PITT SAYS BYE-BYE TO BIG EAST

If you’re a Pitt fan, how can you not like the move to the ACC?

Call me crazy, but I’ll take Florida State, Miami, Virgina Tech over South Florida, UCONN, Louisville and Cincinnati in football and I’m OK with trading UCONN and Georgetown for Duke and North Carolina in basketball.

The Big East has been a football joke for way too long and Pitt has enough challenges when it comes to selling tickets without trying to get people excited about South Florida and Rutgers.

It will be a lot harder for Pitt to win the ACC football championship, but the ACC should make Pitt a better sell to recruits and that should mean better players coming here in the long run .

Any chance we could get Pitt in the Big East for this football season?

Date: September 18, 2011

Categories: Sports

Tags: ACC CONFERENCE, BIG EAST, MIAMI, NCAA, PITT LEAVES BIG EAST, PITT PANTHERS, SYRACUSE, UCONN, VIRGINIA TECH

Comments RSS TrackBack 43 comments

Reply

UPDave

in September 18th, 2011 @ 11:38

Wow, where to start

First I applaud all those involved at the University for being progressive and making this bold, albeit difficult, move. Come Monday when Oklahoma and Texas make their announcement and blow up the Big 12, this move will bee seen as even more sensible.

It is obvious, based on the past year, that the Big East is either not concerned (doesn’t care) or going to fold in the next few years. They tried to persuade inferior teams from inferior conferences to come and “fill out” the rest of the Big East so they could have a year end conference championship-UCF, East Carolina and Memphis (although I think UCF would have been a good catch-they are on the upswing despite yesterday’s loss to FIU and have one of the largest enrollments in Florida). Yes, they got TCU but even they seemed to have doubts as rumors RE backing out and going to the SEC became more prevalent.

Also, I believe the Big East turned down a 9yr/1 billion TV contract with ESPN this year.

In addition, not to be insensitive, but on Friday Big East founder Dave Gavitt passed away, perhaps Pitt and Syracuse (a founding member) took this as an additional sign to move on.

I would rather them do this now, then in a few years be on the outside in Conference USA or the MAC, begging for the Big 10 to let us in.
This is a great move for the football team. Yes, the ACC does not have many great football powers now, but they have better competition and brand recognition than the Big East, two things the rebuilding Pitt football program needs.

This will also allow Coach Graham better access to two of the new hotbeds of recruiting (Virginia and Florida) to get players that better fit his spread offense and 3-4 defense.

I am hesitant on the basketball front, however. Arguably the Big East has become the top power in men’s college basketball and I hate to have them leave it. However, if the Big East is the #1 men’s basketball conference, ACC is easily #2 with a great cause for #1.
Pitt and Cuse will easily be among the top teams in the conference right away. My only concerns (esp for Pitt) is changing their “Big East style of basketball”. As we have seen time and time again in the NCAA tourney, Big East aggressive style of play does not go over well with “neutral” officials, and I suspect it won’t go over well with ACC teams/officials. I don’t see us being able to go into Duke or UNC’s courts and get away with what we do in the Big East against UConn, Georgetown, etc.

That being said, I think Coach Dixon can, and will be happy, to adjust his playing and coaching style. Over the past few years he is recruiting more pure basketball players and less of the “athletes that fit the system”. I am not advocating Jaime go out and recruit one and done’s and/or players that put the program in trouble; he just needs to find players that can play pure basketball.

As far as any losing any rivalries that have developed (WVU, UConn, Georgetown) with the recent conference shuffling most, if not all, rivalries are going to either go away or change drastically.

The ship is sailing, and Pitt (and Syracuse) just bought their tickets.

Reply

Al B

in September 19th, 2011 @ 13:58

John,

Keep in mind I’m saying this even though I’m a HUGE Football fan.

So Pitt may be moving from the Big 10 Conference to the Atlantic Coast Conference next year. To do so, they will have to pay a 5 MILLION dollar fee to the NCAA. All I’ve been reading and hearing on TV is how great of a move this could be and tons of credit going to the Pitt Athletic Director for trying to make this move.

Now, here in the year 2011, where millions of people are out of work, millions cannot afford college for their kids, millions including me, have lost their homes, more people are working for a poverty wage than ever before, and college tuitions are sky high and rising. How in the hell is spending 5 MILLION dollars for this justified when so many people need help??? How about some tuition deductions, scholarships, etc??????? 5 million could go a long way!
Yeah, what a brilliant idea to make a 5 million dollar move!!

