Conference Re-Alignment Thread Part Who Knows

[acts238shaun]

Re: A&M to the SEC starting to blow up again on Twitter

Missouri to the SEC actually makes a lot of sense because of the St. Louis and Kansas City markets (actually, I'm not sure about Kansas City. I have a friend from there that says Missouri is the big name there, so I'm taking her word for it.) It also makes sense because Missouri is the university that started this flirting with other conferences business. You can't go half way and then get weak kneed.

If it's true about 16 teams, I wonder how divisions will be set up then. Should be interesting to watch.

A&M and Mizzou in the West, Clemson and FSU to the East.

[Hoosiers86IU]

Re: A&M to the SEC starting to blow up again on Twitter

If SEC invites A&M, Clemson, FSU, and Missouri, I see the rest of the Big 12 going in these directions...

Kansas, Kansas St, Iowa St to Big East

Oklahoma, Oklahoma St, Texas, Texas Tech to Pac 16

Baylor- Mountain West or C-USA

[Redacted01]

Re: A&M to the SEC starting to blow up again on Twitter

I'm guessing there will be 4 divisions. Play 3 teams in your division and 2 from other 3 divisions and have 9 conference games every year.

Better not be no stinkin pods from the WAC days. 2 divisions. 8 teams each.

[crayzman]

Re: A&M to the SEC starting to blow up again on Twitter

Well, might as well throw my predictions out there.

OU & OSU - Pac 12//Big Ten
Kansas & Kansas St. - Big East
Texas - Pac 12//Big Ten//Indy
Texas Tech - Pac 12//MWC
Baylor - MWC//C-USA
Iowa St. - C-USA

[Cusefan]

Re: A&M to the SEC starting to blow up again on Twitter

If SEC invites A&M, Clemson, FSU, and Missouri, I see the rest of the Big 12 going in these directions...

Kansas, Kansas St, Iowa St to Big East

Oklahoma, Oklahoma St, Texas, Texas Tech to Pac 16

Baylor- Mountain West or C-USA

I am not sure the Big East would want Iowa St as they really do not add much. If these rumors are in fact true, the Big East(with TCU) will be in a better position that the ACC. Without Clemson and FSU, The ACC will not be in a position of power to lure away any Big East teams. The Big East may have played their hand brilliantly, coming out of this mess as the 4th best overall conference...

[Redacted01]

Re: A&M to the SEC starting to blow up again on Twitter

Well, might as well throw my predictions out there.

OU & OSU - Pac 12//Big Ten
Kansas & Kansas St. - Big East
Texas - Pac 12//Big Ten//Indy
Texas Tech - Pac 12//MWC
Baylor - MWC//C-USA
Iowa St. - C-USA

Can't happen. Big Ten wants AAU institutions (with the exception of Notre Dame of course). Iowa State would be more likely than those 2 unless the Big Ten changes their tune. Nebraska was just booted from the AAU, so maybe they'll start making exceptions, but NU was a long time member before that.

[Perfect Zero]

Re: A&M to the SEC starting to blow up again on Twitter

I edited my post from earlier, but I think I need to re-post it so that it could be read. It's quite long...

Spoiler

WESTERN DIVISION
Arkansas
Louisiana State
Missouri
Texas A&M

CENTRAL DIVISION
Alabama
Auburn
Mississippi
Mississippi State

ATLANTIC DIVISION
Florida
Florida State
Georgia
South Carolina

NORTHER DIVISION
Clemson
Kentucky
Tennessee
Vanderbilt

A team plays their own division every year plus teams from another division on a rotating schedule. That makes for seven games, and for the two other games you would play one team from each division that you're not playing who finished in the same position as your team did the year before.

For example, let's say that for year one, Texas A&M finishes in second place, and that the Western Division plays the Atlantic Division in this rotation. That means that they would play their divisional opponents (Louisiana State, Arkansas, and Missouri), the teams from the Atlantic Division (Georgia, Florida, Florida State and South Carolina), and two teams from the Divisions that they are not playing in full who finished in the same position as they did in the previous year (let's say that Mississippi and Clemson finished in second, so A&M would play them). Like I said, it would provide variety, and it would be like the conferences in the NFL. It would screw with some rivalries, but that's to be expected in a conference like this. It would also provide three out of conference games (Texas and two others).

I don't think that there will be two divisions. I think that four divisions is a must if you want to have some sort of variety. It's going to kill some rivalries, but I think just about everyone is suffering from that.

[Redacted01]

Re: A&M to the SEC starting to blow up again on Twitter

Yea, I don't see Clemson joining only to have the SC/Clemson rivalry killed because of the setup. Same with Bama/Tennessee, Auburn/LSU, Florida/LSU, Bama/LSU... you get the idea.

[crayzman]

Re: A&M to the SEC starting to blow up again on Twitter

Can't happen. Big Ten wants AAU institutions (with the exception of Notre Dame of course). Iowa State would be more likely than those 2 unless the Big Ten changes their tune. Nebraska was just booted from the AAU, so maybe they'll start making exceptions, but NU was a long time member before that.

Yeah, I should've put "Pac 12////////////////////////////Big Ten"

Only way I see OU & OSU in the Big Ten is if just Texas isn't enough for ND to commit.

[Perfect Zero]

Re: A&M to the SEC starting to blow up again on Twitter

Yea, I don't see Clemson joining only to have the SC/Clemson rivalry killed because of the setup. Same with Bama/Tennessee, Auburn/LSU, Florida/LSU, Bama/LSU... you get the idea.

