I’d argue based on the post season that CUSA basketball is not a mediocre league but I agree with your points.
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The league is pretty mediocre but the top few teams are separated by a vast chasm from the bottom teams.
Based on this years results the AAC looks to be a decent upgrade as we leave a lot of bad CUSA teams behind and join other decent programs. No matter what though, if we can’t compete for a league championship, nothing else really matters.
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We’re joining the league ranked #9 in the NET (propped up by soon-to-be gone #1 Houston) that finished just ahead of #10 C-USA.
The good news is that the teams coming in to the AAC help to offset the losses. I checked a few weeks ago and basically the current AAC ranking was 126 and if you took out the schools leaving and put the additions in it would be 128.
I totally agree though that other than a few more household names in the conference from a NET perspective its not much of a change.
It is a huge change in terms of exposure unless that is changed.
We will be on TV, we will have all of our home and league athletic games on ESPN+ (at least), and we will be promoted by ESPN since we are one of their assets.
Do not lose the plot by focusing on one year’s net ratings.
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Has CUSA consistently been there though? DIdnt the league finish behind the Sunbelt recently?
I still think the step up to the AAC is significant even if the metrics say it isn’t that big a deal. I think fan response, brands, TV exposure and recruiting will all improve. Also positive that while Houston is departing all except for UTSA coming in have shown some improvement in roundball.
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I think Run49er point is that it may not change the amount of bids to the NCAA tournament by much.
No one is saying its not a better situation but from some aspects its not really much of a change in competition on the court based on what occurred this year. I would add though that with the way college basketball has come it doesn’t take much to change that perspective either.
Well the AAC got 2 bids to the tournament this year.
2 is better than 1.
Will take it.
Honestly, I think the AAC will be an at large league most years. That alone is a huge improvement.
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I think so too, it would be really disappointing to make the move and end up in the same place you were before but just with more money and games on TV.
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Getting more money & TV will both be big, if they continue. The PAC 12 probably thought they would just keep rolling along. Let’s all hope and pray that with the current geographic footprint that the AAC covers, that ESPN will still view it as a top commodity when the contract comes up for renewal.
Also hope a pray that a P5 conference doesn’t come along and cherry pick the “top” teams again and we’re left having to bring teams up from CUSA or the Sunbelt. Or maybe if the ACC implodes, we’ll end up there.
I guess in the meantime we enjoy what we’re getting and keep our fingers crossed that it continues or at a minimum, the sun comes up in the morning.
Thats part of the reason why your long game wait with Ron is tough. We have to win NOW.
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All very true, though I doubt anyone that doesn’t know the bball history of most of these schools, such as the casual fans in Charlotte, could care less about Tulsa, USF, SMU, ECU in bball and even Temple, or UTSA or N Texas & Rice for that matter.
With ECU being the closest conference teammate by a large margin, I don’t think we’ll still get the local interest back to where it was in the day. There are just way to many other things for people to do. Hell, we don’t even have a decent newspaper/news outlet anymore in one of the larger metro areas in the country to hype up the local teams.
I remember even back when we won the 4 games in 4 days to take the CUSA championship in a big upset. I was stuck in Raleigh or Greensboro that weekend and couldn’t watch the game, so ran out to get the morning paper to read the write up and the only thing I found, and I really had to look, was the score. Everything was all ACC this and ACC that.
Temple still has a brand in basketball, ECU will generate plenty of interest because we have a lot of their alumni right here, many of us have friedns that are ECU alums and will be the first time since our last brief period with them where we have an instate rival in conference. That is going to be huge for football, basketball and baseball. Of course Memphis will still be a draw as well. Wichita State isnt far from their success and Niner fans will get to renew a rivalry with USF while maintaining long standing one with UAB.
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Most definitely agree that the AAC will provide greater visibility, more money, etc. Just find it ironic that when C-USA finally has a renaissance in basketball after a decade in the wilderness of mediocrity, we’re joining an AAC that is trending downward.
Yeah but 5 of those those top 6 CUSA teams are coming with us. So we are basically brining the best of CUSA and joining a league that is down Houston and two mid table programs.
Cincy is a mid table program? They’re the team most of us point to as our greatest victories.
Well, look at us now… things change 
Going to find out if North Texas is a budding program or if it’s McCasland. Same with FAU as May could be gone too depending on the offers coming his way. None of the newcomers is replacing Houston.
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Immediately? No. Thats the nature of realignment. UCF and Sincy aren’t replacing Texas and Oklahoma in football. What it does do is create a vacum at the top and an opportunity for teams to ascend.
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Congratulations to Brice but I don’t want to hear the Mike Hill gaslighting campaign in the off-season about how this was an amazing season. Many of the 22 wins were against low major teams.