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Re: Why not invite UCONN into the Big Ten?
RidgeRoadRattler Sophomore
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Posted: 4/10/2014 8:03 AM
Re: Why not invite UCONN into the Big Ten?
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rjkgoblue wrote: As a Michigan grad who is passionate about big ten sports (not just football) and our historical rilvaries with OSU and MSU, I am resigned to the direction college athletics is going despite my desire to keep the conferences as they were configured a few years ago. I have lived in the Hartford area for 17 years and have many contacts at UConn and elsewhere involved in the college sports landscape (remember we are located in ESPN country as well). While the AAU designation is an issue in my opinion UConn and the CT State Legislature and Governor are working together to elevate UConn's research to a level on par with other member schools. The State has allocated its second billion plus committment to the Storr's campus to expand programs, grow the student body, and attract top notch faculty and researchers. The state has entered into an agreement with Jackson Laboratories to build a huge research operation at the UConn Heatth Campus where they are also builiding a new university hospital. In Storrs, CT a town center is literally being built where no previously existed with the first several phases underdway. The football stadium which is no more than a decade old is a great place to see a game and was built to accommodate an expansion by adding another deck allowing it to easily expand to 55-60K. No one would have given Jim Calhoun a chance in hell to build what we can all agree has been one of the dominant BB programs over the past two decades but he did it in Storr's CT. There is a passion and love for this University in what is a small but wealthy state with alot of deep pocketed people ready to open their wallets if UConn were to be invited into the BIG TEN. This is a state loaded with hedge fund managers and other wall street types who live in the gold coast of CT down in fairfield county with a state legislature that will support the university moving forward to ensure it is successful. This is a very good school academically and rapidly getting even better with SAT scores that would easily place it in the top half of the big ten. As others have already stated and as a original New Yorker, UConn has a huge following in the NYC metro area which is why MSG is considered a third home (in addition to Gampel in Storr's and XL Center in Hartford). UConn would also provide more interest in New England as Storrs is only 75 miles from Boston. For what its worth I have it on good authority that Texas and OU continue to talk to the BIG TEN and that ultimately there will be four major football conferences consisting of 20-24 schools which could lead to 4 divisions with division leaders playing semifinal and conference championship games resulting in 4 conference champs playing in national semifinal and championship games...essentially this would be a 16 team playoff series in football with potential to expand further with a few at large teams. This is the future of college sports and having UConn as part of the big ten with its top programs in basketball and soccer and strong programs in baseball, track, and other sports would be an asset to the big ten. Botom line is academically and research wise I believe it will be a good fit and that its football program with the right coaching staff and the excitement of new expanded faciities in a conference like the big ten will be a winning combination.
Nice, thourough post.
I have a question regarding UConn's proximity to Boston and New York that you may be able to answer. Does this proximity result in interest in UConn football from New Yorkers and Bostonians? Northwestern is only a few miles north of Chicago - they even brand themselves as "Chicago's Big Ten team", yet at the same time, there does not seem to be any type of sentiment among Chicagoans that Northwestern is "their team". Northwestern has the biggest metro in the Big Ten in their backyard, yet fan interest seems to be restricted to alumni.
That is my concern regarding UConn. It's easy to get excited about playing a program like Nebraska, Oklahoma, or Texas - all of which have historic tradition, huge stadiums, and a rbid fan base that will travel. As a Buckeye fan, I look forward to having those types of programs on the schedule. The report from UConn seems to be that a 40,000-seat stadium could expand to a stadium half the size of the major Big Ten programs. That may be exciting for UConn, but the program remains lackluster for the Big Ten.
Now, TV contracts and markets are an entirely different story. Unfortunately, as a Big Ten alumnus, and football and basketball fan, TV market teams like Rutgers don't exactly have me thrilled.
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RidgeRoadRattler Sophomore
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Posted: 4/10/2014 8:12 AM
Re: Why not invite UCONN into the Big Ten?
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Vermonter wrote: The Academic integrity of the Big Ten is overblown.
I had a job interview in Utah once. The only thing they knew about Ohio State was that their beloved Urban Meyer was the Football coach. When I tried to sell them on the Academics, they looked at me like I had three heads. noidea
Can I ask what field the job interview was in? When it comes to the sciences and engineering, a Big Ten degree is held in high esteem. Many of the Big Ten schools were established as land grant universities and have since excelled in research. There are some very good business programs, liberal arts programs, etc. among the Big Ten universities, but when it comes to national reputation, Big Ten research is well respected.
