UConn to schedule former Big East foes

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Re: UConn to schedule former Big East foes

Postby stever20 » Sat Apr 14, 2018 10:23 pm

well something that should be said- 2 of 3 Georgetown's biggest crowds the last 2 seasons were home games vs Syracuse and UConn. The only one that was with that- Maryland. So it makes sense business wise for Georgetown to schedule teams like Syracuse and UConn.
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Re: UConn to schedule former Big East foes

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Re: UConn to schedule former Big East foes

Postby marquette » Sat Apr 14, 2018 10:51 pm

stever20 wrote:well something that should be said- 2 of 3 Georgetown's biggest crowds the last 2 seasons were home games vs Syracuse and UConn. The only one that was with that- Maryland. So it makes sense business wise for Georgetown to schedule teams like Syracuse and UConn.


Going to agree with stever here. Revenue is everything right now. MU makes $30 some odd million off of the basketball program and at most $4 million of that is from tv. A significant portion is from NCAA units and merchandising, but the vast majority is season ticket sales and required donations. Whatever gets the butts in the seats.
This is my opinion. There are many like it, but this one is mine.

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Re: UConn to schedule former Big East foes

Postby Bill Marsh » Sun Apr 15, 2018 12:05 am

gtmoBlue wrote:Good points irt regional basketball and garnering fan interest.

However, What Syracuse did and UConn will try to emulate, is to try and get BE games to aid them in remaining relevant to NE Recruits. Playing high visibility games
versus BE teams keeps a bit of luster on their name and gives them a bit more press publicity to cushion their downyard spiral. I for one, do not begrudge the NE for wanting
more fan interest, but by giving games to the Syracuses, UConns, and BC's only serves to elevate their status when it comes to recruiting against our teams.

Perhaps you are correct and fan interest outweighs other concerns, but it seems that Syracuse and UConn gain the most out of these arrangements while the BE teams get an
"old times sake" game with a former rival.

I think UNL is thinking of discontinuing the rival games with Creighton, as the Corn cannot win one. :lol:


Gtmo, you said a mouthful. Let me take it point by point.

1. What Syracuse did was to market themselves as “New York’s college team”. You could see taxis in Manhattan with ads on them saying exactly that. They tried to displace St. John’s in their own market. That’s not what UConn is trying to do. UConn is stuck in a conference full of teams with little or no interest to their fan base. Home attendance has fallen off by 5000 in the past 5 years, most of that decline in the past 2 years. By scheduling high interest regional opponents with whom they have a history, UConn is simply trying to boost attendance. They are probably trying to save on travel costs in the process.

2. Syracuse was desperate because the move to the ACC and the loss of games in NYC has made it more difficult for them to recruit the city as they historically have done. While UConn has also lost games in the city, they don’t have the same problem as Syracuse because Connecticut is part of the tri-state area and Syracuse is not. Syracuse is twice the distance from the city that UConn is.

3. UConn and Syracuse don’t need games against the Big East to elevate their status. They remain two of the biggest names in the sport. Despite 2 losing seasons, UConn is just 2 years off their last trip to the tournament and 4 years off their last national championship. They have won more NCs than anyone else in college basketball over the past 20 years. A program doesn’t lose that kind of luster in just 2 years. Same thing for Syracuse. Just 2 years removed from a trip to the Final 4, which was their 3rd in the past 16 years, one of which led to a NC. Unless you can predict the future, the idea that these are 2 programs in decline is a myth. Somehow a school like St. John’s is a bigger name in the sport than either of these two? And a game against St. John’s would elevate them? Come on. :roll:
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Re: UConn to schedule former Big East foes

Postby Bill Marsh » Sun Apr 15, 2018 12:15 am

mel ott wrote:
gtmoBlue wrote:Good points irt regional basketball and garnering fan interest.

However, What Syracuse did and UConn will try to emulate, is to try and get BE games to aid them in remaining relevant to NE Recruits. Playing high visibility games
versus BE teams keeps a bit of luster on their name and gives them a bit more press publicity to cushion their downyard spiral. I for one, do not begrudge the NE for wanting
more fan interest, but by giving games to the Syracuses, UConns, and BC's only serves to elevate their status when it comes to recruiting against our teams.

Perhaps you are correct and fan interest outweighs other concerns, but it seems that Syracuse and UConn gain the most out of these arrangements while the BE teams get an
"old times sake" game with a former rival.

I think UNL is thinking of discontinuing the rival games with Creighton, as the Corn cannot win one. :lol:


Agree with Gitmo. I don't see why Big East schools should help bolster two programs that left them and also are on their way down. Let em go. Forgive, but don't forget.


Remember that I said in my opening post that UConn is looking to schedule former BE opponents. That includes nearby schools like BC, Syracuse, and Rutgers, not just current members of the BE.

