Let's reset. 16 teams left, who you got?

[Picklerick 2.0]

SDS upsets bama.
Princeton upsets Creighton.
Tenn over FAU

KSU ends MSU
Houston survives one more game
Texas in a nailbiter over xavier
UConn puts Arkansas in its place.
The zags upset UCLA.

 

[Wamu]

SDS upsets bama.
Princeton upsets Creighton.
Tenn over FAU

KSU ends MSU
Houston survives one more game
Texas in a nailbiter over xavier
UConn puts Arkansas in its place.
The zags upset UCLA.

That Gonzaga/UCLA game should be a good one. Both teams have Final Four experience.

 

[Ickey Shuffle]

UCONN all the way.

They were very smart to ditch football and left the AAC. Amazing how switching conferences while you're a named brand upgrades the players. One of natures wonders.

 

[Stakesarehigh]

Bama
Creighton
Tenn
MSU
Houston
Texas
Zags
Arky

 

[Picklerick 2.0]

That Gonzaga/UCLA game should be a good one. Both teams have Final Four experience.

Timmy bandwagon all the way.

 

[Wamu]

Timmy bandwagon all the way.

I'd like to see Gonzaga cut the nets down as well.

Looking forward to the games.

 

[Picklerick 2.0]

I'd like to see Gonzaga cut the nets down as well.

Looking forward to the games.

Timme!!!! Tim, tim, timme!!!

 

[PIBuckeye]

SDS upsets bama.
Princeton upsets Creighton.
Tenn over FAU

KSU ends MSU
Houston survives one more game
Texas in a nailbiter over xavier
UConn puts Arkansas in its place.
The zags upset UCLA.

I see you are ODing on upsets. lol.

I'm going with Uconn winning it all.

and hoping someone beats the crap out of ksu.

 

[Picklerick 2.0]

I see you are ODing on upsets. lol.

I'm going with Uconn winning it all.

and hoping someone beats the crap out of ksu.

My bracket is in shambles. I'm running with timme, timme, timme.

 

[Wamu]

Timme!!!! Tim, tim, timme!!!

Helluva game last night. Gonzaga looked like two different teams from the 1st half compared to the 2nd. Keep the momentum going. If they play the rest of the tourney like the 2nd half they'll be tough to beat. What was it, UCLA went 11+ minutes without a FG?

 

[Picklerick 2.0]

Alabama can say.........see y'all in the football season fuckers.

 

[cwerph]

SDS upsets bama.
Princeton upsets Creighton.
Tenn over FAU

KSU ends MSU
Houston survives one more game
Texas in a nailbiter over xavier
UConn puts Arkansas in its place.
The zags upset UCLA.

Great call on 'Bama, but now at least I know why . . . it's the damned media again.

 

[Wamu]

Tough loss last night for the Zags. Not the first time they got blasted in the tourney by a team from a better conference.

Maybe Gonzaga should look into joining what ever will be left of the Pac 12 or the Big XII.

 

[Ickey Shuffle]

Tough loss last night for the Zags. Not the first time they got blasted in the tourney by a team from a better conference.

Maybe Gonzaga should look into joining what ever will be left of the Pac 12 or the Big XII.

The PAC is on life support. By 2025 it’ll be no more. The SEC, BIG 10, and the BIG 12 will be the only Power Conferences thanks to their TV deals.

The ACC is gonna lose Clemson and Florida State soon. They’re dead too.

 

[Wamu]

The PAC is on life support. By 2025 it’ll be no more. The SEC, BIG 10, and the BIG 12 will be the only Power Conferences thanks to their TV deals.

The ACC is gonna lose Clemson and Florida State soon. They’re dead too.

Seems like Gonzaga will continue to have March Madness disappointment as long as they stay in the WCC. That conference just doesn't have the talent of the other bigger conferences.

 

[fredsdeadfriend]

Tough loss last night for the Zags. Not the first time they got blasted in the tourney by a team from a better conference.

Maybe Gonzaga should look into joining what ever will be left of the Pac 12 or the Big XII.

You realize that neither of those conferences would want Gonzaga as it doesn't add to their football footprint.

If the Zags were their only available and willing option and needed to survive as a conf, then they might take them in but there are too many options out there that do add to the Pac's football footprint. UNLV, for example, one of the NMex schools, Utah State, several Cali schools to choose from, Boise St, etc..

Gonzaga may just have to wait for some of it's conference mates to get better.

Not every school that experiences some success in one sport ends up moving up into a stronger/bigger conference as those bigger/stronger conferences want more than just an expansion of their footprint in one single sport, especially when the coach can retire or die or lose interest or move on to a better opportunity. Most programs out there are one bad Coach away from obscurity, at least temporary obscurity.

