As the tsunami that is conference realignment continues to rage among college football’s power schools, it is beginning to ripple through smaller conferences.
After playing small on the field for many years, the Big East Conference can now be properly referred to as the “Little East,” because both Syracuse and Pittsburgh have agreed to jump ship for the Atlantic Coast Conference.
With only six teams pledging allegiance in the conference, Big East officials might try to join with the remnants of the Big 12, another conference ravaged by realignment.
As Bowl Championship Series conferences converge, smaller conferences might finally gain what has eluded them since the BCS was founded 13 years ago: an automatic bid to one of the five annual BCS bowl games.
The two non-BCS conferences making the most noise are Conference USA and the Mountain West Conference, which are working to form a deal that would automatically qualify one team from the two conferences for a BCS bowl each year.
“We find the activities involving conference realignment fascinating,” Conference USA Commissioner Britton Banowsky said in a statement. “We are closely watching the recent developments in other conferences, and the potential for change.”
“At the same time, we are working on some creative consolidation strategies that have the potential for positioning our members well into the future. We are particularly intrigued by cooperative possibilities with the Mountain West.”
According to reports, the proposed deal would pit the winner of Conference USA against the winner of the Mountain West Conference for an automatic bid to a BCS bowl. Though the two leagues would remain independent, they would share a championship game.
If the two conferences were able to work out a deal with the BCS, the Mid-American Conference would be one of three existing Football Bowl Subdivision conferences without a BCS tie-in.
MAC senior associate commissioner and COO Bob Gennarelli would not comment on whether the MAC had any plans for trying to work a similar deal.
“We’re not going to discuss anything right now concerning conference realignment,” Gennarelli said. “That’s going on all around us; we’re just monitoring what’s happening right now.”
Despite the conference’s uncertainty, Ohio University President Roderick McDavis said the Bobcats are happy with their current situation and are not actively looking to move conferences.
“We are very happy in the MAC and happy we have been more competitive recently,” McDavis said. “We look forward to being very competitive in this conference for years to come.”
Ohio coach Frank Solich’s former school, Nebraska, was one of the first teams to leave the Big 12. What lies in store for his current team and conference is still unknown.
“I have no idea what the commissioners are doing. Right now, it’s all speculation,” Solich said. “What the realignment will mean to the MAC is still unclear. I don’t have enough information to know what all is transpiring, but if any more teams leave the Big 12, they will take a pretty major hit.”
If schools from the MAC decide to change conferences, a possible destination would be Conference USA.
Courtney Morrison Archer, Conference USA assistant commissioner for public affairs, did not rule out the possibility of Conference USA adding more teams in the future.
“I don’t think there’s any decision on that one way or the other right now, but I don’t think it’s out of the realm of possibilities,” she said.
ro137807@ohiou.edu
