Bye Bye C-USA. Hello Big East.
Today, the University of Memphis was officially invited – and has agreed to join – the Big East Conference. Both parties made it official during a news conference this afternoon. It’s a great day for the university, celebrating its 100th birthday this year, and also a great day for the state of TN.
Now, the Volunteer State has three BCS-conference universities. That’s more than any bordering state can say (with the exception of N.C.). It gives the state a higher national profile and places the Tigers on a brighter national stage.
No more will U of M be facing the likes of Rice, UTEP and East Carolina in major college sports; no longer will its basketball and football games be shoved to the upper channels on your cable system. It’s ESPN prime time, baby! Of course, the competition will be much greater, too.
Don’t get me wrong. Conference USA has been good to Memphis. The Tigers have made multiple NCAA tournament runs as its March Madness representative. But the picture of college basketball - and college sports in general - has changed. It was time to make a move to the next level.
Seven years ago that didn’t happen when the Tigers were spurned by the Big East. Instead, it took then-C-USA members Cincinnati, DePaul, Louisville, and Marquette (and later added South Florida).
And then last year, it looked like the door might’ve slammed shut on them for good. And, later, the Big East invited Houston, SMU and UCF.
But, somehow, Memphis made its case to join that class of new conference members when other Big Easters Pitt, Syracuse and West Virginia elected to bolt for other locales (WV to the Big 12; Pitt and the ‘cuse to the ACC) and the conference agreed it would be a good match.
Whatever the case, it’s great news for Memphis – the city and the university.
JG
(Source: commercialappeal.com)
Originally posted 2/8/2012
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