Conference Expansion article disguised as coaching article

[DrJackRyan]

http://www.boston.com/sports/colleges/mens_basketball/articles/2010/04/04/bc_spinning_its_webs_but_wont_snag_spider/?page=full

I don't even know where to post this. Football board? Basketball board? Conference expansion thread? Coaching thread?

BC officials have said the answer to any Big Ten inquiry would be, “NO, NO, NO.’’ But the Big Ten could take a bite out of New England and New York by grabbing Rutgers, Syracuse, and Connecticut, as well as Pittsburgh and Notre Dame, which would give the Big Ten network coverage from New England through the Midwest and, if Notre Dame were included, across the nation.

With four teams gone, the Big East would collapse, of course, in football, but one of the offshoots would be for the ACC to come in and take the remaining four Big East teams — South Florida, West Virginia, Louisville, and Cincinnati — to create a 16-team megaconference. The SEC would then have to react and would move to take Texas and Texas A&M. And suddenly you would have three 16-team superconferences.

As to all these discussions, I think the writers overstate what "must" or will happen. Can anyone here imagine the ACC adding any of those school? I certainly can't. Not only do the schools not fit the image of the ACC, I have a hard time seeing how adding those two teams would add additional marginal revenue.

And the SEC. The SEC is the king of college football why would the "react" in such a way? And would Texas and A&M even want to be part of the SEC? Lots of speculation but not a ton of data to back it up.

[lothar]

I took the article to mean no way BC leaves to be the 12th team if asked, probably b/c we'd get the rep as turncoats. Even if we would go, the right strategy is to say no to whoever asks until the invite is official to save face with the ACC (which, besides, has been pretty good for us).
But, I think no way Gene leaves us to be an isolated ACC outpost in a region of Big Ten powers - and no way the Big Ten wants to go big in the northeast without us, if they are going to 16 (that is, they would ask BC, not that they won't do it if we then turn them down). If 16 is what they want to do, then they definitely want to add BC, Syracuse, ND and pick 'em among Rutgers, Pitt, UConn and maybe a team further west like Missouri?
Interesting tidbit that the Big Ten may be focusing on four ACC schools - BC and Maryland seem obvious, as the big market, slightly odd duck north members, then who else? I'd guess Miami, since south florida is kind of like a northern state with all the transplants, and Fla St, since it's not quite a typical ACC school.

[DuchesneEast]

Louisville, and Cincinnati

This is one reason we left the BE, we didnt want to recruit against and be mixed in with glorified community colleges.

The Big Ten wants a team that will grow their revenue not reduce it, so count out Uconn and RU. It will be Pitt, ND and Mizzou. If one of those says no, look at Cuse.

[lothar]

And regardless, much rather try and get enthused for Indiana and Illinois than Cincy and South Florida

[1981Eagle]

GDF should be very closely monitoring the B10 situation. We were the last team in, odd-man out and are a Northern outlier for the ACC. A bold move to the East by the B10, partciularly to Rutgers, Cuse and UConn, would seriously impact BC negatively. Would I feel like a turncoat if the B10 came calling and we left for the B10? No, not at all. I hold no animosity toward the ACC but I do recall that they stiffed us the first time--Miami and VT only. They only expanded to 12 because the NCAA turned down their request for a Cship game with 11 teams. Then, the ultimate insult, they court ND before they finally "settle" for BC. I would have not even once atom of remorse for leaving the ACC for the B10. I like the ACC but this is business, BIG BUSINESS, and the B10 dwarfs the ACC financially and in Fball tradition/history/quality. Plus, I would love to see a B10 hockey conference. Not just because it would be a great conference with BC, ND, Minnesota, Wisconsin,Michigan, Mich. St. etc. It would be great for college hockey since it would be the first major conference to compete in all four major sports. I think it would legitimize hockey as a college sport more and result in a rapid expansion of hockey teams and then leagues. Soccer and baseball are about the only sports the ACC is clearly better in than the B10. Academically, the B10 and ACC are very comparable. B10 money is too huge to ignore.

[lothar]

I'd miss hockey east, but good points 1981eagle -- consider that something in our favor for joining the B10, something no one else has -- this is about TV and $, and a Big Ten hockey league maybe means the four big ten channels on my fios can have something else besides volleyball games. As far as travel, it has to be a wash, right - Orono is what, 8 hours by bus from Chestnut hill?

