Conference realignment discussion - v. 2015

[PCfriars]

Are there ncaa rules about how many conference games can be played in a season?

Also, why the need to add 2? Could we not just add 1 school and be an 11 team conference and still play a double round Robin? I get the schedule would be harder to work out, but I'm sure it's doable.

[NovaBall]

Why add anybody? Things are going pretty well for us.

[GreatDaneAttorney]

Are there ncaa rules about how many conference games can be played in a season?

Also, why the need to add 2? Could we not just add 1 school and be an 11 team conference and still play a double round Robin? I get the schedule would be harder to work out, but I'm sure it's doable.

Nova has 4 Big 5 games each year, Georgetown has a bunch of rivalry games, and every school in the Big East needs "money" games against MAC, SWAC, etc. teams at home (more conference games means fewer home dates for Big East schools, meaning fewer money games, meaning potentially lower athletic budgets). I think others on this board have actually argued in favor of fewer conference games (14 or 16) to give Big East members more flexibility when scheduling and to limit the # of guaranteed L's the league would incur (every conference game is guaranteed to produce a loss for a Big East team).

I should add, if the league does expand to 14 or more teams at some point, I would certainly be in favor of decreasing the # of conference games. Let's jump wayyyy ahead in the future and imagine the league has 15 members. In that scenario, I would only play 14 conference games. Yes, the schedule would still be unbalanced, but it'd be less unbalanced than playing 18 games while some teams get the Bottom 4 of the league in their extra 4 games and other teams have to battle the Top 4. Once-through round-robin with 15 members would then be the fairest option.

[RRR]

As much as it pains me to say this, I think Dayton is becoming a no-brainer. Even if Archie leaves they still have great fan support. I think VCU is the next logical pick but my only question would be what happens if VCU has some down year, does the fanbase stay as good as it is now?

Our sell outs go back to times where we were in the CBI and doubtful to make the NCAAs different years. Our sell out streak wasn't affected at all when Shaka left. Before that we regularly sold out under Grant and Capel which were not always great years. Though as I said VCU's contracts for their coaches and the practice facility they dropped dime on shows their expectation. They have no intention of anything football. There is a joke that if you attend you must understand two things- Basketball is life and Must learn the song You don't want to go to war with the Rams(The song the WSU shockers sold from us a year after playing at Siegel Center).... Because they will make you sing it at the new student welcome. Last year we were 5th in the conference and every VCU game was like a home game in Brooklyn during the A10 tourney. Dayton was outnumbered 11-1 in the championship game. We're a group that loves to travel. We just bring a little RVA(Richmond area nickname) when we do. Like no joke we're the brewery capital of the country with over 20 micro breweries plus Stone Brewing. We're more than happy to share our beers haha.

[BEX]

Must have been all VCU in NYC since you averaged 7k a game.

[Gopher+RamFan]

Must have been all VCU in NYC since you averaged 7k a game.

To be fair it's been about 35-40% VCU at the tourney since they've been in the conference. Helps to be in the conference finals each year.

[UD Flyer Fanatic]

I attended last year's A10 tournament in Brooklyn, and can attest that the VCU fan base travels very well. I couldn't make the championship game and gave our 6 tix to the local charity that has a presence at the stadium. They use these tix to give out to NYC youth groups who otherwise would not have oppty to see college hoops. As an aside, the ladies at the table shared with me UD fans in their experience stand out as the best fanbase in the A10 when it comes to giving their unused tix to charity. They seemed to really appreciate us. Frankly I was proud to hear that.

Not sure VCU outnumbered us 11:1, but they were the clear leader in butts in the seats for the tourney, probably followed next by UD. They were also very vocal and clearly passionate. I think UD fans in some cases held off for the tournament as it's not easy to attend both. I chose Brooklyn as I love NYC.

VCU is a fine school with great BB support & is tough for us to over shadow in NYC due to their numbers and public standing. They would be a fine add to any conference.

Virginia Commonwealth University 24,000 undergrads (fyi- 2014 Endowment $639,430,553)
University of Dayton 8,529 undergrads (fyi- 2014 Endowment $518,164,000)

[GoldenWarrior11]

When the C7 broke away from UConn, Cincinnati, USF, Memphis, Tulane, UCF, Temple, SMU and Houston, there was a clear reason why they invited Butler, Creighton and Xavier. While all had strong and consistent basketball programs (and no football), outstanding support and fan bases from three big cities, all three were private schools, and two were Catholic (Jesuit).

Not to take anything away from VCU - strong basketball program, solid history, excellent facilities, great fans, etc. - but they won't be invited to the Big East because they are a public school. They don't fit the institutional profile of the conference. Presidents care about that, and they are the ones who sign off on the expansion candidates. I know a lot of basketball fans will argue with that, but it is what it is.

A lot of basketball fans will also argue that Saint Louis and Dayton are NOT the top candidates currently available - but they most certainly are because they fit institutionally, academically, geographically and athletically with the schools currently in the conference. That doesn't mean that they will definitely be added, but they are top two candidates today (even though I don't think the Big East will expand in the next few years).

[Warrior Ram]

If the BE decides to expand at some point, Dayton and SLU would be the obvious choices assuming the latter had a solid plan in place to improve its basketball product. I say this as both a VCU grad and fan.

My ideal version of expansion would include the addition of those two plus VCU and Richmond, for reasons that many others have stated. As a long-time fan of a current BE program though, I don't envision this happening.

I think, all things considered:

1) The BE should not and will not expand unless absolutely necessary.
2) The A10 should continue to improve its brand as the top basketball-centric conference outside of the Power 6.
3) Fans of my alma mater, including myself, should thank their lucky stars that a series of extremely unlikely events unfolded over the past 5+ years leading to an eventual invitation to a perennial multi-bid conference.

I have accepted the fact that we have probably reached our ceiling (at least without football in the current college athletics landscape) and am content with that.

But hey, do at least consider us dirty secular public-educated hipsters the next go-around. I promise we aren't too awful.

[stever20]

If the BE decides to expand at some point, Dayton and SLU would be the obvious choices assuming the latter had a solid plan in place to improve its basketball product. I say this as both a VCU grad and fan.

My ideal version of expansion would include the addition of those two plus VCU and Richmond, for reasons that many others have stated. As a long-time fan of a current BE program though, I don't envision this happening.

I think, all things considered:

1) The BE should not and will not expand unless absolutely necessary.
2) The A10 should continue to improve its brand as the top basketball-centric conference outside of the Power 6.
3) Fans of my alma mater, including myself, should thank their lucky stars that a series of extremely unlikely events unfolded over the past 5+ years leading to an eventual invitation to a perennial multi-bid conference.

I have accepted the fact that we have probably reached our ceiling (at least without football in the current college athletics landscape) and am content with that.

But hey, do at least consider us dirty secular public-educated hipsters the next go-around. I promise we aren't too awful.

The thing that will be interesting to watch here in the next few years is which of the A10 or AAC will be considered as the best basketball conference PERIOD outside of the power 6. This year it's extremely close between the 2. RPI has A10 up by .0028. KP and Sagarin have AAC up. Both are going to wind up in the 2-4 bid range.