Texas, Oklahoma reach out to SEC about joining conference

[red_n_black_attack]

Interesting if other 3 power conferences vote a different CFP format with Champions only

[swilsonsp4]

Here's a glum assessment of the proposed alliance, from the Okie State perspective:

https://pistolsfiringblog.com/a-powe...lliance-talks/

[bearcatjd]

I believe the greed of these schools & conferences will leave out the remaining Big 12 schools & the AAC altogether. Really, why would they want to share any monies with these leftovers. I am personally
losing interest in college football other the UC. This could be a slow death to college football for most of the nation.

[red_n_black_attack]

I believe the greed of these schools & conferences will leave out the remaining Big 12 schools & the AAC altogether. Really, why would they want to share any monies with these leftovers. I am personally
losing interest in college football other the UC. This could be a slow death to college football for most of the nation.

I pretty much only watch UC football any more too, with a few exceptions. It's not even that I am being productive on Saturdays, usually have tv on and watching something else. If there was a way to sign up for a streaming service at a rate that only lets me watch UC games, I'd probably do it. I won't get ESPN+ or other services. If I can't attend the game, there will always be radio. I know it is attitudes like this that likely keep UC down, but I am not supporting the other networks/conference deals when my radio/imagination do just fine and can catch highlights later.

[longtimefan]

I pretty much only watch UC football any more too, with a few exceptions. It's not even that I am being productive on Saturdays, usually have tv on and watching something else. If there was a way to sign up for a streaming service at a rate that only lets me watch UC games, I'd probably do it. I won't get ESPN+ or other services. If I can't attend the game, there will always be radio. I know it is attitudes like this that likely keep UC down, but I am not supporting the other networks/conference deals when my radio/imagination do just fine and can catch highlights later.

I get it. I hate supporting ESPN too, but there’s no other choice to get UC games. I subscribed to ESPN+ last year and will again, but I dropped it the day after the last ESPN+ basketball game. I’ll be at the first two home games, so I may not need to pick it up again until October.

[Bearcats1232002]

Here's a glum assessment of the proposed alliance, from the Okie State perspective:

https://pistolsfiringblog.com/a-powe...lliance-talks/

I think this will be the likely result. It was about expansion in the old days in order to reach more markets but now it is about contraction so you can split the pie in less pieces.

One silver lining in all of this: If the AAC and Big 8 combine and then throw out East Carolina and Tulane imagine what a basketball conference that would be! Baylor, Texas Tech, West Virginia, Kansas with Memphis, UC, Houston, Wichita State, etc. I think that could rival any basketball conference.

At least we are getting to a point where the realignment question may be answered for us. If we are going to be on the outside looking in for football then we can finally get out of the arms race for football and start concentrating more on basketball. We would still have football for the tradition and Saturday afternoons (ask any Xavier fan if they wish they had some type of football program for the fall) but we could get back to the Huggins type years. This is what Connecticut did. They realized that they were never going to have the football program necessary to get into a power 5 conference so they "gave up the ghost" on football and rejoined the Big East which was a smart move for them. (Yes I realize that our football is worlds ahead of where Uconn's ever was) I wonder if they would regret that move if this AAC/Big 8 merger happens?

[swilsonsp4]

I think this will be the likely result. It was about expansion in the old days in order to reach more markets but now it is about contraction so you can split the pie in less pieces.

One silver lining in all of this: If the AAC and Big 8 combine and then throw out East Carolina and Tulane imagine what a basketball conference that would be! Baylor, Texas Tech, West Virginia, Kansas with Memphis, UC, Houston, Wichita State, etc. I think that could rival any basketball conference.

At least we are getting to a point where the realignment question may be answered for us. If we are going to be on the outside looking in for football then we can finally get out of the arms race for football and start concentrating more on basketball. We would still have football for the tradition and Saturday afternoons (ask any Xavier fan if they wish they had some type of football program for the fall) but we could get back to the Huggins type years. This is what Connecticut did. They realized that they were never going to have the football program necessary to get into a power 5 conference so they "gave up the ghost" on football and rejoined the Big East which was a smart move for them. (Yes I realize that our football is worlds ahead of where Uconn's ever was) I wonder if they would regret that move if this AAC/Big 8 merger happens?

I would hope that, even if UC is never invited to a power conference, we don't downgrade football to become a basketball-only school. UConn football has never been in the kind of shape that UC are in now, even with a G5 label attached. I get just as much enjoyment at football games as I do basketball.

I don't know how many members recall the wretched days of UC football after Tony Mason left in the mid-70's. Most of the UC teams of the 1980's to early 1990's under Dave Curry and Tim Murphy were horrible to watch.

It doesn't have to be an either/or situation. The Cats are thriving as a G5 football program and that has nothing to do with the status of the basketball program.

[Bearcats1232002]

I would hope that, even if UC is never invited to a power conference, we don't downgrade football to become a basketball-only school. UConn football has never been in the kind of shape that UC are in now, even with a G5 label attached. I get just as much enjoyment at football games as I do basketball.

I don't know how many members recall the wretched days of UC football after Tony Mason left in the mid-70's. Most of the UC teams of the 1980's to early 1990's under Dave Curry and Tim Murphy were horrible to watch.

It doesn't have to be an either/or situation. The Cats are thriving as a G5 football program and that has nothing to do with the status of the basketball program.

I wasn't saying that we have to downgrade our football to the point of UConn's but you would have to question throwing good money after bad if that ultimate goal of being in the big leagues is unobtainable someday. If you aren't in a power 5 (or probably power 4 soon) conference then you aren't going to get the money to compete with the OSU's, Alabama's etc. Or maybe even compete with the Louisville's or Kentucky's.