Reply

Al B

in September 19th, 2011 @ 14:00

Correction on my post. I mean moving from the Big East Conf.
Reply

John Steigerwald

in September 19th, 2011 @ 15:00

It’s a long term decision. Five million is nothing when looked at for the long term. The Big East was/is about to implode and Pitt had to move before it was too late. College football is a slimy business. But it’s a business.

Reply

Tim

in September 20th, 2011 @ 19:35

Is slimy business a redundant term? I’m kidding. Sort of.

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Isteve Roissy

in September 18th, 2011 @ 11:42

The goal will ultimately be to get to 16 teams in the ACC. UConn will be coming as well and one more.
Reply

Mike V.

in September 18th, 2011 @ 13:28

If you are in a BCS conference and not in the Big Ten, SEC, PAC 12 or ACC, you had better get in one of those conferences asap or you are going to be left behind.
Reply

UPDave

in September 18th, 2011 @ 14:07

http://espn.go.com/college-sports/story/_/id/6989031/uconn-huskies-aggressively-seeking-acc-move-source-says

This would be awesome if UConn was added to the ACC. It makes the most sense (versus teams from the south or west that would be looking for a new conference). UConn is one of the teams I would miss seeing play Pitt on a regular basis (Villanova and Georgetown the other 2, but I know neither of those two will be coming to the ACC).
Reply

Gary M

in September 18th, 2011 @ 14:09

The other point that you missed is that automatic bowl affiliations and the dollars and ranking votes that go with them.
The Sun Bowl for instance take either the ACC 4th ranked team or Big East 2nd ranked team to face the Pac 12 opponent. While the ACC #2 play an SEC opponent.

I hate the bowls and the bigger question will be with these mega conferences, what will this do to the power of the NCAA? Will they be able to say, screw this system, we’ll merge the Big 10/ACC/SEC/PAC 12 into a conference championship and keep the money for ourselves.
If you have a chance, read the excellent article by Taylor Branch
http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2011/10/the-shame-of-college-sports/8643/

He points out that the NCAA spent millions chartering planes for themselves but spent less than 1% of revenue enforcing it’s rules…
I’m hoping these conferences will create backbones and greed among the conference and leave the NCAA in the cold where it belongs.

Reply

John Steigerwald

in September 18th, 2011 @ 14:53

I’d just like to see them go back to only admitting real students.
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Mike V.

in September 19th, 2011 @ 19:51

If you hate the bowls, what do you watch on TV the week between Christmas and New Years?

Reply

John Steigerwald

in September 19th, 2011 @ 19:57

I don’t hate the bowls. I’ll watch the match ups that appeal to me. I hate the Mythical National Championship.

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Mike V.

in September 20th, 2011 @ 07:22

Bowls wont survive a playoff system and well be stuck watching bad TV between Christmas and New Years.

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John Steigerwald

in September 20th, 2011 @ 08:21

Conference vs conference playoff games would be bad TV?

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Mike V.

in September 20th, 2011 @ 14:31

The would be great TV. Only they would be played on the weekends. Between Christmas and New Years, I like watching college football every night when the bowls are on.

Reply

franji1

in September 18th, 2011 @ 16:35

I think I’ve read that coach Dixon did NOT want to move to the ACC because he cannot recruit players from the northeast anymore. The draw of the Big East was to be able to play in Madison Square Garden in the various Big East tournament(s). Now’ he’s gonna have to convince kids from areas where the ACC is “THE” conference and convince them to go to college in Pittsburgh.

“Yeah, it’s overcast from November thru March, but when Spring comes, it’s REALLY nice. Sunshine is SO overrated. I wouldn’t bother with those ACC teams in North Carolina, Georgia, Florida, or even Virginia – PITTSBURGH is the place to be during basketball season. Raleigh/Durham – that’s ALL they talk about is NCState, UNC, Duke – around here, during college basketball season, you gotta compete with the Steelers (yeah, even in the Spring) and the Penguins. Yeah, hockey’s big in Pittsburgh. Hockey? Oh – it’s this sport they play on ice with a rubber puck. Puck? Oh, that’s a character from one of Shakespeare’s plays – you’ll learn about that in class. Class? Oh – you don’t have to go to class – I was just joking.”
Reply

Rich

in September 18th, 2011 @ 18:56

Now that the college presidents are on their way to creating super conferences the cheating will be off the charts. The pressure to win will be intense for football and basketball programs. The monster has been created and the only way to satisfy its cravings is by winning.College athletics is a mess and its getting worse.