A good example of this contrast would be Notre Dame, which would be viewed as a very strong academic institution and a degree would reflect that, however, ND is far, far behind the Big Ten in research expenditures.
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BigEastConf Young Buck
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Avatar Posted: 4/11/2014 11:14 PM
Re: Why not invite UCONN into the Big Ten?
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Uconn has a bigger audience than some people on this board understand. Uconn has the New England market, which is CT, Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Western Mass, and also a big chuck Metro NYC. That's a LOT of eyeballs. Our football program will get better because the administration understands how vital football is to re-alignment.
Uconn has made a huge push to increase the endowment as well. I don't know if we will ever get an invite, but I would prefer the B1G 10 to the acc. I can't stand Swofford, and we've been left at the alter one too many times for teams like Pitt and BC.
My hope is that the 10 goes with Uconn in an unbalanced league for a short time until Mizzu figures out that they belong in the 10 and not the SEC.
I can dream...
Last edited 4/11/2014 11:15 PM by BigEastConf
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UC9904 Young Buck
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Posted: 4/12/2014 12:50 AM
Re: Why not invite UCONN into the Big Ten?
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...but Rutgers did?
(Yes, I know Rutgers was voted in because of the metropolitan it's located in.)
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UC9904 Young Buck
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Posted: 4/12/2014 12:56 AM
Re: Why not invite UCONN into the Big Ten?
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RidgeRoadRattler wrote:
I have a question regarding UConn's proximity to Boston and New York that you may be able to answer. Does this proximity result in interest in UConn football from New Yorkers and Bostonians? Northwestern is only a few miles north of Chicago - they even brand themselves as "Chicago's Big Ten team", yet at the same time, there does not seem to be any type of sentiment among Chicagoans that Northwestern is "their team". Northwestern has the biggest metro in the Big Ten in their backyard, yet fan interest seems to be restricted to alumni.
UConn has a small presence in Boston, largely because people in Boston generally don't care about college sports. However, UConn hoops (men's and women's) does draw a fair amount of attention during the tournament.
What UConn's real value would be to the B1G, though, is helping the conference become the dominant presence in NYC. By itself, UConn can't dominant the NYC market, nor does is it the same draw in the City as Notre Dame football. But UConn is among the five or so schools with a major presence in NYC and, in conjunction with Rutgers, would help the B1G gain the edge of the ACC.
You play an annual UConn-OSU/Michigan/Penn St. game at MetLife Stadium, and you might be surprised at how big the event would be.
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sunflowerpetsounds Buckeye Recruit
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Posted: 4/12/2014 1:11 AM
Re: Why not invite UCONN into the Big Ten?
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I endorse UConn to the BIG, a no f'ing brainer & you all should embrace what they bring to the basketball side especially - 11 total NCAA titles - that's bad mfing a _ _! They're pretty good at smaller olympic sports as well & lacrosse will someday emerge there since they are right across the water from the best lacrosse region in the country - Long Island, not Maryland.
The competition in BIG Men's Basketball is entering a renaissance right now, the new rule changes, faster pace in conference, and the Huskies only make it better. I like great, competitive games in the conference. I embrace UConn & the passion they bring and would love nothing more to see Sparty beat em knowing that we're playing one of the modern era's best programs. God knows BIG Women's Basketball needs a kick in the damn A - -. Big time underachievers & like men's basketball, fails to keep top shelf recruits in the footprint.
Cut the AAU bs, and now. You all would trip over a non-AAU SEC team coming into this conference, esp if they were brining in good hs football and tradition. We sought ND for decades. All BIG presidents knew Neb was going to lose AAU status. We'd add OU tomorrow as well.
UConn is surging with their academics and has better public education than most of the country, their k-12 ratings are consistently top 5 in the country.
CT continues to invest in UConn, whereas many other flagships are getting budget cuts. It's only a matter of time WHEN it earns AAU status, albeit an overrated distinction. But it can't hurt CIC educational lobbying to have one of the wealthiest states' flagship public schools in the fold. Fine by me.
UConn has 20 NCAA titles, 4 different sports, and most of them have been won in the past 25 years.
CT is one of those states that doesn't have professional sports baggage. We need more of those in the BIG.
Basketball earns plenty of money and makes up the bulk of BTN coverage.
