corporation is an American cable television company with systems serving areas surrounding New York City. It is the eighth-largest cable provider in the United States, with most customers residing in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and parts of Pennsylvania.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cablevision

http://web.yesnetwork.com/carriers/sec/statement.jsp


EDIT: I meant Eastern not Western....and really Northeastern PA specifically...woops

(04-14-2014 10:59 AM)esayem Wrote:  Connecticut is in New England, not New York.

The New England market has approximately 16 million people with only one public flagship school worthy of P5 consideration. It's only "competitor" in New England is Boston College, a P5 school that is both private and Catholic and has limited appeal.

(04-14-2014 09:57 AM)HeartOfDixie Wrote:  There are only two schools whose hoops are good enough that nothing else matters, Kansas and Kentucky. Is UCONN at that level? Some say yes and others still say no. I'm not saying one way or another, but UCONN's football is still the driver and it hurts the school, and the gains associated with having an awesome basketball program.

What?!

Of course UConn is in those schools' class. So too are Duke, North Carolina, Syracuse, Louisville and UCLA. Don't be ridiculous.

(04-14-2014 02:25 PM)NJ2MDTerp Wrote:  

(04-14-2014 10:59 AM)esayem Wrote:  Connecticut is in New England, not New York.

The New England market has approximately 16 million people with only one public flagship school worthy of P5 consideration. It's only "competitor" in New England is Boston College, a P5 school that is both private and Catholic and has limited appeal.

A very wise realignment guru once wrote: "Is there enough interest in college sports in New England to make having 2 NE schools profitable for the ACC? The answer was a resounding NO!

(04-14-2014 02:40 PM)XLance Wrote:  

(04-14-2014 02:25 PM)NJ2MDTerp Wrote:  

(04-14-2014 10:59 AM)esayem Wrote:  Connecticut is in New England, not New York.

The New England market has approximately 16 million people with only one public flagship school worthy of P5 consideration. It's only "competitor" in New England is Boston College, a P5 school that is both private and Catholic and has limited appeal.

A very wise realignment guru once wrote: "Is there enough interest in college sports in New England to make having 2 NE schools profitable for the ACC? The answer was a resounding NO!

But 4 schools in a state of 9.75 million is...

Where would UConn fans prefer to land, the ACC, the B1G or the B12? I think most of you would prefer the ACC - where almost all of your old rivals play - but will most likely end up in the Big 12.

I also think you are going to be in the American for some time to come.

(04-14-2014 02:51 PM)Dr. Isaly von Yinzer Wrote:  Where would UConn fans prefer to land, the ACC, the B1G or the B12? I think most of you would prefer the ACC - where almost all of your old rivals play - but will most likely end up in the Big 12.

I also think you are going to be in the American for some time to come.

There's way too much animosity held by their fans towards the ACC.

(04-14-2014 02:51 PM)Dr. Isaly von Yinzer Wrote:  Where would UConn fans prefer to land, the ACC, the B1G or the B12? I think most of you would prefer the ACC - where almost all of your old rivals play - but will most likely end up in the Big 12.

I also think you are going to be in the American for some time to come.

Overwhelmingly pro-B1G (both fans and admins). There was a huge shift after Louisville was selected the last go around.

I believe the order is 1. B1G, 2. ACC, 3. Big 12

(04-14-2014 02:40 PM)XLance Wrote:  

(04-14-2014 02:25 PM)NJ2MDTerp Wrote:  

(04-14-2014 10:59 AM)esayem Wrote:  Connecticut is in New England, not New York.

The New England market has approximately 16 million people with only one public flagship school worthy of P5 consideration. It's only "competitor" in New England is Boston College, a P5 school that is both private and Catholic and has limited appeal.

A very wise realignment guru once wrote: "Is there enough interest in college sports in New England to make having 2 NE schools profitable for the ACC? The answer was a resounding NO!

My money is on UConn, regardless of its conference affiliation. Unless you're a Notre Dame or USC, Public flagship > Private school, especially a religious school.

(04-14-2014 02:51 PM)Dr. Isaly von Yinzer Wrote:  Where would UConn fans prefer to land, the ACC, the B1G or the B12? I think most of you would prefer the ACC - where almost all of your old rivals play - but will most likely end up in the Big 12.

I also think you are going to be in the American for some time to come.

Who ever calls first.

I just don't think the ACC is going to add anyone unless it is in conjunction with Notre Dame bringing its football into the league full-time. Otherwise the numbers just don't add up, IMHO.

Unfortunately, I also don't see any impetus for the Irish to surrender their Independent status in football. Consequently, I don't anticipate ACC expansion of any kind happening in the foreseeable future.

Unfortunately for UConn, they are kind of caught between a rock and a hard place here. I very sincerely feel for you and was very worried that my beloved Pitt Panthers would land in that same spot (and we very nearly did). I'm pulling for UConn (and most of the others) to find a soft landing spot. It's not good for anyone to have proven schools that have been arbitrarily excommunicated from the big leagues through very little fault of their own.

