The Big East is not going away quietly.
It is looking to add up to six schools for at least football: three football-only (Boise State, Navy and Army), and three for all sports (Houston, UCF, and SMU). So despite losing West Virginia to the Big 12, Pittsburgh and Syracuse to the ACC, the Big East is not folding.
I just have one thing to say: why?
Why is the Big East trying to delay the inevitable by adding sub-standard football programs (Boise State notwithstanding) to it’s shabby football league? Does the Big East commissioner John Marinatto honestly believe that his conference can still keep its BCS automatic qualifying status with that rag-tag bunch of schools? UCF and SMU are BCS-caliber football programs? Really?
Also, why would any school want to join the Big East at this point? Don’t those school administrators know that the Big East is going to eventually go belly-up as a football conference sooner rather than later? Are those schools THAT desperate for BCS love?
Why would Boise State lose money? Why would they lose millions of dollars by leaving the Mountain West Conference that it would not recoup by joining the Big East? Doesn’t Boise State know how expensive air fare would be for traveling back and forth to the East coast? Has the school even consider the possibility of fans not making those trips?
Finally, why won’t the Big East let West Virginia, Pitt and Syracuse go to their desired conferences? They do not want to be there, so why hold them to that stupid-ass 27-month waiting period. Besides, the Big East may lose some $$$ from that lawsuit with West Virginia.
The Big East should just count its losses, swallow its pride, and merge with the Mountain West and Conference USA (where ironically the Big East pillaged a few schools from). It’s only a matter of time when UConn, Rutgers, and from what I have read Louisville will leave.
Categories: college football, sports story
I was really excited when Marquette joined the Big East a few years ago (I am a Milwaukee native), but the best NCAA basketball league in the country will be no more because of these football realignments…I guess it is just a big money grab for football.
Money makes the world go ’round my man – especially in college football.
Good post
The Big East will no longer be big time in football, that’s true. However, they will never go belly up as a football conference. There is still money to be made, even as a 2nd tier football conference. ESPN has bowls comin’ out its behind for holiday programming and they’re ready to write checks. The remaining Big East schools will happily cash them. Boise State makes no sense whatsoever, from either side.
Someone needs to take the Big Least out back and shoot it. It will not even rival the Sun Belt conference in football when it’s all said and done. The Big East is a good basketball conference, nothing more. Back to the shallow end Big Least!