CT has pretty good hs hockey, and two teams from CT played in last year's NCG, men's side: Yale and Quinnipiac - Yale won. I think UConn is in a better position than both those schools to become a hockey power, long-term, esp with BIG membership. It helps for BIG hockey to diversify its recruiting grounds - OSU could especially reap benefits here - you're not going to be able to score Minnesota or Wisconsin kids with much success & neither of those schools require eastern recruits.
Seizing, and yes I just said "seizing" UConn puts us right in the face of ACC basketball & says you aint boss hog - B-I-T-C-H! UConn has been a Ky and Duke killer in route to their 4 NCs, men's side.
Football is what it is, too influential & the biggest moneymaker, but we have plenty of great football programs. I'm still waiting to see Neb, PSU, Mich, OSU and now Wisky and MSU play their best in the same year. This hasn't happened since Neb joined the conference. And when all of the above, minus Neb were playing well at the same time, the BIG was great - 90s to early 2000s. Moreover, Rutgers and Md, due to pretty decent in-state talent, esp Rutgers, have upside that should no longer be ridiculed. We need them stronger.
To stay relevant on the athletics side, basketball and football are genuinely important. UConn helps the BIG, big time in basketball. In fact it guarantees permanent basketball relevancy and allows the BIG to focus more on football.
Lastly, while I don't mind seeing the BIG tourney out in NYC once and while, if and when it happens: it is UConn that generates the most buzz, not their former Big East mates: Rutgers or Syracuse. The Big East commissioner said as much to Delany years ago. On the other hand, the BIG tourney does need to rotate between Chicago, Indy, DC and NYC.
Anyways, just my two cents.
PS The ACC is going nowhere folks, so stop thinking or wishing for UNC or UVa (<-- mediocre football and basketball programs) - they aint coming. Perhaps the Big12 is on shaky ground in the future, but for now they're raking in dough folks, only have to split 10 ways & they play a true conference schedule. The Va wishes are especially bs, we just got Md, they owned Va in ACC play, basketball and football, yet we question what they bring to the BIG. Read the history books.
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DoubleE Senior
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Avatar Posted: 4/12/2014 8:07 AM
Re: Why not invite UCONN into the Big Ten?
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sunflowerpetsounds wrote:
Cut the AAU bs, and now. You all would trip over a non-AAU SEC team coming into this conference, esp if they were brining in good hs football and tradition. We sought ND for decades. All BIG presidents knew Neb was going to lose AAU status. We'd add OU tomorrow as well.
you can only look at this conferences history and every school to be invited was an aau member at the time of invitation to the conference. (Nebraska, Maryland,Rutgers, John Hopkins)
Uconn if they want to be in the B1G needs to become an AAU member
Last edited 4/12/2014 8:08 AM by DoubleE
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uconnpj Young Buck
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Posted: 4/12/2014 9:27 AM
Re: Why not invite UCONN into the Big Ten?
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Well, UConn is trying to reach AAU status. It takes time. Historically, research in Connecticut was built up around Yale and UConn wasn't trying to compete as a research university. Right now UConn's profile on AAU metrics is essentially identical to that of Kansas, and Kansas (AAU since 1905) probably wouldn't be granted AAU status today. But if UConn doubled its federal research grants - not unlikely since the university is increasing enrollment nearly 50% and on a faculty hiring spree with a focus on research faculty, also investing billions in research - it would clearly meet AAU standards. I think UConn is AAU in 10-15 years.
In other respects, UConn should be highly attractive to the B1G. BTN could generate $2/month in 1 million households in Connecticut (based on SNY moving from pay to basic cable at $2.40/month from adding UConn Tier 3 sports) for $24 mn/year, plus more from national TV games, plus more from penetration for BTN in New York and New England.
In terms of penetration in NYC and Boston, UConn is neck and neck with BC and Notre Dame as the top college rooting interest in Boston and on par with Rutgers, Notre Dame, Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State for NYC college football and #1 for NYC basketball.
Re NYC, ratings for the two (men's and women's) national championship games last week in NYC were about double the national ratings, showing that although New York is considered a pro sports town, they do follow UConn and tune in to our games at much higher rates than the nation generally.
Similarly in Boston there is interest; at Fenway highlights and scores from UConn's final four game with Florida were shown repeatedly on the scoreboard during a Red Sox game and got ovations; at a basketball doubleheader in the Boston Garden a few years ago featuring UConn-Gonzaba and Boston College-Providence the audience was about 70% UConn, 20% BC, 10% providence, 1% Gonzaga. On Boston sports radio UConn gets as much discussion as any college team.