You have to imagine that GDF recognizes our weird position in the ACC (not to mention the constant slipping to lame bowls). Maybe pulling the trigger on Al is in part b/c he wants to ensure our teams are generating buzz and looking on the upswing when it comes time to take sides. You have to assume syracuse's bad run in football and Rutgers' mediocrity overall hurts both of those schools in possible selection

[EagleDave]

We'd still be a pretty odd fit within this supposed realigned Big 10...especially in terms of competitiveness. Sure, having Rutgers, 'Cuse, and Yukon would be good for attendance, but we would dick stomp all 3 of them with relative ease on a yearly basis. I prefer the competitiveness of the ACC and the access to the southern recruits and the tradition that comes with it.

Call me cynical, but outside of Ohio State and Michigan, I can't imagine getting excited when lined up against the dregs of the Big 10 like Indiana, Illinois, Northwestern, and Purdue. I much prefer FSU, Va Tech, Miami, Clemson, North Carolina, NC State, Wake Forest, Maryland, et al.

[1981Eagle]

We'd still be a pretty odd fit within this supposed realigned Big 10...especially in terms of competitiveness. Sure, having Rutgers, 'Cuse, and Yukon would be good for attendance, but we would dick stomp all 3 of them with relative ease on a yearly basis. I prefer the competitiveness of the ACC and the access to the southern recruits and the tradition that comes with it.

Call me cynical, but outside of Ohio State and Michigan, I can't imagine getting excited when lined up against the dregs of the Big 10 like Indiana, Illinois, Northwestern, and Purdue. I much prefer FSU, Va Tech, Miami, Clemson, North Carolina, NC State, Wake Forest, Maryland, et al.

Do you like them as much when the ACC per team payout is less than 10% of the per team pay-out of the B10? PSU made $19m off of athletics last year. BC made $1m. I like the ACC and its teams but I don't like them that much. Behind the scenes, GDF should be necking with ND and the B10 to get an invite. It would be the biggest step-up in BC athletics and financial history. Many don't seem to realize that BC is barely making ends meet athletically on the financial side of things. If not for the move to the ACC, we would be losing money on athletics like most of the BE schools. A move to the B10 ensures BC's athletic legacy. Not to mention the $500m we would reap from the CIC grants for research. BC would become a bona fide research school. Heck, we might even have enough money to start an Engineering school so we can become a "real" university, not just a "college". We may even be able to form a medical and dental schools. The possibilities are endless with a B10 invite.

I would miss Hockey East but we would still play the ones that matter, Maine, BU, UNH, Northeastern, UVM as OOC games.

[ADonovanJr]

Call me cynical, but outside of Ohio State and Michigan, I can't imagine getting excited when lined up against the dregs of the Big 10 like Indiana, Illinois, Northwestern, and Purdue. I much prefer FSU, Va Tech, Miami, Clemson, North Carolina, NC State, Wake Forest, Maryland, et al.

I'm a Penn State grad and have been going to games for thirty plus years. No one is excited by most of the schools we play in conference. OSU, Michigan, Wisconsin and maybe Purdue when they are good. Otherwise, it is not a great slate of games. This year, I'm giving my tickets to the fraternity. Other than Michigan, the rest of the games are not very interesting. Instead, we will head up to Boston to check on my investments.

[commavegarage]

I would miss Hockey East but we would still play the ones that matter, Maine, BU, UNH, Northeastern, UVM as OOC games.

1. Leaving the ACC wouldn't mean leaving HE. There is no Big 10 hockey conference.
2. Everything in life would be solved if the ACC had Penn State and ND.
3. Did I mention I like panera bread?

[claver2010]

Those last couple of paragraphs:

[1981Eagle]

I would miss Hockey East but we would still play the ones that matter, Maine, BU, UNH, Northeastern, UVM as OOC games.

1. Leaving the ACC wouldn't mean leaving HE. There is no Big 10 hockey conference.
2. Everything in life would be solved if the ACC had Penn State and ND.
3. Did I mention I like panera bread?

Under an expansion scenario adding BC and ND to the B10, a B10 hockey conference would be formed relatively quickly. Second, ND and PSU are already in the B10. Now GDF needs to get us invited. Thirdly, I think they serve Panera at all B10 stadiums so you will be fine.

[hansen]

81's conference expansion threads are slowly infecting every forum on EO. pretty soon, i'll go to the boathouse and instead of seeing some nice , i'll see arguments as to why <insert team name here> would be a better fit for <insert conference name here>,

[1981Eagle]

81's conference expansion threads are slowly infecting every forum on EO. pretty soon, i'll go to the boathouse and instead of seeing some nice , i'll see arguments as to why <insert team name here> would be a better fit for <insert conference name here>,

Au contraire mon ami. I didn't start the thread.

