davidnark Posted October 16, 2003 Share Posted October 16, 2003 http://www.charlotte.com/mld/charlotte/spo...tte/7016300.htm 49ers, CUSA closer to breakup League meets to map out rules of realignment as schools plan shifts LEONARD LAYE Staff Writer Charlotte and five other Conference USA schools moved a giant step closer to the departure door Tuesday as the league's board of directors met in Chicago and established guidelines for adding and losing members in their impending round of college realignment. The work by the board cleared the deck for the 49ers and Saint Louis to enter more detailed expansion talks with the Atlantic 10 Conference, and for four other schools to complete a long-anticipated shift to the Big East, CUSA sources said. The schools considered most likely to leave made their intentions known and the conference then, after resolving withdrawal issues, began focusing on potential new members. Cincinnati, DePaul, Louisville and Marquette have been near-certain Big East targets for months. The Big East is expected to make formal invitations after its Nov. 4 meeting. Another CUSA member, South Florida, is thought to be high on the Big East's list as a possible replacement for Boston College, which on Sunday followed Miami and Virginia Tech to the ACC. Conference USA has said any changes made will not take effect until the 2005-06 season, leaving the conference intact for two more school years. Among the exit and expansion issues resolved by the board were financial concerns that had left the futures of some schools in doubt, the sources said. Charlotte Chancellor Dr. James Woodward, who attended Tuesday's meeting, said last month he was concerned about how much a move from CUSA might cost the school. "If it costs us $20 million to go to another conference, we're not going to another conference," Woodward said two weeks ago. "We would not do anything financially harmful to our (non-revenue programs). We're not going to cut anybody's budget." Some of the cost is known. At the time they left C-USA, the 49ers would have to leave with their share of money earned in the previous six NCAA basketball tournaments. Of equal if not more concern was the conference bylaw that said departing schools must also pay CUSA for lost television revenue, an expense of an undetermined amount. That was apparently one of the issues resolved Tuesday, with the conference agreeing to keep the basketball tournament money but forego the lost TV money, according to the sources. Woodward could not be reached for comment. Conference Commissioner Britton Banowsky and board chairperson Shirley Raines of Memphis made apparent, if somewhat veiled, references to the day's events in a league statement. "No member has formally withdrawn and no new members have been added," Banowsky said. "It remains inappropriate to speculate on particular members that might be leaving or joining the conference. We did, however, have an open and active conversation about what is both possible and desirable." Said Raines: "The board has provided the commissioner with a consensus on the future direction of the conference and we are prepared to move forward as anticipated changes occur." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thetorch Posted October 16, 2003 Share Posted October 16, 2003 Banowsky and the rest of the CUSA brass must be real dummies. If they had played their cards right they could have merged or taken teams from the BE, and become a lock for BCS. Instead they let the A-10 and BE steal every decent team in the conference. Was Banowsky's plan the entire time to become a Minor League SEC conference? If so that is not setting much of a goal for the league. With these moves CUSA has relegated itself to football oblivion, and I would not be shocked if the big schools split into another level, that the CUSA would be left out with the likes of the MAC and its ilk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheA_Bomb Posted October 16, 2003 Share Posted October 16, 2003 nm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thetorch Posted October 16, 2003 Share Posted October 16, 2003 Exactly why the big boys will not allow them in a new higher division. The fact that the MAC is barging in on their big money paerty has the big 6 considering a move to their own high level football division. I envision the new look CUSA or SEC lite to left out in the cold in this new division much like the MAC will. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MICHAELSPAPPY Posted October 16, 2003 Share Posted October 16, 2003 Atlantic 10 is a good basketball conference. It has a higher priority there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjray Posted October 16, 2003 Share Posted October 16, 2003 >Banowsky and the rest of the CUSA brass must be real >dummies. > >If they had played their cards right they could have merged >or taken teams from the BE, and become a lock for BCS. >Instead they let the A-10 and BE steal every decent team in >the conference. Was Banowsky's plan the entire time to >become a Minor League SEC conference? If so that is not >setting much of a goal for the league. With these moves >CUSA has relegated itself to football oblivion, and I would >not be shocked if the big schools split into another level, >that the CUSA would be left out with the likes of the MAC >and its ilk. I think CUSA came to the conclusion it needed to be a football conference or a basketball conference but not both. It has chosen football. My understanding is that Louisville and Cincy (and probably Marquette and DePaul) were going to the BE whatever the financial repercussions. The only way for CUSA to have had leverage against the BE was if it could control these four school's decision for conference affiliation ... which it does not. Basically, the 4 BE defectors sealed the fate of CUSA. By deciding to cut their own deal with the BE they took away any power you assumed CUSA had in the conference realignment saga. Now that CUSA has decided to be a football conference, they are now happy to facilitate the departure of SLU and Charlotte to the A10. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schasz Posted October 16, 2003 Share Posted October 16, 2003 I could care less what CUSA will look like after conferencegate. My only desire is to see a strong A-10 conference once our Billikens begain that conference affiliation. CUSA has not been the best of fits for us for quite some time, and it will be a mess very soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwyjibo Posted October 16, 2003 Share Posted October 16, 2003 SO it looks like SLu, Charlotte, USF, Cincy, Marquette, and DePaul out and SMU, Rice, Marshall, UCF, Tulsa in as Banowsky's vision of a NEW C-USA. Do you think his Football/Texas roots are the problem here? http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/sports/2160434 Obviously, A-10 is the best fit for SLU and Charlotte now but it will be a step down from Olde C-USA. The loss of conference ties to Marquette, DePaul, Louisville, Memphis and Cincy will hurt. Although I will enjoy seeing a few live games when SLU comes more frequently to the northeast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MICHAELSPAPPY Posted October 16, 2003 Share Posted October 16, 2003 > >Obviously, A-10 is the best fit for SLU and Charlotte now >but it will be a step down from Olde C-USA. I don't know that A-10 will be all that much of a step down. Last season Sagarin had CUSA #7 and A-10 #9. In '02 it was CUSA #8 and A10 at #9, and exactly the same in '01. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidnark Posted October 16, 2003 Author Share Posted October 16, 2003 This writer states that "Saint Louis and Charlotte, current C-USA non-football members, reportedly will join the Atlantic 10." I don't doubt the accuracy of his claim, and I am hopeful that it is correct, but I wonder what his source his? Does "reportedly" refer to rumors floating around the buffet line in the press room or does it mean that he has spoken with credible sources? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwyjibo Posted October 16, 2003 Share Posted October 16, 2003 Yeah, it depends on the author and as I don't know anything about the Houston Chronicle I couldn't say for sure. Usually, with good/reputable reporter it means talking directly with the AD's office and reporting it off the record (for example, with the Big East stuff I knew Blaudschun of the Boston Globe had direct access to BC's AD; the guy at the Prov Journal has direct contacts with Providence and Rhodey). The Southern Miss paper has a real positive spin on changes in store for C-USA: http://www.clarionledger.com/news/0310/15/usm01a.html Memphis column is real negative: http://www.gomemphis.com/mca/other_sports/...2350552,00.html Marshall papers are interested: http://dailymail.com/news/Jack+Bogaczyk-20031016/ http://wvgazette.com/section/Sports/2003101533 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidnark Posted October 16, 2003 Author Share Posted October 16, 2003 All four of your articles state that Saint Louis and Charlotte are expected to move to the A-10. It sounds like it is a foregone conclusion. It will be interesting to see how far the revenue disparity between the A-10 and the Big East shrinks with the Big East losing its three largest revenue producing programs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schasz Posted October 16, 2003 Share Posted October 16, 2003 David, The stars are alligned just right for our Billikens to wind up in the A-10...just as they were alligned for the Flubs to drop two in a row at Wrigley to the Fish, even with their two best pitchers rested and ready to go. What a choke job! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billiken_roy Posted October 16, 2003 Share Posted October 16, 2003 the cubs performance the last two nites is simply astounding. it makes you wonder if there really is such a thing as a hex or something. wild stuff. of course it adds to the mystique of the loveable loser cubs going forward. man talk about finding ways to lose. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schasz Posted October 16, 2003 Share Posted October 16, 2003 The funny thing is that with their history...I'd give even odds that Alou doesn't make that catch with the fan getting out of his way. The goofy thing was that there were many fans not just the one nerd that were trying to catch the damn ball, as you say amazing stuff, but that's Flubs baseball. I'd hate to admit to being a fan. Hopefully, our Cardinals will kick it in gear next year with a few additions/deletions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billiken_roy Posted October 16, 2003 Share Posted October 16, 2003 schasz, as for the future cards, i hope the cardinal nation understands that puhols and drew are both eligible for arbitration and i believe we have a number of players eligible for free agency (vina, stephenson, hitchcock and tomko all come to mind). imo, puhols alone will eat up the budget for raises. no free agent out there is going to come cheap that is worth a damn. the real crime of the cardinal organization is the way the farm system appears to be bankrupt. look at that marlins team. a lot of up and comers that came from within. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schasz Posted October 17, 2003 Share Posted October 17, 2003 BRoy, I see several suspects in your list that in my mind have probably played their final Cardinal game...Vina, Stephenson, Bombko, and I would be surprised to see Tino back...have not gone by his house recently in Safety Harbor to see if he is packing up his Cardinal Red? Albert will get his money and heck, if anyone on that team should get the big bucks it will be AP. JD is an enigma to me, but I don't feel that he fully recovered from the surgery he had last year. Remember, he had basically the same injury that made Big Mac decide to retire. If we trade that guy look for him to have a break out year somewhere else. Farm systems go in cycles, and not many teams hit the jackpot by playing nothing but young players. The Marlins did mix in some good veterans in order to win the pennant. Anyone like their chances in the playoffs with Pudge's Large contribution. Besides in TLR the Cards have a Mgr that really does not like to play too many youngsters. AP only got to play because Bonilla was hurt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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