Historically New England hasn't had much to root for in college sports save for BC football when Doug Flutie was QB and UConn basketball since the 1990s. UConn's first championship was in 1999. Boston and New York love winners and we're the first local/regional university to give them a chance to root for a winner. I have to believe the "pro" sports dominance is mainly due to lack of major college sports to root for, and that UConn in the B1G would attract a huge audience in New England and New York. People would want to see UConn play Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State, etc. Being able to drive to a nearby stadium to see B1G football teams would be a major attraction. The many B1G alumni out here would help get the ball rolling.
UConn would expand its stadium to whatever the B1G asked, it was built with footings for an expanion to 60k and that could be done inexpensively and quickly.
Competitively, UConn is investing in football and while it won't be Michigan/Ohio State/Penn State/Nebraska, at least not soon, it should be on a level with Rutgers/Maryland/Purdue/Indiana/Illinois/Northwest ern/Iowa from the start. UConn already has facilities (practice, training) that are among the best in the nation.
Success in sports comes in part from passion on the part of fans which feeds the athletes. Connecticut lacks pro sports franchises and UConn gets all the passion of state residents. People follow New York and Boston pro sports teams but they love UConn. UConn will always invest in championship level athletics. Compare Rutgers, which should have every advantage, but politicians there just see any success as an opportunity for skimming and cronyism. Maybe that will change, but the attitudes are totally different and UConn brings an intense desire to win championships.
Overall, I think UConn is too valuable a property to leave on the table and is bound to end up in either the ACC or B1G. The ACC looks solid so UVa and UNC are off the table. B1G expansion with UConn filling out the East and B12 teams added in the West would create a super conference.
Another aspect - UConn is the only public university with a major athletics program in the 7-state, 35-million population New York - New England region. In general, the country has one major public DI athletic university for every 4 million people nearly everywhere; larger states split loyalties among multiple publics, eg Texas/A&M/Tech, Florida/FSU/UCF/USF, Mich/Mich State, UNC/NC State, UVa/Va Tech, etc. The B1G has benefited relative to other conferences by having single dominant flagships in large states (Penn State, Ohio State, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin). The northeast with its tradition of small private universities has left a gaping market hole which UConn has stepped up to fill. Perceived as a regional university (and indeed UConn has special admissions and tuition for other New England states in a regional compact), UConn fits the B1G profile extremely well and has the potential to add tremendous value, making the B1G the dominant conference in a highly populous, wealthy, media-rich, influential region of the country.
In my view, UConn would add as much value to the B1G as Oklahoma or Kansas, perhaps nearly as much as Texas. You should look to go to 15 with UConn now and be ready to add those 3 when the B12 breaks up. Strong penetration in the media and money capital of NYC, which UConn would bring, would give the B1G a compelling value proposition for B12 schools when they become available.
Last edited 4/12/2014 9:34 AM by uconnpj
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upstater1 Young Buck
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Posted: 4/12/2014 10:29 AM
Re: Why not invite UCONN into the Big Ten?
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UConn fan here. I'm not going to discuss the sports other than to say football has been mildly surprising and mildly disappointing at the same time. 10 years ago when they went to full scholarship, I never would have thought they could have gone this far. But, in that time, they have had 23 kids drafted into the NFL, and all but one have stuck, and there are 3 undrafteds on teams right now. They have more NFL guys than any other team in the old BE except for Rutgers. With all that talent, they should have won more. But their high water mark was always 9 and 10 wins, with more regular 7 or 8 win finishes before coach Pasqualoni cratered the program. All in all, they still have winning records against Syracuse and Pitt, are even with Rutgers, and are just 1 loss behind Louisville. This is better than many of us would have thought in 2004.
But I want to share a couple notes about the Conn. media market. Hartford/New Haven only has 2.5 million people in it. But part of Conn. (1.1 million) is actually in the NYC market. When people look at Conn., they frequently miss this fact. It's important if you're the BTN and you are concerned with cable households. All in all, there are over 1 million in Ct.
3 years ago, SNY paid UConn to show UConn 3rd tier sports on SNY. We don't know the exact size of the contract, but UConn earns $25 million a year in licensing which is double any other ex-BE team. SNY proceeded to raise the per month subscription of its channel from $1.60 in Conn. (for NY Mets coverage) to $2.50+ after adding UConn. Even more important, SNY moved off the extra sports package with tens of thousands of subscribers to Basic cable on every single cable company in Conn. This was a big deal for SNY.
