Bonesville: The Authoritative Independent Voice of East Carolina

News & Features from ECU, the AAC and Beyond

  • Home
  • News & Features
  • Recruiting
  • Photos
  • Audio
  • Roundup
  • Comments
  • Legacy Archives

• ECU 2021-22 Hoops Schedule
• ECU 2022 Baseball Schedule
• ECU 2022 Football Schedule
• Recruiting: Football • Hoops

Insights from Brett
AAC moves forward as UConn looks to the past

July 1, 2019 By Brett Friedlander 2 Comments

Tweet
Share
Share
Pin

Nostalgia is a funny thing.

Regardless of your age or station in life, there’s just something about the “good old days” that always make them seem better than the here and now. Nowhere is that more true than in the realm of sports.

Ask any oldtimer who they think is better and the answer will inevitably be Michael, not Lebron. Aaron rather than Bonds or Nicklaus over Tiger.

The ultimate Throwback Thursday moment, however, came — coincidentally enough — last Thursday when Connecticut announced that it was leaving the American Athletic Conference and returning to the Big East.

It was a move that was hailed by fans of the school and members of the national media, especially those old enough to remember the real Big East of the 1980s and 90s, as an opportunity for the Huskies to reestablish their brand and return to the national prominence they once enjoyed (in men’s basketball, at least).

That sounds like a plausible assumption, considering the downward trajectory UConn has been on for at least the last half decade.

The only problem is that it’s nothing more than romantic nostalgia.

If UConn was actually the valuable commodity those living in the past believe it to be, it would have been absorbed into the Atlantic Coast Conference along with Miami, Virginia Tech, Syracuse, Pittsburgh and Boston College when the original Big East fell apart in 2013.

There’s a reason the Huskies got left behind by both the ACC and Big 12 during the great rush of college conference realignment.

And it’s not academics, as has been widely reported.

Rather, it’s because of its location in a media market lost in a no-man’s land between New York and Boston, a football program so insignificant that school officials have no problem hanging it out to dry by moving to a new conference that doesn’t have football, and most importantly because its men’s basketball program has fallen into disrepair since the retirement of legendary coach Jim Calhoun and the departure of the players he recruited.

Returning to a watered down Big East will at least reunite UConn with old rivals Villanova and Marquette. But it’s questionable as to how much or if it will have any impact on the Huskies’ ability to land top-rated recruits.

As for the AAC, the loss of UConn is hardly reason to panic.

Commissioner Mike Aresco has already issued a statement indicating that the league will not allow UConn to continue playing as a football-only member, meaning that the AAC will move forward — at least for the time being — as an 11-team conference.

And there’s nothing wrong with that.

The ACC has functioned just fine with an odd number of schools since admitting Notre Dame in all sports but football.

With Central Florida, South Florida, Houston and Memphis still in the fold in football, and nationally relevant men’s basketball programs Houston, Cincinnati, Wichita State, UCF and Temple still in place, the AAC’s cupboard is anything but bare without UConn.

Even in women’s basketball, where coach Gino Aureama’s Huskies are the gold standard of excellence, their departure can be given a positive spin in that it finally opens the door for other teams to seriously challenge for conference championships moving forward.

Eventually, as Aresco indicated in his statement, the AAC will move to find a replacement for UConn. When it does, the options are plentiful.

If it’s interested in bolstering its football lineup and giving current gridiron member Navy a natural partner, it can always turn to fellow service academy Army or Air Force.

If it’s looking to expand farther west, it can pay a call to Brigham Young or Boise State.

If strengthening basketball is the aim, it wouldn’t hurt to place a call to Virginia Commonwealth.

Georgia State has apparently expressed an interest in joining already.

Then, from a ECU-centric standpoint, there’s always Appalachian State or UNC-Charlotte.

Any one of those schools would be a welcome addition that would easily allow the AAC to retain its current position as the strongest of the non-Power 5 conferences. UConn simply isn’t that difficult to replace.

That’s not to disparage the Huskies, who have what they believe to be valid reasons for returning to the Big East. It’s just that while they’re looking backward trying to recreate their version of the good old days, the AAC — and ECU along with it — continues to move forward, setting the bar even higher in search of successes and stature yet to be achieved.

AAC LOOKS AHEAD AS UCONN LOOKS TO THE PAST
VERITY’S OLD NUMBER WAS TOO BIG
PIRATES WALKED THE WALK AFTER FLORENCE
FOOTE FINDS HOME AWAY FROM HOME AT ECU
SELECTIVE MEMORY HAS ITS ADVANTAGES
BAKICH AND MICHIGAN CHASING DOGPILE MOMENTS
D-LINEMAN McCRAY BRUSHING OFF NEW SUITORS
LeCLAIR PROTÉGÉS HOTLY PURSUING THE QUEST

Related

Tweet
Share
Share
Pin

Filed Under: News & Features

Comments

  1. DB says

    July 1, 2019 at 1:16 pm

    You’ve listed the AAC as the ACC a couple of times on here in this article.

