So today could be the day...huh?

[Cusefan95]

I think the football schools need to play a game of chicken and vote no, and hope they can find a landing spot for themselves in the next 27 months. They need to delay committing to the Big East as long as possible. Which probably means we're going to end up stuck in this clusterf**k for the full duration.

So let's say the football schools all bolt by 2014 - how is the Big East contract with MSG/ESPN written regarding the Big East tournament? I'm wondering if MSG is stuck with the Big East tournament, but can move it back a week so the Big East is forced to play while the little boy conferences play.

The only thing I'm pretty confident is that this is going to be one damn messy divorce; if I have any business with the Big East or am a football playing school in the Big East I have my lawyers looking over the contracts to figure out how to get out the deal. I think the Providence mefia think they have all the cards right now...but that leds me to think they're going to end up overplaying their hands and are going to end up burning lots of bridges before this is all over.

 

[AgentOrange]

Hopefully this infighting worsens enough to give SU adequate ground for a breach of contract claim against the BE, allowing us to exit before 2014.

 

[Townie72]

I think the football schools need to play a game of chicken and vote no, and hope they can find a landing spot for themselves in the next 27 months. They need to delay committing to the Big East as long as possible. Which probably means we're going to end up stuck in this clusterf**k for the full duration.

So let's say the football schools all bolt by 2014 - how is the Big East contract with MSG/ESPN written regarding the Big East tournament? I'm wondering if MSG is stuck with the Big East tournament, but can move it back a week so the Big East is forced to play while the little boy conferences play.

The only thing I'm pretty confident is that this is going to be one damn messy divorce; if I have any business with the Big East or am a football playing school in the Big East I have my lawyers looking over the contracts to figure out how to get out the deal. I think the Providence mefia think they have all the cards right now...but that leds me to think they're going to end up overplaying their hands and are going to end up burning lots of bridges before this is all over.

Chicken? Chicken?

You never play chicken with someone that doesn't care. The BB schools have nothing to lose by just voting against any new member. All the risk is on the FB side.

Are you really suggesting that Big East schools just leave the Big East and hope to catch on with another League? You can't be serious.

 

[Cusefan95]

Are you really suggesting that Big East schools just leave the Big East and hope to catch on with another League? You can't be serious.

Uh, no. They've got 27 months for the landscape to change, and every school is angling for an invite to the ACC/Big 10/Big 12. Going stag is stupid, they need to wait to see if they can upgrade from the nerdy girl they are currently going to the prom with to a cheerleader. Not all of them will, but all currently are wishing for it.

I do think the basketball schools think they have nothing to lose, but that they'll find out otherwise when they're playing in a seriously devalued Big East consisting of nothing but Catholic schools with no fan bases.

 

[arbitragegls]

...whichever school votes NO...that school is poised to leave now or very soon

 

[fanfanclubclub]

The answer to that question is "Yes" --- we are still bound.

Our contract is with the Big East Conference and not just the football playing schools. As long as there is a Big East Conference --- even if it is all basketball-onlies --- we are bound by the agreement we signed that included the 27-month provision

No actually, we would not be bound. If the football conference cannot function, than the defense of "contractual impossibility" or "frustration of intent" comes into play, and we would have an easy legal argument out of the contract.

 

[orange79]

No actually, we would not be bound. If the football conference cannot function, than the defense of "contractual impossibility" or "frustration of intent" comes into play, and we would have an easy legal argument out of the contract.

I like this. Use it if necessary, SU and Pitt.

And on a side note, "contractual impossibility" sounds like a description of the BE itself.

 

[BlazeOrange]

You are missing the point. Those schools I mentioned would be FB ONLY. Why in the hell would the BBall schools have a vote on that? Even if more teams split, it does NOTHING to the BBall schools.

The TV contract covers FB and BB together, so I guess they should get some say.

And maybe teams that would accept a FB-only invitation are not the ones preferred by the football side. At a minimum, they would have to go through additional negotiating hoops to arrange that because any teamoutside of the military academies is going to try for all-sports first.

Plus, if/when more of the current FB/BB teams leave, it would be awkward for the remaining BB schools not to invite the FB-onlies to bring their remaining sports in as replacements.