(07-01-2020 03:23 PM)BatonRougeEscapee Wrote:  

(07-01-2020 09:31 AM)GoldenWarrior11 Wrote:  

(07-01-2020 08:52 AM)Carolina_Low_Country Wrote:  Let's be real this is not your dad's Big East only have Providence, Seton Hall, St. Johns, Villanova, and Georgetown as original members.

No conference games against Syracuse, Pitt, West Virginia, Notre Dame, etc.

UConn will still have new (and far) teams at home and away including Butler, Creighton, and Xavier

The BIG EAST has six founding original members of the league within the conference. In comparison, here are the other power conferences for comparison:

ACC: six (South Carolina and Maryland are no longer members)
B1G: six (Illinois, Minnesota, Northwestern, Purdue, Wisconsin, Michigan)
Big 12: eight (Texas A&M, Colorado, Missouri and Nebraska are no longer members)
PAC: 4 (California, Washington, Oregon and Oregon State)
SEC: ten (Georgia Tech, Tulane and Sewanee are no longer members)

Syracuse and Pittsburgh were staples of the BIG EAST, and, unfortunately, are no longer members, yes. Louisville was also an elite BE program and brand too, even before and after its scandal. However, Butler made more national championship games this decade than Pittsburgh had in its history (and has been much better in the BE than PITT has been in the ACC). West Virginia's basketball success has been replicated by Xavier, in tournament appearances and success. Creighton, with its fan support and top-25 potential, is a more than suitable replacement long-term.

At the end of the day, yes - the Big East lost elite-level programs in Syracuse, Louisville and UConn; UConn has come home. The league lost strong upper-tier programs in PITT, WVU and Notre Dame, but those have been replaced by Butler, Creighton and Xavier, with no harm or loss. However, the league also lost a number of bottom-tier teams (at time) in Rutgers and USF, which has also given rise to programs like Seton Hall and Providence. Overall - the league is much more balanced and overall competitive. Now having two anchors at the top in Villanova and UConn, with an incredibly strong and consistent middle, and singular bottom (DePaul, but they at least have been recruiting very well) is well-rounded for the future growth of the league.

It's also worth noting that UConn ticket sales are soaring. Huge win/win for the BIG EAST and UConn.

I could be wrong but I count five original members. Villanova joined in 1980

If I recall correctly Villanova was officially on board prior to the first season tipping off but had to complete a final season in the now-A10 first. Not including them in discussion of the original membership is semantics at best. I include Pitt in the original group as well even though they joined a couple years into things.