12/21/24
December 13, 2012
Basketball only schools to leave Big East: The seven Catholic schools that make up the Big East's basketball only schools (Notre Dame not included) are planning to leave the conference. No word yet on what Cincinnati, UConn, and South Florida will do in the wake of the Big East's collapse. Louisville and Rutgers announced their plans to leave the conference earlier this year. Syracuse, Pitt and West Virginia announced their departures last year. The new schools leaving, Marquette, Georgetown, DePaul, St. John's, Villanova, Providence and Seton Hall can avoid conference exit fees as long as they leave as a group.
Forget about athletics - today's athletic programs are only about money.
The best men's and women's basketball conference over the past 2 decades destroyed by the lure of big football money. Terrible for college basketball.
posted by cixelsyd at 03:55 PM on December 13, 2012
The carousel never stops. I was looking forward to UNT playing in a western division of CUSA that included Rice, UTEP, Tulsa and UTSA. We've never had that many conference rivals in Texas and bordering states.
Now it looks like the left-behinds in the Big East will have to grab some CUSA schools.
I wish all of the non-BCS conferences would form a superconference with North, East, South and West divisions and have a four-team playoff. The winner could be given a slot in the BCS playoffs.
posted by rcade at 04:06 PM on December 13, 2012
How awkward for East Carolina.
posted by NoMich at 05:52 PM on December 13, 2012
How awkward for East Carolina.
SDSU and Boise State were supposed to be joining the Big East next year too. If the conference dissolves (the 7 schools have the votes to do it) what then?
posted by LionIndex at 11:37 PM on December 13, 2012
SDSU and Boise State have plenty of options-the MWC for starters (and Boise State to the Big 12). ECU may not.
As a USF fan, I saw this as inevitable, but it still hurts. I have no clue where we and the other teams left go. The only solace I take is that I think there are still some big moves to be made.
This move also breaks up some great college soccer, too.
posted by Bonkers at 12:55 AM on December 14, 2012
i attended Providence when David Gavitt was coaching, and really remember the birth of the Big East. It was quite something, and quite shocking that a couple of good B-ball schools like Holy Cross and UMass decided not to partake. The ECAC had become too big and unwieldy, there were a few "too big" teams in among the little fish, like Fairfield, St. Joe's, Fordham, St. Bona, Canisius, etc. The Big East was really the first total basketball conference, and when it added football and all the other sports, I think the headaches began.
Bonkers is correct in that this breaks up some great soccer- heck, there are a lot of sports that will be affected. We may be seeing the rebirth of some B-ball only conferences again; just like hockey.
posted by Leominster at 08:16 PM on December 14, 2012
Also, according to Wikipedia, the schools may be able to vote to dissolve the conference entirely.