<p>Wisconsin plays in the WCHA with UMinn. and a bunch of smaller schools–some of which are very good in hockey.</p>
<p>MSU, tOSU to the Sweet 16!!!</p>
<p>Boilers up next!! lol~</p>
<p>P.S. How in hell did Cornell pull an upset (double digits!!) over Wisky? Sorry barrons…</p>
<p>Go Cornell baby! LOL! Ok, so I am not necessarily as passionate about my graduate alma matter, but it is always good to see Cornell do well. Now if Cornell, MSU, OSU and Purdue could just keep winning.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>A ND w/ some combination of RU, SU or BC just doesn’t make sense financially for the B10.</p>
<p>An expansion to 14 will require at least 2 “heavy hitter” FB programs in order to generate enough revenue.</p>
<p>BC hasn’t added the Boston/New England market nearly as much as the ACC had hoped; not likely that BC would be able to do a better job in the B10.</p>
<p>Some interesting snippets regard to any possible Pac-10 expansion.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p><a href=“http://blogs.mercurynews.com/collegesports/2010/03/03/pac-10-expansion-a-football-title-game-hoops-on-tuesday-the-byu-issue-the-zipper-idea-and-the-150-million-question/[/url]”>http://blogs.mercurynews.com/collegesports/2010/03/03/pac-10-expansion-a-football-title-game-hoops-on-tuesday-the-byu-issue-the-zipper-idea-and-the-150-million-question/</a></p>
<p>
</p>
<p>[Pac-10</a> looking at title game possibilities – without expansion - NCAA Football - CBSSports.com](<a href=“http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/story/13102294/pac10-looking-at-title-game-possibilities-without-expansion]Pac-10”>http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/story/13102294/pac10-looking-at-title-game-possibilities-without-expansion)</p>
<p>The only way the Big 10 grows to 14 is if either UT or Notre Dame join. Otherwise, it will add one more team, most likely Pitt, Syracuse or Rutgers.</p>
<p>^ In all likelihood, the B10 will remain at 11 if it comes down to adding a BE team.</p>
<p>The only way the B10 goes to 14 is if 2 heavy hitters join - ND and UT (not likely since ND would have no reason to join if the BE largely remains as it is) or UT and Neb.</p>
<p>Spartan Nation erupted last night!! Go State!! lol~</p>
<p><a href=“Free Image Hosting at FreeImageHosting.net - Upload & Share Images on Social Networks, Blogs, and Galleries”>Free Image Hosting at FreeImageHosting.net - Upload & Share Images on Social Networks, Blogs, and Galleries;
<p>^^^Was there a fire too? ;-)</p>
<p>^^ Unfortunately, No (or not yet at least in E. Lansing). Even though the riot meter page had been updated from ‘might be’ to ‘should be’ as of last night!!! lol Nonetheless, sporadic fires of discontentment had been reported in a ‘distant town’ last night, said to have been triggered by a 2TO loss which ended the team’s quest for Frozen Four. ;)</p>
<p>Sparkeye, why did you have to go there?! hehe!</p>
<p>I deserved that!</p>
<p>What happens if the Big Ten goes to 16 teams?</p>
<p>8:45 am April 5, 2010, by Tony Barnhart</p>
<p>Indianapolis—Yes, we are attending the Super Bowl of college basketball and tonight the story lines abound: Duke will go for its fourth national championship and its first since 2001, under Coach K against Butler. Rated rival North Carolina has cut down the nets twice (2005, 2009) since their hated rival won a title. Coach Mike Krzyzewski is in his 11th Final Four, which ties Carolina’s Dean Smith. One more for K and he passes the Dean for No. 2 on the all-time list.</p>
<p>Butler is playing six miles from its campus. Their playing facility, Hinkle Fieldhouse, was where the championship game in “Hoosiers” was filmed. CBS must be tempted to bring in Gene Hackman and let him walk onto the floor and measure the baskets like he did in the movie that is beloved by all hoopsters.</p>
<p>Understand this about Butler. This isn’t tiny Milan taking on Muncie Central for the Indiana state high school championship in 1954. Butler is really good and is well coached by a guy who looks like he should be a study hall monitor instead of a coach with an 89-14 record. They can beat Duke if they are healthy and the Blue Devils are little cold from behind the arc. We’re expecting another crowd of over 70,000 at Lucas Oil Field.</p>
<p>But enough about hoops. That’s tonight. I’m here today to tell you what’s going on behind the scenes of tonight’s national championship game. I am not big into hyperbole, but you need to know that two things are being discussed that could, in the next six months, could radically change the college athletics landscape as we know it.</p>
<p>The first, of course, is the potential expansion of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament field from 65 to 96 teams. The NCAA floated that trial balloon on Thursday and for the first time gave details about how it could work. That effort was met with criticism that turned into downright derision from fans and media. Why take one of the best sporting events in the world and risk hurting it by trying to shoe-horn another round of games into the same three-week calendar?</p>
