Conference Re-Alignment?

[GP1]

@lance99 and @trimmy10, thanks for the explanation about the tiered system. I agree that's the kind of thinking that can help spark interest. I was a big fan of the ABA when it was going up against the NBA. I especially liked the ABA's pioneering use of the 3-point shot, and the fact that they encouraged more of a finesse game whereas the NBA was letting the big bodies batter each other in the lane. There are ways to do that in football, as well, as the Canadians have shown. Of course, the wrong rules could also totally screw up the game.

I respectfully disagree. The problem isn't with the rules of the game. Football is already a much higher scoring game than in years past.

We need to take our product to market at a time when people want to buy the product. Running up against BCS and the NFL isn't the way to do that because they take all of the air out of the room. Playing on Tuesday and Wednesday nights isn't the way to do that. People want football in the spring and they would want it on Friday and Saturday nights. The USFL was successful and the Arena League gets good ratings. People watch spring games on tv for crying out loud. There is a market for a spring football league in the United States. Leagues like the mac, wac, cusa, etc should join together and show their game in the spring when people badly want football. Making one big league with the same marginal teams as before and trying to compete against BCS and NFL is the definition of insanity.

We should join together and sell the tv rights to a network like Fox. We could change the league's name to something patriotic...Fox loves marketing that kind of stuff and they are really good at it. Have a red, white and blue ball. Fox is shameless and would promote the heck out of a spring league. The would have sideline reporters that make Erin Andrews look like the wicked witch. It would be the best thing for all of us.

[wadszip]

I respectfully disagree. The problem isn't with the rules of the game. Football is already a much higher scoring game than in years past.

We need to take our product to market at a time when people want to buy the product. Running up against BCS and the NFL isn't the way to do that because they take all of the air out of the room. Playing on Tuesday and Wednesday nights isn't the way to do that. People want football in the spring and they would want it on Friday and Saturday nights. The USFL was successful and the Arena League gets good ratings. People watch spring games on tv for crying out loud. There is a market for a spring football league in the United States. Leagues like the mac, wac, cusa, etc should join together and show their game in the spring when people badly want football. Making one big league with the same marginal teams as before and trying to compete against BCS and NFL is the definition of insanity.

We should join together and sell the tv rights to a network like Fox. We could change the league's name to something patriotic...Fox loves marketing that kind of stuff and they are really good at it. Have a red, white and blue ball. Fox is shameless and would promote the heck out of a spring league. The would have sideline reporters that make Erin Andrews look like the wicked witch. It would be the best thing for all of us.

One major problem with spring football is how would it work around the NFL schedule? The combine is in February, the draft in April. You have rookie mini-camps going on right now. Then a couple more mini-camps throughout the summer before camp begins in late July/early August. I doubt the NFL is going to alter its schedule. Good luck trying to recruit any kid with pro aspirations to play in a college league that greatly prohibits him from getting a shot at the NFL.

A spring league would pull in D-3 level athletes. Would networks be willing to pay for that product? Would fans buy into that product? I say no on both counts.

[ctmjbowes@sbcglobal.net]

While I would love to see a new paradigm for schools and conferences that have been unable to penetrate to the genuine BCS/D-1 level, I don't see it happening any time soon and agree with Zach that any conference other than the MAC would appeal as a new, maybe even temporary, home for the Zips. Big East if possible (very likely not) but if C-USA would take us I'm all over it. You guys who think the MAC is as good as the C-USA are WAY deep in the weeds, or perhaps delusional. The MAC is absolutely the worst. If UA harbors no aspiration to flee the crappy MAC, why the beautiful new stadium, why the major financial emphasis on athletic facilities, why all the chatter of a new BB arena, why hire a guy like JT? The MAC wears a grey MAO suit. A school that's happy in the middling grey craptacular MAC, that most Soviet of conferences, wouldn't do those things. At least not if rational, responsible and reasonable people are making the decisions. It could certainly be the case that the people making the decisions at UA aren't, but I hope otherwise. If UA is happy to stay in the MAC long term then someone should be prosecuted for the wasted investment made in athletic facilities using taxpayer dollars. Such facilities are wasted on a long term MAC athletic program.

The blue and gold of UA will look SO much brighter in the sunlight, out of the grey that is the MAC.

