Conference Realignment Thread v. 2016

[stever20]

I don't know too much about UCONN's roster. But they only made the tournament last year because of an autobid so they weren't that good to start with.

They would have made it w/o the autobid. There were around 10 teams that got in the tourney after they did. After they beat Cincy in the tourney, they were a 100% lock.

[Jet915]

I don't know too much about UCONN's roster. But they only made the tournament last year because of an autobid so they weren't that good to start with.

They would have made it w/o the autobid. There were around 10 teams that got in the tourney after they did. After they beat Cincy in the tourney, they were a 100% lock.

UCONN's saving grace this year is their tournament is in Hartford so they always can win their conference tournament.

[TAMU Eagle]

I have a feeling that teams like Wake Forest, BC, etc. will be left out of the major football landscape and these are the teams we will have to scoop up. There have already been articles about how they may get pushed out of the ACC some way or another. It can happen...

No - it can't - unless the school deliberately decides to violate the ACC Constitution, and there is no incentive for any ACC team to do so.

ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE CONSTITUTION - Article IV. Membership

Bottom of Page 20: Section IV-4. Expulsion/Suspension/Probation of Members.

A member institution may be expelled, suspended or placed on probation by the Conference only upon the favorable
vote of three-fourths (excluding the member under consideration) of the members. To expel means a complete severance
from the Conference in all sports. To suspend means a temporary severance under stated conditions from the Conference
in one (1) or more sports.

Among the reasons a member institution may be expelled, suspended or placed on probation for good cause is if it no
longer participates in one or more sports which are required for membership in the Conference or if the member is required
by the NCAA to discontinue such required sport because of violations of NCAA regulations or becomes incompatible with
the objectives of the Conference.

In the event of expulsion, the Conference must provide the member institution with the specific reasons for expulsion
and one year notice (on or before August 15 of any year in which event the expulsion shall be effective the following June
30). The institution will be assessed or paid a proportionate share of the fixed liabilities or assets of the Conference and will
receive a proportionate share of that year’s distribution.

In the event of suspension or probation, the Conference may enforce penalties immediately.

In any sport in which a member is ineligible for postseason play because of violations of NCAA or Conference
regulations, the member may be suspended in that sport. If suspended, the member shall not be eligible for the Conference
championship in that sport. The institution may be required to forfeit its share of any or all Conference revenues generated
by that sport.

Rich get richer in college sports as poorer schools struggle to keep up - ESPN - September 6, 2016

The nation's richest athletic departments -- those in the Power Five conferences -- pulled in a record $6 billion last year, nearly $4 billion more than all other schools combined. The gulf between college sports' haves and have-nots has never been greater.

Those of you who believe that a school will voluntarily leave a Power Five Conference (or deliberately be expelled from one) are wasting your time.

I don't speak legaleese, but reading this makes me think that you can just vote members out. The language is "among the reasons for expulsion" not "the only reasons for expulsion". Later it just requires the conference to give the expelled school a list of reasons. Not what those reasons must be.

To be clear, I don't think it would happen. I also am not an expert and totally could be reading it wrong. But I think a conference can choose to vote members out

[NJRedman]

I have a feeling that teams like Wake Forest, BC, etc. will be left out of the major football landscape and these are the teams we will have to scoop up. There have already been articles about how they may get pushed out of the ACC some way or another. It can happen...

No - it can't - unless the school deliberately decides to violate the ACC Constitution, and there is no incentive for any ACC team to do so.

ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE CONSTITUTION - Article IV. Membership

Bottom of Page 20: Section IV-4. Expulsion/Suspension/Probation of Members.

A member institution may be expelled, suspended or placed on probation by the Conference only upon the favorable
vote of three-fourths (excluding the member under consideration) of the members. To expel means a complete severance
from the Conference in all sports. To suspend means a temporary severance under stated conditions from the Conference
in one (1) or more sports.

Among the reasons a member institution may be expelled, suspended or placed on probation for good cause is if it no
longer participates in one or more sports which are required for membership in the Conference or if the member is required
by the NCAA to discontinue such required sport because of violations of NCAA regulations or becomes incompatible with
the objectives of the Conference.