<p>You already know the answer. It’s about the money. It’s always been about the money. The NCAA has three more years on its current 11-year, $6 billion contract with CBS but has the option to opt out of those years and put the tournament back up for bid. Needless to say there are other suitors, like ESPN or NBC/Comcast who might want to step up to the plate. Given the realities of the economy, all schools need more money.</p>
<p>Here is my prediction and that’s all it is: The tournament goes to 96 team out of pure financial necessity. The 32 team NIT, which the NCAA also controls, will go always and those teams will be folded into the big tournament. CBS retains the rights to the tournament and finds a cable partner to share in the costs and the distribution. Don’t be surprised if it’s Turner Broadcasting. Then the NCAA will have to do a lot of selling to a skeptical public and press and convince them that the event that they love so much will not be watered down with first round games that include a 9 vs. 24 seed.</p>
<p>I spoke to several commissioners of smaller conferences who are convinced that the vast majority of this money is not going to trickle down to them because most of those 32 extra slots in the tournament will go to teams in the BCS conferences.</p>
<p>The NCAA insists this is not a done deal but my conversations this week tell me the train is at the station and getting ready to move out. Everybody just needs to jump on board.</p>
<p>The other big topic here has a chance to completely change college football as we know it. I’ve spoken to a number of athletics directors and commissioners who are convinced that the Big Ten is positioning itself to seriously consider becoming college football first super conference by expanding to as many as 16 teams.</p>
<p>The Big Ten is looking at three plans: Stand pat with 11 teams, add one team (hopefully Notre Dame) or make a blockbuster move and go to 16.</p>
<p>“If they go to 16 and one of them is Notre Dame then we’ve got an entirely new ball game,” a conference commissioner told me confidentially.</p>
<p>There is pretty serious speculation that The Big Ten would look to the Big East in its big master plan. Now I don’t know which teams are involved, but Just for fun, let’s say the Big Ten asks Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Connecticut and Rutgers to join. If they said yes, the Big East would be out of the football business. I think the Catholic schools (Georgetown, Villanova, St. John’s, Marquette, Seton Hall, DePaul, Providence) in the league move on and form their own basketball conference.</p>
<p>What would happen to the other football playing schools in the Big East: West Virginia, Louisville, Cincinnati, South Florida? Does the ACC take them in order to match the Big 16?</p>
<p>What would happened to Notre Dame? Would they be invited to join the Catholic conference for basketball? What about their other sports?</p>
<p>And what does the SEC do if the Big Ten throws down this gauntlet? The conference has its 15-year, $3 billion television contract in place. Does the SEC have to react to the new marketplace that has been created? The SEC and Big Ten have separated themselves financially from the rest of Division I. If the SEC stood pat would it risk watching the Big Ten with the additional dollars that would come in, pull away from the SEC?</p>
<p>Does the SEC get aggressive and pick up the phone call Texas? That’s the one school that would move the financial needle to improve the great deal the SEC already has. And if you take Texas, you have to take Texas A&M because of the politics. Does the SEC take another look at Florida State and Miami and see if those schools would be interested in leaving the ACC for a better financial deal?</p>
<p>I have been saying this for years: The dominoes of expansion will start tumbling when the Big Ten makes its move. If it only adds one team, even if it’s Notre Dame, then relatively little will change. But if commissioner Jim Delany wants to make a splash and go to 16, then absolutely anything is possible. If members of the Big East want to leave, they must remain in the conference for an additional 27 months after they declare. So if the Big Ten wants to take some Big East teams, they must make a decision soon in order for those teams to be in place for the 2012 football season.</p>
<p>Understand that there is a lot of smoke here. None of this could happen. Or all of it could. So stay tuned.</p>
<p>Source: [What</a> happens if the Big Ten goes to 16 teams? | Mr. College Football](<a href=“http://blogs.ajc.com/barnhart-college-football/2010/04/05/what-happens-if-the-big-ten-goes-to-16-teams/]What”>http://blogs.ajc.com/barnhart-college-football/2010/04/05/what-happens-if-the-big-ten-goes-to-16-teams/)</p>
<p>Joe Paterno drops a bomb on Big Ten call</p>
<p>Posted on: April 13, 2010 1:47 pm</p>
<p>I think expansion is coming.</p>
<p>With those words, Joe Paterno just about sealed the deal on Big Ten expansion on Tuesday. That is, if you believe that Joe is one of the driving forces in the conference’s expansion talks. Here are his the gist of comments from a Big Ten coaches’ spring conference call.</p>
