ACC Move: A Tremendous Betrayal of NYC-NJ Alumni

[MiniCuse]

This is the basketball board. I really am not all that interested in the football program. For basketball I think this is a huge change with not much up side, unless you believe that the Big East was going to disintegrate...which I don't. If you are a football fan, it's great for the football program. If you are a fan of both, I guess you can tolerate the change for basketball in the hope that it might breathe some life into the football program. As one who is predominantly a basketball fan, I'm not loving it.

You're not in a basketball conference or a basketball world. Football rules college athletics, that's just the way it is and it's not changing. As a basketball conference, the ACC with the addition of SU and Pitt, will surpass the BE as the best basketball conference. There is no downside to that. The BE is going to disintegrate, the writing has been on the wall for years, even prior to the ACC raid years ago. You may be nostalgic for the BE of old when basketball ruled the '80s but that ship sailed years ago. This move is the best thing for basketball, football, lacrosse and every other sport. The BE is dead.

 

[PoppyHart]

Why don't we schedule OOC road games or non-tourney neutral games? B/c of the precious Dome revenues. Don't expect us to schedule multiple games in the NJ/NYC area to appease anyone. That's foolish.

 

[pfister1]

You're not in a basketball conference or a basketball world. Football rules college athletics, that's just the way it is and it's not changing. As a basketball conference, the ACC with the addition of SU and Pitt, will surpass the BE as the best basketball conference. There is no downside to that. The BE is going to disintegrate, the writing has been on the wall for years, even prior to the ACC raid years ago. You may be nostalgic for the BE of old when basketball ruled the '80s but that ship sailed years ago. This move is the best thing for basketball, football, lacrosse and every other sport. The BE is dead.

Your highlighted comments are kind of how I feel about those that think we are going to bring football glory back to the Cuse.

I've tried to be careful and qualify my comments by saying that they are completely from a hoops perspective. I do recognize that if you weigh all programs and all considerations this is probably the best move for the Athletic Department as a whole, but I still don't think its the best move for the basketball program in isolation.

 

[rstone7727]

The BE is dead.

I don't see it... Diminished, yes but not dead. IF more schools leave (Uconn, WVU, Lousiville) the BE will be in further danger of becoming a BB only conf. similar to the A-10. Let's face it, when all this shakes out there will likely
be six big boy, AQ conferences in the country, each with 16 teams. Big 10/16, ACC, SEC, Pac 10/16, Big 12/16 and the Big East... 96 teams vying for a national title in all sports. All other schools will not be included and have to play "Division B"??? At this point, I'm happy to be included because some deserving schools out there will be thrown under the bus. Who will they be?

 

[MiniCuse]

I don't see it... Diminished, yes but not dead. IF more schools leave (Uconn, WVU, Lousiville) the BE will be in further danger of becoming a BB only conf. similar to the A-10. Let's face it, when all this shakes out there will likely
be six big boy, AQ conferences in the country, each with 16 teams. Big 10/16, ACC, SEC, Pac 10/16, Big 12/16 and the Big East... 96 teams vying for a national title in all sports. All other schools will not be included and have to play "Division B"??? At this point, I'm happy to be included because some deserving schools out there will be thrown under the bus. Who will they be?

If you can't see that a Big East conference with dominant teams like TCU, Kansas, Kansas State, Baylor, Louisville, Cincy, Mizzou, etc. is a dead eastern conference I don't know what to tell you. I want no part of that crappy mash-up of B12 rejects, BE left behinds, BB onlys, directionals and never wases.

 

[MooseHaas]

If you can't see that a Big East conference with dominant teams like TCU, Kansas, Kansas State, Baylor, Louisville, Cincy, Mizzou, etc. is a dead eastern conference I don't know what to tell you. I want no part of that crappy mash-up of B12 rejects, BE left behinds, BB onlys, directionals and never wases.

Minicuse FTW. Nice.

 

[Stern]

I don't see it... Diminished, yes but not dead. IF more schools leave (Uconn, WVU, Lousiville) the BE will be in further danger of becoming a BB only conf. similar to the A-10.

The Big East is dead. Nova and G'Town won't be recruiting the same players being in a b'ball only conference. It is the A-10. Does UMASS still recruit big? Does any A-10 school land big name recruits? NO!

 

[rstone7727]

If you can't see that a Big East conference with dominant teams like TCU, Kansas, Kansas State, Baylor, Louisville, Cincy, Mizzou, etc. is a dead eastern conference I don't know what to tell you. I want no part of that crappy mash-up of B12 rejects, BE left behinds, BB onlys, directionals and never wases.

