TEMPLE TO BIG EAST

 Another win for the basketball schools! I love adding Temple and Memphis...Both have football programs with the potential to be much better too

I really hope we can hold onto Louisville
 
By the way, this would probably be a good time for those who intemperately torched Big East Commissioner Marinatto without allowing the process to play out to apologize.

All he did was save the Big East from a football standpoint and then get the best available teams for the basketball side. Short of having worked out a Big 12 merger, I think he did about as good a job as was humanly possible under the circumstances. 
 
By the way, this would probably be a good time for those who intemperately torched Big East Commissioner Marinatto without allowing the process to play out to apologize.

All he did was save the Big East from a football standpoint and then get the best available teams for the basketball side. Short of having worked out a Big 12 merger, I think he did about as good a job as was humanly possible under the circumstances. 
Click to expand...
 

Lawmanfan,
While I never ripped the commissioner on this website, I will politely and humbly disagree with your statement. The Big East should have done more to anticipate that the BCS football bowl system would drive everything. It is the job of the executives of the conference to anticipate/react to tidal changes in Division I athletics. They completely missed the boat on this. Everything they have done has been reactionary instead of on a proactive/preemptive basis.

If they had recognized that Big East was systemically weak in football because of so many non-football playing schools in the conference, they should have grabbed more football playing schools a long time ago. Colleges switching conference affiliations is not a new thing - i.e. see Miami / Boston College.... If the executives had done their jobs, teams like 'Cuse Pitt and WV would not feel the need to leave. I understand why these schools left - I actually don't begrudge them at all... those schools had to leave because they didn't be the last ones on a perceived sinking ship. If it wasn't Cuse/Pitt it would have been Rutgers/Uconn/ Louisvillle.....

The Big East executives should have done more from the get-go. I still feel like they completely blew it.
Did they seemingly save the day? Yeah, kinda-sorta.....but now we will have a Big "East" conference with multiple teams west of the MIssissippi River. It it is tough to stomach that it has to come this for our conference.

I believe that we are still one Big 12 conference decision away from being in a panic again... Was Temple/Memphis the right move to make? Of course it was - but all fans of the remaining Big East schools knew this was the right move. So I'm not going to give the executives too much credit. We offered something pretty compelling to Memphis/Temple/Houston/SMU: Access to national prestige and what should be a more stable conference from where they were coming from. I could have sold the Big East conference to the presidents of those incoming schools. It didn't take a marketing genius to put it together.

Anyway - Am i happy with Temple and Memphis?- Yes, it was the right thing to do. Do the executives still deserve criticism? Yes, I still believe they do. It should have never come to this.

I'll add one more thing to the discussion... what would have happened if the Big East had preemptively added Memphis and Temple and perhaps one other east coast school, before 'Cuse/WV/Pitt announce they are leaving - Do all of 'Cuse/Pitt/WV leave? I'm not so sure. It's would then be the best basketball conference by far with plenty of football schools to keep their BCS football status... It would have been nice to be in that scenario rather than the one we just went through.

Thoughts?
Thanks. 
 
 The Big East was built as a basketball conference. That football has become the driving force in college athletics is somewhat unfortunate but Marinatto and the Big East were never in a position to grab whatever football powers they could to strengthen the football side of the equation. That situation existed long before Marinatto took over. He had no choice but to be reactionary rather than procative. Unless you would have wanted them to kick STJ and other non-football schools out and grab the Texas A&M's and Nebraskas of the world. Marinatto has actually done a great job building up the football side, while at the same time, keeping basketball at or near the level it has been.
 
 I still blame Notre Dame for all the transfers gong back to when Miami and BC left. They have the football and wont play with us but they sure like the basketball dont they
 
 The Big East was built as a basketball conference. That football has become the driving force in college athletics is somewhat unfortunate but Marinatto and the Big East were never in a position to grab whatever football powers they could to strengthen the football side of the equation. That situation existed long before Marinatto took over. He had no choice but to be reactionary rather than procative. Unless you would have wanted them to kick STJ and other non-football schools out and grab the Texas A&M's and Nebraskas of the world. Marinatto has actually done a great job building up the football side, while at the same time, keeping basketball at or near the level it has been.
Click to expand...
 

