I had a lot I wanted to say about realignment tonight, but any thoughts I'd have would be redundant after this Jeff Jacobs column. It's fantastic. Go read it. Here's a sample:
There is no greater fib than the one that paints the Catholic basketball schools as victims in the Big East saga. Ha. Ha. Ha. LOL. Amen. In the midst of the Big East's getting eight, nine, 10, even 11 bids, DePaul hasn't made an NCAA Tournament since joining the league. St. John's? One NCAA since 2000. Providence? No NCAAs since 2004. Seton Hall? Six years without an NCAA appearance.
Catholic basketball schools made money they never would have been able to make elsewhere. Yes, conference realignment caused anxiety. No, it wasn't always fair that the basketball tail couldn't wag the football dog. But when your share of the media rights is $1.6 million annually and you compare it to $350,000 the Atlantic 10 schools got last year, well, that additional $1.25 million surely helped soothe the nerves. And let's face it. They got clout and cred in the NCAA they never would have gotten elsewhere.
Let's also face some more facts. As soon as the Catholic schools caught wind that the new deal Aresco has been working on wasn't the windfall they expected, or wanted, it didn't take too long to put a bullet in the head of their beloved Big East. UConn, like the other football schools, found out about the Catholic school meeting Sunday after the fact. Heartlessness, as Big East defections have shown, is a two-way street.