Well, you are right, it could be dead. All I'm saying is the country will demand at least 96 teams from around the country compete for major college titles in all sports. That would mean 6 conferences with 16 teams each and I'm happy to be one of the 96 right now. I'm thinking that since most of the countries population is in the eastern states, 4 conferences will be there and 2 in the west. The names of the conferences really doesn't matter much does it? The only thing that matters is which schools will fill spots.

 

[rstone7727]

The Big East is dead. Nova and G'Town won't be recruiting the same players being in a b'ball only conference. It is the A-10. Does UMASS still recruit big? Does any A-10 school land big name recruits? NO!

What is your definition of dead? Dissolved or irrelevant? In football or BB? Butler played for the national title last year didn't they? Do they compete with Duke, Kentucky, Ohio State, Uconn, SU on the recruiting trail?

 

[IthacaMatt]

When would we ever get to see the Orange?
Oh...on TV game$$$.

Also, all those away games where half the crowd is in orange...forget it.
(Except for Miami).

And is life really worth living without having G-town to hate (and beat)?

We'll still play the pre-season tournament in the Garden every year. And we'll schedule St. John's or maybe UConn out of conference at the Garden. No more trips to Storrs or Gampel !

 

[PoppyHart]

The Big East is dead. Nova and G'Town won't be recruiting the same players being in a b'ball only conference. It is the A-10. Does UMASS still recruit big? Does any A-10 school land big name recruits? NO!

There's no precedent for a school falling from a BCS level to an "also-ran" so you don't know what will happen. But why would a basketball recruit care about the football landscape? Does Memphis recruiting suffer by not being in a BCS conference?

 

[MiniCuse]

Well, you are right, it could be dead. All I'm saying is the country will demand at least 96 teams from around the country compete for major college titles in all sports. That would mean 6 conferences with 16 teams each and I'm happy to be one of the 96 right now. I'm thinking that since most of the countries population is in the eastern states, 4 conferences will be there and 2 in the west. The names of the conferences really doesn't matter much does it? The only thing that matters is which schools will fill spots.

Do you need a map or a compass to understand this North, South, East, West concept? It's called the Big East. How are you going to be the Big East when most of your teams reside mid westerly? If conferences don't matter then why have them at all? Everyone should go back to being independent. Honestly, how do you expect any interest in an SU/Baylor match up, for instance? There's no history there, no compulsion to watch, no commonality. You might as well be playing on a deserted island because the same amount of people are going to be watching.

 

[rstone7727]

Do you need a map or a compass to understand this North, South, East, West concept? It's called the Big East. How are you going to be the Big East when most of your teams reside mid westerly? If conferences don't matter then why have them at all? Everyone should go back to being independent. Honestly, how do you expect any interest in an SU/Baylor match up, for instance? There's no history there, no compulsion to watch, no commonality. You might as well be playing on a deserted island because the same amount of people are going to be watching.

No map needed, but I have a calendar and I'll let you borrow it so you can see we are in 2011 not 1980. East, West, South and North has no relevance any more! Have you heard about jet flight? And who said anything about freakin' Baylor, TCU, Missou etc?

 

[rstone7727]

There's no history there, no compulsion to watch, no commonality. You might as well be playing on a deserted island because the same amount of people are going to be watching.

Means zero, did SU have history with Lousville, Cinncy, Uconn? Things change overnight today. People will watch grass grow, they watch MTV don't they?

 

[mountaincuse]

tremendous non-betrayal of all other alumni. We have to do what us best for the school.

I'll gladly give up a couple nyc games (there will be at least one every year) to not travel to the lovely campuses of the have-nots

 

[MiniCuse]

No map needed, but I have a calendar and I'll let you borrow it so you can see we are in 2011 not 1980. East, West, South and North has no relevance any more! Have you heard about jet flight? And who said anything about freakin' Baylor, TCU, Missou etc?

Just because you can be there in a few hours doesn't mean there is a common bond that would lead to a meaningful rivalry or even a compelling game. Baylor, TCU, Mizzou, Kansas, etc. are the types of teams that will be joining the Big East. Despite what the talk of market share and tv sets in different markets might lead you to think, regional rivals are still important within athletics. To say that East, West, South and North is irrelevant is complete nonsense.

 

[rstone7727]

Just because you can be there in a few hours doesn't mean there is a common bond that would lead to a meaningful rivalry or even a compelling game. Baylor, TCU, Mizzou, Kansas, etc. are the types of teams that will be joining the Big East. Despite what the talk of market share and tv sets in different markets might lead you to think, regional rivals are still important within athletics. To say that East, West, South and North is irrelevant is complete nonsense.