Now, while the men's team is easily the more popular in the state, the women are not far behind. Just to give you a few examples of how many people watch the women, read these links to understand the popularity of the UConn brand within the state of Conn:
http://web.sny.tv/news/article.jsp?ymd=20130111&am p;am p;am p;amp;content_id=40929348&vkey=2
UConn bball, 3rd tier games, is the most popular TV attraction on all network and cable.
http://syracusefan.com/threads/looks-like-the-prov -game-will-be-tape-delayed.40752/
SNY used to regularly bump Syracuse men's BBall BE games off the air in favor of the UConn women. Not in Connecticut only, but also in NY state!
Lastly, the women drew a 4.6 rating in New York this week. That's a market of 23 million people. On the men's side, the highest rated market was Louisville (Kentucky's biggest market) but Louisville has only 1.2 million in its TV market. The rating for the national championship was 45, highest in the country. But since NY's market is 20 bigger than Louisville, this means that 2x as many people watched the UConn women in NYC as watched the men's championship game in Kentucky's biggest market (the nation's best market ratings-wise for bball).
Now, the women's game didn't do nearly as well as the men's game in Conn. (Hartford did a 38 for the men) but I think this goes to show you how even 5% of the New York market can absolutely blow places like Louisville and Birmingham out of the water. This is why NBC has been paying Notre Dame for so long.
I am not going to claim UConn owns NYC because no one does. Decades of attending the BET tells me that Syracuse and UConn are equally appreciated there, with perhaps a slight edge to UConn. This view is basketball centric because in all those years I never saw much support for Rutgers or St. John's (after the mid 80s). But I do think slivers of this giant metropolis make a big deal when you are trying to make money from TV. Unless you think Delany is a dummy, this perfectly explains why Rutgers and Maryland were added.
Last edited 4/12/2014 10:34 AM by upstater1
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sunflowerpetsounds Buckeye Recruit
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Posted: 4/12/2014 1:30 PM
Re: Why not invite UCONN into the Big Ten?
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Well then, it's time to send Neb back to the Big12.
You know it isn't happening.
And the BIG officially invited ND to the BIG - it was either their board or alumni who narrowly defeated membership - this was in the late 90s. I'm sure there are plenty of articles on it.
DoubleE wrote:
sunflowerpetsounds wrote:
Cut the AAU bs, and now. You all would trip over a non-AAU SEC team coming into this conference, esp if they were brining in good hs football and tradition. We sought ND for decades. All BIG presidents knew Neb was going to lose AAU status. We'd add OU tomorrow as well.
you can only look at this conferences history and every school to be invited was an aau member at the time of invitation to the conference. (Nebraska, Maryland,Rutgers, John Hopkins)
Uconn if they want to be in the B1G needs to become an AAU member
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RidgeRoadRattler Sophomore
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Posted: 4/13/2014 6:32 PM
Re: Why not invite UCONN into the Big Ten?
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sunflowerpetsounds wrote: Well then, it's time to send Neb back to the Big12.
You know it isn't happening.
And the BIG officially invited ND to the BIG - it was either their board or alumni who narrowly defeated membership - this was in the late 90s. I'm sure there are plenty of articles on it.
DoubleE wrote:
sunflowerpetsounds wrote:
Cut the AAU bs, and now. You all would trip over a non-AAU SEC team coming into this conference, esp if they were brining in good hs football and tradition. We sought ND for decades. All BIG presidents knew Neb was going to lose AAU status. We'd add OU tomorrow as well.
you can only look at this conferences history and every school to be invited was an aau member at the time of invitation to the conference. (Nebraska, Maryland,Rutgers, John Hopkins)
Uconn if they want to be in the B1G needs to become an AAU member
Are you kidding? I have degrees from Ohio State and Wisconsin. I would not be thrilled to see Alabama, LSU, Tennessee, etc. as Big Ten members. The Big Ten has a reputation as outstanding research institutions.
Nebraska's AAU status was dropped because of an over-emphasis on agricultural research. Their standing also suffered from Nebraska-Omaha housing the premier medical research in-state. Those factors considered, Nebraska remains a solid research institution.
Notre Dame was an obvious exception, which though it lacks significantly behind in research funding, remains recognized as a very strong academic institution that would not negatively influence the academic perception of Big Ten schools.
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KyleSLamb Basketball Jones
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Avatar Posted: 4/13/2014 6:48 PM
Re: Why not invite UCONN into the Big Ten?