[GP1]

One major problem with spring football is how would it work around the NFL schedule? The combine is in February, the draft in April. You have rookie mini-camps going on right now. Then a couple more mini-camps throughout the summer before camp begins in late July/early August. I doubt the NFL is going to alter its schedule. Good luck trying to recruit any kid with pro aspirations to play in a college league that greatly prohibits him from getting a shot at the NFL.

Kids who play hockey and baseball in college get drafted every year while their sports are still going on.

Screw the NFL. We aren't going to play their game any longer. We really shouldn't be worrying about what everyone else does and do the right thing for ourselves. Only 52 kids were drafted out of non-bcs D-1A schools this year (180 for BCS conferences). That would be less than one player per team in my spring conference. Where are these kids going to go play to get the national visibility they could get in my spring football league? They have no other choice.

On a positive note, a player could graduate high school, get two summer terms in and the fall term in before he ever has to start to practice for football season. That's a year and a half of school. It's a good way to raise graduation rates and get kids focused on school early.

Stop looking for little reasons to not do this. Kids getting drafted is a little reason. All of the big reasons and history, point to it being a success.

[GP1]

The blue and gold of UA will look SO much brighter in the sunlight, out of the grey that is the MAC.

Great post. It would look especially bright in the spring and early summer.

You're a good poster STZ, what do you think about a spring football league in college? I think the market is there.

[UAZipster0305]

SMU, Memphis, and UCF are joining the Big Eastallover. If the MAC can get JMU and ODU, we're looking at a very strong soccer conference.

Thanks for the input, bobbyake. However, I think CUSA is still stronger even without SMU, Memphis, and UCF. If the MAC gets JMU and ODU and kicks out Florida Atlantic, I think the MAC has the edge in men's soccer. I'd like to see the MAC add SIU in all sports as well.

I'm all for the jump to CUSA. If the administration is given the opportunity, I think they take it. If nothing else, it puts us in a conference that is not already watered down with Ohio schools. I like the rivalries with Ohio, Miami, Toledo, and Can't, but they can still be maintained with OOC scheduling. Joe Akron certainly does not want to see a schedule full of directional Michigans.

I also disagree with GP1's idea for a new division/league/conference featuring football in the spring. No way that has momentum if starting during March madness or shortly thereafter. And any later and the school year is over making it an awkward transition for incoming and graduating players. Being offset with the NFL schedule also guarantees that no recruit aspiring to play professionally would take a chance with this new schedule if given a chance at a I-A program. It makes us the default second tier. I know, that's where we are now, but it is certainly not where we aspire to be a few years down the road.

[akzipper]

There's no reason any for any more FCS schools to move up. No to ODU, JMU, YSU, whatever. Like I've said FBS has way to many teams already, and just adding more isn't going to help anyone. Not to mention, how do you get Akron fans excited about having those schools on the schedule? Look at bad the Morgan State, Gardner-Webb, and VMI games have been. Not exactly sell outs right? Not to mention a slip up like GW is just flat out embarrassing.

If Akron were to move to CUSA it would have happened already. By the looks of the schools they've added, they bring nothing better to the table. If I had to guess we think we can go to a bigger conference, and are holding out. Which is a BAD move, since it's not going to happen. I'd take a game vs. Marshall or ECU, over Eastern/Central/Western/Northern/Southern Michigan crap any day. I think we better just get comfortable playing in the MAC, we're not going anywhere sadly...

[Dave in Green]

Funny, someone gets a good thread going about conference realignment and pretty soon it gets distracted into reinventing college football.

Sorry for getting distracted on that.

Back to reality, a number of prominent UA executives continue to refuse to go on record affirming that there's something Big going on in the East.

[bobbyake]

Big East would create a nice rivalry with Cinci. I favor staying in the MAC unless the Big Eastallover calls

[wadszip]

Kids who play hockey and baseball in college get drafted every year while their sports are still going on.

Screw the NFL. We aren't going to play their game any longer. We really shouldn't be worrying about what everyone else does and do the right thing for ourselves. Only 52 kids were drafted out of non-bcs D-1A schools this year (180 for BCS conferences). That would be less than one player per team in my spring conference. Where are these kids going to go play to get the national visibility they could get in my spring football league? They have no other choice.

On a positive note, a player could graduate high school, get two summer terms in and the fall term in before he ever has to start to practice for football season. That's a year and a half of school. It's a good way to raise graduation rates and get kids focused on school early.

