NCAA Conference Realignment

[Tripel]

What's going to happen? The Big10 will probably be making their move in the next few months, and everyone else is waiting to see what it is. Speculation is that they'll expand to 14 or 16 schools. I'm betting on 16.

Who will it be?
I'm guessing Pitt, Syracuse, Rutgers, Missouri, and Nebraska.


And how will the rest of the country respond? Will the other conferences just fill in the holes that the Big10 created, or will the Big12, SEC, and ACC follow suit and expand into "super conferences"?

 

[Backwoods Presbyterian]

If it is more than 1 Pitt will be in the Big 10, which is good for morale standpoint but is definitely a step-down for Basketball.

Pitt football-wise is equal to Purdue and Iowa and Wisconsin. Would be nice to see Penn State back in Pittsburgh every other year. Game would be huge (like it used to be).

 

[Marrow Man]

I wonder if they will still call it "The Big 10" even when it has 16 teams...

 

[Romans922]

Tim, do they have 10 teams now?

 

[Backwoods Presbyterian]

Yep Marrow.

Though if the Big 10 goes big look for the ACC and SEC to add a couple of teams to go to 14, which is where WVU will end up and the Big East will be dead as a Football Conference.

 

[Marrow Man]

Tim, do they have 10 teams now?

Nope, even with 11 they managed not to change the name. When you almost double the conference, though, that seems a bit more suspect...

 

[Tripel]

I imagine they'll change the name. Big North?

 

[Marrow Man]

How about "Big Midwest"?

 

[Marrow Man]

Yep Marrow.

Though if the Big 10 goes big look for the ACC and SEC to add a couple of teams to go to 14, which is where WVU will end up and the Big East will be dead as a Football Conference.

The Big East is a football conference? J/K

Seriously, what teams (besides WVU, which seems a more natural fit for the ACC because of the UVA and Va Tech teams) do you see going to the ACC and the SEC?

 

[Tripel]

Louisville could easily be pulled into the SEC.

 

[Backwoods Presbyterian]

Just speaking out of nothing I could see USF and Louisville going to the SEC and WVU and whichever of UCONN, Syracuse, and Rutgers that does not go to the Big 10.

For Louisville's Football case go take a drive down to that addition they put on Cardinal Stadium.

WVU also has a longstanding rivalry with Maryland, BC, and Va Tech so there would be a natural fit. Also Jimbo Fisher is from my hometown of Clarksburg, WV (his mom taught me Chemistry).

 

[Marrow Man]

Yeah, I've been driving by that addition to Cardinal Stadium (actually, Papa John's Cardinal Stadium) quite a lot lately.

That'll be great -- just when we finally get Charlie Strong and his impossibly great defense out of the SEC, they pull him back in.

 

[Backwoods Presbyterian]

 

[JML]

Tim, do they have 10 teams now?

Nope, even with 11 they managed not to change the name.

They covered it in the logo though. See the 11. Obviously, math is not too high on the list for Big 10 schools.

 

[Tripel]

Easy now. Their math has never been wrong. The conference doesn't claim to have only 10 members, despite the conference name. All the conference name suggests is that 10 of the 11 are "big". We could debate who that 11th not-so-big school is. You could make a good argument for Northwestern, but judging on the last two years, sadly, it's Michigan.



...But we're bouncing back in 2010. Go Blue!

 

[ColdSilverMoon]

I have no idea who will join the Big 10, but they have pretty strict academic standards for their schools, which rules out a few of those mentioned above. I think they may pick off a few Big 12 teams such as Missouri and Nebraska, and I've even heard rumors of talks with Texas. The most likely candidates are Rutgers and Pitt, both in terms of location and quality of athletic teams.

 

[JML]

I have no idea who will join the Big 10, but they have pretty strict academic standards for their schools, which rules out a few of those mentioned above. I think they may pick off a few Big 12 teams such as Missouri and Nebraska, and I've even heard rumors of talks with Texas. The most likely candidates are Rutgers and Pitt, both in terms of location and quality of athletic teams.

Texas would be stupid to leave the Big 12. The conference will do anything they want.

 

[Romans922]

BigTen won't take any SEC team: 1) You don't leave SEC now (football) because it is currently the best conference. They barely have Kentucky/Vanderbilt, but they make up for it in Basketball. 2) BigTen wouldn't take an SEC school, like Mason said too high academic likings. SEC isn't a conference that cares about academics. I am learning this as I am in the South.

I can't see a Big12 School leaving, unless it be Iowa State and who would want that (I started my college at Iowa State). They aren't good at anything (except possibly wrestling).

Where is Rutgers located? I can see Pitt, since they already have Penn St (For location only). Quality of sports is another thing though... Pitt isn't always great in football and that is in the BigEast....

 

[Backwoods Presbyterian]

Rutgers is in New Jersey. Also an AAU school.

Pitt had an excruciatingly bad run between Jackie Sherrill and Walt Harris but before that Pitt was Top 10 best programs in the country from about 1900-1985.

As far as the BE Football-wise goes take a look at the Big East's record in the BCs versus say the Pac-10 or ACC.

 

[Tripel]

Where is Rutgers located? I can see Pitt, since they already have Penn St (For location only).

Actually, the main reason the Big10 would look to expand is to increase its market. If they add 5 schools, look for most of them to be in totally new markets for the Big10. They definitely want the New York market, which is why they'll pursue Syracuse and Rutgers. They'd also love to pick a couple away from the Big12.

I can't see a Big12 School leaving, unless it be Iowa State

There are several Big12 schools who would leave for the Big10. It's all about money, and the Big10 is the wealthiest conference. As for Iowa State, the Big10 wouldn't want them. They offer nothing of value.
It will come down to Missouri, Nebraska, and Texas.

 

[Whitefield]

I think it will stay Big10 for the sake of history. Some other conferences' name don't reflect reality, e.g., Southeast Conference. I don't know that I would consider a school west of the Mississippi as in the southeast (Arkansas and LSU).

 

[Tripel]

As far as the BE Football-wise goes take a look at the Big East's record in the BCs versus say the Pac-10 or ACC.

The Big East has a decent BCS record, but those games have been fairly weak...at least as far as BCS matchups go. In the past several years, I think the BigEast has only once played a top 5 team in a BCS bowl, that being Oklahoma (who WVU beat). Other than that, the BigEast is generally in one of the least heralded BCS games playing lesser teams like Utah, Wake Forrest, and Georgia.

---------- Post added at 02:59 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:57 PM ----------

...counting how long it takes for Tim to say something about the "Georgia" inclusion in that group

 

[Marrow Man]

Cute. Actually, for some reason Georgia doesn't match up well against Big East teams in bowl games. Mark Richt's only two bowl losses have come against Big East teams (Boston College back in 2001 and the shootout with WVU a few years ago). But, at least both games were very close. Georgia does much better, btw, against lesser conferences like the Big Ten.

 

[Romans922]

I just saw an ESPN article where the Big Ten commissioner denied reports of expansion. It showed the possible expansion schools: Missouri, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Rutgers.