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Conference expansion talk moved up?

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Interesting…

www.chicagotribune.com/sports/college/ct-spt-0418-big-ten-fo
otball–20100417,0,1622232.story

Looks like Big Ten expansion timetable accelerating
Conference could decide to add schools in next few months

Remember the talk that the Big Ten would take 12 to 18 months to decide whether to expand?

An accelerated timetable has emerged, according to sources familiar with the process.

High-ranking Big Ten representatives will meet Sunday in Washington to discuss expansion. The timing and location of the session make sense considering the Association of American Universities has its semi-annual meetings there through Tuesday and all 11 Big Ten schools are AAU members.

Among those attending will be Northwestern President Morton Schapiro, according to a university spokesman, and Illinois' interim chancellor, Robert Easter.

If the conference can emerge from the meetings with a mandate to expand, Commissioner Jim Delany could take a substantial step next week at the annual Bowl Championship Series meetings outside Phoenix.

As laid out in the Big Ten's Dec. 15 statement, Delany would "notify" the commissioners of the affected conferences before "engaging in formal expansion discussions with other institutions."

In other words, Big East Commissioner John Marinatto would get a heads-up if the Big Ten wishes to contact schools such as Rutgers, Pittsburgh and Syracuse.

That would allow the Big Ten more than a month to negotiate with schools before conference presidents and chancellors meet in Chicago during the first weekend in June.

That timetable also makes sense from a financial standpoint. The fiscal years of universities end on the last day of June, "so if you go past July 1, you have to wait an extra year," one source said.

The Dec. 15 statement said Delany would be asked "to provide recommendations" to the Big Ten Council of Presidents/Chancellors "over the next 12 to 18 months." That wouldn't seem to preclude a recommendation after five-plus months.

Efforts to reach Delany for comment Saturday were unsuccessful, and he has declined interview requests on the subject, saying he's in a "silent phase."

The thinking among those in touch with Big Ten officials is the conference likely will add at least three schools to end up with a 14- or 16-team league.

"I don't think 16 is scaring anyone off, as long as you can find (five) that are a good enough fit," said one source who has been consulted during the exploratory phase. "They're looking long-term, across the horizon. What gives them the best shot at keeping value at a high level?"

Notre Dame remains Option A, though observers are flummoxed about the school's intentions because of seemingly divergent statements athletic director Jack Swarbrick has made.

In March he spoke of the "unstable" conference landscape, telling a small group of reporters: "You each could invent a scenario that would force our hand. It's not hard to do."

A week later he told USA Today: "The only things that could make it happen are the sorts of radical change in the industry that would cause upheaval and impact a lot more (schools) than Notre Dame … the big change. I don't see that happening."

By joining the Big Ten, Notre Dame could increase its annual television revenue from roughly $15 million to $22 million, get a national TV platform (the Big Ten Network) for its top-notch Olympic sports and decrease travel costs for its teams.

Tribune reporter Jodi S. Cohen contributed to this report.

[email protected]

Copyright © 2010, Chicago Tribune

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Re: Conference expansion talk moved up?

MAJOR expansion IS GONNA HAPPEN as they want to act to "include" more schools in the AQ category to help fend off the playoff movement. Six 16 team conferences = 96 schools now in AQ, or 8 @ 14 teams = 112 of the current 120 programs. Expand and have conference championship games and the playoffs become a moot point! IT WILL HAPPEN THIS YEAR!!!

Where we may fit in, who knows, but we do offer one of the biggest  media markets and that is really what matters most, especially when it comes to TV contracts!
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Re: Conference expansion talk moved up?

Conference expansion talk moved up?

sooo, we better go to a bowl in 2010 and start building that stadium.
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Re: Conference expansion talk moved up?

AlexFAU06 said

sooo, we better go to a bowl in 2010 and start building that stadium.

Just build the freaking stadium.

Teambeer is the most knowledgeable FAU sports fan I know, way smarter than me.
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Re: Conference expansion talk moved up?

until we get the facilities built we're going nowhere. i don't even care to hear it about all the planning. when a shovel is in the ground, i will believe it but its been like this for 10 f'ing years.
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Re: Conference expansion talk moved up?

Without a stadium we will be on the outside looking in.

We also will have to see which conferences desolve entirely. It is a sure thing that some will cease to exist. I think the SBC will probably be one of those with FAU moving to CUSA or a very watered down BIGEAST.


GO OWLS!!!

2017 and 2019 Conference USA Champions
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Re: Conference expansion talk moved up?

Exit39 said

until we get the facilities built we're going nowhere.

Agreed.  And as much as facilities play into it, so does fan support.  We need more fans and those cannot be manufactered.

We have a great product on the basketball court on our campus and we cannot get 1,500 fans.  We like to say it's all about the football stadium, but the basketball and baseball facilities need upgrades also and until there is a demand, there won't be drastic upgrades to those facilities.
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Re: Conference expansion talk moved up?

fauowl said

Exit39 said

until we get the facilities built we're going nowhere.

Agreed.  And as much as facilities play into it, so does fan support.  We need more fans and those cannot be manufactered.

We have a great product on the basketball court on our campus and we cannot get 1,500 fans.  We like to say it's all about the football stadium, but the basketball and baseball facilities need upgrades also and until there is a demand, there won't be drastic upgrades to those facilities.

Unfortuantely only one way to generate more fans in S. Florida. And thats WIN and WIN CONSISTENTLY. We all know that the majority of people here are Band Wagon jumpers. Look at  Panthers, Heat, Marlilns attendance. Unless the team is winning they dont draw a whole lot. UM and the Phins are exceptions to that rule, BECAUSE they won consitently for a long time.

If we want to pick up the casual sports fan the teams must perform and do so regularly.

HOPEFULLY if expansion happens, the AQ's will look at the new stadium (Should have shovels in the ground) and the new Medical program, along with exclusive access to the Broward and Palm beach TV markets as our plusses. (No competion really, FIU has to compete with UM and the Pro teams for fans and attendance.) UCF is probably in a prime position to be honest.

Its all a crap shoot, lets just pray were not on the outside lookin in.

I have come here to chew bubble gum and kick @$$ and I'm out of bubble gum.

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Re: Conference expansion talk moved up?

It's the classic: what came first, the chicken or the egg?

We need money and fans to get into a better conference, and we can't get money and fans until we get into a better conference.

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Re: Conference expansion talk moved up?

Very interesting…..TODAY Rick Pitino had this to say about the ordeal. Most interesting to me is the last sentence….

Jurich (UL AD) sits on the BCS advisory board.

""I don't really believe [the reports]. Tom [Jurich] knows more about it than me, but I don't think Syracuse would budge out of the Big East. Maybe Pittsburgh would but I know their basketball people don't want that to happen. If they're going to expand I think they're probably going to make a run at Notre Dame or Missouri. Basketball, we don't get as concerned as football. We have to be pro-active and make sure we have three teams. It happened once before and the Big East and they immediately had Louisville, South Florida (and Cincinnati). Right now we've got to be ready for Central Florida and to get two other programs into this equation."
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