Stop looking for little reasons to not do this. Kids getting drafted is a little reason. All of the big reasons and history, point to it being a success.

I'm still not seeing a valid reason for spring football other than it will be different ... which really isn't different, but rather worse.

I won't speak for hockey since I'm not expert on the ins and outs of the NHL. But I will speak on baseball. The MLB draft compared to the NFL draft is apples to oranges. For one, the MLB draft is in early June when 90 percent of the college season is done. Plus, baseball has a minor league system where college guys drafted are still at least still a full minor league season (more than likely two) away from being in the MLB. With spring football, you're talking about a league that wouldn't have started until after the NFL draft has been taken place, and in a league that has no minor league system (college football is the NFL's minor league).

You can say screw the NFL all you want, but what league is driving the college TV contract game? The NFL. College football wouldn't be nearly as big as it is if it wasn't for the popularity of the NFL. The NFL is by far the most popular sporting league in America. To say screw the NFL, when a large portion of people who play "big time" college football are doing so to get a shot at the NFL (even at non BCS schools like Akron), is suicide.

And you can say not attracting NFL-level talent is a little thing, I beg to differ. If Tiffin University was playing in my backyard in May, I wouldn't watch. There isn't any intrigue to watching that level of competition, regardless of the time of year. I'm sure I'm not the only person who thinks that way. I'd rather watch Akron (with NFL-caliber players) play for a GoDaddy.com Bowl invite than to watch them play in some sham of a spring league to win a "national championship."

Plus, I'm sure FBS schools like Youngstown State would love to see all the MAC schools start playing in the spring. Nothing changes for them outside that they would now start cleaning up on the 22 percent of NFL players (going off your 50 of 212 number) who don't play at BCS schools.

[bobbyake]

This spring league idea should be in its own thread so I can ignore it. This thread should focus on conference realightment in the current reality we live in.

[Hilltopper]

This spring league idea should be in its own thread so I can ignore it. This thread should focus on conference realightment in the current reality we live in.

+1

[GP1]

Funny, someone gets a good thread going about conference realignment and pretty soon it gets distracted into reinventing college football.

Sorry for getting distracted on that.

Isn't conference realignment part of repackaging a part college football? Traditional rivals like Texas and Texas A&M will no longer play as part of realignment...That's not a fantasy, it is reality. The game has changed a lot in the past five years and we need to change with the times. The game wouldn't be reinvented, it would just be played at a different time. I'd go watch a college football game tonight if I wasn't at the beach and one was offered near me. I'd be willing to bet a lot of money a lot of Americans would do the same thing. I'd also be willing to bet a lot of money a lot of Americans would watch the games on television. The USFL was a successful league and if people were open minded enough, we could experience a similar success. With the personality of our coach and his media style, we would be one of the schools people talk about going forward in this league.

All of our discussion centers around how MAClike teams survive in the new world of college football. Mainstream solutions believe teams jumping from one conference nobody wants to watch to another conference nobody wants to watch and then trying to compete against BCS and NFL for attention is the solution. Isn't that already what we are doing? Are we not insane if we don't take a drastic step to save our brand of college football by not trying to compete for national attention against the NFL and BCS? When President Kennedy said we would go to the moon and bring the person back in 10 years, it seemed like a far-fetched idea..then we did it.

[GP1]

This spring league idea should be in its own thread so I can ignore it. This thread should focus on conference realightment in the current reality we live in.

That's part of what a spring football league does.

[akzipper]

Funny, someone gets a good thread going about conference realignment and pretty soon it gets distracted into reinventing college football.

Sorry for getting distracted on that.

Back to reality, a number of prominent UA executives continue to refuse to go on record affirming that there's something Big going on in the East.

Maybe the UA executives think it's such a foolish though they don't want to waste their time? haha

Only KD and a few sportswriters have hinted at a move someday, correct? I just don't see it happening...

[ctmjbowes@sbcglobal.net]

Dave In Green, can you confirm that there is something of a buzz amongst insiders that either the Big East is considering UA for membership or that there is a move afoot by UA to gain admission? I'm very surprised that your post a few up didn't garner more attention in this thread, assuming I read it correctly. I would be ecstatic if UA were to move to the Big East and fervently hope that efforts are underway to make it happen.