That could be true, I don't know. At that time might a name change solve the East/West issue? How about the Big Bozo Conference? Regional rivalries aren't what they used to be and they will change frequently in the future as money will change every ones comfort zones.

 

[690West]

Really, much better to get left behind and end up in the MAC for football.

Got naïveté ?

 

[MiniCuse]

That could be true, I don't know. At that time might a name change solve the East/West issue? How about the Big Bozo Conference? Regional rivalries aren't what they used to be and they will change frequently in the future as money will change every ones comfort zones.

How does money change geography and/or regional commonalities? Two schools receiving a larger paycheck isn't going to create a love/hate bond among the fans of the schools involved.

 

[cmr27]

Most of the old BE schools would be nuts to give SU games in the NYC area. SJU, Rutgers and UConn (so long as they remain in the BE) have no incentive to help showcase Syracuse in MSG. SU can bring in an opponent from outside the old BE network.

Will be interesting to see the reactions to all this from the BB-only schools. Maybe they don't care either way since they have no stake in football and will be just fine in hoops, but wouldn't they perceive some local recruiting advantage to making it harder to SU to play in NYC.

 

[Victory Lap]

Stay put and SU has a long slow death...

On the other hand...my guess is that if you combine the amount of SU alums and ex-CNYers living from DC to Florida its far more than the amount in NJ & NYC. I remember going to McNabbs first game at Carolina and the place was jam packed with Cuse fans. People don't retire in NJ. Going to pretty damn cool seeing the Orange run out at Bobby Dodd Stadium in downtown Atlanta! Another bonus to moving here. I can watch the weekend hoops games during winter and then go work on my golf game.

Amen. I had to drive to Memphis in 2008, Tampa in 2009, and DC in 2010 to see at least one game per year. Having Syracuse come to play at the Georgia Tech Coliseum will be nice... not to mention the reasonable drive to NC for all those games. Not commenting on the overall wisdom of the move, but ATLiens will have a lot more opportunities to see Cuse games.

 

[sutomcat]

When would we ever get to see the Orange?
Oh...on TV game$$$.

Also, all those away games where half the crowd is in orange...forget it.
(Except for Miami).

And is life really worth living without having G-town to hate (and beat)?

Well, life is definitely worth living without Georgetown around. Though I hope we can still play them each season.

But I hear you...SU fans travel really well to NE venues, especially for basketball, and it would be unfortunate if we lost almost all those chances to travel to league games. This is a big reason why it is important to add UConn and Rutgers as the last 2 members.

No one school can deliver the NYC metro market but all three together can. It becomes realistic to play the BEACC final at MSG, go to a major market and get media attention and respect that has steadily deteriorated as ACC basketball has struggled in recent years. No way the ACC tournament would always be played in NYC, but with the lineup I am talking about, I would hope the ACC leaders would be smart enough to alternate between a southern location and MSG every other year.

I for one am praying that Texas and ND decide to pass on the ACC so we can have the true Eastern seaboard conference many of us have been pining for.

 

[longislandcuse]

I can understand how the OP would be frustrated but it would be a tremendous betrayal to the school, its alumni, and its fans if they didnt try to better and stabilize this situation. Cuse in the ACC is a beautiful fit imo, and with the news that UCONN and Rutgers are possibly being targeted, well in that case its the conference many of us have been hoping for. This obviously helps our football team, but I also feel this will bolster our basketball recruiting, at the very least keep it as the machine it is. We are still in the best basketball conference in America, its just a new one.

Now in terms of us who live in the NYC area...I guarantee you Syracuse will play an early season tourney in NYC every year (MSG/Barclay's) as we have for a while. Also, I would be shocked if we didnt schedule one or two OOC games at MSG every year. That in itself is 2-4 games per year in NYC, not including a possible move of the ACC tourney to NYC or the inclusion of UCONN/Rutgers, if it were to happen. Given Nancy Cantor's official press release in which she seems to go to great lengths to mention our NYC influence and bringing the ACC to The Big Apple, I don't think the fans, myself included in the NYC area need to worry.

 

[Scooch]

It's a 4 hour drive from NYC to Syracuse. Just go to some games up there if you're so upset. Hell, it's not like we just move SU to Winston-Salem.

 

[orange79]

That would be BS. We are Syracuse University, not NYU. They already screwed up the football side of the schedule.

Duke seems to play 1 game a year at MSG. Don't see why we couldn't either. And there's always CvsC and Pre-Season NIT.