Mobile-iken Posted September 23, 2003 Share Posted September 23, 2003 http://www.berkshireeagle.com/Stories/0,14...650277,00.html# Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mobile-iken Posted September 23, 2003 Author Share Posted September 23, 2003 Billiken Law beat me to the punch below. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SLUDrew Posted September 23, 2003 Share Posted September 23, 2003 So it begins. I have to tell you, if I hadn't heard about our plans to join the A-10 I would be worried as right now that we would wind up in the Valley. As it is, I am really not disappointed about how this is going down Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ACE Posted September 23, 2003 Share Posted September 23, 2003 I'd be very disappointed if this happened. DePaul gets in just by virtue of their location. They have not shown the same commitment to bball as SLU. The catholic schools should have stuck together. Maybe this is too idealistic, but I wish conferences would form based on similar size and academic standards. The Big 12 for example, makes sense. This new Big East makes little sense. Marquette has little in common with West Virginia. Oh well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwyjibo Posted September 23, 2003 Share Posted September 23, 2003 I would like to add that this is a Boston Globe article (not a Berkshire Eagle article--lovely as Pittsfield, Mass is they are not breaking Bigger East stories) and Mark Blaudschun is well connected with Bigger East AD's. I still think there are some details to work out but the complete reworking of C-USA is imminent. I expect C-USA to make a desperate football based raid (need 3 teams) to try to stay in the mix in an expanded BCS in 2006. I think that the Charlotte and SLU moving on will make perfect sense in that context. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3star_recruit Posted September 23, 2003 Share Posted September 23, 2003 Gotta love how the MAC football schools have been humbling the BCS schools the past couple of weeks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjray Posted September 23, 2003 Share Posted September 23, 2003 It's not over till its over. Remember the BC / Syracuse to the ACC headlines. Also, how long do you think it will take for this 16 - 17 team monster, should it come together, to break apart at the football / non-football seam? If and when that should happen, the BE would have only 7 non-football schools (one of which is technically ND as they are an independent in football who you can never count on long-term in a league)--DePaul, Marquette, Notre Dame, Villanova, Providence, Seton Hall, and Georgetown (plays in the Patriot league in football). Six or Seven teams is not enough for a basketball league and, if you take Notre Dame out of this group, I'm not really all that impressed with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwyjibo Posted September 23, 2003 Share Posted September 23, 2003 Amen. All the power at a fraction of the cost! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidnark Posted September 23, 2003 Share Posted September 23, 2003 We will be fine. Xavier is the program we are really trying our best to emulate. In fact, it is my understanding that our on-campus arena will be most similar to the Cintas center that Xavier constructed a few years ago. The Atlantic 10 hasn't stopped Xavier from acheiving regular top 25 status. I believe Xavier even cracked the top 10 for a large part of last season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwyjibo Posted September 23, 2003 Share Posted September 23, 2003 You are right that it is far from over and a lot of details are yet to worked out(i. e. money: BCS shares, BB tourney shares, exit fees, entrance fees, etc.). Things can go wrong, but this is a very good deal for Marquette and DePaul. They will still be in the same division as Cincy and Louisville as well as ND, Pitt, West Virginia. I know the Cincy invite is a little less likely than the 100% of Louiville but it is still the most likely invite at this time (the article by a ECU fan was mostly pining for an invite for the Pirates rather than objective). If they use a tight divisional format (as many home and aways as possible in the division) then they get a lot of exposure, have established rivalries, and reap a lot more cash at the end of the year in tourney revenue. It is too bad that SLU may not be a part of this but that does not mean that it is a bad deal for Marquette and DePaul. As I have said before, I think the Big East if they had a democratic vote would have brought in Xavier instead of DePaul but ND I am sure wanted DePaul in a huge way (and Xavier creates problems with any potential Cincy invite). The ACC will look to expand as well and that will likely have consequences for any future spin on C-USA as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwyjibo Posted September 23, 2003 Share Posted September 23, 2003 I agree that SLU will be fine. They will always have a chance to be competitive, particularly if in the A-10. I will personally miss SLU playing Marquette and DePaul as conference foes when a split happens. Cincy and Louisville obviously brought a lot competively and were good rivalries. The rest of C-USA will focus on football (or implode) if the predicted Bigger East happens as a C-USA raid. I think nearly all of us agree that that is a conference we can do without (Memphis would still hold some appeal but there are not any other ties left). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slu72 Posted September 23, 2003 Share Posted September 23, 2003 So they go to the BE. I like the part in the article where the guy says the FB and BB schools are always sniping at one another, but the new conference will allow the FB schools an out if things get too burdensome. Beautiful. This is like getting married with a pre- agreement to get out if you don't like it. All the non FB schools presidents should be ashamed of themselves for sucking up to the Cuse's and UConns. They want to ride their coat tails for awhile and then be brushed aside like a flake of dandruff. Jeez, if these guys had just put their heads together we could have had ourselves one of the best all BB conferences in the land. Whose willing to bet that by 2008 all the be bb schools will come knocking on the revamped A-10's door trying to find a place to sleep? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mobile-iken Posted September 23, 2003 Author Share Posted September 23, 2003 SLU72, yes we could have had one of the best bball conferences in the land. Marquette and DePaul are headed to that conference, SLU would do the same thing if invited. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tseugnekillib Posted September 23, 2003 Share Posted September 23, 2003 I agree. If our next conference is a revised Atlantic 10, so be it. I am confident the Billiken bball teams will be highly competitive in the new Atlantic 10, and our other Billiken sports will be more competitive as well. One thing is certain, whatever all of the new conference realignments turn out to be this November, some will probably change in the next five or so years. With the exception of the Ivy League, conference additions and deletions have been a regular event for the past 20 years. I expect that trend to continue. I wish Marquette and DePaul good luck. With the make-up of the new Big East, some good bball programs are going to have sub .500 conference records. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3star_recruit Posted September 23, 2003 Share Posted September 23, 2003 "With the make-up of the new Big East, some good bball programs are going to have sub .500 conference records." Depaul and Georgetown have been struggling to reach .500 with the current conference alignment. I wonder where Lindy's would pick them if the 16 team Big East started play this year? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Basketbill Posted September 23, 2003 Share Posted September 23, 2003 If I read this artcile correctly, Marquette and Depaul get to be in a bigger conference, at least for a couple years, then they are stuck together with the ball schools who are geographically removed from them. Depaul has not been able to compete year in and year out with CUSA schools, and even their best team lost to SLU in a championship game of the CUSA tourney. I would have nothing but questions if I were Depaul and Marquette. 1. Can we compete well in this league.....Marquette yes, Depaul's answer has to be "we do not know". 2. How much will it cost us...... 3. How many times will we play UConn, Syracuse, ND, etc... seventeen or sixteen teams play everyone once and a couple twice, sounds kinda familar.' 4. What happens when the football schools break away?? what do we do then....... 5. What are our options should we not jump to the big east....This is where demspey needs to do hi homework.....IF he comes in and says Xavier, Dayton, St. Joe's, and Temple would team up with you to form a new conference, and Georgetown, would be interested as well in two years etc......... Compare the Outcomesin three years....... 1)a conference with 9 BBall schools controlling your destiny 2)possible BBall school league with (6)Gorgetown, Rutgers, St. John's, (note ND does not go with BBALL school why should they? staying with the football schools give them an option if they ever feel independce in football is no longer feasible) 3) in a seventeen team conference with good teams that play at home every other year or not at all. In this scenario Depaul get screwed (because they will not be as enticing as Louisville Marquette, Louisville Cincy, Marquette _SYR, UConn SYR, etc......they will get Matchde up with Georgetown but they have been playing them regularly anyway) 4) #3 plus a boat load of Money..... this probably wins out though. Remember, BC and Syracuse did not turn down the ACC.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slu72 Posted September 23, 2003 Share Posted September 23, 2003 MU desiring this right now...it improves Crean's sales pitch for recruiting. DePaul? You are right I'd have some serious questions. It was only two seasons ago, DePaul couldn't get 1,500 to their games. And people were staging walkouts. What gets me are all the added expenses for their other teams travel. I still maintain, however, that with a little foresight, the Presidents of these very similar institutions could have got together and said screw the BE, screw CUSA, screw big time college football, aka BCS, we're doing our own thing. As it stands they are still at the mercy of the FB schools. The guy who is really dancing in the street over this though is Rick Pitino. He never liked CUSA, which I can understand, and wanted a presence back east. Looks like he got his wish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billiken_roy Posted September 23, 2003 Share Posted September 23, 2003 i do not think slu would have ever headed to the big east without a division format that insured reasonable expenses for the whole athletic department. i.e. if slu and marquette changed shoes, slu would have opted to force the a-10 realignment rather than go to the big east clusterfrick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidnark Posted September 23, 2003 Share Posted September 23, 2003 I disagree completely. Marquette is doing the right thing. There is no way they should pass up the opportunity to be in a conference with U Conn, Georgetown, Villanova, Notre Dame, DePaul, Syracuse, etc. If you look at a national map, you will see that the majority of the Big East schools are much closer to Chicago/Milwaukee than Tampa, New Orleans, Jackson, Birmingham, Houston, and Dallas. Plus, the benefits of the east coast media is enormous. If offered the opportunity, we would do the same thing as Marquette. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billiken_roy Posted September 23, 2003 Share Posted September 23, 2003 i expect to see doug woolard tonite at the billiken bratfest in fairview heights. if i get a chance i will propose just that question, "if the shoes were switched, what steps would the billikens have taken?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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