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RidgeRoadRattler wrote:
sunflowerpetsounds wrote: Well then, it's time to send Neb back to the Big12.
You know it isn't happening.
And the BIG officially invited ND to the BIG - it was either their board or alumni who narrowly defeated membership - this was in the late 90s. I'm sure there are plenty of articles on it.
DoubleE wrote:
sunflowerpetsounds wrote:
Cut the AAU bs, and now. You all would trip over a non-AAU SEC team coming into this conference, esp if they were brining in good hs football and tradition. We sought ND for decades. All BIG presidents knew Neb was going to lose AAU status. We'd add OU tomorrow as well.
you can only look at this conferences history and every school to be invited was an aau member at the time of invitation to the conference. (Nebraska, Maryland,Rutgers, John Hopkins)
Uconn if they want to be in the B1G needs to become an AAU member
Are you kidding? I have degrees from Ohio State and Wisconsin. I would not be thrilled to see Alabama, LSU, Tennessee, etc. as Big Ten members. The Big Ten has a reputation as outstanding research institutions.
Nebraska's AAU status was dropped because of an over-emphasis on agricultural research. Their standing also suffered from Nebraska-Omaha housing the premier medical research in-state. Those factors considered, Nebraska remains a solid research institution.
Notre Dame was an obvious exception, which though it lacks significantly behind in research funding, remains recognized as a very strong academic institution that would not negatively influence the academic perception of Big Ten schools.
Correct. Nebraska suffered because their medical center filed separately with IPEDS and thus the medical research done at the university didn't properly credit UNL. It wasn't the sheer research dollars that hurt Nebraska, just a snobbish view of what research was most important.
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sunflowerpetsounds Buckeye Recruit
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Posted: 4/13/2014 7:28 PM
Re: Why not invite UCONN into the Big Ten?
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I have degrees from Minnesota and Wisconsin & I overdosed on seminars, institutions and collaborative research during graduate school. The research tag of BIG and similarly profiled institutions is more hot air than substance & it just reeks of overstatement and elitism. None of my graduate school peers gave much merit to conference affiliation, we valued knowledge, collaboration and cutting edge research and application. I'm also sending a daughter to UC Davis this fall. If she chose UConn over any BIG schools or UC-Davis, I wouldn't mind a bit, well actually it will be nice to visit here in winter without snow everywhere. UConn is a rising public school & I have no objections to their athletic accomplishments.
While I applaud your statements in relation to the SEC schools I hypothetically suggested, I think the BIG would trip over itself to let them in if they asked. And I don't want to hear exceptions about ND, none.
RidgeRoadRattler wrote:
sunflowerpetsounds wrote: Well then, it's time to send Neb back to the Big12.
You know it isn't happening.
And the BIG officially invited ND to the BIG - it was either their board or alumni who narrowly defeated membership - this was in the late 90s. I'm sure there are plenty of articles on it.
DoubleE wrote:
sunflowerpetsounds wrote:
Cut the AAU bs, and now. You all would trip over a non-AAU SEC team coming into this conference, esp if they were brining in good hs football and tradition. We sought ND for decades. All BIG presidents knew Neb was going to lose AAU status. We'd add OU tomorrow as well.
you can only look at this conferences history and every school to be invited was an aau member at the time of invitation to the conference. (Nebraska, Maryland,Rutgers, John Hopkins)
Uconn if they want to be in the B1G needs to become an AAU member
Are you kidding? I have degrees from Ohio State and Wisconsin. I would not be thrilled to see Alabama, LSU, Tennessee, etc. as Big Ten members. The Big Ten has a reputation as outstanding research institutions.
Nebraska's AAU status was dropped because of an over-emphasis on agricultural research. Their standing also suffered from Nebraska-Omaha housing the premier medical research in-state. Those factors considered, Nebraska remains a solid research institution.
Notre Dame was an obvious exception, which though it lacks significantly behind in research funding, remains recognized as a very strong academic institution that would not negatively influence the academic perception of Big Ten schools.
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sunflowerpetsounds Buckeye Recruit
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Posted: 4/13/2014 7:32 PM
Re: Why not invite UCONN into the Big Ten?
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More reason to devalue AAU status. More than anything, it's a lobbying organization & sure it's filled with genuinely constructive ideas and applied practice. I think the more simplified, smaller CIC is just as good & a UConn addition would make the CIC even better.