Reply

John Steigerwald

in September 18th, 2011 @ 19:21

You ain’t kiddin’.

Reply

Pat

in September 19th, 2011 @ 12:39

Prepare for the hike in ticket prices and programs to part you with more of your money for doanations for better seats similar to the STEP program at Penn State. Having it be more about the dollars than about the kids will eventually catch up with college athletics. When it comes to actually shelling out more money the smart folks will just say no, while the ones that do pay will look at it as an “investment” and demand championships. There is the true monster that has been created.

Reply

long time gone

in September 18th, 2011 @ 20:30

As a WVU alum, I think that this move is a good one for Pitt. It should add more prestige to their program. After all, ten years from now it will be much more prestigious for Pitt to say that they haven’t won an ACC Championship, rather than to still be saying that they haven’t won a Big East Championship.
Thanks for representing the Big LEast so well Panthers! I am sure that the fact that you were BLOWN OUT of every big Bowl game that you have played in since Dan Marino went a long way towards diminishing the Big East’s respect that you are now fleeing from.
Have a nice life!

Reply

John Steigerwald

in September 18th, 2011 @ 20:46

I’d rather see Pitt stink in the ACC than the Big East. You forgot to mention basketball.

Reply

Steve S

in September 18th, 2011 @ 21:57

…and they will stink.

“You forgot to mention basketball.” Forgot to mention they don’t end up winning anything in basketball, either? Good point, John. That is true.

Reply

TaxMan

in September 18th, 2011 @ 21:57

Nice try. Since Dan Marino graduated, Pitt is 5-6 in bowl games, for a .454 winning percentage.. Average margin of victory in the 6 losses = 14.16. Not stellar, but hardly qualifies as being “blown out” of every bowl game since Dan Marino.

In that same stretch, WVU is 6-13 in bowl games for a 31.5 winning percentage. Average margin of victory in the 13 losses = 15.15.

More recently, Pitt is on a 2-bowl game winning streak while WVU is on a 2-bowl game losing streak.

See for yourself:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pittsburgh_Panthers_football
http://www.collegefootballpoll.com/bowl_history_west_virginia.html

Reply

long time gone

in September 19th, 2011 @ 08:06

tax man you must be an accountant so you are obviously into stats. But what i said is that Pitt has not won a “BIG” bowl game since Marino. Remember the Utah game (Fiesta Bowl 2004)? then think back to WV beating Georgis in the Georgia Dome when the Big Easr was on the ropes….then Oklahoma a few years ago.
Remember Final $ appearance a few years ago and elite 8 appearances….all the whilePitt continued to fizzle in the bright spotlights of the National conversation.
I don’t blame Pitt for leaving, but I’m not going to cry about it. WV will land somewhere

Reply

long time gone

in September 19th, 2011 @ 08:27

sorry for the typos above..obviously meant Final 4 and Big East…didn’t want y’all or should I say yinz to think I was one of those uneducated hillbillies!
BTW, John I am a new poster and just want to say I love the site and I love the fact that you include thoughtful political discourse as well…NOBAMA in 2012!!!

Reply

John Steigerwald

in September 19th, 2011 @ 08:43

Welcome. How did you find it?

Reply

TaxMan

in September 19th, 2011 @ 18:37

>”tax man you must be an accountant so you are obviously into stats.”

Yep. To steal Bob Newhart’s line, I’m an accountant. This must be true. Who would brag about that?

>”But what i said is that Pitt has not won a “BIG” bowl game since Marino.”

Ah, I see. Gotcha.

Reply

Nate

in September 19th, 2011 @ 08:49

11 bowl appears to 19 bowl appearances…i’ll take the 19 any day! also, wvu has 2 marquee BCS victories over Georgia and Oklahoma…what does pitt have?

Reply

John Steigerwald

in September 19th, 2011 @ 09:14

No sane person would dispute that, among the three “local” major college football programs, Pitt ranks a distant third.

