I have been mulling over how some basketball/Olympic schools have horrid football programs, and, in addition to the NCAA receiving less money from the men's & women's basketball tournaments, I also think that if a program like Indiana wanted to drop its football team and continue to be a member of the Big Ten, it should be allowed to do so. Allowing programs like Indiana to do this would free up a slot for another football team that the Big Ten could go after, and make a decent profit from.

Really? You're using INDIANA for your example of a team with a "horrid football program"? Did you watch the Big Ten this season? I mean if you said Illinois I might be offended but you'd at least be correct. Or why not use the obvious football dog in your own conference, Vandy?

(01-08-2021 12:58 PM)schmolik Wrote:  Really? You're using INDIANA for your example of a team with a "horrid football program"? Did you watch the Big Ten this season? I mean if you said Illinois I might be offended but you'd at least be correct. Or why not use the obvious football dog in your own conference, Vandy?

I didn't watch Big Ten football this year, but I am pretty sure Indiana made a bowl. And that is good for them. But what will happen to Indiana if Penn State, Michigan State, or even Tennessee come calling on HC Tom Allen, wanting to hire him away?? Will the IU administration spend the big bucks to keep Allen in Bloomington or are they going to let him go away?? Would they be willing to spend the money to get a coach who can build on what Allen has done or would they just hire a warm body?? IU's past performance is not encouraging, IMO. To me, everything points this being yet another flash in the pan for IU.

I think too much tinkering would kill the golden goose. Conferences are intended to be a "rising tide lifts all ships" arrangement where the ups and downs of athletics over generations, not just recruiting cycles, keep connections based on a shared vision and mission. Said a different way, the BIG is a conference that is thinking about who fit their vision and mission even if/when football as we know it no longer exists. Of course, there are limitations to what other members will accept in terms of lack of investment and a misalignment of shared goals. Shared goals make the BIG members relieved to see Rutgers have a pulse. Like any relationship, if one party wants another one out, there is always something you can dig up and lean into to force a separation or, at least, make life miserable for the other party. To their credit, the PAC, ACC, BIG, and SEC have done a great job of keeping family issues behind closed doors and stay aligned even when rubberneckers like us try to propose "fixes" that are not usually aligned with their vision and mission. The Big 12 has now joined that stable after going through the tumultual Nebraska/TAMU/Colorado/Missouri separation about a decade ago.

To your point, I can certainly see football-only conferences emerging if the money is too alluring for the top 30-40 programs. However, universities better be careful about becoming the NFL-Lite. The reason Michigan and Ohio State works is they ferociously compete with a passion from football to chess club, and breaking off football from everything else is going to necessitate generating rivalries that may fall flat.