What About Us?

First, the football program lost its marquee names. But now it's looking more and more like basketball is about to cause the Big East to crumble into oblivion. Do Cincinnati and UConn have any chance of staying relevant?

The answer to the above question is yes. But this is an article, so I won't explain quickly. It's my blog, damnit!

Yesterday, news broke that seven Catholic, non-football members of the Big East were exploring their options. Unlike in football, where it's every school for themselves, these schools are looking at making one, big move, which could include dissolving the league altogether.

Over the past two years, the Big East has lost Pitt, Syracuse, Rutgers, Notre Dame, Louisville, and West Virginia. But the league was already a watered down version of itself, which a decade ago featured Miami, Virginia Tech, and Boston College. Like Cincinnati for head coaches, the conference has become an audition and stepping stone for schools to move into major conferences.

The driving force of college realignment is money. In some situations, it's specifically adding schools in big markets to put their league's games in as many houses as possible, to make more money. The Big Ten added Rutgers and Maryland, from the ACC, to be able to put the Big Ten Network in New York City and Washington DC.

Until yesterday, basketball was the one sport where the Big East was still respectable. However, losing Georgetown, Marquette, and Villanova would be closing the casket and making funeral arrangements for the league, in all sports.

Football brings in the most money. Basketball is the slower, less attractive little brother that is still relevant enough to cause a stir, like the Moon slightly tugging on the Earth (sorry, I've been watching way too much of "The Universe" lately).

So where does that leave Cincinnati, UConn and South Florida? They are the only three remaining football schools from the remnants of the league, which will be adding SMU, Boise State, San Diego State, Houston, UCF, Tulane, East Carolina, and Temple as replacements.

USF is in the worst position of the three schools. While they are in a decent market in Tampa, Florida and Florida State still have a much larger and dominant following. Their football and basketball programs are both below average, and would certainly struggle more in any other major conference. The ACC is the weakest of the five major conferences in football. If you think they're going to sell Duke vs. USF to ESPN or any other network, you're brain damaged.

UConn has a decent football program, which has won shares of the Big East Championship over the past few years. However, in any other conference (except for potentially the ACC), the Huskies would be a bottom feeder team. But UConn is known for its historic and great basketball program. On the other hand, legendary coach Jim Calhoun recently retired, which has left the program on shaky ground, especially with coaches and players being hesitant to join a program in a crumbling league.

Cincinnati is in the best position of the three schools. They have won a share of the Big East Championship four of the past five years, including two outright championships in 2008 and 2009. Their football program has finished the season ranked in the AP Top 25 five of the last six years. While Nippert Stadium only holds about 35,000, the university recently announced plans to raise $70 million for renovations, improvements, and expansion. They also have played games at Paul Brown Stadium, the 67,000 capacity home of the Bengals. In addition, their basketball program is currently ranked 11 in the AP Top 25 (as of 12/13/12) and have been consistently appearing in the NCAA Tournament for decades. Plus, Cincinnati is a top 50 market and, in the right league, their games could be broadcast over the entire state of Ohio, the seventh largest state in the US. Having an enrollment of over 42,000 students and stealing Tommy Tuberville, a high profile coach from a major Big 12 program, can't hurt either.

In the end, Cincinnati and UConn will land in a major conference via a few different scenarios, regardless of the Catholic schools' decision:

1. The ACC will decide to expand to 16 teams and give both schools an invitation. Without any hesitation or speculation, they'll bolt faster than you can say "The Big East is dead." Geographically and athletically, they make sense to add. And as the ACC could potentially be seen as weak and vulnerable with its current 14 teams, Cincinnati and UConn would at least give them wiggle room should any schools leave. It would also prevent the possibility that...

2. The Big 12 invites Cincinnati to join, without UConn. The Huskies don't make sense geographically and wouldn't add much competition to their football program. However, adding the Bearcats would give their newest member, West Virginia, an old rival that is not too far away. Currently, the Big 12 has 10 schools and has declined expanding because 12 team leagues require a league championship game, where upsets are common, and that would make it tougher for Texas or Oklahoma to go undefeated and reach a National Championship Game. At 11 teams, the Big 12 would have a little more stability without needing a conference championship game. BYU has turned down several offers to join the league and Boise State's research and educational standards are a joke, giving Cincinnati an edge. However, a more likely scenario would be...

3. The Big 12 and/or SEC start picking off schools from the ACC. Rumors have been swirling around Florida State, Miami, Virginia Tech, and Clemson exploring their options. Should this happen, it will probably be two schools leaving at the same time, not all four. When Maryland bolted for the Big Ten in November, the ACC had serious talks with both Cincinnati and UConn before deciding on adding Louisville as their replacement. At this point, they are clearly the favorites to get invitations should any of their current members leave. Of course, there's always a chance that...

