BIGGEST LOSERS IN REALIGNMENT - - FOOTBALL

[stever20]

so how many schools were bigger realignment winners in basketball than Butler? Going from the Horizon up to the Big East. Granted, it's not the Big East of 5 years ago(nothing is), but still a very good conference.

[marquette]

BYU refuses to join a conference unless they allow them not to play on Sundays. They also refuse to play in a conference that makes less tv money than they do as an independent. No P5 conference has conceded to the Sunday stipulation. No G5 conference makes more money than BYU. Hence, they remain independent.

[Xudash]

BYU refuses to join a conference unless they allow them not to play on Sundays. They also refuse to play in a conference that makes less tv money than they do as an independent. No P5 conference has conceded to the Sunday stipulation. No G5 conference makes more money than BYU. Hence, they remain independent.

Mostly agree. One thing to consider is that BYU is virtually boxed out of the play-off system as an independent. I think it was Mendenhall who was quoted as saying that they need to make it into the "club" within the next three years or recruiting will suffer.

[Jet915]

The only possibility I could see for BYU is the Big XII when it comes to a P5 conference. The PAC-12 will not accept them due to politics IMO and regionally, they don't seem to fit in any other conference.

[Michael in Raleigh]

For basketball, I would go outside the box a little bit. The biggest losers were probably the remaining members of the Horizon League. Butler alone earned the vast majority of NCAA tournament units since 2000. The league dropped from a 1-2 bid league to simply a 1-bid league.

An argument for UConn, Cincinnati, and USF can be made; however the loss of their conference mates has been mitigated with Memphis, Temple, a rising SMU, and good Tulsa team. I can't call them the "BIGGEST" loser.

[stever20]

For basketball, I would go outside the box a little bit. The biggest losers were probably the remaining members of the Horizon League. Butler alone earned the vast majority of NCAA tournament units since 2000. The league dropped from a 1-2 bid league to simply a 1-bid league.

An argument for UConn, Cincinnati, and USF can be made; however the loss of their conference mates has been mitigated with Memphis, Temple, a rising SMU, and good Tulsa team. I can't call them the "BIGGEST" loser.

UConn and Cincy definitely losers. But still the AAC is viewed as a pretty good conference. Next 1-2 years IMO crucial for the league.

I think the absolute biggest loser may have been JMU in the CAA. They lost their 3 biggest rivals in ODU, VCU, and GMU. Conference has gone from being in the 11-14 range down(with some years getting 2-3 teams in the tourney) to 17-19 range(with 1 team getting in the PIG at times).

[GoldenWarrior11]

Cincinnati and UCONN are definitely losers in football. With UCONN winning the tournament in the first year of the American, you cannot classify them as losers in realignment in basketball just yet. Would they want to be in a different conference - yes, most definitely. However, a majority of the AAC would like to be in a different conference as well.

One of the bigger problems with the American Conference is that, while the top teams are very good in basketball and football, the bottom teams (ECU, Tulane, USF, UCF in basketball, and UConn, SMU, Tulane and Tulsa in football) are really, really awful. The bottom teams put a huge drain on the successful teams in both sports and create the perception of a weaker conference in the media. If those cellar-dwellers are able to just be competitive over the next few years, the AAC will have its perception change.