Conference Realignment Thread v. 2016

[NJRedman]

I said it before and will say it again. 3 top 10 teams...30% of college basketball's top 10 teams are right here in the Big East. If you want to split hairs and say Creighton is #12 not #10 then fine but it makes no real difference. They are a top 10 team. A few other programs right here in the Big East are receiving votes in the top 25 and Seton Hall/Butler will likely be ranked soon if they get a signature win. That would be the 4th ranked team in a 10 team conference. The AAC has zero, 0, zilch, nada, no teams in the top 25 and even when they do get the occasional ranked team, it's usually not a top 10 team. We have 3. Memphis lost its luster, Cincy was dropped from rankings, UConn is mediocre by their standards post-realignment, SMU lost Brown and it will put them back to irrelevance soon if not immediately. By the way, all this while G'Town has been way down and SJ has been disappointing. Just imagine the conference if those programs re-emerge as real powers.

Like I said, if you want to speak about the AAC and Big East in any equal terms, you are nuts. Even Obama shouted out old Georgetown rivalry games in his speech the other day giving out awards. The AAC has zero prestige. We have plenty.

yes the Big East has prestige and has played competitively but at the end of the day you succeed based on ratings and the Big East lacks interest. It lacks interest because it lacks interesting rivalries. Rivalries are primarily driven by close proximity, Public vs Private or both. The Big East has neither. I'm a Butler Fan and I would much rather watch the crossroads classic than any Big East game.
Interesting rivalries:
Duke-UNC
UCLA-USC
Stanford - Cal
Utah BYU
Oklahoma Oklahoma State
Alabama Auburn
Xavier Cincinnati.

Even in the old Big East
UConn Georgetown
UConn. BC
Pitt West Virginia.

The primary reason to invite Publics is to create interesting rivalries. Creighton Wichita State would be a top rated game on Fox. GeorgeTown VCU or UConn. Right now the league is homogenous and not merely as interesting as it could be. The ratings for the Big East reflect that fact.
http://www.sportsmediawatch.com/2016/03 ... asketball/

Hahaha guy, you don't know jack about the old Big East. UConn/BC and UConn/GTown as the top former rivalries?

[Xavier4036]

Yea, that's it. FOX just needs to get some more big-time college basketball games like Auburn vs Alabama or Oklahoma vs Oklahoma State or Bostonian College vs UConn to draw the big viewership.

That's so out there, it sounds like something Stever would come up with.

[Sactowndog]

Yea, that's it. FOX just needs to get some more big-time college basketball games like Auburn vs Alabama or Oklahoma vs Oklahoma State or Bostonian College vs UConn to draw the big viewership.

That's so out there, it sounds like something Stever would come up with.

Fine you tell me how you explain the low ratings.

[FenwayFriar]

Yea, that's it. FOX just needs to get some more big-time college basketball games like Auburn vs Alabama or Oklahoma vs Oklahoma State or Bostonian College vs UConn to draw the big viewership.

That's so out there, it sounds like something Stever would come up with.

Fine you tell me how you explain the low ratings.

You must be new here. There's a thread called "Fox Sports 1 update." It has 237 pages. You'll find your answer regarding the ratings after reading this. Based on the rivalries you mentioned with the old Big East, you're as misinformed about FS1 as you are about the old Big East.

[Sactowndog]

Yea, that's it. FOX just needs to get some more big-time college basketball games like Auburn vs Alabama or Oklahoma vs Oklahoma State or Bostonian College vs UConn to draw the big viewership.

That's so out there, it sounds like something Stever would come up with.

Fine you tell me how you explain the low ratings.

You must be new here. There's a thread called "Fox Sports 1 update." It has 237 pages. You'll find your answer regarding the ratings after reading this. Based on the rivalries you mentioned with the old Big East, you're as misinformed about FS1 as you are about the old Big East.

Not new more an intermittent poster. And I did grab the thread you mentioned and saw this post by @mupather but not a single response:
Saturday
1.49 rating CBS 1:00 pm Michigan vs Purdue (Big Ten Tournament)
1.94 rating CBS 3:30 pm Michigan State vs Maryland (Big Ten Tournament)
1.08 rating CBS 6:00 pm (Mountain West Championship)
0.98 rating FOX 5:30 pm Seton Hall vs Villanova (Big East Championship)
Sunday
1.11 rating CBS 12:30 pm St Joe's vs VCU (Atlantic 10 Championship)
2.38 rating CBS 3:00 pm Michigan State vs Purdue (Big Ten Championship)

When your eventual national champion from a more populous area gets a lower ratings number then Fresno/SDSU it should indicate something is wrong. When the A10 from that area does get better ratings, it should really raise some eyebrows. And yet not a peep. Given the quality of teams and players in the league it should have garnered at least a 1.3. Heck Creighton - Wichita State drew a .7 in 2013 and Louisville Syracuse drew a 2.1. So the Big East plays like a P5 and draws likable a mid tier G5. Why?

My theory is this conference is about as diverse and interesting storyline wise as the Stepford wives. Heck, perhaps Butler should start a relationship with the Jesuits so they can more fit in. Do a Google search it's already a prominent question. When Creighton Wichita State draws almost as well from farmland it's because people know those teams hate each other and they watch.