In the event of expulsion, the Conference must provide the member institution with the specific reasons for expulsion
and one year notice (on or before August 15 of any year in which event the expulsion shall be effective the following June
30). The institution will be assessed or paid a proportionate share of the fixed liabilities or assets of the Conference and will
receive a proportionate share of that year’s distribution.

In the event of suspension or probation, the Conference may enforce penalties immediately.

In any sport in which a member is ineligible for postseason play because of violations of NCAA or Conference
regulations, the member may be suspended in that sport. If suspended, the member shall not be eligible for the Conference
championship in that sport. The institution may be required to forfeit its share of any or all Conference revenues generated
by that sport.

Rich get richer in college sports as poorer schools struggle to keep up - ESPN - September 6, 2016

The nation's richest athletic departments -- those in the Power Five conferences -- pulled in a record $6 billion last year, nearly $4 billion more than all other schools combined. The gulf between college sports' haves and have-nots has never been greater.

Those of you who believe that a school will voluntarily leave a Power Five Conference (or deliberately be expelled from one) are wasting your time.

I don't speak legaleese, but reading this makes me think that you can just vote members out. The language is "among the reasons for expulsion" not "the only reasons for expulsion". Later it just requires the conference to give the expelled school a list of reasons. Not what those reasons must be.

To be clear, I don't think it would happen. I also am not an expert and totally could be reading it wrong. But I think a conference can choose to vote members out

None of them would ever do that since it opens up a can of worms both legally and setting the precedent that could go against them down the road.

[billyjack]

UConn beat Cincinnati by hitting a 75 foot buzzer shot that sent it into overtime.
Otherwise they would've been right on the bubble.

[stever20]

UConn beat Cincinnati by hitting a 75 foot buzzer shot that sent it into overtime.
Otherwise they would've been right on the bubble.

I don't disagree. But after they hit that shot, they were in the tourney regardless. They didn't need the Auto Bid to make the tourney, just to win that 1st game.

[Bill Marsh]

I have a feeling that teams like Wake Forest, BC, etc. will be left out of the major football landscape and these are the teams we will have to scoop up. There have already been articles about how they may get pushed out of the ACC some way or another. It can happen...

No - it can't - unless the school deliberately decides to violate the ACC Constitution, and there is no incentive for any ACC team to do so.

ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE CONSTITUTION - Article IV. Membership

Bottom of Page 20: Section IV-4. Expulsion/Suspension/Probation of Members.

A member institution may be expelled, suspended or placed on probation by the Conference only upon the favorable
vote of three-fourths (excluding the member under consideration) of the members. To expel means a complete severance
from the Conference in all sports. To suspend means a temporary severance under stated conditions from the Conference
in one (1) or more sports.

Among the reasons a member institution may be expelled, suspended or placed on probation for good cause is if it no
longer participates in one or more sports which are required for membership in the Conference or if the member is required
by the NCAA to discontinue such required sport because of violations of NCAA regulations or becomes incompatible with
the objectives of the Conference.

In the event of expulsion, the Conference must provide the member institution with the specific reasons for expulsion
and one year notice (on or before August 15 of any year in which event the expulsion shall be effective the following June
30). The institution will be assessed or paid a proportionate share of the fixed liabilities or assets of the Conference and will
receive a proportionate share of that year’s distribution.

In the event of suspension or probation, the Conference may enforce penalties immediately.

In any sport in which a member is ineligible for postseason play because of violations of NCAA or Conference
regulations, the member may be suspended in that sport. If suspended, the member shall not be eligible for the Conference
championship in that sport. The institution may be required to forfeit its share of any or all Conference revenues generated
by that sport.

Rich get richer in college sports as poorer schools struggle to keep up - ESPN - September 6, 2016

The nation's richest athletic departments -- those in the Power Five conferences -- pulled in a record $6 billion last year, nearly $4 billion more than all other schools combined. The gulf between college sports' haves and have-nots has never been greater.

Those of you who believe that a school will voluntarily leave a Power Five Conference (or deliberately be expelled from one) are wasting your time.

