Conference Expansion: Nobody is Safe
by asalom on May 21, 2012 7:00 AM MDT
in NCAA Conference Realignment
The latest round of conference expansion has everybody wondering what exactly is going to happen, and it's not just the C-USA's of the world that are still trying to figure out where they stand. Of course, we're all familiar with the talks of Florida State potentially moving to the Big 12, but even bigger news has been made over the last few days.
On Friday, it was announced that the Big 12 and the SEC have reached a five year agreement for a New Year's Day game featuring the champions of both leagues. Now, the game is more likely to feature the runner ups of both leagues, as the champions will almost certainly be regulars in the soon to be BCS playoff, but still, the partnership has got people talking.
7 commentsAn Improbable Yet Fun Idea For Realignment: Relegation
by PaydirtRenzo on May 18, 2012 1:54 PM MDT
Bill Connelly has written a few great pieces about what the college football conference landscape would look like if the NCAA adopted a relegation system. Those of you who follow soccer know that a relegation system involves various tiers or levels of leagues. The last place team in the Premiere League for example, gets "relegated" to a lower league while the top team in the lower league gets "promoted" to the Premiere League. In attempting to apply this system to the NCAA, Connelly devised the following "Tiers":
ACC Tiers: 1. ACC, 2. Big East, 3. Atlantic 10 (which eventually became Colonial), 4. Patriot
Big 12 Tiers: 1. Big 12, 2. Conference USA, 3. Southland, 4. Pioneer & Great West
Big Ten Tiers: 1. Big Ten, 2. MAC, 3. Missouri Valley, 4. Ohio Valley & Northeast
SEC Tiers: 1. SEC, 2. Sun Belt, 3. Southern, 4. Big South
Pac 10 Tiers: 1. Pac 10, 2. Mountain West, 3. WAC, 4. Big Sky
Conference USA Gets Stronger With Addition of Old Dominion
by asalom on May 18, 2012 7:00 AM MDT
Months ago, when news broke that C-USA was going to lose four of its premier athletics programs, the future of the conference didn't seem so bright. With Houston, Memphis, SMU, and UCF heading to the Big East, Conference USA would lose three of its top football programs, and easily its top program in basketball.
Those losses brought about plenty of questions as to how the conference would survive as a viable player in division 1 athletics. The first option was to merge with a depleted Mountain West to form a completely new league. When that didn't work out, expansion was the only other choice.
Conference USA elected to add 6 schools, in what was perhaps a preemptive strike against further defections. All in all, the conference did pretty well. Granted, the additions don't exactly make up for the losses, but no one should be disappointed with the schools that C-USA brought in, especially the most recent; Old Dominion.
The Dig: Weekender Edition
by asalom on May 18, 2012 6:45 AM MDT
It was a busy week in college athletics, and Miner Nation was no exception. Over the last few days we wrapped up our 2012 basketball recruiting class, and saw Conference USA make a sixth addition for 2013. But, that wasn't the end of it. There's still plenty to talk about, and we'll get right to it in this edition of The Dig.
AROUND MINER NATION
UTEP Softball Players Earn All-Region Honors
Thursday, the National Fastpictch Coaches' Association (NFCA) released their All Midwest Region honorees, and two UTEP softball players were selected to the bunch. Seniors Camilla Carerra and Chelsea troupe were both given the honor, marking the third time each has received it.
Carerra batted .453 on the season, while smashing 32 home runs, and knocking 66 RBIs. Her 32 home runs led the nation, and her batting average was good for 7th. The C/UT player has already been tabbed first team All-Conferene USA, and she was named the C-USA Player of the Year as well.
Troupe, also a C/UT player, had a fantastic season of her own; batting .426, while bombing 19 home runs, and driving in 44 RBIs. She has already been named to the Conference USA All Academic Team. Congratulations to both Camilla Carerra and Chelsea Troupe, and the entire UTEP softball program.
Old Dominion to Join Conference USA in 13'-14'
by asalom on May 17, 2012 10:59 AM MDT
As most already know, officials from Old Dominion University announced this morning that they will be joining Conference USA beginning in the 2013-14 season. ODU will join Charlotte, Florida International, Louisiana Tech, North Texas, and Texas San Antonio as the newest members of C-USA in 2013. Those additions will get the conference to 14 members, likely setting up two 7 team divisions, barring any defections before then.
The move for ODU comes just two days after fellow Colonial Athletic Association member Virginia Commonwealth decided they were bolting for the A-10. VCU however, will be joining the A-10 for 2012-13. CAA bylaws state that ODU will be ineligible to win a conference title this year, or participate in the conference basketball tournament. The expected exit fee for ODU will be $250,000, but the school will likely lose more than that due to the loss of shared postseason revenues.
An official announcement and press conference is expected at 2:30 p.m. ET (12:30 MT) on the school's campus. Expect for more on the specifics of the move to become clear after the presser, and a expect a full writeup on this in the coming days here at MinerRush.
The State of Conference Realignment Address
by asalom on May 17, 2012 7:00 AM MDT
Ready or not, here we go again. A week ago, reports were made, and rumors were spread that Boise State may consider staying in the Mountain West Conference. Apparently, that wasn't exactly the case. The biggest issue for Boise, is where to house their non-football sports. And, after San Diego State lobbied for their new buddies in the Big West to bring them aboard, Boise may be heading East after all. Or West, however you want to look at it.
The Big West Conference has given Boise St. an "assessment tool" given to all prospective candidates, and the conference is expecting to hear back by at least July 1st. The information obtained through that assessment tool will then be taken before the presidents of member universities, and the school must be approved by at least eight of the ten current members.
MadTown Badgers Q&A Segment With MinerRush
Everyone make sure to check out the MadTown Badgers Q&A segment with MinerRush. The University of Wisconsin blog site is doing the pieces with writers representing each of their opposing schools. Check it out.
Ultimate Miners Bracket: (3) 1984 Miners vs (14) 1988 Miners
by PaydirtRenzo on May 16, 2012 1:06 PM MDT
Ah to be a young Miner fan in the 1980's. Beginning in 1984, Don Haskins started a run that saw 8 of the next 9 Miner teams reach the NCAA Tournament. 1984 was the year of Ghostbusters, The Terminator, the Superbowl Champion L.A. Raiders and of course a dominant 9th ranked UTEP Miners team led by Fred Reynolds and Luster Goodwin. 1988 was the year of Die Hard, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, the Superbowl Champion Washington Redskins and of course more excellent basketball from a 1988 squad that featured Chris Sandle, Chris Blocker, Tim Hardaway, Wayne Campbell, and Antonio Davis. The question is which was the better team?