I agree that we were systemically weak in football because of the way we were set-up.
However what you say is incorrect - there was never a need to kick out the likes of non-football playing schools like our beloved SJU.

This is the situation that we will have going forward:
1) a massive conference,
2) top-notch in basketball,
3) pretty weak in football - but good enough to get it done for BCS $s
4) and one that is geographically dispersed,
5) and missing a large portion of its historical rivalry games.

What it could have been if we had grabbed Temple and Memphis first; We possibly could keep Syracuse and Pitt and W. Virginia. Then no need for Boise, SMU and Houston. In this dream scenario, now compare this:
1) a massive conference
2) the premier basketball conference
3) pretty weak in football - but good enough to get it done for BCS $s
4) one that is not geographically dispersed
5) maintains all its historical rivalries.

Now at that point, after adding Memphis/Temple; If Cuse and PItt still decide to bolt for greener pastures then you go out and add teams from Texas and even further west, and we would have been in the same position as we are now... At least in that scenario we have a fighting chance of convincing Cuse/Pitt/WV to stay... instead we never had a shot.

I'm just saying these guys were asleep at the wheel. They should have known we were the most vulnerable conference. They should have known that some of schools could easily leave. We should have invited other members to our conference first.

So in my opinion - our executives badly misplayed their hand. It's really a shame. A complete misjudgement of the lay of the land. 
 
Bk,

I agree with your take on this, but I'm glad we woke up and recovered with these recent additions to the league. I look forward to building some new rivalries.
 
Bk,

I agree with your take on this, but I'm glad we woke up and recovered with these recent additions to the league. I look forward to building some new rivalries.
Click to expand...
 

No doubt Jnaw. I'm happy we are able to continue to participate in a good basketball league.. I'm especially looking forward to Dom Pointer dunking on them Temple pukes in Philly.... welcome to big time basketball!
 
By the way, this would probably be a good time for those who intemperately torched Big East Commissioner Marinatto without allowing the process to play out to apologize.

All he did was save the Big East from a football standpoint and then get the best available teams for the basketball side. Short of having worked out a Big 12 merger, I think he did about as good a job as was humanly possible under the circumstances. 
Click to expand...
 

Lawmanfan,
While I never ripped the commissioner on this website, I will politely and humbly disagree with your statement. The Big East should have done more to anticipate that the BCS football bowl system would drive everything. It is the job of the executives of the conference to anticipate/react to tidal changes in Division I athletics. They completely missed the boat on this. Everything they have done has been reactionary instead of on a proactive/preemptive basis.

If they had recognized that Big East was systemically weak in football because of so many non-football playing schools in the conference, they should have grabbed more football playing schools a long time ago. Colleges switching conference affiliations is not a new thing - i.e. see Miami / Boston College.... If the executives had done their jobs, teams like 'Cuse Pitt and WV would not feel the need to leave. I understand why these schools left - I actually don't begrudge them at all... those schools had to leave because they didn't be the last ones on a perceived sinking ship. If it wasn't Cuse/Pitt it would have been Rutgers/Uconn/ Louisvillle.....

The Big East executives should have done more from the get-go. I still feel like they completely blew it.
Did they seemingly save the day? Yeah, kinda-sorta.....but now we will have a Big "East" conference with multiple teams west of the MIssissippi River. It it is tough to stomach that it has to come this for our conference.

I believe that we are still one Big 12 conference decision away from being in a panic again... Was Temple/Memphis the right move to make? Of course it was - but all fans of the remaining Big East schools knew this was the right move. So I'm not going to give the executives too much credit. We offered something pretty compelling to Memphis/Temple/Houston/SMU: Access to national prestige and what should be a more stable conference from where they were coming from. I could have sold the Big East conference to the presidents of those incoming schools. It didn't take a marketing genius to put it together.

Anyway - Am i happy with Temple and Memphis?- Yes, it was the right thing to do. Do the executives still deserve criticism? Yes, I still believe they do. It should have never come to this.