    Reply
    • Brett Friedlander says

      July 1, 2019 at 4:48 pm

      There was just one and it’s been fixed. Good catch … AAC and ACC easy to get mixed up when both are mentioned in the same column.

      Reply

Leave a Reply to Brett Friedlander Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recent News & Features

Baseball News
Pirates walk off in 10th for sweep

Baseball News
Pirates continue roll

Baseball News
Pirates overtake Houston for 12th straight win

VIEW FROM THE EAST
Pirates grind to success

Baseball News
ECU edges Campbell, 7-6

Baseball News
Pirates clinch AAC crown

Baseball News
ECU captures series, boosts conference lead

Baseball News
Pirates take series opener with Bulls

ECU Recruiting News
Pirates aim high for interior line talent

VIEW FROM THE EAST
Pirates prevail at less than best

More News & Features

ECU Schedules

  • ECU 2021 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2020-21 Basketball Schedule
  • ECU 2021 Baseball Schedule

ECU Recruiting

  • Football Recruiting Class of 2021
  • Football Recruiting Class of 2020
  • Football Recruiting Class of 2019
  • Football Recruiting Class of 2018
  • Football Recruiting Class of 2017
  • Hoops Recruiting Class of 2021-22
  • Hoops Recruiting Class of 2020-21
  • Hoops Recruiting Class of 2019-20
  • Hoops Recruiting Class of 2018-19
  • Hoops Recruiting Class of 2017-18
  • Hoops Recruiting Class of 2016-17
Tweets by bonesville

Past Football Schedules

  • ECU 2020 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2019 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2018 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2017 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2016 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2015 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2014 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2013 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2012 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2011 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2010 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2009 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2008 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2007 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2006 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2005 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2004 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2003 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2002 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2001 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2000 Football Schedule
  • Historical Schedules

Past Basketball Schedules

  • ECU 2019-20 Basketball Schedule
  • ECU 2018-19 Basketball Schedule
  • ECU 2017-18 Basketball Schedule
  • ECU 2016-17 Basketball Schedule
  • ECU 2000-2015 Basketball Archives

Past Baseball Schedules

  • ECU 2020 Baseball Schedule
  • ECU 2019 Baseball Schedule
  • ECU 2018 Baseball Schedule
  • ECU 2017 Baseball Schedule
  • ECU 2016 Baseball Schedule
  • ECU 2015 Baseball Schedule
  • ECU 2001-2014 Baseball Archives

Recruiting Class Profiles

ECU Recruiting News
Pirates aim high for interior line talent

ECU Recruiting News
Well stocked Pirates enter fray for O-linemen

ECU Recruiting News
ECU faces uphill battle in hunt for tight ends

ECU Recruiting News
Pirates cast wide net for wide receivers

ECU Recruiting News
Loaded Pirates still courting running backs

ECU Recruiting News
ECU targets quarterbacks of the future

AAC Football Recruiting News
Transfer portal reshaping AAC football programs

Class of 2022 Defensive Report Card
ECU’s former weak link becoming big strength (updated)

Class of 2022 Offensive Report Card
Help is on the way for blocking corps (update 3)

American Athletic Conference Recruiting
Bearcats lead AAC’s early signing push

Class of 2022 In-depth Analysis
Surprises, depth highlight early recruiting haul

VIEW FROM THE EAST
‘What a difference a year makes’

Football Recruiting Report
Prolific receiver Webb may enroll early

Football Recruiting Report
Another gifted running back headed to ECU

Football Recruiting Report
ECU wins pledge from hotly recruited RB Gunn

Football Recruiting Report
Coveted lineman Sacra may enroll early

Football Recruiting Report
Pirates lure a star from DB factory

VIEW FROM THE EAST
Harrell on quest for unanimous effort

Football Recruiting Report
West Craven star Mims sticking close to home

VIEW FROM THE EAST
Pirates ready for preseason camp

Football Recruiting Report
Lineman built his future during COVID layoff

Football Recruiting Report
Norcross star on track for early enrollment

VIEW FROM THE EAST
Pirates pulling from portal

Football Recruiting Report
Big man Allen tapping into ‘nasty side’

Football Recruiting Report
ECU gets one of NC’s top D-line prospects

Recent Web Roundups

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Saturday, May 21, 2022

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Friday, May 20, 2022

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Thursday, May 19, 2022

Writer Archives

  • Bonesville Staff
  • Brian Bailey
  • Sammy Batten
  • Bethany Bradsher
  • Brett Friedlander
  • Al Myatt
  • NFF
  • Greg Vacek
  • Danny Whitford

Recent Web Roundups

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Saturday, May 21, 2022

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Friday, May 20, 2022

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Thursday, May 19, 2022

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Wednesday, May 18, 2022

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Monday, May 16, 2022

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Sunday, May 15, 2022

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Saturday May 14, 2022

More Web Roundups

Copyright © 2022 Bonesville.net · Website by Seaport Webworks. · Log in · Privacy Policy