4. The Big Ten decides to add two more schools. While this is a long-shot of happening within the next year or so, Commissioner Jim Delaney's clear goal is to make his league bigger, richer, and more nationally marketable than everyone else. WHEN this happens, don't be surprised if UConn and Boston College are invited. Ohio State would be against adding any other Ohio schools to their conference, so Cincinnati would never get their wish of a real in-state rivalry with their big brother to the north. By adding UConn and BC, the Big Ten would expand their reach and network to the entire Northeast coast, a market that would stretch from Maine to Virginia and Cape Cod to the Great Plains. But this would not leave Cincinnati in the dark, as they would probably be invited to the ACC as a replacement for BC.

Unfortunately for USF, the Bulls will probably remain in what's left of the Big East, or move to a lower tier league like Conference USA or the Sun Belt Conference. There's always a remote chance that if an extra school is picked off from the ACC that they would get an invitation as a filler. But other schools, like UCF and Houston, could be seen as better options.

No matter what happens, as Cincinnati AD Whit Babcock said "This is going to be a wild ride." Buckle up.

Backpage Headline

The gavel has fallen. The punishments have been dealt. One year suspension, without pay, for Saints’ Head Coach Sean Payton. Indefinite suspension for former Defensive Coordinator Gregg Williams, currently with the St. Louis Rams. Eight game suspension for General Manager Mickey Loomis. Six game suspension for assistant Joe Vitt. These are huge penalties for what some analysts and writers have called a heinous and thoughtless crime of placing bounties on NFL players during games.

Yet Facebook, Twitter, and every other social media outlet are yet to blow up in disgust or outrage, at least outside of New Orleans.

They didn’t blow up when the news broke last month. There was no outcry when the punishments came down, except maybe a few links with the comment “Ouch” above them.

So if this is considered a serious issue and an inexcusable action, why is there not more shock and awe?

The answer is simple; Nobody was surprised.

The media tried to ram this down our throats and make a story out of it. PFT, ESPN, FSN, and any other lettered network or outlet that covers sports had endless stories, interviews, and articles pouring out. But like the spoiled children we all are, we closed our mouths and didn’t want to eat the crap they were trying to force feed us.

Most people probably believe that this story hasn’t gotten as much coverage because it’s been overshadowed by free agency and the Peyton Manning sweepstakes, followed immediately by the Tim Tebow trade, on the same day that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell handed down his sentences.

But was anyone out there really surprised when this story broke? Sure, there were probably a few gasps at the thought of purposely inflicting serious or severe injuries on another human being for a monetary reward, but c’mon, was it really THAT shocking? When you first heard about this, did you think back to a vicious hit that knocked a player out of a game and ask yourself “I wonder if there was a bounty on him?” Did you ask yourself “I wonder how far this goes?” or “Does my team do this too?”

That was probably the more common reaction than being speechless that this could happen in football. This isn’t soccer. It’s a violent animal of a game where everyone is looking for an edge.

We all know that players and coaches bend the rules, especially when it comes to rewards for big plays. The mentality of coaches, athletes, and teams as a whole today is if you ain’t cheating, you ain’t trying. In their minds, the risks outweigh the rewards. From college players getting paid under the table to steroids and PEDs to stealing other teams signals and calls, cheating and rule bending are everywhere in sports. And in a sport based on running, pushing, and tackling, this was just another way of getting that big play.

What’s a bigger play than knocking out an opposing team’s star player?

Immediately after the story broke, former players and coaches on ESPN defended less severe bounty systems. They would have pools and rewards for players that made interceptions, sacks, big tackles, and other notable plays. If Jock was a language that none of us normal folk could speak, the subtitles would have read “Yeah, we knew this was going on and we did it too. We just didn’t get caught.”

Ask Brett Favre. He was the target of a bounty during the 2009 season NFC Championship Game against New Orleans. If you watched that game, it was blatantly obvious that the Saints were trying to knock Favre out. As much as I despise him, those hits were so hard that I could feel them in Cleveland.

And while the Saints’ defense was trying to kill Favre, the NFL was investigating this for the first time. And even though the teams’ bad cover up proved successful, they were slapped with a warning and cautioned that the league is watching them. Instead of quitting while ahead, Williams decided to keep the bounties going and Payton, regardless of his direct involvement or lack there of, did nothing to stop it.

Still, when the news broke of “Bountygate,” I didn’t pay much attention.

It wasn’t shocking. It wasn’t even news to me. It was just confirming something that every fan knew was going on. These were just the guys that were dumb enough to get caught.

Payton, Williams, Vitt, and Loomis’s punishments are severe. They are the most severe punishment that Goodell has handed down so far and one of the toughest ever imposed on an organization. However, I do not agree with their punishments, not for the bounties at least.

On the other hand, I do not believe they’re severe enough for the sheer amount of stupidity and thoughtlessness that prevailed in the Saints’ locker room. If you’re going to commit the same crime when the league is watching you closely, you should at least change your name, wear a fake mustache, or blame it on the other guy. The bounties were inexcusable, but the continuing of this illegal system was idiotic as well.

Dangerous and stupid; The worst combination.