UC / U of L / UConn to ACC?

[shadyo]

If they win their lawsuit against Maryland they can afford to take all three!

[zandozan]

Is it possible or plausible that we are bidding against UL/Uconn? Under the same logic, it is possible/plausible that we ask for less than what the rest of the conference is entitled to (in terms of payouts)? I wonder if that kind of jockeying is happening behind the scenes.

[True Bearcat]

That the way! Throw everything we got at the ACC! If UC gets the invite it will be the biggest win in anything in school history!

[girandola]

Cincinnati pushing to join ACC

Not new news, but a bit encouraging considering the source!

http://espn.go.com/college-sports/story/_/id/8683593/cincinnati-bearcats-making-strong-push-join-acc-source

[swilsonsp4]

Andy Katz reports that UC is actively seeking entry into the ACC. This isn't at all surprising.

http://espn.go.com/college-sports/story/_/id/8683593/cincinnati-bearcats-making-strong-push-join-acc-source

[righthook]

I am sad...very very sad! Two years ago we had TCU set to join the BEAST and it would have been a Heck of a conference. No we are supposed to get excited about E. Carolina and Tulane...this is not good! Our sports at UC will not be good at all, and the only talk I am hearing is that Louisville OR Uconn are being looked at by the ACC. Why wont the NCAA step in on this, how can they just allow this to happen. Am I missing something?

Because the NCAA is not a separate organization - it is comprised of its member schools and their presidents. And the majority of the schools are benefitting from all of this.

[ME80]

I am sad...very very sad! Two years ago we had TCU set to join the BEAST and it would have been a Heck of a conference. No we are supposed to get excited about E. Carolina and Tulane...this is not good! Our sports at UC will not be good at all, and the only talk I am hearing is that Louisville OR Uconn are being looked at by the ACC. Why wont the NCAA step in on this, how can they just allow this to happen. Am I missing something?

NCAA is probably worried that the big football playing schools will leave their organization they push too hard.

[mjv780]

Amen! We need to be in the ACC or Big 12. That's all I want for Christmas,
an invite to the ACC or Big 12 & of course world peace!

If I had one wish that I could wish this holiday season, it would be for all the children of the world to join hands and sing together in the spirit of harmony and peace.

If I had two wishes that I could wish for this holiday season, the first would be for all the children of the world to join hands and sing in the spirit of harmony and peace.. and the second would be for UC to get an invitation to the ACC or Big XII.

- hopefully the humor of that is not lost on everyone :-)

[bearcatsam]

I am sad...very very sad! Two years ago we had TCU set to join the BEAST and it would have been a Heck of a conference. No we are supposed to get excited about E. Carolina and Tulane...this is not good! Our sports at UC will not be good at all, and the only talk I am hearing is that Louisville OR Uconn are being looked at by the ACC. Why wont the NCAA step in on this, how can they just allow this to happen. Am I missing something?

[JDBEARCAT]

With the soon to be announced additions of Tulane and ECU to the Big East, I have just one thing to say to the UC administrators: Please, PLEASE, PLEASE(!!!) get the Bearcats out of the Big East!!! Do whatever you have to do but find a new conference home amongst what is now considered the Power 5.

Amen! We need to be in the ACC or Big 12. That's all I want for Christmas,
an invite to the ACC or Big 12 & of course world peace!

[jkwuc89]

With the soon to be announced additions of Tulane and ECU to the Big East, I have just one thing to say to the UC administrators: Please, PLEASE, PLEASE(!!!) get the Bearcats out of the Big East!!! Do whatever you have to do but find a new conference home amongst what is now considered the Power 5.

[shadyo]

We could be biting nails for a while.

This won't be settled for a while unless you believe they get 13 college presidents to agree on a solution.

B1G won't be inviting GT as they can't keep the conference contiguous wittout several additions. Most likely would be VT and NCST. UNC will not leave the ACC.

FSU and Clemson would be the best fit for the Big 12. They will not get invitations from the SEC because they don't add TV sets to the cable package. My assumtion is that those two schools are most worried about the on field product for football. The ACC additions haven't worked out from a quality standpoint. Adding UCONN won't help that (very strong programs in MBB, WBB, Soccer and Baseball). ALL of the additional programs will reduce the per school revenue share. FSU and Clemson probably want them to at least add schools that can field a decent football team. From thier perspective, it is hard to get excited about the conference lineup. The basketball schools look at it in the opposite way (UCONN #1, UL #2, UC #3).

This could be a process that proceeds gradually. If they add one school and it is UL I think that is a good sign for UC. They may come back an add UC and UCONN at a later date.

I don't have any inside scoop just a decent understanding of haow advertising money works. Based on the B1G's recent moves, it is obvious what is driving these decsisions.

[RedRocker]

http://www.cbssports.com/collegefoot...ely-per-source

"ACC presidents could vote on a Maryland replacement as early as this week, but two league sources believe an expansion to 16 is unlikely at this time.

UConn and Louisville are the favorites for the league's future 14th team. Maryland's defection to the Big Ten leaves the ACC with 13 entering the 2013 season. The league feels well-prepared for realignment talk after dealing with the additions of Pitt and Syracuse just 14 months ago, according to a source."

Unless they negotiate an earlier departure and buyout, Maryland will be there at least another year from what I've read. The Big East isn't just going to let Rutgers leave in time for next year either unless the BE evaporates by the end of June which is entirely possible.

[bobestes]

The glass half-full analysis could make the argument that UC ends up in a TCU-type role, that is, a warm body that is added as a pretext to tear up a contract in order for ESPN to keep a conference together (think Big 12), which is the equivalent of hitting the lottery (we'd probably triple athletic revenue).

[bobestes]

Very good analysis.

I would add to this that you can not underestimate the role of ESPN in all of this.

The ACC is currently an ESPN-controlled property, essentially. FOX is part owner of the Big Ten network with the Big Ten. ESPN does not want to see more schools go to the Big Ten at the expense of the ACC. In fact, they'll probably re-do the contract very similar to what they did with Texas, giving them the Longhorn Network (which is nothing more than a blank check to keep the conference together)

In fact, you could go so far as to suggest that ESPN knows it's losing the Big East to FOX/CBS/ETC, and wouldn't mind it if whatever money-making schools from that conference end up in an ESPN-controlled conference. They'll just take whatever they offered the Big East, add it to the ACCs deal and call it a day.

Remember this: FSU may be the most valuable team in the ACC, but only UNC and VT have exit options to any conference in the country. Either one could petition to join just about any conference in the country and would be accepted tomorrow. The only other school that had that much power was Maryland, and they're out the door. While FSU has a definite exit option in the Big 12, NC and VT have more attractive exit options and thus have more power. While Pitt, Clemson, Virginia, and NCSU may also have exit options, they're always mentioned in combination with other schools and not alone. Thus the decision will rest with NC, VT, and FSU.

So FSU, VT, and UNC will be in a room right now deciding what to do. The rest of the ACC will vote with whatever those three schools decide, if they know what's good for them.

Right now, I hope that VT and FSU have fond memories of the Metro days with us. Or at least that they value quality athletic programs more than geographic continuity on the East Coast. But I have my doubts.