[Dave in Green]

@SeeTeeZip, rumors never come with guarantees. But I continue to hear from good sources that a number of prominent people at UA whose names we all recognize have hinted off the record that the Big East would be the top choice if UA were to move to a more prestigious conference. I believe that contacts have been made and discussions have been had, but I can't confirm that. While I don't have access to any details, I've heard enough to convince me that there's at least a spark of fire where this smoke is coming from.

It's not surprising than many consider this to be an unlikely scenario. But think back a year ago and ask yourself what your honest response would have been if you'd heard a rumor that Terry Bowden, Chuck Amato and Jim Tressel would all be working for UA in the near future. UA is on the move in many different ways, and I expect there are more surprises to come.

[Zipmeister]

Some of the rumors I have been hearing from very reliable sources have us as a possible addition to the Big Ten, others say it's the SEC. Still others say that we will be dropping football and starting a bobsled team.

[akzipper]

@SeeTeeZip, rumors never come with guarantees. But I continue to hear from good sources that a number of prominent people at UA whose names we all recognize have hinted off the record that the Big East would be the top choice if UA were to move to a more prestigious conference. I believe that contacts have been made and discussions have been had, but I can't confirm that. While I don't have access to any details, I've heard enough to convince me that there's at least a spark of fire where this smoke is coming from.

It's not surprising than many consider this to be an unlikely scenario. But think back a year ago and ask yourself what your honest response would have been if you'd heard a rumor that Terry Bowden, Chuck Amato and Jim Tressel would all be working for UA in the near future. UA is on the move in many different ways, and I expect there are more surprises to come.

Well Bowden and Amato are not all that surprising.

I'm just thinking about how long it took Memphis to join the Big East. I mean they've had a elite basketball program with an awesome arena for about a decade. We have neither, and a worse football team. Not to mention the 5 markets being added: Memphis, Dallas, Houston, Orlando, and Philadelphia. Akron's metro of 700,000 just doesn't even compare to them...

[ZachTheZip]

Liberty University announced today that they intend to move to the FBS. I think they're eying the MAC and the Sun Belt, but I don't see how a private, religious college with more controversies than accredidations and 80% of their enrollment through online classes fits the MAC University profile. In reality, they're not even the close to being the most attractive candidate in their own state. I doubt the MAC even gives them a sniff.

[Spin]

Dave In Green, can you confirm that there is something of a buzz amongst insiders that either the Big East is considering UA for membership or that there is a move afoot by UA to gain admission? I'm very surprised that your post a few up didn't garner more attention in this thread, assuming I read it correctly. I would be ecstatic if UA were to move to the Big East and fervently hope that efforts are underway to make it happen.

Nah we'd rather talk about playing football in the spring.

[lance99]

Well Bowden and Amato are not all that surprising.

I'm just thinking about how long it took Memphis to join the Big East. I mean they've had a elite basketball program with an awesome arena for about a decade. We have neither, and a worse football team. Not to mention the 5 markets being added: Memphis, Dallas, Houston, Orlando, and Philadelphia. Akron's metro of 700,000 just doesn't even compare to them...

The Big East took them for Basketball. Memphis probably told them "all sports or we don't join."

[Dave in Green]

Back when most thought there was no chance of Tressel coming to UA, I was hearing that it was a more realistic possibility than most imagined. After Bowden was hired to fill the head coaching position and most stopped talking about Tressel, I continued to hear that he might end up at UA.

The possibility of UA and the Big East is coming to me from the same sources that had the Tressel story right all along. We'll see what happens

[lance99]

Back when most thought there was no chance of Tressel coming to UA, I was hearing that it was a more realistic possibility than most imagined. After Bowden was hired to fill the head coaching position and most stopped talking about Tressel, I continued to hear that he might end up at UA.

The possibility of UA and the Big East is coming to me from the same sources that had the Tressel story right all along. We'll see what happens

Do anyone have any reliable sources on that?

[Spin]

Back when most thought there was no chance of Tressel coming to UA, I was hearing that it was a more realistic possibility than most imagined. After Bowden was hired to fill the head coaching position and most stopped talking about Tressel, I continued to hear that he might end up at UA.

The possibility of UA and the Big East is coming to me from the same sources that had the Tressel story right all along. We'll see what happens

Makes you wonder if Bowden knew about this possibility before he decided to sign on.

And Dambrot knew about this before he turned doen Duq...