UConn is a basketball school. Right now that is driven by women's basketball. That is why they left for the Big East. Everything else is just rationalization. Our women's program is struggling for relevance and the loss of UConn will not impede that. There will be another team that will make a better offer, will be a better fit, and will be a better asset. Patience is all that is needed now.

(06-25-2019 02:13 PM)Keeper Wrote:  UConn is a basketball school. Right now that is driven by women's basketball. That is why they left for the Big East. Everything else is just rationalization. Our women's program is struggling for relevance and the loss of UConn will not impede that. There will be another team that will make a better offer, will be a better fit, and will be a better asset. Patience is all that is needed now.

I think it helps the AAC without UConn Women'ss BB. Nobody comes close to them and nobody likes getting slaughtered every time out. Now a new competitive group of schools can duke it out with a legitimate shot at not logging 2 losses a year before they play a game.

Big East no longer has Notre Dame or Louisville women’s basketball

They are romanticizing the men’s games with Georgetown etc...some of which will come back

Regardless of their status now, other than Villanova who is great, St. John’s, Georgetown, Seton Hall, Villanova, and even Marquette which came later hold bigger memories for their fans.

Problem will be NOT playing Pitt, Syracuse, Louisville and Notre Dame will help them realize this is not as great as they are hoping.

UConn women's BB coach is reported to have given the school an ultimatum, that his team's games had to be on OTA TV in the NE. It couldn't be accomplished within the ESPN contract. So UConn has killed FB & will take a financial bath to satisfy women's BB. But ironically, unlike the old BE, Fox owns all broadcast rights. Apparently Fox has agreed to an accommodation ESPN refused.

UCONN is going to take a financial bath on this.

(06-25-2019 04:14 PM)fsquid Wrote:  UCONN is going to take a financial bath on this.

Depends what they do with football. If they try to keep it viable, then, yeah, that's going to sting the budget.

That's probably unlikely. They just don't want to say it now. They're losing - what? - $40M. If most of that is football...and if they drop to FCS (out of the arms race, regional travel, lower staffing budgets, etc.)...then they might right their ship financially.

Hypothetically, with no insight to their actual budget.

I think they just built a bunch of stuff for their football team.

Andy Katz was on with J&J yesterday. He’s hearing that they have to give Indy a go (since another conference won’t take them) for the politics and optics of the situation. Said if it was a UAB underfunded type situation, they could drop down. Can’t pull the rug out now after donors have invested tens of millions in fball especially if you plan to go back to them in the future. Have to at least try. I guess if it still isn’t working/bleeding cash after a few years, they can make the decision to reclassify w/o as much backlash...that’s what I understood him to be inferring anyway.

https://929espn.radio.com/articles/andy-...king-audio

I say they are leaving because they realize they can't compete with Memphis' men's bball anymore. They've never liked playing us. Let's rub their noses in it on their way out.

Nah, it's not so simple as "they did it for WBB". Yeah they're famous for WBB, but how much money does it bring? WBB & the OTA games are part of it, but most of the reason is MBB attendance and season tickets. Plus, I'm sure there is a healthy dose of feelings of superiority toward all of us except maybe Temple. They don't want to associate with the riff-raff any longer.

(06-25-2019 03:18 PM)Atlanta Wrote:  UConn women's BB coach is reported to have given the school an ultimatum, that his team's games had to be on OTA TV in the NE. It couldn't be accomplished within the ESPN contract. So UConn has killed FB & will take a financial bath to satisfy women's BB. But ironically, unlike the old BE, Fox owns all broadcast rights. Apparently Fox has agreed to an accommodation ESPN refused.

I just read something on the AAC board that said ESPN had planned to put most of UConn's WBB games on TV, anyway.

(06-25-2019 06:07 PM)gulfcoastgal Wrote:  Andy Katz was on with J&J yesterday. He’s hearing that they have to give Indy a go (since another conference won’t take them) for the politics and optics of the situation. Said if it was a UAB underfunded type situation, they could drop down. Can’t pull the rug out now after donors have invested tens of millions in fball especially if you plan to go back to them in the future. Have to at least try. I guess if it still isn’t working/bleeding cash after a few years, they can make the decision to reclassify w/o as much backlash...that’s what I understood him to be inferring anyway.

https://929espn.radio.com/articles/andy-...king-audio

This is UConn’s self imposed death penalty for their football program.

