Monday, March 29, 2010

Is Notre Dame Really the Big 10's #12 Team

Does Notre Dame really want to become the Big 10's #12 school? I really don't think so.

Notre Dame thinks they're better than everyone else.

So what would it take for Notre Dame to join a conference? 2 things; 1 a Big East Collapse, 2 NBC doesn't renew their TV Contract.

Here's quotes from the Kansas City Star today

That’s how we’re approaching this. This is what we’re doing.

“Secondly, the Big East is an extraordinary partner for us. We love the schools we’re with, and they let us be independent in football.

“Having said that, everything is so unusual right now that you can envision situations where the world changes. We hope it doesn’t. We don’t want it to.“But we’re monitoring that.”

The quote I bolted is telling isn't it. It simply shows how much Notre Dame values it Independence in football.

So if Notre Dame isn't the #12 who is and why.

I can't answer those questions but I can come up with a couple of theories.

Just a couple of facts, Pitt has played Notre Dame 66 times. Notre Dame isn't willing to play Syracuse and Rutgers on their own home fields.

Those are very telling to me. I feel Notre Dame is holding the cards in this expansion and not the Big 10. Now we all know that the Big 10 wants Rutgers and that NYC Media Market. But is grabbing Syracuse and Rutgers enough to raise Notre Dame's eyebrow's. I say no.

If Rutgers and Syracuse are the 2 teams invited that's not enough to destroy the Big East. Losing Rutgers doesn't hurt our BCS bid and Syracuse has been in a funk these past 5 years.

So what exactly would really hurt the Big East's standing as a BCS Conference? Losing Pitt and Syracuse would be a start.

But the Big 10 wouldn't get the NYC Market that it wants. So whats next? Could there be a compromise?

I say that Pitt, Rutgers could possibly be the compromise that they're looking for.

Another quote from the KC Star today;

“The traditional model, where a conference had a fixed fee media rights deal, if you added somebody you sliced the pie a little thinner,” Swarbrick said.

“When you’re dealing with equity in a network ... it’s a situation we haven’t had before.”

Notre Dame’s own deal with NBC on televising home football games runs to 2015.

Might that be an an obstacle to joining a conference?“No,” Swarbrick contended. “That’s our greatest asset.”

What exactly was Swarbrick saying there? He was mentioning the TV Deals ect.

This is the closest Notre Dame has come to joining a conference since they played college football. And they're definitely thinking very hard about it.

Again there's going to have to be a compromise to get Notre Dame into the Big 10.

Here's the KC Star article that I was referring to...
http://www.kansascity.com/2010/03/28/1842531/notre-dame-ad-expands-on-big-ten.html#ixzz0jaG1vh7G

Grab a lot of popcorn and enjoy this ride.

Friday, March 19, 2010

The Future of the Big East in Limbo

Point blank, we're worried. We don't know exactly whats going to happen. For all we know the Big 10 takes Mizzou, Texas, A&M. But still the uncertainity is too scary at this point.

No matter what happens the BCS Bid is safe. But after the next evaluations all bets are off.

The majority of Big East fans want to see Memphis, ECU added. I stand in the minority of wanting Temple. I just see their quality hoops program and their future as a football program in a talent rich area. They stunk in the past because their President at the time didn't care about football. Now they got one that cares.

Another problem with the Big East is no one can agree on anything from the Catholics vs All Sports to the All Sports themselfs. The old guard wants to keep the conference more geographically friendly ie Temple, Navy, Army, Boston College, Maryland, Penn St. No matter how realistic or unrealistic those candidates are. The new guard wants to add ECU, Memphis, UAB, S. Miss, UCF. In fact most of the old guard is what keeps the 16 school conference together.

I see alot of good adding Houston and TCU. Especially in keeping our BCS bid. Unfortantately at this point its every school for itself. Most schools are ready to jump at moments notice. Which makes expansion at this point moot. If Memphis was invited tomorrow, i'm sure they'd say no. Here's why. Theres so much uncertaintiy that there may not even be a conference by the time they are set to join.

Until Notre Dame joins a conference the Big East or an all sports conference will be unstable no matter what. Notre Dame unfortanately is the key to our stability. Once they join a conference it'll allow schools like Pitt to grow.

One last point, up until 20 years ago most of the Big East schools was independent. So most of our schools don't know how to act as a cohesive unit just yet. Which explains why alot of our schools are ready to bolt at a moments notice. We're out to do whats best for us and don't care about the other 7.

Monday, March 8, 2010

Should Kids Be Forced to Pay to Play

I was sitting back surfing the net and came across an article on PennLive.com. It somewhat brought up some positives on this issue. But I spilled my coffee anyways.

Why in the world should families have to pay to have their kids play for a school funded activity? It absolutely doesn't makes sense to me. Some families simply can't afford to pay for football and other sports.

