WVU AD Oliver Luck says Big East will take 3 more schools

[S....M....U]

Exactly my point

[S....M....U]

maybe they told tcu they would attempt to find schools that would make their division more regional...reducing travel costs considerably for them

[RE Tycoon]

According to this SI Article about the MWC's chance of moving up, the best thing we can do to help our cause is finish in the top 25 in the final BCS rankings.

Criteria required to become an AQ conference. Those are:

1. The conference must finish among the top six in a listing of the average of each conference's highest ranked team at the end of each regular season.

2. The conference must finish among the top six in a listing of the average computer rankings of every conference's full roster of teams at the end of each regular season.

3. The conference must accumulate a score of at least 50 percent of the highest ranking conference's score in the Adjusted Top-25 Performance Ranking, which measures how many teams each conference placed in the BCS top 25 and adjusts for conference size.

If we win out, I believe there is a slim chance we get ranked in the top 25 in one or both of the polls (depends on what happens with other teams, hard to rationalize a 9-5 team with maybe 1 quality win being ranked). However, if we are fortunate enough to be ranked in one or both polls, it will not be enough to factor in to the top 25 for the last BCS ranking, which will happen before our bowl game.

If our stated goal is to be in a AQ conference, from here on out we need to focus on finishing the season in the BCS Top 25. If that happens, everything else will take care of itself.

[Harry0569]

maybe they told tcu they would attempt to find schools that would make their division more regional...reducing travel costs considerably for them

Going to the BE, their average trip will be around 1230 miles, while in the MWC it was like 1050, so it's not really that big of a difference from what they were previously doing.

[smupony94]

we aren't going anywhere

[EastStang]

Academics used to matter to the BE but not anymore. WVU, Pitt, Louisville, Cincy, and USF are not great bastions of academic rigor. My view is that if the BE took another Texas team it would be UH for a number of reasons: Former rivalry with Louisville, Cincy, DePaul and Marquette; A difference media market; and a state school. They also would probably lean toward UCF although I understand USF is not thrilled about that. ECU is in their footprint, but is a small media market and its football is decent. SMU doesn't add much to their football or basketball and certainly doesn't corner any market for their brand. My view would be that Orsini should probably sell us to the ACC as a defensive play for that conference to avoid having the Big XII, BE, SEC or Big Ten take the Texas market and leave them in the lerch. Also the ACC cares about academics and might very well look favorably toward a Rice and an SMU as partners. Doh's presence might actually help us with the ACC (certainly UNC). I don't see the SEC being interested in us. Nor do I see the Big Ten. However, if the Big Ten and SEC raided the Big XII, its leftovers might be interested in us.

[S....M....U]

Every little bit counts Harry and playing two more Texas schools would help alotn

[Samurai Stang]

we aren't going anywhere

Actually, no. This will result in SMU changing conferences, it is simply a matter of which one. The Big East will destroy CUSA in its expansion, and if SMU is left behind it will no doubt find a new home in the MWC.

[East Coast Mustang]

We don't deliver **** in the Dallas market. UT, A&M, OU, and Tech control the Dallas market. Hell, UNT has twice as many alumni living in DFW as SMU does. And it's not like the Mustang Mania of the 80's where the city was interested in our team, and if you need any reminders of this, check out our attendance figures this year. We would do nothing for the Big East's AQ status, TCU would block us, we're not Harvard academically, and Fred Smith's $10 million apparently can't get Memphis into the conversation, so could one of the geniuses here please explain to me how SMU gets invited? Or can we all pull our heads out of the clouds and get real?

[smupony94]

we aren't going anywhere

Actually, no. This will result in SMU changing conferences, it is simply a matter of which one. The Big East will destroy CUSA in its expansion, and if SMU is left behind it will no doubt find a new home in the MWC.

true

[West Coast Johnny]

Kansas, Kansas State & Missouri

[couch 'em]

We don't deliver **** in the Dallas market. UT, A&M, OU, and Tech control the Dallas market.

This is 100% true. Same is true for TCU. That's the point. The BE needs TCU for AQ status. Now that they have them, they might as well capitalize on them.

TCU will NEVER deliver much of the market by themselves. But with both SMU and TCU, you will have Big East games, with real teams people know, playing in DFW every weekend. It WILL get media coverage. SMU and TCU will be seen as more legit programs being in a BCS conference.

Both schools, due to the fact that Big East teams are known and are media worthy unlike SMU, WILL get media coverage. People WILL know they are playing in town.

With both schools, they DOUBLE that coverage. They can make a real run at getting a piece of DFW.

Plus, with SMU & TCU, they get twice as much media coverage getting in the mind of BASKETBALL players in Dallas, a true hotbead of recruiting.

Basketball recruiting potential helps us massively in the Big East.

[East Coast Mustang]

We don't deliver **** in the Dallas market. UT, A&M, OU, and Tech control the Dallas market.

This is 100% true. Same is true for TCU. That's the point. The BE needs TCU for AQ status. Now that they have them, they might as well capitalize on them.

TCU will NEVER deliver much of the market by themselves. But with both SMU and TCU, you will have Big East games, with real teams people know, playing in DFW every weekend. It WILL get media coverage. SMU and TCU will be seen as more legit programs being in a BCS conference.

Both schools, due to the fact that Big East teams are known and are media worthy unlike SMU, WILL get media coverage. People WILL know they are playing in town.

With both schools, they DOUBLE that coverage. They can make a real run at getting a piece of DFW.

Plus, with SMU & TCU, they get twice as much media coverage getting in the mind of BASKETBALL players in Dallas, a true hotbead of recruiting.

Basketball recruiting potential helps us massively in the Big East.

I see what you're saying, but no one cares about the current BE football teams in TX. I don't think anyone outside the SMU/TCU communities would care if TCU were hosting UConn or we were hosting Pitt, when you've got UT, OU, A&M, etc all playing the same day.

BE basketball is big-time, and basketball drives the BE more than most other BCS conferences, but football is still what is spearheading all of this. And the BE basketball teams (Providence, St. John's, Seton Hall, etc.) may defect and form their own league soon. And besides, what do we contribute in basketball? If the BE wanted to expand their recruiting footprint for hoops, they'd add UH next, and besides, UH is leaps and bounds ahead of SMU in basketball.

[Pony_Law]

No one is mentioning it but why wouldn't the Be want to solidify their presence in Florida with UCF? UCF is a massive school and could start drawing the 50k+ attendance every conference wants for their football games. Also Florida is another major area for recruitment so that is at least a push with what SMU brings to the recruitment table. If they were smart the 3 teams added should be UCF, U Houston, and ECU or SMU, ECU and SMU have positives and negatives. ECU has more fan support and at this moment only more likely to compete as a AQ football team (i'm not bashing SMU but lets give respect to ECU's accomplishments in CUSA). SMU has growing potential as a football powerhouse, and brings a better TV and recruiting market and is better acedemics. IT all depends.

However how would they add 3 more schools and keep basket ball at all manageable? Are these 3 football only?

[Samurai Stang]

If the BE wanted to expand their recruiting footprint for hoops, they'd add UH next, and besides, UH is leaps and bounds ahead of SMU in basketball.

SMU does not offer as much as Houston, this is correct. It is more a question of whether the Big East desires another school on the Atlantic, or if they would rather make a larger footprint in Texas. If the Big East's drive is to increase its exposure in Dallas, then SMU will be taken. That, above all else, would be the motivation for taking SMU were we to be selected.