Whoa... Could this be true?!?

This is what I posted on Dodd's board. I understand the 10-12 team conference mentality. My opinion is just different:
I completely understand this point of view. I guess I'm just different. Besides Marquette, I've become a fan of the style of play that teams play, not the name on the front of their jersey. For me, it's far more entertaining, seeing different styles clashing, than it is two big name teams playing each other. With the sixteen team conference that I have set up, I think all those teams are going to bring it, and will be the most attractive hoops conference. Some teams will have off years, but they will rebound. Look at UConn. Sure, some teams might always be last, but that happens in every conference. Look at Penn St or Nebraska. I think Marquette, playing so many different teams with so many different styles is not only entertaining to me, but will best prepare them for anyone, come March.

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Originally Posted by Mucrisco

Gus Johnson is on Fox now, isn't he?

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He is the lead voice for Fox college football. Fox owns 49% of BTN.

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Originally Posted by Mucrisco

This is still my ideal.

Go 16, Four divisions, home and home in your division, one vs rest of conference.

Butler
Marquette
DePaul
Dayton

St. Joe's
Georgetown
Nova
VCU

Providence
St John's
Seton Hall
Xavier

Zags
SLU
Creighton
St. Mary's

St Joe's is the only school that doesn't excite me. If we could somehow replace St Joe's with Temple or Memphis...

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Why is the world do you want St. Mary's? This league is for all sports. Travel will be a nightmare.

I've been to St Mary's when I travelled with the women's team. I figure they'd be a good traveling partner with the Zags. If you make one trip out there, you might as well knock off two games, like we use to do with the women, since our road trips were from Thursday to Sunday with two games. When we visited there, it was a beautiful school, in a great location, and their basketball team has had success recently. With a higher profile conference, no reason why their other sports can't do the same.

Also, the travel doesn't concern me as far as Marquette is concerned. When I travelled with the women, we use to make thurs-sun trips to Southern Miss and Tulane, then a wed-sun trip to Charlotte and Tampa the following week. The team does travel with a tutor who proctors tests etc, so no one fell that far behind. The women's team was smart! As a group, they are as successful, if not more successful than any group at Marquette. It would be tougher for the Zags, but if they want in, I say let them. Maybe St Mary's would ease their travel and could keep a rival for them. Still, it looks like none of this will happen anyway.

Good points Mucrisco!

How would St. John's or Seton Hall feel about this? That is far travel, which is my worry.

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Originally Posted by Markedman

The reason I like 10-12 is more practical. Once you add teams you really can't get rid of them. If you go to 14-16 now and football keeps doing it's thing there may be a time when Lousiville/Uconn/Syracuse/ND want back in assuming the AC implodes.


It may not happen but I'd want to keep my options open at least for a few years.

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I'm leaning towards no more than 12 with a 16 game conference season and use those two "extra" NC games to schedule aggressively(one home/one away), much like Gonzaga does, to keep the conference RPI up. We are losing some real strong teams from the BE that will right off the bat lower our RPI so we have to make it up a bit somehow.

I guess you could go with 2 six team divisions (2 games against each division opponent and one against each of the other division teams), but not really necessary - would give you more flexibility from year to year on those mirror games - MU would likely be in the other division from GT, SJU, Nova - I would like to still have home and home with these guys on fairly regular basis.

I'm assuming the TV Network that they end with would want an 18 game conference though. Will be interesting to see how the dust settles on all this.

I remember last year I think hearing an interview with Broeker and he said already then knowing what the Big East was going to be like(some defections had already occurred) that their out of conference schedules were going to have to get tougher.