One good example of this is the B1G's addition of PSU and Rutgers is a more extreme example. PSU can suck at football and few will regret adding PSU as it adds so much more to the Conference's footprint than football, and the people in charge of the conference probably don't regret the addition of Rutgers either despite it's sucking so bad at football because it brought more to the table than just football. Nebraska is a school that many DO regret because it brought less to the table outside of football. The conference expected Nebraska to raise up the Western Division closer to the East's level and it failed in that regard.

Another example is Cincinnati, look how long it took that school to get an invite to a major conf. Basketball success in the 60s was not enough. It's taken the combo of their major improvement in football and the increased focus on media footprints and the biggies causing a major conf to need new members for one of them to finally invite them to join them.


Gonzaga adds little to nothing outside of bb. Media footprint is small, alumni base is small, I've never seen them mentioned in any other sport or among the rankings of top research schools, etc..

 

[fredsdeadfriend]

The PAC is on life support. By 2025 it’ll be no more. The SEC, BIG 10, and the BIG 12 will be the only Power Conferences thanks to their TV deals.

The ACC is gonna lose Clemson and Florida State soon. They’re dead too.

There will be an effort made to keep a fourth major conf to survive if for any reason, simply for balance. Most tournament structures are divisible by four. 4, 8, 12, 16, 24, 32, 64, etc.. Even when the number isn't divisible by four, they manipulate the earliest round or rounds to get the number of teams to a number divisible by four and having four major conferences avoids many of the problems there'd be with only 3.

Not saying it's an absolute. I find it difficult to see how both the Pac and ACC can survive and if they can't then they'll just deal with the issues of having only 3 majors.

One crazy idea that could work is for the top academic schools from those two conferences to join together as a coast to coast type conference. The added income from the TV contracts it could get could make up for the added travel expenses.

And it could be a football only or fb/bb only collaboration allowing each conference to add non-football schools in all of the non revenue sports to keep down expenses while maintaining enough programs to be competitive in those non revenue sports.

For example, the Pac could add a school like Gonzaga or schools with Div 1 bb but only FCS football that wouldn't affect their fb collaboration with the ACC.

 

[Ickey Shuffle]

You realize that neither of those conferences would want Gonzaga as it doesn't add to their football footprint.

If the Zags were their only available and willing option and needed to survive as a conf, then they might take them in but there are too many options out there that do add to the Pac's football footprint. UNLV, for example, one of the NMex schools, Utah State, several Cali schools to choose from, Boise St, etc..

Gonzaga may just have to wait for some of it's conference mates to get better.

Not every school that experiences some success in one sport ends up moving up into a stronger/bigger conference as those bigger/stronger conferences want more than just an expansion of their footprint in one single sport, especially when the coach can retire or die or lose interest or move on to a better opportunity. Most programs out there are one bad Coach away from obscurity, at least temporary obscurity.

One good example of this is the B1G's addition of PSU and Rutgers is a more extreme example. PSU can suck at football and few will regret adding PSU as it adds so much more to the Conference's footprint than football, and the people in charge of the conference probably don't regret the addition of Rutgers either despite it's sucking so bad at football because it brought more to the table than just football. Nebraska is a school that many DO regret because it brought less to the table outside of football. The conference expected Nebraska to raise up the Western Division closer to the East's level and it failed in that regard.

Another example is Cincinnati, look how long it took that school to get an invite to a major conf. Basketball success in the 60s was not enough. It's taken the combo of their major improvement in football and the increased focus on media footprints and the biggies causing a major conf to need new members for one of them to finally invite them to join them.


Gonzaga adds little to nothing outside of bb. Media footprint is small, alumni base is small, I've never seen them mentioned in any other sport or among the rankings of top research schools, etc..

Another problem with Gonzaga is their basketball arena is so small. It's like a high school court. Not too many people will want to flip the channel and watch them play Kansas on their small court and try to pass it over like it's big time. They'll need a huge upgrade renovations.

I guess as a basketball only school they can sneak make it work until Mark Few leaves??? Personally I wouldn't kick the tires even if they want in. The AAC tried that with Wichita State and that conference is dead now.

 

[Ickey Shuffle]

Another example is Cincinnati, look how long it took that school to get an invite to a major conf. Basketball success in the 60s was not enough. It's taken the combo of their major improvement in football and the increased focus on media footprints and the biggies causing a major conf to need new members for one of them to finally invite them to join them.

They've been grinding and clawing and poured an absurbed amount of money into football. Plus making the 4 team playoff. Now they're recognize as big time. Football is what paying the sports bills.

 

[fredsdeadfriend]

They've been grinding and clawing and poured an absurbed amount of money into football. Plus making the 4 team playoff. Now they're recognize as big time. Football is what paying the sports bills.

Oh definitely, because their bb has sucked big time for a very long time, last 50 years for sure. They needed their football to improve