By Denny O'Brien
©2011 Bonesville.net
All Rights Reserved.

Maybe the Big East will eventually announce its replacements for the schools that successfully escaped it. That moderately anticipated announcement was supposed to occur several weeks ago, only to get 86’d by the scandal at Penn State.

Big East football hardly registers nationally to begin with, and developments in State College would have shoved any mention of expansion to the back page of any sports daily.

Then it was supposed to happen a couple of weeks ago, once all the red tape with existing television contracts was cut through. Obviously the Big East wasn’t expecting to get BY-Used in the process.

So here we sit today with no official news on the Big East’s future plans. Only a six-pack of mediocre pigskin programs remains, with speculation of the programs that will join it. Included within that bunch are current Conference USA members Central Florida, Houston, and Southern Methodist, along with Mountain West delegates Air Force, Boise State, and San Diego State.

It’s perplexing that only one of those schools is in the eastern time zone.

If the Bowl Championship Series were to keep its current system in place, hopping a jet from San Diego to New Jersey makes perfect sense. The lure of AQ status within the current postseason structure would more than compensate for any financial hardship that might accompany cross-country travel.

But if Houston and friends are banking on the Big East — or anyone — maintaining AQ status, they are taking a short-sighted approach. It’s clear from the most recent BCS meetings that major change is on the horizon, and the elimination of AQ status could be the next route taken.

Should that occur, and many believe it will, what then for Houston and SMU? Will the television contract the Big East negotiates provide the necessary compensation for those schools to send their women’s volleyball teams to the Northeast several times per year?

And without AQ status, what’s the draw for Boise State to leave one league of perceived misfits for another? Especially when further exploration into the new merger between C-USA and the Mountain West could ultimately lead to more bowl and television revenue.

Considering Central Florida’s geographic location and rival South Florida’s existence in the Big East, it makes perfect sense for the Knights to accept an invitation. That’s not the case for most of the other schools being discussed.

For the non-eastern time zone schools, joining the Big East does not provide a decided competitive upgrade from their current conference scenarios. More importantly, there is no guarantee that a move will provide a better bottom line.

The case for Oklahoma State

The thought of a rematch between LSU and Alabama had no influence on my final Harris Poll ballot. Truthfully, my eyes would welcome another game between the Tigers and Crimson Tide.

There were, however, many factors that led me to push the Cowboys ahead of the Tide in the final rankings. The most important was the overall number of quality wins.

Oklahoma State embarrassed both Baylor (my No. 12) and Oklahoma (my No. 19) this year, while also beating Kansas State (my No. 9). The Cowboys also registered solid road victories over Tulsa, Texas A&M, Texas, and Missouri.

Comparatively, Alabama had convincing victories over Arkansas (my No. 7) and Penn State (my No. 21). But its other conference wins weren’t nearly as impressive as Oklahoma State’s, and the Tide also has a win over a Football Championship Series opponent on its resume.

There is no question that Oklahoma State has the worst loss between the two, losing at Iowa State in double overtime. But in the end, I valued the overall number of quality wins more heavily, along with the fact that the Cowboys won one of the nation’s most challenging conferences, while Alabama didn’t even win its own division.

Given that criteria, Oklahoma State was more deserving.

Back to bowling

There is no indication that East Carolina coach Ruffin McNeill is on the hot seat, but it’s clear given the volume of openings that athletics directors lack the patience that was reflected in the job 20 years ago.

They can’t afford to.

When programs don’t win, donors aren’t nearly as generous with their checkbooks or attendance. Television executives and regional media also lose interest when teams lose more than they win.

And it’s ultimately up to the AD to address those issues.

With East Carolina finishing 5-7, the Pirates ended a streak of five consecutive bowl appearances, a run that included two straight C-USA championships and Liberty Bowl berths. Missing the postseason naturally caused some unrest within the masses, and the mere thought of extending that to consecutive seasons could potentially cause an uproar.

Given the navigable C-USA slate and East Carolina’s competitive and financial position within the conference pecking order, it’s reasonable for fans, at a minimum, to expect the Pirates to conclude each season with a bowl.

The number of ECU returnees compared to the personnel losses of its conference rivals suggests the Pirates could again contend for the C-USA crown next fall. With a lighter non-conference load, the Pirates should, at a minimum, return to a bowl.

That should keep McNeill’s status relatively secure.