|
Notes, Quotes and Slants
-----
|
College
Notebook No. 3
Tuesday, April 12, 2005
By Denny O'Brien |
 |
Hoops prosperity unlikely
for new C-USA
©2005 Bonesville.net
Louisville picked a fitting
farewell for Conference USA. That's one way of viewing the Cardinals' Final
Four appearance.
For the Cardinals, it could serve
as the springboard back to the elite level at which it annually competed under
Denny Crum. With Rick Pitino patrolling the sideline and a new home in the
Big East, there's good reason to believe Louisville will become a fixture
in the Sweet Sixteen.
Likewise for Cincinnati, which
has been C-USA's dominant hoops program. The Bearcats have been a mainstay
in the Top 25 under Bob Huggins and should see their stock rise in the Big
East.
Add Marquette and DePaul to
that equation. Both are storied basketball schools whose traditions should
benefit greatly by their new conference home.
That's just a snapshot of what
C-USA lost in the expansion carousel. What it inherited was a handful of
programs whose impact nationally over the past 20 years has been minimal at
best.
"We are excited about adding
new members and making structural improvements to Conference USA," league
commissioner Britton Banowsky said when C-USA announced its expansion
plans. "This is an opportunity for us to tighten our geography, group
similar institutions together, create a divisional model, and possibly stage
a football championship game. It will be very exciting to watch this league
grow and develop."
Basketball being the
exception.
Where C-USA is the least
likely to grow is the area in which it traditionally has been the most
successful. With nearly every program of historical significance ripped
from its fold, C-USA now faces the harsh reality of enduring years in which
it is a one-bid league.
Memphis is the only
traditional power that remains. By and large, the Tigers have withstood
decades and coaching changes without losing their position in the pecking
order.
No other C-USA program can
make that claim.
UAB enjoyed success under Gene
Bartow and has rekindled the fire under Mike Anderson. UTEP owns a national
title and is no stranger to the postseason. Even Tulsa has experienced
stretches where it was an NCAA Tournament spoiler.
But that trio is hardly the
barometer by which you want your league to be measured.
College basketball isn't
defined by fads. The programs that dominated in the 1950's tend to remain among the best
in 2005.
Sure, there have been trendy
basketball schools. Gonzaga immediately comes to mind.
However, the odds of the Zags
remaining a national contender in 20 years are as likely as Kentucky someday
regressing to the bottom of the Southeastern Conference heap.
Such is the scenario that
can't be ignored. And it is exactly the reason C-USA is unlikely to spend
its hardwood future in the national spotlight.
That doesn't mean the league
won't experience periods of moderate success. The current coaching pool has
enough talent to at least provide some credibility and possibly keep the
conference afloat.
But that's a complete 180 from
C-USA's previous niche.
Leveling the field
Many Division I coaches would
like to see the NCAA Tournament expand to 128. What they should pursue is
reducing it to 64.
Since the field expanded to 65
for the 2000-01 season, one invitee — the loser of the annual Tuesday night
play-in game — has been robbed of an appearance on the big stage. All
because the number of at-large bids can't be reduced from 34 to 33.
"We want to do everything we
can to ensure that the student-athletes who compete in the opening-round
game get the full flavor of participation in this great championship,"
Mountain West Conference Commissioner Craig Thompson said in a statement in
2000.
What flavor is that... castor
oil?
This rule is another example
of how the power conferences unfairly reign in college sports. The result
in this case is a pair of champions from smaller conferences playing for a
right they already earned — a chance to show their moves at the Big
Dance.
Baseball gaining momentum
Who said college baseball was
a non-revenue sport?
Over the past couple of years,
the sport has received a major boost, with many programs erecting
multi-million dollar facilities and cable sports networks increasing their
coverage.
This past weekend, the ESPN
family of networks (ESPN, ESPN2, and ESPNU) televised the entire
Texas-Nebraska series and has plans to broadcast at least 29 more regular
season games. ESPN also owns the rights to the College World Series and all
NCAA Super Regional games.
Add to that the coverage by
College Sports Television (CSTV) and Fox Sports, and you no longer have to
go to the ballpark to hear the sound of aluminum bats.
Despite that recent surge,
though, college baseball still does not resonate in the mainstream. Major
newspapers typically don't provide widespread coverage, with the lone
exception being the CWS.
Even so, the increased
attention cable networks are giving college baseball suggests that trend
could quickly change.
 Send an e-mail message to Denny O'Brien.
Click here to dig into Denny O'Brien's Bonesville
archives.
02/23/2007 01:59:46 AM |
