A question from Ohio...

[athensherdfan]

Hey Mustang fans, Marshall alum here. I have been looking in on you guys for a few weeks as well as some of the other B.E. hopefuls. First tough break Saturday, we have to travel to Tulsa in 2 weeks it looks tough. Second, most in the Herd Nation can't figure out why anyone wants to go to this new Big East. If they still had all the schools back they have lost: Miami, V Tech, Boston College, Pitt, Syracuse and those bastard yankee couch killers it would be ideal but we don't see it.

Currently the new "alliance" has three teams ranked in the top 25, if you count USM being ranked 24th in the USA Today poll, the BE has one and the yellow bastard couch burners who will soon be in your neck of the woods (lock your doors and protect your furniture). We all can have exactly what we want, in fact it looks like we could possible see a BCS bowl team from right here in our current conf. If you look at the alliance it could be two!!!

Anyway I have read enough to know you guys seem to want this really bad and I guess thats ok. I hate to see you and Houston leave, could care less about Mickey Mouse U, wish it could be longer even though we never have developed any real rivalry with SMU. We have our reason for the hate we fell to the likes of Southern Penn University and little miami.

Good luck to you all and GO HERD!!

[LHS81]

SMU fans want the same thing Marshall fans want. An opportunity to play for a National Championship.

The way the BCS is currently constructed, neither team will be given that opportunity. Forget AQ and non-AQ conferences, the system will be set up to where teams are in the ESPN League or Fox Sports League.

After seeing how the BCS is set up, I am not sure if this is a better remedy, than the old system of Coaches Polls and AP Polls to determine bowl matchups.

Good luck to Marshall and "The Thundering Herd."

[ponyinNC]

Bottom line, Big East is still AQ (for now, and at least until 2016). That means BCS money and a shot at a BCS game, at least for a few years. Any current team in CUSA would take that deal, in a heartbeat.

The alliance is just too big, has too many bottom-dwellers, and has no guarantee of ever attaining AQ status. Even if AQ status were taken away, and I don't see how that can happen with Boise, UH, possibly BYU being added, it is still a better league top to bottom than the alliance.

PS - Every time I type the word "alliance", I think of Star Wars.

[ponyinNC]

BE is an AQ for only 2 years. The qualifications meeting comes up in two years, stop thinking and telling everyone on the board its 4 years away. That's an all out lie

You are wrong son. Big east is AQ through 2015 (at least) thanks to a 2 year grace period.

http://www.nj.com/rutgersfootball/index.ssf/2011/10/big_easts_bcs_bid_good_through.html

[ponyinNC]

crickets....

Do some frikkin' research before you post nonsense on this board Banjo.

[NickSMU17]

A lot of boards require a grace period before you can start posting...I suggest we add this feature to ponyfans...

lots of clueless people barnstorming lately...

[Junior]

crickets....

Do some frikkin' research before you post nonsense on this board Banjo.

i hate that this dude took one of my favorite players name and has turned it into a bad word in the span of less than a week.

[couch 'em]

The flaw of the alliance is all the garbage teams at the bottom. Going BE cuts out the dead weight.

[ponyinNC]

[SMU_Alumni11]

Not trying to take anyones side, but I remember reading ESPN, CBS postings that it will only last till 2013. I read something about AQ qualifications and that it will grade everyone's performance these past 5 years and to decide in like 2013 how many points will be awarded to each conference. So that means all the hard work SMU(hawaii bowl 8-5, possible 9-4 season), Houston(undefeated), UCF(beating Georgia), Boise state undefeated forever could be calculated into the merger and they might get AQ and BE loses theirs till next evaluation. I mean Ill be honest Im by no means an expert in BCS, just something I read and try to plug in as a formula.

[DiamondM75]

Plus, once you are in a AQ and can break the top 25 polls, you get BCS points. Even if the BE loses AQ status in 2016, hopefully we have enough BCS points to make us attractive to another conference with AQ status or to a conference obtaining AQ status to replace the BE.

I just don't see the New BE losing AQ status with the new teams and who/what conference or alliance would be stronger and replace it.

[NickSMU17]

Big east will have BCS for a long time...

We will be in big east this week...

Need to figure out what is wrong with team, we have figured out our conf. situation...


Congrats to SO and RGT for selling a vision as opposed to a product...

[ponyinNC]

no one knows how a conference loses AQ status.

[The PonyGrad]

I do not believe a word the evil empire, er, ESPN has to say on this subject. They are totally compromised.

[PoconoPony]

There continues to be constant talk on this board regarding a conference losing AQ/ BCS status. I have not been able to locate any materials that delineate exactly how this process is to be conducted and the criteria to be used. I am getting the impression that this process is less than fully articulated, somewhat subjective at best, dominated by TV interests and very political. I can also see where this could become a very abused mechanism allowing the big boys to eliminate/downrade a conference and those teams from sharing in the $$$$ AQ piece of the pie. Neat way to seize,consolidate and control power by eliminating teams allowing more spoils for the those in control. Machiavellian if you will. If this were to happen, there would be more non-AQ teams than AQ teams at which time it would make for interesting voting and politics as to the continuation of the BCS concept. Bottom line is that the NCAA has totally failed all teams through their failure to create a championship playoff and force restructuring of the bowl games to become a relevant part of a playoff concept. Their failure has destroyed conferences, regional rivalries, relationships among colleges all for greed with the fans and students becoming the losers.