The BIG, no matter how we try to twist it, is an athletics league at the end of the day. The academic emphasis is a bit more veil than reality. The University of Minnesota looks out for itself at the end of the day, same goes for OSU.
KyleSLamb wrote:
RidgeRoadRattler wrote:
sunflowerpetsounds wrote: Well then, it's time to send Neb back to the Big12.
You know it isn't happening.
And the BIG officially invited ND to the BIG - it was either their board or alumni who narrowly defeated membership - this was in the late 90s. I'm sure there are plenty of articles on it.
DoubleE wrote:
sunflowerpetsounds wrote:
Cut the AAU bs, and now. You all would trip over a non-AAU SEC team coming into this conference, esp if they were brining in good hs football and tradition. We sought ND for decades. All BIG presidents knew Neb was going to lose AAU status. We'd add OU tomorrow as well.
you can only look at this conferences history and every school to be invited was an aau member at the time of invitation to the conference. (Nebraska, Maryland,Rutgers, John Hopkins)
Uconn if they want to be in the B1G needs to become an AAU member
Are you kidding? I have degrees from Ohio State and Wisconsin. I would not be thrilled to see Alabama, LSU, Tennessee, etc. as Big Ten members. The Big Ten has a reputation as outstanding research institutions.
Nebraska's AAU status was dropped because of an over-emphasis on agricultural research. Their standing also suffered from Nebraska-Omaha housing the premier medical research in-state. Those factors considered, Nebraska remains a solid research institution.
Notre Dame was an obvious exception, which though it lacks significantly behind in research funding, remains recognized as a very strong academic institution that would not negatively influence the academic perception of Big Ten schools.
Correct. Nebraska suffered because their medical center filed separately with IPEDS and thus the medical research done at the university didn't properly credit UNL. It wasn't the sheer research dollars that hurt Nebraska, just a snobbish view of what research was most important.
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KyleSLamb Basketball Jones
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Avatar Posted: 4/13/2014 7:34 PM
Re: Why not invite UCONN into the Big Ten?
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sunflowerpetsounds wrote: More reason to devalue AAU status. More than anything, it's a lobbying organization & sure it's filled with genuinely constructive ideas and applied practice. I think the more simplified, smaller CIC is just as good & a UConn addition would make the CIC even better.
The BIG, no matter how we try to twist it, is an athletics league at the end of the day. The academic emphasis is a bit more veil than reality. The University of Minnesota looks out for itself at the end of the day, same goes for OSU.
The Big Ten had an opportunity to take Oklahoma last year and declined. A league that is hiding behind an academic "veil" would not do that.
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DaveyBoy All-American
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Posted: 4/13/2014 9:27 PM
Re: Why not invite UCONN into the Big Ten?
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count me in on UConn and either UVa, VaTech, or Mizzou
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sunflowerpetsounds Buckeye Recruit
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Posted: 4/14/2014 12:35 AM
Re: Why not invite UCONN into the Big Ten?
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There's not one credible piece of proof that OU applied to the BIG for membership. They were merely considered in a leaked report on expansion candidates, along with Vanderbilt and some other school.
I guarantee you OU fans would favor staying with UT in the Big 12 over the BIG and maybe even prefer the Pac12 over the BIG.
Yes I'm a BIG fan, but you must be short on football history & spend little time on other boards outside the conference and perhaps you don't watch CF outside the BIG.
BIG fans are proud, but not much difference, arrogance wise, than SEC fans - except they win NCs in basketball and football more often, esp the past 25 years.
The BIG has been getting slammed for a long while now by other fan bases who aren't too keen on our style of play nor do they fear playing us, especially in bowl games. Can you blame them? The conference has not performed well the past decade, some nice wins here and there & an underrated BCS record, but not enough wins - comfortably below 500 in bowl games since 2000. What's worse, is the recruiting landscape for football in the BIG footprint is limited, while in basketball it's rich - but those kids often leave for other conferences, esp the ACC and Ky.
KyleSLamb wrote:
sunflowerpetsounds wrote: More reason to devalue AAU status. More than anything, it's a lobbying organization & sure it's filled with genuinely constructive ideas and applied practice. I think the more simplified, smaller CIC is just as good & a UConn addition would make the CIC even better.
The BIG, no matter how we try to twist it, is an athletics league at the end of the day. The academic emphasis is a bit more veil than reality. The University of Minnesota looks out for itself at the end of the day, same goes for OSU.