So since no one bothered to respond and tried to lay the blame on Fox Sports 1 despite the fact this game was on Fox, I am curious what is your response. Everyone bitches about Stever but he does at least look at things with an unbiased eye. The Big East is succeeding admirably on the field and in recruiting. But it's failing comparatively in TV viewership.

[NJRedman]

That's so out there, it sounds like something Stever would come up with.

Fine you tell me how you explain the low ratings.

You must be new here. There's a thread called "Fox Sports 1 update." It has 237 pages. You'll find your answer regarding the ratings after reading this. Based on the rivalries you mentioned with the old Big East, you're as misinformed about FS1 as you are about the old Big East.

Not new more an intermittent poster. And I did grab the thread you mentioned and saw this post by @mupather but not a single response:
Saturday
1.49 rating CBS 1:00 pm Michigan vs Purdue (Big Ten Tournament)
1.94 rating CBS 3:30 pm Michigan State vs Maryland (Big Ten Tournament)
1.08 rating CBS 6:00 pm (Mountain West Championship)
0.98 rating FOX 5:30 pm Seton Hall vs Villanova (Big East Championship)
Sunday
1.11 rating CBS 12:30 pm St Joe's vs VCU (Atlantic 10 Championship)
2.38 rating CBS 3:00 pm Michigan State vs Purdue (Big Ten Championship)

When your eventual national champion from a more populous area gets a lower ratings number then Fresno/SDSU it should indicate something is wrong. When the A10 from that area does get better ratings, it should really raise some eyebrows. And yet not a peep. This conference is about as diverse and interesting storyline wise as the Stepford wives. Heck, perhaps Butler should start a relationship with the Jesuits so they can more fit in. Do a Google search it's already a prominent question.

So since no one bothered to respond and tried to lay the blame on Fox Sports 1 despite the fact this game was on Fox, I am curious what is your response. Everyone bitches about Stever but he does at least look at things with an unbiased eye. The Big East is succeeding admirably on the field and in recruiting. But it's failing comparatively in TV viewership.[/quote]

So the B1G is as diverse as the Stepford Wives too because it's all state schools? NYC and Omaha aren't very similar. Neither is Chicago and Providence or Philly and Indianapolis.

It's easy. We are very small schools with very small alumni bases. We aren't state or city schools with large amounts of students filtering through each year.

P.S. Hey Stever, trying out the new handle today?

[Sactowndog]

Your Big 10 reply ignores:
1) they have Northwestern and interstate rivalries. The Big East has neither of these items. Northwestern would be better if they were actually any good. Imagine if the Big 10 grabbed Notre Dame when they had a chance. Michigan Notre Dame as a league game draws interest. Heck, the Crossroads Classic draws interest.

2) Your explanation also ignores why the MWC game and the A-10 championship game out drew you. Neither of those are from Big State flagships.

[billyjack]

Your Big 10 reply ignores:
1) they have Northwestern and interstate rivalries. The Big East has neither of these items. Northwestern would be better if they were actually any good. Imagine if the Big 10 grabbed Notre Dame when they had a chance. Michigan Notre Dame as a league game draws interest. Heck, the Crossroads Classic draws interest.

2) Your explanation also ignores why the MWC game and the A-10 championship game out drew you. Neither of those are from Big State flagships.

The FS1 thread is 237 pages long, and we've discussed everything in depth continuously.

Summary:
- ratings continue to rise, slowly.
- FS1 is getting more and more attention. The Cubs playoff run helps too.
- Our NYC and Chicago teams have struggled. Our Washington team could be better.

The Other Stuff:
- viewers want to see good basketball... I can't imagine the Catholic vs State School angle is a big factor... the highest rated game was the 85 Sweater Game between 2 Catholic schools.
- our fans extend beyond just the alumni base in each of our cities.
- our rivalries are city vs city... major metro areas in the Northeast and Midwest.
- starting in 2013, we had a list of like 75 things we needed to check off, and we've accomplished 72 of them almost perfectly... one of the remaining things is to boost ratings... another is to build our NY and Chicago teams... both of these will eventually happen.

[TAMU Eagle]

We will never compete with any public school for TV ratings. There are less and less general college basketball fans every year. Most fans now watch their team and no other games. The schools with the larger alumni bases will always have higher ratings.

I still watch college basketball for fun, no matter if Marquette is playing or not. But in the NFL I watch the packers and that's it. I used to watch football all Sunday. The rise of steaming services means there are so many more options for entertainment. The fact that fs1s ratings are rising at all is a miracle.

[gtmoBlue]

Sactowndog...
Good point irt rivalries.

That ratings horse has been beaten sufficiently several times over. Fox is getting better, the conference is getting better. Perhaps it is a matter of viewers appreciating the BE game, wanting to watch our top teams play? I don't know just what prescription, what rivalry we currently have, that addresses your issue. The conference still has some good rivalries, but a couple of the marquee name teams (St Johns, Georgetown) need to step up their production.

Without being critical... Expansion seems to be on hold (perhaps out of the question), so that is not a "fix". What do you propose as a potential solution?