How is this not in the interests of current BE members? They have to schedule someone OOC. They don’t have to travel far to get to power programs in their own backyard. Their fans also have a better chance to get to these games than they do to OOC games outside the region.
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Re: UConn to schedule former Big East foes

Postby kayako » Sun Apr 15, 2018 9:27 am

uconn & pc @ mohegan makes a lot of sense. But I hated the home & home part of our 3 year scheduling agreement.
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Re: UConn to schedule former Big East foes

Postby EMT » Sun Apr 15, 2018 9:56 am

ecasadoSBU wrote:
mel ott wrote:
gtmoBlue wrote:Good points irt regional basketball and garnering fan interest.

However, What Syracuse did and UConn will try to emulate, is to try and get BE games to aid them in remaining relevant to NE Recruits. Playing high visibility games
versus BE teams keeps a bit of luster on their name and gives them a bit more press publicity to cushion their downyard spiral. I for one, do not begrudge the NE for wanting
more fan interest, but by giving games to the Syracuses, UConns, and BC's only serves to elevate their status when it comes to recruiting against our teams.

Perhaps you are correct and fan interest outweighs other concerns, but it seems that Syracuse and UConn gain the most out of these arrangements while the BE teams get an
"old times sake" game with a former rival.

I think UNL is thinking of discontinuing the rival games with Creighton, as the Corn cannot win one. :lol:


Agree with Gitmo. I don't see why Big East schools should help bolster two programs that left them and also are on their way down. Let em go. Forgive, but don't forget.


It's worth noting that UConn and Cincy, at least, did not leave the Big East. They may have wanted to and were probably intending to leave eventually... but in reality they actually were left behind by the 7 Big East basketball playing schools


I hate when people make this point even if technically true. Those two schools aren't even loyal to the AAC now. Both these fan bases mocked the C7 and predicted a quick descent into mediocrity.

Do you think either UConn or Cincy would have signed onto the Big East with substantial and punitive penalties if they were to leave?
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Re: UConn to schedule former Big East foes

Postby admin » Sun Apr 15, 2018 10:04 am

kayako wrote:uconn & pc @ mohegan makes a lot of sense. But I hated the home & home part of our 3 year scheduling agreement.

I'll be "get off my lawn guy" for a minute. Neutral court games have always bothered me because they are typically high interest games that are essentially removed from the season ticket package as a money grab. Ultimately fans lose, in my opinion. Or at least the season ticket holders lose.
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Re: UConn to schedule former Big East foes

Postby DudeAnon » Sun Apr 15, 2018 10:11 am

Fact is, some of our programs need these rivalries to survive. As stever said, Georgetown's biggest games are OOC. Xavier could schedule little sisters of the poor and we would still sell out, but not all of our programs are as healthy as that.
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Re: UConn to schedule former Big East foes

Postby gosports1 » Sun Apr 15, 2018 10:34 am

at the very least UConn should be scheduling BC.PC and STJ on a regular basis. if they can get them, Cuse and Nova should be added to the mix as semi regular
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Re: UConn to schedule former Big East foes

Postby gtmoBlue » Sun Apr 15, 2018 11:24 am

gosports1 wrote:at the very least UConn should be scheduling BC.PC and STJ on a regular basis. if they can get them, Cuse and Nova should be added to the mix as semi regular


Escazu, Bill, the Dudeanon, and others are siting economics as their main focus. Are you getting on that bandwagon or do you have additional information to add to the discussions?

also... general for this discussion.

Perspective is a key factor in building a point of view (pov) and from out here in the corn my perspective has no recent, pertinent info from the NE (last time I was there was the mid-70's). Uninformed opinion
would say that our teams are all doing well financially as there is no ongoing discussions here (or elsewhere to my knowledge) of difficulties. Perhaps that take is based on ignorance of specifics of our various schools
and their associated needs. I guess the Fox contract didn't cure all our ailments.

My POV is also skewed by a concentration on Creighton, on having historically being/been a "have not", and not being party to the problems associated with membership in a major conference. Even the Jays have faced
scheduling issues (repeatedly) over the decades and the scheduling difficulties scars are still there. Perhaps therein lies my main issue. Having come from a position of lack of power and control, to joining a major conference
and having a portion of said power, I have more animus and less affinity to the problems of the historically powerful major schools. There is no warm spot/soft spot in my heart for Majors who now are having difficulties.
Coming from a position where majors habitually and chronically declined to have a game with my Jays (even current conference members-no less), I smile when I hear or see major schools falling on their own swords due to negligence,
mismanagement, impropriety, and stupidity. Now I have concerns when a conference member has problems, but the other major schools? Chalk it up to their becoming victims of their own undoings, be it cheating, greed,
negligence, or mismanagement.

I see your good points on regional rivalries as a means to building dikes to support NE college basketball regionally given the competition for dollars and other obstacles to stability and growth. I don't see, even now,
where there is a concerted effort by regional majors to comprehensively address the issue. It seems that each is doing what is in their selfish best interests. From where i sit Creighton has not had the need or opportunity
to partake in such regional schemes as we have historically been on an Island of sorts as a Great Plains regional, catholic, midmajor. Our closest peers are all 500 miles away (Chicago, Denver, St Louis, Milwaukee).

Carry on.
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