But you can't have two divisions when all you play is your division. I think that many of the SEC schools know that if they do go the direction of sixteen teams, they are going to have to kill some rivalries. By using a rotating schedule, you'll face a team at least once every three years. If you don't, you WILL kill off some rivalries no matter what.

[simgamer0005]

Re: A&M to the SEC starting to blow up again on Twitter

I'm guessing there will be 4 divisions. Play 3 teams in your division and 2 from other 3 divisions and have 9 conference games every year.

Texas A&M, Florida State, Missouri, and Clemson to the SEC? 4 divisions? what ever happened to one conference without any divisions? you know just play the games on the schedule and there's a winner or co-champions? didn't we used to have that? And no, that doesn't mean the BigXII should celebrate. Teams left their conference and they are unable to have divisions and a conference championship. and more teams are thinking about leaving that conference. now you have other conferences who never had a conference championship split into divisions and the schedule altered and with new teams. i just don't get these divisions how they are better then no divisions. it ends up usually coming down to BCS ranking and now you go into the final week of the conference season depending on BCS rankings for scenarios that determine the conference championship game based on what division you are in. the schedule is totally unbalanced now. you used to know what you had to do going into the final week of the season. now you don't and now even the conference champions are determined by ranking. it didn't used to be that way.

as far as the expansion rumors and all that, what college sports have become, college football especially, is a different thing entirely from what it was. it used to have conferences and you knew which teams were in which conference. everyone seemed fine with the way the conferences were. the game was great. it was exciting, it had a real flow to it. The rules were good, it was fair. Now it's like we're lost in who is switching conferences and stuff and meanwhile the landscape has changed entirely. Even the game itself is different than what it was. It seems like it's been a kind of "lets try this and see if it works" kind of approach. i just get a general sense that the conferences were fine the way they were before and I think you lose something with all this re-arranging of teams in conferences. Why don't they try to fix some of this stuff in the offseason so going into the season we can be excited about watching our teams in our conferences? If you add teams to a conference, then there's less scheduled games between the teams that traditionally play in that conference. Less traditional rivalries. There's only so many games on the conference schedule, and I don't think you need to add regular seasons games if you keep the conferences. If you split the new SEC into 4 divisions, do you have a semi-final week then a final the next week? And then the debate would arise if what if one or two of the 2nd place teams in one of the 4 divisions had a better record than one of the division winners. What then, 2 wildcards like the NFL?

Where is this going? What was wrong with the conferences how they were a few years ago? Do you guys think this is better?

[Perfect Zero]

Re: A&M to the SEC starting to blow up again on Twitter

Where is this going? What was wrong with the conferences how they were a few years ago? Do you guys think this is better?

I'm only quoting this, because the rest of the post was more of the same. In a nutshell, I wish that all teams were independents. I wish that we could go back to the days of simple conferences if not that. The times have changed though. Money is the least common denominator, and that's what college sports revolves around. If you want the old way, go watch ESPN Classic. We're trying to make the best of the hand that we've been dealt.

Four divisions in the SEC. It's better than the alternative.

EDIT:

If you split the new SEC into 4 divisions, do you have a semi-final week then a final the next week? And then the debate would arise if what if one or two of the 2nd place teams in one of the 4 divisions had a better record than one of the division winners. What then, 2 wildcards like the NFL?

You have four teams make a playoff (the division winners), and then the Championship. Since you play an equal schedule with your divisional rivals, there is no problem with other divisions having second place teams. You either win the division on equal terms, or you don't go. You're making this harder than it really is.

[Redacted01]

Re: A&M to the SEC starting to blow up again on Twitter

Where is this going? What was wrong with the conferences how they were a few years ago? Do you guys think this is better?

Buddy, this has been happening for decades. There used to be upwards of 30 and 40 independents and that was when there were a lot fewer schools. Conferences have been steadily growing for years. 6-8 teams used to be the norm way back when. Then 8-10 teams. And then the SEC went back to 12 since losing Tulane and Georgia Tech, the Big 12, WAC, and MAC followed. And here we are today with only 4 independents and the norm will be 12-16 before long for major conferences.

[Redacted01]

Re: A&M to the SEC starting to blow up again on Twitter

But you can't have two divisions when all you play is your division. I think that many of the SEC schools know that if they do go the direction of sixteen teams, they are going to have to kill some rivalries. By using a rotating schedule, you'll face a team at least once every three years. If you don't, you WILL kill off some rivalries no matter what.

But with that setup, you basically have a 4-team playoff for the championship. What if, say, LSU, and Mississippi State don't play, yet are tied for first in that half. Who goes to the title game?

EDIT: i see your other edit now... there won't be playoffs to determine conference champions. I can tell you that much.

[Hoosiers86IU]

Re: A&M to the SEC starting to blow up again on Twitter

I am not sure the Big East would want Iowa St as they really do not add much. If these rumors are in fact true, the Big East(with TCU) will be in a better position that the ACC. Without Clemson and FSU, The ACC will not be in a position of power to lure away any Big East teams. The Big East may have played their hand brilliantly, coming out of this mess as the 4th best overall conference...

If the ACC is smart they will strike first and invite Syracuse, Uconn, and Rutgers to tie up the Northeast region (They already have Boston College). With the loss of FSU and Clemson that puts them at 13 teams. I say then go for West Virgina or Pittsburgh to get to 14.