So it appears that the Big East may go out in one giant clusterf**k.
The presidents of the Big East’s seven Catholic, non-Football Bowl Subdivision schools are expected to decide on their future in the Big East in the coming days, and it “would be an upset” if they remained in the league, sources told ESPN.
The seven schools — DePaul, Georgetown, Marquette, Providence, St. John’s, Seton Hall and Villanova — are “close to a consensus on what they want to do next,” a source said Wednesday.
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Sources said Wednesday it’s becoming “more likely” the basketball schools will break away from the league’s football members.
It’s unknown whether they would attempt to dissolve the league or leave the league as a group. The league can be dissolved in a vote of the league members by a two-thirds majority, according to Big East bylaws. With all of the Big East’s recent defections, there are only 10 members (the seven non-FBS schools, plus Cincinnati, UConn and South Florida) that can vote on the league dissolving.
A source told ESPN on Wednesday that Temple, as a football-only member, has voting rights but can’t vote on dissolution of the league. With Temple unable to vote, that gives the seven basketball schools enough votes to dissolve the league.
Sources said there are multiple legal entanglements that make the voting situation “complex.”
And if they vote to dissolve the lawsuits that follow will be epic. Most likely including ones from Pitt and Syracuse over exit fees already paid and to be paid.
But surely there is a voice out there in the Big East that seeks to guide everyone back to unity?
UConn president Susan Herbst has contacted officials from the non-FBS Big East members, pleading with them to stay in the league, sources told ESPN.
BWAH-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So how soon could this all go down?
One source familiar with the talks among the Catholic schools said that break up of the Big East could happen in the next few days. “”We expect the Big East to blow up tomorrow,” said the source.
Apparently they would re-form as 10-team conference. Presumably plucking Xavier, Butler and some other A-10 team (St. Louis?).
The sadly funny thing if this went down? Seeing the programs like Nova, St. John’s, Georgetown and Marquette turning on Seton Hall, DePaul and Providence over money. And that will happen. The top-four programs have all sunk real money into their programs and facilities. The other three have lived off the past and done little for the future. You don’t think that’s been noticed.
It’s going to be gloriously ugly.
I suspect JR’s question is the centerpiece of the legal entaglements as “brand” is classified as “goodwill” in the ethereal sense while the IP rights are more earthly. In short, who keeps the “Big East” name and who gets assigned what contracts, etc…
It will be a feeding frenzy for lawyers and accountants no doubt.
Thank God Pitt got out early. If its payments are scheduled, but not yet delivered, all it does is deposit its funds into escrow (either court appointed or acknowledged) and move on.
Whew, this was a close one.
One winner in all of this might be Duquesne.
A real commish — one that was both a leader and a visionary — would have seen that the Small Catholich Hoops-only League of Schools (“SCHOOLS”) was threatening to drag down the entire ship, and pressed for a divorce. Heck, even Bob Smizik saw that as the solution in a blog post a few years back!
But Marinatto had a conflict of interest, because one of the teams he’d hafta set adrift with SCHOOLS was his Beloved Providence. Secondly, he had a conflict of intelligence because (again, there’s a Providence thread) he simply didn’t see that football was king, while hoops (altho fun) simply pales in comparison revenue-wise.
If the Big East had a football guy (or at least NOT a hoops-only guy…), they might have forseen the toxic impact of the SCHOOLS voting against football growth, or voting that elevating ‘Nova was the solution, etc and taken action.
And had that happened, the Big East might still have all the defectors plus TCU & Temple, plus the incoming Texas & Florida schools, they’d be thriving — maybe as good or better than the ACC even WITH the defectors. Looks like maybe now we’ll never know.
Totally makes sense to me, especially since it is about TV share and money.
It was a party that they were probably better off not coming to.
they dont need the BB schools there tv contract will be larger than any the bb schools will get.
plus they will have some really good BB them selves memphis u conn cinci houston temple sdus.
it will be just more money for the 12 football schools football pays the bills.
i dont think the tv people care what the name of the conmference is they just want the games
call it the american conference who cares
if they stick togther they win.
Pretty much the last 10 years or so, the football schools, also had the 5 or 6 best basketball programs too.
plus if the 7 bb schools go there own way 7 schools wont get a big tv contract and they cant be sure any outher bb schools will join them.
they will cut there own head off.plus as has been pointed out 4 of the 7 have not been wining programs in years so who wants to watch them on
tv they are liveing in the past they need to wake up they have nothing to sell with out u conn and memphis and temple they are better with them then with out them.
Sorry BE, you snooze you lose.
Conference USA should have received the BCS bid a few years after UM, VT & BC left. Instead the Big East got Louisville and Cincinnati, who carried the conference (with WVU) on the football side. When the BE explodes, CUSA should get the BCS slot.
Pitt will soon be out of this mess forever…what a blessing.
ownership of the Big East brand?