I simply don't get this one people. I really don't. Just to think that some athletes wouldn't be in college today if it wasn't for an athletic scholarship. And some hose kids wouldn't even have a shot at an scholarship if they wasn't able to afford to pay to play.

Sure most of these kids aren't going to the NFL. But at least they're earning college degree's in the process. Which means they're going to be thriving members in our society.

I understand things are tough, but why not give some of these kids a chance to change the endless struggle of poverty and crime in our poorest neighborhoods.

Sunday, March 7, 2010

Spring WPIAL 1A Top 10 and Statewide Top 5

1 Clairton
2 Rochester
3 N. Catholic
4 Sto-Rox
5 Canevin
6 Springdale
7 Brentwood
8 Fort Cherry
9 Beth Center
10 Serra

1 Clairton
2 Southern Columbia Area
3 Steelton Highspire
4 Rochester
5 Dunmore

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Does the WPIAL really care about tradition???

All last winter into spring we heard about the WPIAL caring about championship games at Heinz Field because its "OUR" tradition. Then Tim O'Malley was quoted in the Post-Gazette saying we fought hard for the 1 day event because of TV. Why not have 3 games on a Friday and 3 games on Saturday at the same site like a Cal U. FSN wouldn't have to remove their equipment. And all 6 games would still be on TV. Why have these games at Heinz Field with relatively no atmosphere at all when at a college site you can have a much better atmosphere? At the end of the day the kids that win the gold simply won't care where the game is at.

Now during the recent realignment 3 traditional rivalries aren't being played because of the WPIAL's ineptness. If the WPIAL simply moved Waynesburg into the Century, the Wash-Waynesburg game would be played. And at the same time Charleroi and Monessen could've had a chance to play if Frazier would've stayed put in the Blackhills. The only rivalry that wouldn't be played the next 2 seasons, under this scenerio, would be the Aliquippa-Ambridge rivalry.

So why does the WPIAL care about tradition with the championship games and not traditional rivalries. Its because the WPIAL only cares about money. Its sad that Money overrules common sense. Wash High/ Waynesburgh, Aliquippa/ Ambridge, and Charlerio/Monessen games are all games that need to be played every season.

Lets go a step further with the WPIAL's ineptness. How in the world is Clairton and Serra in the Blackhills and Canevin and Cornell in the Eastern? Simply flip flop those 2 combo's and theres simply less travel involved. Plus Canevin has played in the OVC and Blackhills in the past. I simply don't understand why the WPIAL lacks simple common sense. As my man Redman once told me... "Cash rules everything around me, dolla dolla bill ya'll".

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Pitt to Big 10 Rumor

Let me be clear, i'm not down with starting rumors. I'm just commenting on the rumor from last month with my personal opinion on it. Plus as a Pitt fan I may have some homer opinions on this but i'm going to be as objective as possible.

My first thoughts are, is regaining the Penn St. rivalry worth losing the Backyard Brawl and the basketball rivalries with Villanova, Georgetown and UConn.

Money makes the world go around doesn't it. Thats what this whole Big 10 expansion is about. Can Pitt generate enough revenue for the rest of the league to at least break even?

I think the Big 10 does more for Pitt than Pitt does for the Big 10. Ohio St, Michigan, and Penn St. will obviously get Pitt fans excited and those games will be sold out games. The rest of Big 10 i'm not too sure about.

The most unfortanate part about expansion rumors are that money means more than tradition. Utah(another rumor) leaving the MWC could possibly end the Holy War with BYU. Its an exciting time right now but also depressing as the entire College Football landscape can change in front of our eyes.

Expansion Expansion Expansion

What a crazy time we live in right now. We're hearing about 2012 as the end of the world and also the demise of Eastern Football as a whole.

When I think of Big East football as a whole, I always think of the league that could've been. If Miami, Virginia Tech and BC haven't left and the Big East added Loiusville, the league would be viewed as a much stronger league than it is today. Or what if Joe Pa would've gotten his way and the all sports conference he proposed would've formed. But with that said Penn St would most likely be in the Big 10 today anyways and ditto w/ Miami and company in the ACC. Even still with that said a league like that still wouldn't stop Syracuse, Rutgers or Pitt from going to the Big 10.

Right now the hot name is Rutgers, a few weeks ago it was Texas, and a month ago it was Pitt. Even though it was the Chicago Trib that dropped the article about Rutgers, i'm still not buying it. Why do you ask? I'm not buying it because the article was more of a editoral than legit info. But at the same time, with the article coming out of Chicago it definately raises an eyebrow.

At the end of the day none of us knows really whats going to happen just yet. Even my blog it simply speculation, so take it for what it is. Just another man's opinion. Thanks for spending your time reading. And I hope you return to my blog as I write more blogs on various topics involving college sports and high school sports.