[Oliver Closeoff]

Chances are that the Big 10 takes one team of ND, Rutgers and Missouri and calls it a day. If the Big 10 takes all three and then wants Cuse and BC to round off the conference then BC would have to consider it. However, the ACC may counter attack by offering Cuse and Pitt, in which case I think BC stays. Anyways, until the Big 10 makes a concrete move, everything is so speculative that it's mind boggling. However, the ACC should be on their toes and they have shone they won't just sit back and wait for their teams to be poached unlike the Big East.

[1981Eagle]

http://www.boston.com/sports/colleges/mens_basketball/articles/2010/04/04/bc_spinning_its_webs_but_wont_snag_spider/?page=full

I don't even know where to post this. Football board? Basketball board? Conference expansion thread? Coaching thread?

BC officials have said the answer to any Big Ten inquiry would be, “NO, NO, NO.’’ But the Big Ten could take a bite out of New England and New York by grabbing Rutgers, Syracuse, and Connecticut, as well as Pittsburgh and Notre Dame, which would give the Big Ten network coverage from New England through the Midwest and, if Notre Dame were included, across the nation.

With four teams gone, the Big East would collapse, of course, in football, but one of the offshoots would be for the ACC to come in and take the remaining four Big East teams — South Florida, West Virginia, Louisville, and Cincinnati — to create a 16-team megaconference. The SEC would then have to react and would move to take Texas and Texas A&M. And suddenly you would have three 16-team superconferences.

As to all these discussions, I think the writers overstate what "must" or will happen. Can anyone here imagine the ACC adding any of those school? I certainly can't. Not only do the schools not fit the image of the ACC, I have a hard time seeing how adding those two teams would add additional marginal revenue.

And the SEC. The SEC is the king of college football why would the "react" in such a way? And would Texas and A&M even want to be part of the SEC? Lots of speculation but not a ton of data to back it up.

If any BC official is saying "NO,NO.NO" to any B10 inquiry then they are fools. Don't say anything. Keep your options open. Another F'n retard move by GDF. Who the F is he or BC to categorically say we would not consider the B10. That is asinine. If anything, we should be working the situation behind the scenes expressing open interest. We have a bunch of buffoons at Yawkey and in the Admin. to put off the B10 and do it in a public manner. Given the way he handled Jags, this "No,No,No" to the B10 said PUBLICALLY has GDF's fingerprints all over it. When will he learn to keep sensitive matters outside and away from the media? Idiot. PR 101 and the common sense way to handle things is to keep it private and out of the media. What a moron.

[mod17b]

I would love to see a B10 hockey conference. Not just because it would be a great conference with BC, ND, Minnesota, Wisconsin,Michigan, Mich. St. etc.

Who are all the "etc."? The only school that you don't list that fields a varsity hockey team is Ohio State. No D1 hockey at Iowa, Purdue, Northwestern, Illinois, Indiana or Penn State.

[Byrdcall J]

81 and BigTen sittin' in a tree
K-I-S-S-I-N-G

EDIT: But in all serious, I agree that BC should go wherever the money is. Conference allegiances be damned. The rest of the country already sees BC as a bunch of TRADERS anyway. I say we embrace our traitorous pastime and join whatever conference will bring in the most $. I do have to say though that Big Ten basketball and football is usually pretty ugly to watch... it isn't just a stereotype.

[BC923]

I just hope we don't join http://acchockey.com/

[HJS]

That article was ridiculous. The idea that the ACC is going to expand to add a school like Cincy is just retarded. But, the part that he didn't mention does impact BC... there is a TON of uncertainty about what will happen to the Big East and B12. As a result, you would think that BC has a unique opportunity to pretty much poach the majority of coaches from both conferences. Gene's temerity to do a search that expands beyond the local conferences is holding BC back.

[bignick33]

That article was ridiculous. The idea that the ACC is going to expand to add a school like Cincy is just retarded.

I dunno. Cincinnati might fit in perfectly. Unlike Boston, they are under the delusion that they are in the South.

[lothar]

I just hope we don't join http://acchockey.com/

Can't we field a JV team to compete in that league? We'd dominate it too.

[DrJackRyan]

Congratulations, shockdoct. That article proves one and one thing only, which is that Mark Blaudschun has found this website.....

When I first read Campion's statement above, I sort of chuckled. But the more I think about it, where else did Blaudschun "hear" this stuff? Sort of funny how rumors get started.