Cynical Posted December 16, 2009 Share Posted December 16, 2009 Linky Conference is only going to explore the possibility of expansion, but the last time it did this, the conference made an effort to sign ND. Some of the names being tossed around: Mizzou Cincy Rutgers Syracuse Pitt and of course, ND As long as the Big East continues being a patsy, ND has no incentive to switch. Would be interested in seeing Penn State/Ohio State reactions if Pitt/Cincy was offered the spot. Neither school may like having an instate conference rival to deal with and recruit against. Also noted that other than Mizzou, the rest are Big east schools. Out of the 6, Mizzou switching provides the most interesting ripple effect. Assuming Mizzou did switch, I could see Boise St, Utah, TCU, and maybe BYU making a hard pitch to join the Big 12. But then there is the wild card Arkansas from the SEC. Arkansas, Texas, Texas Tech, Texas A&M, and Baylor were all part of the old Southwest Conference before it folded, and Arkansas considers Texas one of it's biggest rivals. Considering Arkansas has never won the SEC title, and has never created any intense rivalry with another SEC school (from a football standpoint), could the lure of reigniting old rivalries make Arkie switch? Mind you, this is all pure speculation at this point, as Big 10 has not said it will expand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bartshan-83 Posted December 16, 2009 Share Posted December 16, 2009 You covered it in your post, but I've heard speculation that Mizzou is the target and that TCU would be the replacement for the Big XII. Makes sense to me... There is just as much ripple if the Big East loses a team though. They would need a replacement to keep the minimum 8 teams for a BCS auto-bid. I would suspect a team like East Carolina would fill that gap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LongLiveRalph Posted December 16, 2009 Share Posted December 16, 2009 I've also heard WVU lumped in with Cincy and Pitt as the most serious Big Ten possibilities. I think all three would match up pretty well in both football and hoops. It's definitely tough when you start trying to figure out the conference affiliations and who ends up where. From a football standpoint, it's pretty easy to say "I think Team X could work quite well in that conference." But it definitely has to make geographic sense. For example, putting Boise St. in the Big 12 would be tough. Not for football, but for the Texas women's tennis team to travel there for a Wednesday match. All of those considerations have to be made. From both a geographical and university standpoint, ND has always made the most sense. But when things are going well, they are a cash cow on their own, so it makes sense that they'd be hesitant to want to split TV and bowl revenues with a conference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bartshan-83 Posted December 16, 2009 Share Posted December 16, 2009 The other issue (and its a big one) is $$$. The Big 10 needs to pull in another school that is going to bring in extra revenue. There is a great SI article breaking it down. Essentially, this entire thing may just be another power play for Notre Dame, which is in a weaker bargaining position than it was in '99. I can't think of another team from the Big East or Big XII (outside of Texas) who could bring in $22MM besides ND. The Big Ten does not publicly release revenue-sharing figures, but it's been reported that its rights deals with ABC/ESPN and the Big Ten Network generate about $212 million annually. (That's in addition to the league's direct profits from its jointly owned network.) Add in this season's two BCS berths ($22.3 million) and five other bowl berths (about $14 million), and we're talking a minimally estimated $248.3 million in shared revenue, or $22.6 million per team. Therefore, any potential 12th team would have to add $22.6 million in "value" to renegotiated TV and bowl deals to prevent the others from losing money. With all due respect to Missouri, Pittsburgh, Syracuse and Rutgers (the most commonly discussed candidates), there's only one viable school that could guarantee that kind of gold mine: Notre Dame. The Irish rejected the Big Ten's last invitation in 1999, and the school has given no indication it's willing to reconsider. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writ...sion/index.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuckincincy Posted December 17, 2009 Share Posted December 17, 2009 I've also heard WVU lumped in with Cincy and Pitt as the most serious Big Ten possibilities. I think all three would match up pretty well in both football and hoops. It's definitely tough when you start trying to figure out the conference affiliations and who ends up where. From a football standpoint, it's pretty easy to say "I think Team X could work quite well in that conference." But it definitely has to make geographic sense. For example, putting Boise St. in the Big 12 would be tough. Not for football, but for the Texas women's tennis team to travel there for a Wednesday match. All of those considerations have to be made. From both a geographical and university standpoint, ND has always made the most sense. But when things are going well, they are a cash cow on their own, so it makes sense that they'd be hesitant to want to split TV and bowl revenues with a conferen ce. ND's been a member of the Big East for some time, in athletics other that football. Here's the rah-rah official site: http://www.bigeast.org/ViewArticle.dbml?