http://www.gwhatchet.com/2011/10/27/ner ... certainty/

This article makes it sound as though the CAA did not reach out to the A10 schools - while at the same time implying that reaching out to GMU & VCU may very well be happening right now. If I'm either GMU or VCU, I'd want to wait to see if a top A10 team gets poached before making a decision.

With the Big East inviting 3 C-USA schools, do you suppose that C-USA could expand instead of merging with MWC? Perhaps with the 3 A10 schools that JPSchmack mentioned?

When the A-10 expanded to 14 with Charlotte and Saint Louis there were actually six or seven schools discussed.

Boston University and Hofstra were among them. I believe a few other CAA schools as well. It was interesting that BU and Hofstra were viewed as "separate markets" from UMass/URI and Fordham. Common belief is that those three would oppose Boston or NYC Metro Area schools, like the Philly schools would be against Drexel (who wasn't on the list).

I can't remember if George Mason was on the list or not, but this was before their 2006 run.

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Article out of Philly(previously posted in another thread)discussing Temple/BE story and possibility that A-10 may need to replace Temple in the future.Link at http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/col ... 91473.html

CAA candidates are extremely interesting because the power of the league is in A-10 markets:

VCU: Richmond VA (Richmond)
GMU: outside DC (GW)
Drexel: Philly (SJU, LaSalle)

I could really see Butler being the target candidate. Two Final Fours and the Indy market. Travel partner with SLU (Not that hoops does travel partners).

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i agree, a10 would be wise to expand west if a replacement for temple is needed...the a10 already covers the northeast pretty well their schools, so its either west or south.

VCU and GMU, along with Hofstra, Drexel, and Northeastern would be duplicate markets, which in this day and age is a no no.

Delaware, ODU or JMU would be a solid choice, but they would have to leave CAA football to join the A10 and that is not going to happen. Towson is in the same boat, but I don't think the A10 is interested in them

I figure the A10 would be wise to make a pitch at Butler, a small private school, like most of the other A10 schools (St. Joe's, LaSalle, Duquense, Fordham, St. Bony, Xavier, Richmond, St. Louis) and a solid basketball school in a big city like Dayton, Charlotte, and George Washington.


POSSIBLE DIVISIONS
Umass
URI
St. Joe's
La Salle
GW
Charlotte
Richmond

Xavier
Dayton
St. Louis
Butler
Duq.
Fordham
St. Bony

Hoops are the main reason for travel partners. Example say USC and UCLA play at OSU and Oregon on Thurs, then on sat UCLA plays OSU and USC plays Oregon.

I think Butler is easily the top choice, look at what they have done, look at where they are and they are a private school like most of the A-10. What 10 of 14 are private now I think.

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That works in the West because schools are spread out. But the A-10 is Wednesday-Saturday because their TV deal kinda screws with travel partners. They make a schedule with the partners, but then shuffle games based on when ESPN/CBSCS wants to put select games like Temple-SJU, Dayton-Xavier, etc on. So it's semi-travel partners, but with a lot of swapping.

The A-10 travel partners when CHAR-SLU joined the league paired them together, because GW-Richmond worked with two Philly schools together, and a Philly school pairing with Fordham; CHAR-SLU was a direct flight. Made the most sense.

With a Philly school leaving, you could do CHAR-RICH, GW-Fordham (or GW-Philly1; Fordham-Philly2) and Butler-SLU.

In volleyball, with not every team having the sport, SLU is travel partners with Duquesne (Pitt-STL a direct flight) instead of splitting up XU-UD.


I think Butler works best because while VCU and GMU have recent Final Four runs, so does Butler and it's a big non-duplicate market. It's private without a budget that would throw off the balance of power in the A-10 too badly. They're be a drop off from the decades of success that Temple has had (but lets be honest, aside from adding Gonzaga, anyone would be a drop off from Temple in MBB).

Butler is probably the best MBB program not en route to a BCS AQ league right now.

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Well you went to St.Bonaventure and I went to Fresno St., you guys are not big on travel partners and we are all about it.