I definitely remember the 80's or the dark years as I like to call them. I went to UC then and football was wretched with all of our games being played at Riverfront stadium because Nippert was in such bad shape. All of our basketball games were played at the Coliseum with Tony Yates as coach. Could recruit but couldn't coach.

[red_n_black_attack]

I wasn't saying that we have to downgrade our football to the point of UConn's but you would have to question throwing good money after bad if that ultimate goal of being in the big leagues is unobtainable someday. If you aren't in a power 5 (or probably power 4 soon) conference then you aren't going to get the money to compete with the OSU's, Alabama's etc. Or maybe even compete with the Louisville's or Kentucky's.

I definitely remember the 80's or the dark years as I like to call them. I went to UC then and football was wretched with all of our games being played at Riverfront stadium because Nippert was in such bad shape. All of our basketball games were played at the Coliseum with Tony Yates as coach. Could recruit but couldn't coach.

Even if we are on the outside looking in, we do not want to stop investing in football. Quite the opposite, we want to spend wisely, such as pay an extra 2-3 million to keep Luke. At some point there will be some form of playoff expansion. Until then, NY6 games bring in a ton of money. UC football is still footing the bill for most of the athletic department, even with the AAC lower tier tv package. If we lose to IU, ND, and one other team we were supposed to beat and Luke takes that monopoly money being thrown around by some mid-tier Big 10, or ACC school, then we might consider rolling the dice with up and coming coach. Even then, we keep upgrading stadium and facilities as we can afford it. We are not going into the hole to stay in the football arms race. We have set the bar for every G5 and left behind 8 team, and many P4 schools. Don't lower that bar one inch.

[bearcatbret]

The days back in the Big East, UConn had a decent team for 2-3 years when they had a stud running back. That team gave UC fits at the time.

[swilsonsp4]

The days back in the Big East, UConn had a decent team for 2-3 years when they had a stud running back. That team gave UC fits at the time.

Look at the Huskies now. They put virtually no money into their program, hired bad coaches, and now play out in the wilderness of the independents in front of hundreds of diehards at Rentchler Field. At some point, they may need to downgrade to FCS.

No thanks for that. UC should continue to strive for excellence, even if that means no power conference comes calling. The only way in the past that the true powers have played UC was when the program was floundering. This is a rare season in which UC gets to play a blue blood at a time when the program is strong.

[longtimefan]

We’re talking big money and big business here. Maybe some of the lawyers on here can weigh in on whether there’s an antitrust case possible? The scheduling alliances, and SEC expansion seem designed to keep other teams out. As it stands, 57 of the 130 teams are banding together, to the direct injury of the other 73. But, I guess if there were a case we’d have seen it by now.

[Bearcats1232002]

Even if we are on the outside looking in, we do not want to stop investing in football. Quite the opposite, we want to spend wisely, such as pay an extra 2-3 million to keep Luke. At some point there will be some form of playoff expansion. Until then, NY6 games bring in a ton of money. UC football is still footing the bill for most of the athletic department, even with the AAC lower tier tv package. If we lose to IU, ND, and one other team we were supposed to beat and Luke takes that monopoly money being thrown around by some mid-tier Big 10, or ACC school, then we might consider rolling the dice with up and coming coach. Even then, we keep upgrading stadium and facilities as we can afford it. We are not going into the hole to stay in the football arms race. We have set the bar for every G5 and left behind 8 team, and many P4 schools. Don't lower that bar one inch.

You say we should pay an extra 2-3 million to keep Fickell but if one of the Power 4's come sniffing there is no way we could win a bidding war against them. Either in coaches salary, facilities or NIL monies. Marcus Freeman left for Notre Dame and it was amazing he stayed as long as he did. The same thing goes for players. Unless the NIL is capped, OSU will always find away to get more money into the hands of a recruit then we could. When you don't have 5 stars players it is hard to win games against those teams in a playoff. You will notice that last year alot of our good players were transfers in from the Power 5 programs. I don't have a problem with that but we obviously weren't out recruiting the big boys. It seems like most of our recruits lately have been 3 star recruits.

[Lobot]

Even if we are on the outside looking in, we do not want to stop investing in football. Quite the opposite, we want to spend wisely, such as pay an extra 2-3 million to keep Luke. At some point there will be some form of playoff expansion. Until then, NY6 games bring in a ton of money. UC football is still footing the bill for most of the athletic department, even with the AAC lower tier tv package. If we lose to IU, ND, and one other team we were supposed to beat and Luke takes that monopoly money being thrown around by some mid-tier Big 10, or ACC school, then we might consider rolling the dice with up and coming coach. Even then, we keep upgrading stadium and facilities as we can afford it. We are not going into the hole to stay in the football arms race. We have set the bar for every G5 and left behind 8 team, and many P4 schools. Don't lower that bar one inch.

Not sure we have an extra 2-3 million lying around for that to be honest. We're going to be down a lot of revenue from ticket sales, etc. due to Covid-19 when the fiscal year numbers come out. If we do have to replace Fickell, I think you pay a lot of attention to how Marcus Freeman does against us in South Bend.

As far as being in the hole, UC still has a pretty good amount of stadium and arena debt to retire. We've already put our money into the revenue programs. Eventually you have to pay of the debt.

Re: expansion, follow the TV money. Chances are anything above the current state of the AAC in conference terms will result in in better TV revenue for UC. The trick is forecasting what all these deals are going to look like after realignment completes. It's not just the Big 12's deal that will get renegotiated. It's likely every conference will have something happen in that regard depending on who eventually moves where.

[swilsonsp4]

Here's an opinion piece from the KS State writer at 247sports.com that urges the B12 to get busy adding teams. He argues that the B12 will not lose its P5 status. I was able to read this piece while not logged in to 247sport.com.

https://247sports.com/college/cincin...ati-169283520/