Reply

long time gone

in September 19th, 2011 @ 12:11

i guess to state succinctly what bothers me, it is this. I don’t balme pitt for wanting to leave or for leaving, but a deal wuth WV could have been brokered and the rivalry would stay intact. Also, i am amazed at Pitt fans all over the laocal paper sites jumping for joy and nobody caring at all about leaving ‘Eers behind. There should be some approprite remorse from the average fan. To draw a comparison, i was outraged as a Steeler fan when Modell moved the Browns. I felt like he took my brother who i loved to hate…I see none of that in the pitt fans the past few days….it’s like Pitt fans are saying, “see you later but we can still have the backyard brawl”…it should have and could have been a package deal IMO…Tahnks

Reply

Mike

in September 19th, 2011 @ 17:09

Pitt didn’t have the leverage here. It’s a game of musical chairs and Pitt couldn’t afford to be the one grasping at air when the music stops.
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TaxMan

in September 19th, 2011 @ 18:39

>”i am amazed at Pitt fans all over the laocal paper sites jumping for joy and nobody caring at all about leaving ‘Eers behind.”

I’ll miss the Pitt/WVU rivalry. Pitt won’t find a rival like WVU or PSU in the ACC. Kinda like Penn State’s move to the Big 10. PSU fans say they don’t miss Pitt & look at Ohio State & Michigan as their rivals, but talk to one of their fans—they do not consider Penn State a rival. It’s not the same. It’s only the same to the PSU students who are too young to remember the Pitt-PSU rivalry.
Reply

Tbow

in September 20th, 2011 @ 08:15

LTG you will jumping for joy in about a week when it’s announced that WVU is joining the SEC. Then you will be singing a different tune about Pitt and the “rivalry”. I for one think it will remain a yearly matchup regardless where we all land. Remember Pitt and WVU aren’t as ignorant as the troll in Crappy Valley.

Reply

francis

in September 18th, 2011 @ 22:13

off topic but this just in …mike vick is hurt…thought youd want to know…

Reply

John Steigerwald

in September 19th, 2011 @ 07:11

concussion. I hope he’s OK. I don’t wish him any serious injury. Just enough to get him off the field.

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Tim

in September 20th, 2011 @ 19:37

A certain level of Schadenfreude kicked in for me. Sorry.

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Arnie

in September 19th, 2011 @ 10:40

Well, certainly an upgrade in the quality of opponent they will be facing but we have to be realistic.

In regards to football, they went from being a “potential” top 3 or 4 year in and year out in the Big East to a middle of the pack (at best) ACC team.

Reply

Rocket Ryan

in September 19th, 2011 @ 13:04

I really don’t think there’s a whole lot of difference between ACC and Big East football…both stink with the only difference being the ACC has teams that were relevant 9 seasons ago.

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Rocket Ryan

in September 19th, 2011 @ 13:05

That being said, the ACC does have better tradition and is much more stable.

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metalslam

in September 19th, 2011 @ 12:53

I think it`s a great move
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Chuck

in September 19th, 2011 @ 13:25

I think only the Big Ten would have been a better fit for Pitt than the ACC, but that would have probably pissed off Jamie Dixon. I think he’s going to have a real hard time recruiting the New York kids now. Overall, I’m pretty pleased with their move to the ACC.
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Mike V.

in September 19th, 2011 @ 19:54

I have tickets to an ACC school for football. Pitt will hold their own in the league. VA Tech and FL State are good; however, the rest of the league is very average.

Basketball…I’ll take the Big East over the ACC any day. I think Pitt will do extremely well in basketball and I’m looking forward to watching them play. I wouldn’t be shocked if they won the ACC their first year.
Reply

Haas

in September 20th, 2011 @ 13:56

I agree with Chuck…I would think the Big 10 is a better fit for Pitt but I still think the move will only serve to improve Pitt football.

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PITT SAYS BYE-BYE TO BIG EAST

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Comments RSS TrackBack 43 comments

UPDave

Al B

Al B

Tim

Isteve Roissy

Mike V.

UPDave

Gary M

Mike V.

Mike V.

Mike V.

franji1

Rich

long time gone

Steve S

TaxMan

long time gone

long time gone

TaxMan

Nate

long time gone

Mike

TaxMan

Tbow

francis

Tim

Arnie

Rocket Ryan

Rocket Ryan

metalslam

Chuck

Mike V.

Haas