SMU athletics is in for a sweet ride

[Comet]

I hope you guys realize how lucky we might be. We are on the verge of entering one of the top 2 basketball conferences in the country. Moreover, with the additions of BYU, Boise, Houston, UCF, and Navy, we somehow managed to get into one of the most unique AQ football conferences, and arguably a much stronger and appealing conference than the old Big East. Damn, how did Orsini and co. pull that off?

[Topper]

Add Notre Dame to the football mix and I will say that TCU missed a good opportunity.

[skyscraper]

[LHS81]

I was thinking more along the lines of Aerosmith's "Sweet Emotion."

[fan]

What happened to Air Force? That's some cred lost if they're not in. Who replaces them?

[Comet]

What happened to Air Force? That's some cred lost if they're not in. Who replaces them?

The current train of thought is that BYU is sort of the replacement for Air Force. They're vacillating at the moment so BYU will immediately take their spot but AF could still tag along at a later date. If someone with more info knows better than I do, feel free to jump in.

[03Mustang]

What happened to Air Force? That's some cred lost if they're not in. Who replaces them?

The current train of thought is that BYU is sort of the replacement for Air Force. They're vacillating at the moment so BYU will immediately take their spot but AF could still tag along at a later date. If someone with more info knows better than I do, feel free to jump in.

Honestly, I wish there was a way to get Tulsa in as their replacement. I know they add nothing in terms of media market but they have been among the most consistent performers in C-USA over the last decade in both basketball and football.

[Comet]

What happened to Air Force? That's some cred lost if they're not in. Who replaces them?

The current train of thought is that BYU is sort of the replacement for Air Force. They're vacillating at the moment so BYU will immediately take their spot but AF could still tag along at a later date. If someone with more info knows better than I do, feel free to jump in.

Honestly, I wish there was a way to get Tulsa in as their replacement. I know they add nothing in terms of media market but they have been among the most consistent performers in C-USA over the last decade in both basketball and football.

I would agree, but Tulsa is such a minuscule school. It's a shame it doesn't have a larger student body or is placed in a larger city. Tulsa is the best example of managing one's scarce resources for the best possible results.

[CalallenStang]

Tulsa is the best example of managing one's scarce resources for the best possible results.

Southern Miss is the best example of that, actually. They have the lowest (or close to the lowest) athletic budget in the country, and look at their athletic program

[Charleston Pony]

when I saw the title of this thread I thought the C of C had purchased a jet for the football team in anticipation of the travel demands the Big East will present

[SMU_Alumni11]

Steve Orsini is a mad genius of politics in athletics. I mean this is going to be a fun conference. I mean the only downside is that its not regional, but other than that it will be a lot of fun. I wish air force could get smart and jump in, but then again they would dominate the MWC and go to the great Hawaii and AFB and Liberty bowl ooooooo. Its sad to see a prestigious academy is this stupid. There is no benefit in being in a non AQ team. However, I was looking at Big East non-bcs bowl tie ins, they arent looking too good:
I mean #2 and #3 plays ACC...
#4 plays #7 Big 12 (hopefully freaking baylor)
#5 plays #9 SEC
#6 plays #5 CUSA (wouldnt that be fun...)
and thats it, again it is still miles better than CUSA but when we get in there, Orsini needs to get these bowl games to look better.

[ojaipony]

Sorry, I just can't get excited about joining the Big Least ... I'm sure I'm missing something but it has just never made any sense to me.

[SMU_Alumni11]

Sorry, I just can't get excited about joining the Big Least ... I'm sure I'm missing something but it has just never made any sense to me.

Surely CUSA is just as or at least more of a downer?! I mean we arent traveling too far, we have Houston, got BYU, etc. Its certainly better than Tulane, Utep...

[Pony ^]

I'm pumped for big east

[jpe747]

BE may be a better choice than Big12. I agree that if all goes like it seems the BE will be an interesting mix. I see some interesting rivalry games forming. It could draw better press than B12. And, I'm not sure how long the Big12 stays together.