(06-25-2019 10:02 PM)southpaw1 Wrote:  

(06-25-2019 06:07 PM)gulfcoastgal Wrote:  Andy Katz was on with J&J yesterday. He’s hearing that they have to give Indy a go (since another conference won’t take them) for the politics and optics of the situation. Said if it was a UAB underfunded type situation, they could drop down. Can’t pull the rug out now after donors have invested tens of millions in fball especially if you plan to go back to them in the future. Have to at least try. I guess if it still isn’t working/bleeding cash after a few years, they can make the decision to reclassify w/o as much backlash...that’s what I understood him to be inferring anyway.

https://929espn.radio.com/articles/andy-...king-audio

This is UConn’s self imposed death penalty for their football program.

That is correct, and perhaps its a good idea.

Pretty sad. I understand the problem they have with the Espn contract but they will be irrelevant in the long run. Pretty shortsighted move.

(06-25-2019 09:13 PM)Claw Wrote:  I say they are leaving because they realize they can't compete with Memphis' men's bball anymore. They've never liked playing us. Let's rub their noses in it on their way out.

Yep, they're skeered of what we are about to become in MBB. Let 'em crawl back to the BE so they can be Villanova's beyotch. Suits them well.

(06-25-2019 02:58 PM)Mimi Wrote:  Big East no longer has Notre Dame or Louisville women’s basketball

They are romanticizing the men’s games with Georgetown etc...some of which will come back

Regardless of their status now, other than Villanova who is great, St. John’s, Georgetown, Seton Hall, Villanova, and even Marquette which came later hold bigger memories for their fans.

Problem will be NOT playing Pitt, Syracuse, Louisville and Notre Dame will help them realize this is not as great as they are hoping.

Agree. I’m not sure they have really stepped up in conference prestige and certainly not in football, which is the big money sport.

2018 revenues for UConn athletics:

Quote:The statement shows the football program had an $8.7 million deficit; men’s basketball lost about $5 million; and women’s basketball, a perennial power, lost just over $3 million.

Football is the school’s most expensive program, with operating expenses totaling just over $15.7 million. Ticket sales for the football program, which finished with a 1-11 record, totaled $2.4 million, compared with $3.3 million in 2017.

Men’s basketball operating expenses totaled $11.1 million and women’s basketball expenses were reported at $7.8 million.

Ticket sales for the men’s basketball games totaled $3.1 million, while ticket sales for the women’s games brought in $2.4 million.

The women's basketball team brought in the same amount of ticket sales as the 1-11 football team did. Women's basketball lost the least amount of money. Not sure why you would let the caboose drive the train.

(06-25-2019 10:02 PM)southpaw1 Wrote:  

(06-25-2019 06:07 PM)gulfcoastgal Wrote:  Andy Katz was on with J&J yesterday. He’s hearing that they have to give Indy a go (since another conference won’t take them) for the politics and optics of the situation. Said if it was a UAB underfunded type situation, they could drop down. Can’t pull the rug out now after donors have invested tens of millions in fball especially if you plan to go back to them in the future. Have to at least try. I guess if it still isn’t working/bleeding cash after a few years, they can make the decision to reclassify w/o as much backlash...that’s what I understood him to be inferring anyway.

https://929espn.radio.com/articles/andy-...king-audio

This is UConn’s self imposed death penalty for their football program.

I think they'll be the 7th or 8th Indy program now. Maybe those schools can make some sort of scheduling alliance.

(06-26-2019 08:14 AM)fsquid Wrote:  

(06-25-2019 10:02 PM)southpaw1 Wrote:  

(06-25-2019 06:07 PM)gulfcoastgal Wrote:  Andy Katz was on with J&J yesterday. He’s hearing that they have to give Indy a go (since another conference won’t take them) for the politics and optics of the situation. Said if it was a UAB underfunded type situation, they could drop down. Can’t pull the rug out now after donors have invested tens of millions in fball especially if you plan to go back to them in the future. Have to at least try. I guess if it still isn’t working/bleeding cash after a few years, they can make the decision to reclassify w/o as much backlash...that’s what I understood him to be inferring anyway.

https://929espn.radio.com/articles/andy-...king-audio

This is UConn’s self imposed death penalty for their football program.

I think they'll be the 7th or 8th Indy program now. Maybe those schools can make some sort of scheduling alliance.

Yeah... they can all play each other every year. We'll call it: a conference. :-)

(06-25-2019 02:58 PM)Mimi Wrote:  Big East no longer has Notre Dame or Louisville women’s basketball

They are romanticizing the men’s games with Georgetown etc...some of which will come back

Regardless of their status now, other than Villanova who is great, St. John’s, Georgetown, Seton Hall, Villanova, and even Marquette which came later hold bigger memories for their fans.

Problem will be NOT playing Pitt, Syracuse, Louisville and Notre Dame will help them realize this is not as great as they are hoping.

One article about the move mentioned that of the current Big East women's programs, the most recent win over UConn occurred in 2012 (St. John's) and prior to that you have to go back to a Nova win in 2004.