The Big Ten had an opportunity to take Oklahoma last year and declined. A league that is hiding behind an academic "veil" would not do that.
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KyleSLamb Basketball Jones
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Avatar Posted: 4/14/2014 12:38 AM
Re: Why not invite UCONN into the Big Ten?
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sunflowerpetsounds wrote: There's not one credible piece of proof that OU applied to the BIG for membership. They were merely considered in a leaked report on expansion candidates, along with Vanderbilt and some other school.
I guarantee you OU fans would favor staying with UT in the Big 12 over the BIG and maybe even prefer the Pac12 over the BIG.
Yes I'm a BIG fan, but you must be short on football history & spend little time on other boards outside the conference and perhaps you don't watch CF outside the BIG.
BIG fans are proud, but not much difference, arrogance wise, than SEC fans - except they win NCs in basketball and football more often, esp the past 25 years.
The BIG has been getting slammed for a long while now by other fan bases who aren't too keen on our style of play nor do they fear playing us, especially in bowl games. Can you blame them? The conference has not performed well the past decade, some nice wins here and there & an underrated BCS record, but not enough wins - comfortably below 500 in bowl games since 2000. What's worse, is the recruiting landscape for football in the BIG footprint is limited, while in basketball it's rich - but those kids often leave for other conferences, esp the ACC and Ky.
KyleSLamb wrote:
sunflowerpetsounds wrote: More reason to devalue AAU status. More than anything, it's a lobbying organization & sure it's filled with genuinely constructive ideas and applied practice. I think the more simplified, smaller CIC is just as good & a UConn addition would make the CIC even better.
The BIG, no matter how we try to twist it, is an athletics league at the end of the day. The academic emphasis is a bit more veil than reality. The University of Minnesota looks out for itself at the end of the day, same goes for OSU.
The Big Ten had an opportunity to take Oklahoma last year and declined. A league that is hiding behind an academic "veil" would not do that.
You can lament all you want that there's not what you consider "proof" but it did happen. Remember when the reports were they were about to go to the Pac-12 and then out of the blue the Pac-12 came out and said they weren't expanding? Well do you really think they didn't make other phone calls? They absolutely did.
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sunflowerpetsounds Buckeye Recruit
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Posted: 4/14/2014 12:45 AM
Re: Why not invite UCONN into the Big Ten?
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Yeah I just don't think the ACC is as weak as people perceive & in one of the few instances I agree with Frank the Tank, he wrote about misunderstood ACC strength months ago - he 's dead on. They're a much tighter bunch than advertised. I lived it for two years during residency in NC. The ACC has an especially strong basketball culture. VT is interesting, but they'll feel a little isolated unless UVa jumps aboard & the Cavaliers or so faux-southern at this point. That school and alumni network is so beyond southern, yet the southern tshirt fans dream SEC or equal footing with Tobacco Road. UVa fans believe in their football upside, can't blame them to some degree - but they've had decades to prove themselves and frankly that's a crowded state. I also think the hs football talent is a bit overrated - but UVa, similar colors to Illinois, shares a common problem with Illinois - neither can lock down the rich talent they have in their states: Va for football, Ill for basketball. I don't get it.
Mizzou, man they're on cloud 9 after last season in the SEC, but I really believe they're going to come back down to earth this season. If not, and the success continues, I don't think they'll give up the recruiting pipelines of the SEC & they'll capitalize on being the only midwestern school in the SEC, along with stronger academics.
DaveyBoy wrote: count me in on UConn and either UVa, VaTech, or Mizzou
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Vermonter Junior
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Avatar Posted: 4/14/2014 8:07 AM
Re: Why not invite UCONN into the Big Ten?
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RidgeRoadRattler wrote:
Vermonter wrote: The Academic integrity of the Big Ten is overblown.
I had a job interview in Utah once. The only thing they knew about Ohio State was that their beloved Urban Meyer was the Football coach. When I tried to sell them on the Academics, they looked at me like I had three heads. noidea
Can I ask what field the job interview was in? When it comes to the sciences and engineering, a Big Ten degree is held in high esteem. Many of the Big Ten schools were established as land grant universities and have since excelled in research. There are some very good business programs, liberal arts programs, etc. among the Big Ten universities, but when it comes to national reputation, Big Ten research is well respected.
A good example of this contrast would be Notre Dame, which would be viewed as a very strong academic institution and a degree would reflect that, however, ND is far, far behind the Big Ten in research expenditures.
It was an engineering firm. ohlord
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