I don't speak legaleese, but reading this makes me think that you can just vote members out. The language is "among the reasons for expulsion" not "the only reasons for expulsion". Later it just requires the conference to give the expelled school a list of reasons. Not what those reasons must be.

To be clear, I don't think it would happen. I also am not an expert and totally could be reading it wrong. But I think a conference can choose to vote members out

No, that's not what it means. The very phrase, "Among the reasons . . ." clearly indicates that there must be reasons. In other words, in order for a member to be dismissed, there must be cause.

The potential causes for dismissal must be part of the agreement, not something just plucked out of thin air. In addition to the reasons specifically stated in that section, there are a number of institutional responsibilities spelled out elsewhere in the by-laws, i.e. compliance with NCAA rules and regulations, sportsmanship, transfer students, academic standards, financial responsibilities, etc. Failure in any of those areas could be considered grounds for expulsion. But even there, the conference must be consistent in applying the death penalty. For example, they have ignored North Carolina's fake courses in the African American Studies Dept, so they couldn't turn around and expel another school for doing the same thing.

[Bill Marsh]

UConn beat Cincinnati by hitting a 75 foot buzzer shot that sent it into overtime.
Otherwise they would've been right on the bubble.

That's why we love tournament time. In the words of an old sage, "I'd rather be lucky than good."

[muskienick]

What about a case where the P5 conferences work up a mutually agreeable arrangement where they reconfigure themselves to form four 16-member Conferences. Those 5 conferences now have a total of 65 members (not counting Notre Dame. (to bring their Conferences to 16 members each) and the 2 weakest combine their best 16 to form a 4th conference of 16 members.

Basically, we now have two conferences, the AAC and the (new) Big East because of a negotiation between the FB- and BB-centric members of the (old) Big East. Each of the two differing types of members (football and basketball) attracted new, similarly motivated members to form their new conferences.

Would the agreement between the Big 12 and ACC to to form a brand new conference (simply for the chance for the majority of their members to be a part of the newly-formed Power 4 x 16) be the avenue to the next big Conference Realignment?

Obviously, 1 or 2 power 5 schools will be left out of the Power 4. The prime candidates for exclusion would be BC or Wake of the ACC and K State, Iowa St, TCU, or Texas Tech of the Big 12 (and maybe even Kansas) and who knows, Rutgers of the BiG or Vandy of the SEC or Oregon St of the PAC

Here's how things could play out in a less-than-perfect world:
Pac 16: Arizona, Arizona St, Cal, Colorado, Kansas. Oklahoma, OK St, Oregon, Oregon St, Stanford, Texas, UCLA, USC, Utah, Washington, Wash St
Big 16: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan St, Minnesota, Nebraska, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Ohio St, Penn St, Purdue, Rutgers, Virginia, Wisconsin
SEC: Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Florida, Fla. St, Georgia, Kentucky, LSU, Ole Miss. Miss St, Missouri, So. Carolina, Tenn, TAMU, UNC, Vandy
New 16: Baylor, Clemson, Duke, Ga Tech, Iowa St, Kansas St, Louisville, Miami, NC St, Pitt, Syracuse, TCU, Texas Tech, Va Tech, Wake F, WVU

I think I'm screwing something up since the current Power 5 has a total of 65 football teams NOT COUNTING Notre Dame. I've omitted BC from the above scenario and added ND, but I count only 64 total members of the 4 x 16 as shown above. The "New 16" would consist of the survivors of the Big 12 and ACC who were not placed elsewhere. But they should be pleased to still be a part of the "Big Boys of Football"!

I know, it's a crap-shoot. But is was kind of fun throwing it together.

[EMT]

UConn beat Cincinnati by hitting a 75 foot buzzer shot that sent it into overtime.
Otherwise they would've been right on the bubble.

That's why we love tournament time. In the words of an old sage, "I'd rather be lucky than good."

I'm in favor of choosing the NCAA tourney bids prior to the conference championships. IMO, that gives you the best field of 64. You grab the best mid-majors instead of the upset bids and you don't reward the team that gets hot or has a favorable matchup in their conference tourney.