&a...;ATCLID=1150057 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cynical Posted December 18, 2009 Author Share Posted December 18, 2009 You covered it in your post, but I've heard speculation that Mizzou is the target and that TCU would be the replacement for the Big XII. Makes sense to me... If TCU did get the nod, the conference would have to reshuffle the divisions (Mizzou is a North div team). And instead of calling the divisions 'North' and 'South', they could just call them 'Texas' and 'Non-Texas'. There is just as much ripple if the Big East loses a team though. They would need a replacement to keep the minimum 8 teams for a BCS auto-bid. I would suspect a team like East Carolina would fill that gap. The only reason I thought the Mizzou move was the most interesting was due to the Arkansas connection. Beyond that, if Mizzou jumped, the Big 12 has 4 quality choices that would practically beg the conference to join. They could literally have Mizzou's replacement within a week. As for the Big East, it is true the Big East's BCS auto-bid could be threatened. However, I really don't think the BE will have a problem getting a lower tier school to join a BCS conference. East Carolina is a great choice. (Side note: Imagine the irony. Skip got passed over for UCinn job, only to end up in the Big East, potentially having to coach against UCinn) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el Tigre Posted December 20, 2009 Share Posted December 20, 2009 I didn't like the expansion idea at first,but the more I thought about it I think Missouri would be a pretty good fit. There's even talk of them going to 14 teams.Don't know how serious it is,but it's being discussed. I Would hate to see Michigan and OSU be put in different divisions,but if they're not,only one could ever make it to the conference championship game. Not sure how that would work out. Maybe you SEC guys could educate me abit on this. Are your main rivals always in the same division with you? If not,do you only play them every other year? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cynical Posted December 28, 2009 Author Share Posted December 28, 2009 I didn't like the expansion idea at first,but the more I thought about it I think Missouri would be a pretty good fit. There's even talk of them going to 14 teams.Don't know how serious it is,but it's being discussed. I Would hate to see Michigan and OSU be put in different divisions,but if they're not,only one could ever make it to the conference championship game. Not sure how that would work out. Maybe you SEC guys could educate me abit on this. Are your main rivals always in the same division with you? If not,do you only play them every other year? Kind of a hard question to answer, as most schools tend to have multiple rivals. And those rivalries could be in the same division, across division lines, and even outside the conference. The SEC also allows each team to name a permanent rival in the other division, and they get to play that rival every year. Some examples: Alabama's two biggest rivals are Auburn (Iron Bowl!), and Tennessee. Auburn is in the same division, but Tenn is in the east division. Besides Bama, Auburn maintains the South's oldest rivalry with UGA. (Auburn west, UGA east) UGA has rivalries with Auburn, Tenn, Florida ("Worlds Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party"), and Georgia Tech from the ACC. Florida maintains a rivalry with Florida St. Kentucky has one with Louisville And LSU renewed an old rivalry with Tulane a couple of years ago. (FYI: Both Tulane and Georgia Tech were originally members of the SEC) So, I guess the best way to answer your question is the SEC did their best in trying to keep school rivalries by either placing them in same division, or allowing the teams to name a permanent rival from the other division they have to play every year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spun Posted December 30, 2009 Share Posted December 30, 2009 It wouldn't surprise me if the Big 10 didn't create divisions but simply did a schedule whereby not everybody gets to play each other. That is what they do presently but I believe there is currently only one team left off each teams schedule each season. Notre Dame had their chance. The Big 10 has traditionally been a midwestern conference. Although, Penn State isn't midwest. Some of the teams in the Big 10 also aren't considered midwest but are what is now considered "the old midwest" - OSU. Missouri would be an interesting choice and would open recruiting westward. I believe TCU would be a travel cost issue for thrifty ADs especially with the Title IX constraints. Pitt would be a great addition for rejuvenating the Pitt-Penn State rivalry but that would dent the Big East. The multitude of SEC rivalrys is very different than the Big 10. I believe that there are only a few rivalrys in the Big 10 with marquee value. The Big 10 is very money oriented so I expect an addition and a conference championship. It would take some getting used and may take about fifty years for fans to accept! Change comes slowly in the Big 10! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RU5781 Posted December 31, 2009 Share Posted December 31, 2009 It's going to be Rutgers...everything I'm hearing right now 9as long as ND turns it down), is it will be us. We bring the NYC and Philly market (the b10 network can charge the CC's ~$1 per household), which would bring the B10 anywhere from an extra $40-80 million, per year. It won't be Pitt...they don't bring anything new...the only other school that has a chance would be Syracuse, but that is a LONGSHOT. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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