Big East Expansion Speculation

[UNTflyer]

What would losing one football school mean to the Big East? If Rutgers, for example, left, the remaining seven football schools would have a decision to make. Do you go out and add one football school (such as Central Florida, East Carolina or Memphis) to get back to eight and proceed as presently constituted? Or do you use that opportunity to add two or three to the mix and get to nine or 10 members for all sports? That would allow the football schools to say goodbye to the eight basketball schools (such as Providence College) and divide the East and Midwest even further.

Marinatto would not comment on any such talk, and for good reason. The Big East is currently secured with a spot in the lucrative Bowl Championship Series in football, is as strong as any conference in basketball, and owns lucrative, long-term TV deals. So life is good, right? Not until another 12-18 months, when the Big Ten could re-start the conference musical chairs.

http://www.projo.com/college/content/sp_bk...v3.2e5dc10.html

[AnotherEagleFan]

What would losing one football school mean to the Big East? If Rutgers, for example, left, the remaining seven football schools would have a decision to make. Do you go out and add one football school (such as Central Florida, East Carolina or Memphis) to get back to eight and proceed as presently constituted? Or do you use that opportunity to add two or three to the mix and get to nine or 10 members for all sports? That would allow the football schools to say goodbye to the eight basketball schools (such as Providence College) and divide the East and Midwest even further.

Marinatto would not comment on any such talk, and for good reason. The Big East is currently secured with a spot in the lucrative Bowl Championship Series in football, is as strong as any conference in basketball, and owns lucrative, long-term TV deals. So life is good, right? Not until another 12-18 months, when the Big Ten could re-start the conference musical chairs.

http://www.projo.com/college/content/sp_bk...v3.2e5dc10.html

IF the big 10 expands look for Pitt to jump. The Big East has a problem in that some of those football schools would rather stay with the basketball schools. The basketball schools do not want to expand. CUSA is talking about expanding to 16 teams. I think that we will benefit GREATLY from the next shake up.

[UNTFan23]

IF the big 10 expands look for Pitt to jump. The Big East has a problem in that some of those football schools would rather stay with the basketball schools. The basketball schools do not want to expand. CUSA is talking about expanding to 16 teams. I think that we will benefit GREATLY from the next shake up.

If CUSA expands to 16, who are they going to take?

[Side Show Joe]

IF the big 10 expands look for Pitt to jump. The Big East has a problem in that some of those football schools would rather stay with the basketball schools. The basketball schools do not want to expand. CUSA is talking about expanding to 16 teams. I think that we will benefit GREATLY from the next shake up.

Where did you hear CUSA wanted to expand to 16? If that happened, I think it would be great for us, but I can't see how or why they would want to try and juggle 16 teams. I can't even think of 4 teams in their footprint that are worth bothering with, except us of course.

[AnotherEagleFan]

If CUSA expands to 16, who are they going to take?

Good question. My guess is that CUSA plays it cards in hopes of a 8 team playoff system. With 8 conferences having a tie in. Meaning that the Mountain West and the WAC somehow combine their top teams to form a very good conference. Then CUSA grabs a couple programs the help us to be the other conference no matter what the other conferences do. With an 8 conference tie in playoff system teams can schedule more difficult out of conference games that do not hurt their chances of playing for a national championship.

A more pointed answer is that Troy always comes up a the next addition to CUSA.

[AnotherEagleFan]

Where did you hear CUSA wanted to expand to 16? If that happened, I think it would be great for us, but I can't see how or why they would want to try and juggle 16 teams. I can't even think of 4 teams in their footprint that are worth bothering with, except us of course.

The presidents have discussed it multiple times. About the footprint.... We stretch from El Paso to the Atlantic Ocean. I like a lot of things about CUSA but a well defined foot print is not one of them.

Troy, South Alabama (because of basketball and baseball tradition and the hope that football will be grow quickly), and a couple of MAC teams.