Here is what I think UConn's best bet is to secure membership in the ACC (which I believe to be their main objective):

I think one or more of the Tobacco Road schools needs to defect to another league. If someone like say North Carolina, NC State, Virginia or Virginia Tech were to defect to either the SEC or the B1G, I think UConn would be a shoe-in to replace one of those schools. To be honest, I think Connecticut and Cincinnati would likely be a replacement pair in such a scenario.

However, if someone like say, Florida State for example, were to leave the ACC for another league - as has often been rumored over the past few years - that would be highly problematic for UConn's ACC hopes, IMHO. If you are a UConn fan, you absolutely do NOT want to click onto some website one day and read that Florida State and Clemson are off to the SEC because that would be VERY bad news for you.

I say that because Florida is too important to the ACC from a recruiting and market standpoint to simply surrender. That's never going to happen. As such, if the league were to lose FSU, I think it is a near certainty that they would replace them with either UCF, USF or both. At that point, the ACC would really have no other choice but to replace the Noles with other Sunshine State schools.

So, if I'm a UConn fan and I'm being realistic about my team's future, I think I'm hoping that someone like NC State or Virginia Tech goes to the SEC or something like that. I think that's probably your best bet.

If UConn was more marketable in football they'd be a legit contender for expansion. Their football brand value to the networks is their big issue right now.

The budget is outstanding for a Go5 school, hoops is among the best, has a good market, and it has proximity to NYC on top of that.

(04-14-2014 03:04 PM)Hank Schrader Wrote:  

(04-14-2014 02:51 PM)Dr. Isaly von Yinzer Wrote:  Where would UConn fans prefer to land, the ACC, the B1G or the B12? I think most of you would prefer the ACC - where almost all of your old rivals play - but will most likely end up in the Big 12.

I also think you are going to be in the American for some time to come.

Who ever calls first.

lol-probably the best and most realistic answer here

(04-14-2014 03:11 PM)Dr. Isaly von Yinzer Wrote:  I just don't think the ACC is going to add anyone unless it is in conjunction with Notre Dame bringing its football into the league full-time. Otherwise the numbers just don't add up, IMHO.

Unfortunately, I also don't see any impetus for the Irish to surrender their Independent status in football. Consequently, I don't anticipate ACC expansion of any kind happening in the foreseeable future.

Unfortunately for UConn, they are kind of caught between a rock and a hard place here. I very sincerely feel for you and was very worried that my beloved Pitt Panthers would land in that same spot (and we very nearly did). I'm pulling for UConn (and most of the others) to find a soft landing spot. It's not good for anyone to have proven schools that have been arbitrarily excommunicated from the big leagues through very little fault of their own.

Here is what I think UConn's best bet is to secure membership in the ACC (which I believe to be their main objective):

I think one or more of the Tobacco Road schools needs to defect to another league. If someone like say North Carolina, NC State, Virginia or Virginia Tech were to defect to either the SEC or the B1G, I think UConn would be a shoe-in to replace one of those schools. To be honest, I think Connecticut and Cincinnati would likely be a replacement pair in such a scenario.

However, if someone like say, Florida State for example, were to leave the ACC for another league - as has often been rumored over the past few years - that would be highly problematic for UConn's ACC hopes, IMHO. If you are a UConn fan, you absolutely do NOT want to click onto some website one day and read that Florida State and Clemson are off to the SEC because that would be VERY bad news for you.

I say that because Florida is too important to the ACC from a recruiting and market standpoint to simply surrender. That's never going to happen. As such, if the league were to lose FSU, I think it is a near certainty that they would replace them with either UCF, USF or both. At that point, the ACC would really have no other choice but to replace the Noles with other Sunshine State schools.

So, if I'm a UConn fan and I'm being realistic about my team's future, I think I'm hoping that someone like NC State or Virginia Tech goes to the SEC or something like that. I think that's probably your best bet.

Thanks for the supportive post. Chaos can only help UConn, but at the same time UConn needs to focus on UConn and not rely on anyone. I think based off of the comments of the President the school has shifted its focus to address its shortcomings and is focusing on the big picture of the University in which they envision a B1G invitation some day. The football team will be competive again and ideally winning the AAC consistently. If that happens by the B1G's TV negotiations in a few years, fantastic. If it doesn't, we will be better prepared for when the GORs are expired and another round of realignment begins or if the the Football Playoff indirectly forces the Big 12 to look for a CCG. The key is getting the football team back to pre-Pasquolini days. Talk about a awful time to make an awful hire and providing the fuel needed for the UConn detractors to keep the school out. Doubling our Spring Game attendance from last year was a very good sign that progress is being made, in my opinion but I am truly hoping Diaco wins immediately, whether that is realistic or not.