<p>Q: How are you with the progress of expansion talks?</p>
<p>A: "I think expansion is coming. Now, in what form? There’s a lot of talk about the Pac-10 getting two or more teams in their conference. I’m not privy to that …</p>
<p>"I think the trend is there are going to be bigger conferences. I think there are going to be 12-, 14-team conferences and maybe even 16-team conferences. Do I know what I’m talking about, who knows?</p>
<p>"It would appear to me that with the television situation what it is and the great impact that it has on exposure and what that exposure does to recruiting, we’re na</p>
<p>1.Texas
2. ND
3. Pitt
4. Cornell /or Chicago
5. Rutgers
6. Syracuse
7. UVA
8. Maryland
9. BC
10. Missouri /or Nebraska</p>
<p>*Cornell to Big Ten, Ivy gets MIT. ;P</p>
<p>Go Big Ten! lol</p>
<p>1-3 would be my top choices too…in the same order. I think if Texas were to join, TAMU will inevitably join, which is not a bad thing given their excellent Engineering programs.</p>
<p>Cornell will never leave the Ivy League and Chicago will never make sports relevant again. Besides, Chicago is part of the CIC, so they are fine just as they are.</p>
<p>Maryland and UVa will also not leave the ACC.</p>
<ol>
<li> Texas</li>
<li> Notre Dame</li>
<li> Pitt</li>
<li> Nebraska</li>
<li> Syracuse</li>
<li> Missouri</li>
<li> UVA</li>
<li> Maryland</li>
</ol>
<p>I’d personally like to see Binghamton join, and would probably place it 5th on my list, but I’ve heard nothing about it. I’d like to see Texas and Binghamton join and drop Penn State.</p>
<p>^^“Binghamton to join”, ok, I can undertand that, just not sure which SUNY to pick from really…Binghamton, Buffalo or Albany. Even though in reality, none of the SUNY really qualifies athletically for Big Ten both in fball & bball and Syracuse has them beat in terms of fan base and added values. “Penn State to drop”, however, is impossible imho.</p>
<p>Accelerated timetable for Big Ten expansion</p>
<p>April 17, 2010 3:24 PM | 1 Comment
By Teddy Greenstein </p>
<p>Remember the talk that the Big Ten would take 12-18 months to decide whether to expand? </p>
<p>An accelerated timetable has emerged, according to sources familiar with the process. </p>
<p>High-ranking Big Ten representatives will meet Sunday afternoon in Washington D.C. to discuss expansion. The timing and location of the session make sense considering the Association of American Universities is holding its semi-annual meetings in D.C. from Sunday-Tuesday, and all 11 Big Ten schools are AAU members. </p>
<p>Among those attending will be Northwestern President Morton Schapiro, according to a university spokesman, and University of Illinois interim chancellor Robert Easter. </p>
<p>If the league can emerge from the D.C. meetings with a mandate to expand, commissioner Jim Delany could take a substantial step next week at the annual BCS meetings, outside Phoenix. </p>
<p>As laid out in the Big Ten’s Dec. 15 statement, Delany would “notify” the commissioner(s) of the affected conference(s) before “engaging in formal expansion discussions with other institutions.” </p>
<p>In other words, Big East commissioner John Marinatto would get a heads-up if the Big Ten wishes to contact schools such as Rutgers, Pittsburgh and Syracuse. </p>
<p>That would allow the Big Ten more than a month to negotiate with schools before conference presidents and chancellors meet in Chicago during the first weekend in June. </p>
<p>That timetable also makes sense from a financial standpoint. The fiscal years of universities end on the last day of June, “so if you go past July 1, then you have to wait an extra year,” said one source. </p>
<p>Delany could not be reached for comment Saturday and has declined interview requests, saying he’s in a “silent phase.” </p>
<p>The thinking among those in touch with Big Ten officials is that the league is likely to add at least three schools – to end up with a 14- or 16-team league. </p>
<p>“I don’t think 16 is scaring anyone off, as long as you can find that many (five) that are a good enough fit,” said one source who has been consulted during the conference’s exploratory phase. “They’re looking long-term, across the horizon. What gives them the best shot at keeping value at a high level?” </p>
<p>Notre Dame remains Option A, though observers are flummoxed about the school’s intentions because of seemingly divergent statements made by Athletic Director Jack Swarbrick. </p>
<p>By joining the Big Ten, the Irish could increase their annual TV revenue from roughly $12 million to $22 million per year, get a national TV platform (the Big Ten Network) for its top-notch Olympic sports and decrease travel costs for its teams. </p>
<p>Tribune reporter Jodi S. Cohen contributed to this report. </p>
<p>Source: [Accelerated</a> timetable for Big Ten expansion - Chicago Breaking Sports](<a href=“Chicago Sports News, Schedules & Scores - Chicago Tribune”>Chicago Sports News, Schedules & Scores - Chicago Tribune)</p>
<p>UVa, Maryland, BC, etc are more than happy in the ACC. Those in the Big East seem like they would be easy pickin’s for the Big 10…Pitt, UConn, Rutgers, Syracuse.</p>
<p>Trust me, The Big Ten isn’t interested in any ACC teams.</p>