I'll add one more thing to the discussion... what would have happened if the Big East had preemptively added Memphis and Temple and perhaps one other east coast school, before 'Cuse/WV/Pitt announce they are leaving - Do all of 'Cuse/Pitt/WV leave? I'm not so sure. It's would then be the best basketball conference by far with plenty of football schools to keep their BCS football status... It would have been nice to be in that scenario rather than the one we just went through.

Thoughts?
Thanks. 
Click to expand...
 

You're right about the reactionary moves. Marinatto is being slammed at every leaving school's fan site as they bemoan the basketball conference they are leaving. This has been so true with the impending new TV contract. The feeling is ND may save the day via their NBC/Versus ties with a huge contract pending.
Their is still skepticism in the Big 12 about Texas and Oklahoma allegiance and that will create more instability and WV fans will be in a lurch never playing Pitt again.
 
 Redmen, c'mon. Fordham is no Temple. This is a very good add and I would gladly take Xavier as well, since they always seem to be a strong team regardless of who's coaching.
 
i said it before...and i'll say it again. marinetto is a mediocrity. big east football remains a mediocrity. he allowed five big east teams to join another mediocre football conference. how does that happen? if the big east could compete with the big boys in football, west virginia also would have stuck around. he can do nothing if louisville wants to leave for a legitimate football conference. 

basketballwise, we're not nearly as good without syracuse, pitt and west virginia. period. with louisville gone, we'd have to bring in kentucky and kansas to make up all the losses.

come on, lawmanfan...this is no time to be strewing rose petals in marinetto's path.
 
 The Big East was built as a basketball conference. That football has become the driving force in college athletics is somewhat unfortunate but Marinatto and the Big East were never in a position to grab whatever football powers they could to strengthen the football side of the equation. That situation existed long before Marinatto took over. He had no choice but to be reactionary rather than procative. Unless you would have wanted them to kick STJ and other non-football schools out and grab the Texas A&M's and Nebraskas of the world. Marinatto has actually done a great job building up the football side, while at the same time, keeping basketball at or near the level it has been.
Click to expand...
 

I agree that we were systemically weak in football because of the way we were set-up.
However what you say is incorrect - there was never a need to kick out the likes of non-football playing schools like our beloved SJU.

This is the situation that we will have going forward:
1) a massive conference,
2) top-notch in basketball,
3) pretty weak in football - but good enough to get it done for BCS $s
4) and one that is geographically dispersed,
5) and missing a large portion of its historical rivalry games.

What it could have been if we had grabbed Temple and Memphis first; We possibly could keep Syracuse and Pitt and W. Virginia. Then no need for Boise, SMU and Houston. In this dream scenario, now compare this:
1) a massive conference
2) the premier basketball conference
3) pretty weak in football - but good enough to get it done for BCS $s
4) one that is not geographically dispersed
5) maintains all its historical rivalries.

Now at that point, after adding Memphis/Temple; If Cuse and PItt still decide to bolt for greener pastures then you go out and add teams from Texas and even further west, and we would have been in the same position as we are now... At least in that scenario we have a fighting chance of convincing Cuse/Pitt/WV to stay... instead we never had a shot.

I'm just saying these guys were asleep at the wheel. They should have known we were the most vulnerable conference. They should have known that some of schools could easily leave. We should have invited other members to our conference first.

So in my opinion - our executives badly misplayed their hand. It's really a shame. A complete misjudgement of the lay of the land. 
Click to expand...
 

Why would Syracuse/Pitt/WVU have cared if we added Temple/Memphis ?? They wouldn't have cared one iotta. Because those teams offer literally nothing in football. Sure we would've had 12 teams and a meaningless conference championship game - but adding those two wouldn't have brought in the added football revenue those schools were looking for.
And actually before Cuse/Pitt/WVU left if Marinatto had tried to add memphis or temple the other schools probably wouldve voted no; why split the pot 2 additional ways with teams that aren't adding to the value of the TV deal?

Now - if they had added Boise, Houston, Navy, or even SMU pre-emptively ... that could have had sway in keeping Cuse/WVU/Pitt. And I think Marinatto was trying to do that in adding TCU. He just didn't do enough. If he had recruited Houston and Boise at the same time he went after TCU... that would have given the football conference some teeth, and could have possibly prevented the 3 defections.
 
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