RPI of C7 vs. potential add ons

[SLUnatic]

mean RPI of C7=
78.9

mean RPI of Butler, Xavier, Creighton, SLU, Dayton, VCU=
55.5

Last March, the C7 had 2 teams in the tournament, whereas 4 of the above 6 potential add on schools were in the tournament.

[yorost]

And? Those teams are being debated in order to create a strong conference. Having St. John's, Providence, Seton Hall, and yes, even DePaul, as the bottom of your conference is good. If the BE7 were planning to add teams below those 4 they could just stay in the Big East and accomplish the same thing. The computer numbers for the BE7 vs those 6 are very close when you look over the last 10 seasons, though. Sagarin over last 10 seasons (from a published article)...

Georgetown: 85.35
Marquette: 84.72
Villanova: 84.55
Xavier: 84.37
Butler: 82.15
Creighton: 81.98
VCU: 80.72
Dayton: 80.03
Seton Hall: 79.58
Providence: 79.29
St. Louis: 77.90
St. John's: 77.72
DePaul: 76.69

More or less, the BE7 are fleshing out the middle with the possible additions. They need good programs to make a strong conference, of course possible additions will have good numbers. That's not to say these numbers are the best to look at (RPI from one season certainly isn't), but it does illustrate basic strengths of the programs in recent years.

I should add Gonzaga is above all these teams. I'm also not saying this is how the pecking order will be in the future, it's more a representation of what the pecking order would normality have looked like had they been in a conference,.

[SLUnatic]

I think too many people on this board a so concerned about adding "non-elite" teams such as SLU when in reality all teams vying to be added on are in ABOUT the same ballpark that is pretty consistent with the C7. Media market is the ultimate driving force here and so many people are blind to that.

[Edrick]

The C7 deliver New York, Washington, Philadelphia, and Chicago. Fox is going to pay 3.5mm per school because of all the eyeballs that this basketball conference will reach.

Butler and Xavier may be better basketball programs than most of the C7, but that's only a small piece of the value proposition to FOX.

If you are talking about commanding media dollars (and that's what this is about), Butler and Xavier clearly need the C7 more than the other way around.

That said, does it really matter? Both sides need each other for different reasons. Just don't get so crazy about it. BU and XU may add to the basketball credibility but the combined markets are a drop in the bucket comparatively.

There's definitely synergies, but if the value prop for FOX was a used car, Butler and Xavier are a brand new custom paint job and ground effects, Georgetown, St Johns, etc are the engine.

[admin]

mean RPI of C7=
78.9

mean RPI of Butler, Xavier, Creighton, SLU, Dayton, VCU=
55.5

Last March, the C7 had 2 teams in the tournament, whereas 4 of the above 6 potential add on schools were in the tournament.

I think most of us can honestly acknowledge that if we were choosing teams on the playground, several of the C7 would be picked way at the end. It doesn't change anything though as their association with the Big East / C7 (and their presidents) trumps anything that the schools lobbying for consideration add.

[yorost]

I think too many people on this board a so concerned about adding "non-elite" teams such as SLU when in reality all teams vying to be added on are in ABOUT the same ballpark that is pretty consistent with the C7. Media market is the ultimate driving force here and so many people are blind to that.

Being about on the same playing field doesn't mean the BE7 shouldn't be trying to add the best programs available. It isn't about the status of each of the BE7 teams, it's about using themselves as a base to create a strong conference. If they could find suitable partners that were all stronger than them they would be looking there, first. Georgetown, Marquette, and Villanova are not at the head of the class of the Big East, but any of them very well could be in the new conference. The new conference is roughly the 2012-2013 Big East lineup minus Syracuse, Connecticut, and Louisville. The debates for the 12th member are akin to debating between keeping South Florida or Rutgers, wouldn't you be more interested in debating about keeping Syracuse or Connecticut? Finding a match to the bottom 4 of the BE7 is acceptable, but finding elite teams will help everyone in the conference and soften the fall the BE7 is taking. It's also worth noting that the bottom 4 all have significantly more recent successes than St. Louis, whose pedigree relies on the 50's and 60's. Many people don't even realize St. Louis used to be a great program, but the successes of the bottom 4 are more memorable since they're more recent. Not only that, their regular exposure in the Big East has been good exposure for their brands. If it was a debate between the bottom 4 and St. Louis, St. Louis would be my last pick, sorry. I want you in the new conference, but it's because you're a good enough match and would help connect to Creighton.

Don't get me wrong, I like your program and school. The ties to Majerus have always given me a positive image and minor rooting interest for St. Louis.