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NFL CHAMPS '29 '30 '31 '36 '39 '44 '61 '62 '65 '66 '67 '96 '10

BW/WAC/MWC CHAMPS '77 '82 '85 '88 '89 '91 '92 '93 '99 '12
['08 NCAA BASEBALL CHAMPS]

Article out of StLouis discussing Temple and A-10 realignment at http://www.stltoday.com/sports/columns/ ... f6878.html

Interesting that he did not discuss the MVC - St. Louis would be welcomed into the MVC

i doubt st. louis leaves as long as they have xaiver and dayton in the A10 western flank. Those 3 fit well together and would be wise to make a push for butler or another western school, although I think butler is the best option in virtually all aspects of the discussion. Since it looks like they will be in the A10 for longer than they expected, might as well make long term preparations in order to make the best of it, and Butler has shown a commitment to hoops and brings a major market and name recognition. Win Win Win

I live in St. Louis, and the SLU situation is this:

After the ACC raid on the BE in 2003, BE took Cincy, Louisville, USF, and BB schools DePaul and Marquette from CUSA.
Army was in CUSA for FB only and were not winning any games, so they decided to pull out and go indy in FB.
CUSA was left with 2 non-FB schools (SLU and UNC-Charlotte), and Commissioner Britton Branawsky decided to restructure to 12 all-sports schools.
So SLU and UNCC joined the A-10.

The thinking at the time was that the BE would split and that SLU would be invited to join the Cathoic BB league:
8 schools from the BE, and some other invitees like Dayton, Xavier, SLU (A-10), maybe Holy Cross, Duquesne.....
This has been the hope of Father Lawrence Biondi, the President of SLU.

Biondi hired Rick Majerus and he's done well. He had a set-back about 2 yers ago when two "core" players were booted off the team for a rape accusation.
He's quickly rebuilt wiht some recruits and they should be in good shape for the Big Dance this year.
Majerus proposed leaving the A-10 a few years ago (he either preferred something like the MVC and/or sensed that BE spllit was not going to happen anytime soon).
Biondi had to sort of "muzzle him".

I happen to think the BE split may actually happen around 2013. Marinatto has made some comments about negotitting a TV contract for FB and BB for after the curent
contract expires in 2013, and then "operating the FB and BB entitities as 2 separate groups under one umbrella".
Not exactly sure what that means, and Marinatto doesn't seem very capable of "the vision thing", so that "vision" may have lasted 5 minutes.
No doubt Biondi is continuing to hope. I look at the 8 catholic BB schools and the (is it 13 now with Temple ?) FB schools,
and can't imagine 2 groups that seem to have less in common. I feel like the FB additions are now occuring without the approval of the BB schools
(Villanova no longer fighting the Temple addition tooth-and-nail).... is this due to an upcoming split ?

If the A10 just wants to replace Temple than Butler makes more since than a solo CAA school. Now if the A10 would be willing to offer VCU, ODU, and GMU as a package than you might have something.

The A10 would have an awesome pubic plus Richmond division of

ODU
VCU
GMU
Richmond
Charlotte
George Washington
UMass
URI

and a small, religious division of
St. Joe's
LaSalle
Duquense
St. Bony
Fordham
Xavier
Dayton
St. Louis

Doubt ODU would have Too much interest since they need the CAA tie-in for football growth. While hoops is the best product for ODU, alot of money was put into the football program. Gotta keep it growing with all-sports CAA rivals. Now if JMU were a hoops powerhouse, or UD, then A10 would be easier since for them, they have FB programs running strong regardless of conference.



But you're right. Easiest move is to bring in Butler. A name that helps, and a low athletic budget that would put them near the bottom but not the lowest. Gotta think they'd still compete at a good level swapping Cleveland St. for Xavier, Dayton, st. Louis

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agreed. odu is a football school now, but still a power in all other sports. they have a great future ahead.

was trying to present a realistic way for the a10 to take caa schools. outside of a package deal i just dont see a vcu or a gmu leaving on their own or even abandoning odu if vcu and gmu were offered together.