Losing ATM - Impact on Women's BBall

[acoustimac]

Everyone seems to focus on the sport of football during the discussions about losing ATM to the SEC. I started thinking to myself what the impact would be on women's bball. Surprisingly, it wouldn't impact the Big 12 much at all. "Are you daft?" you say??? Hardly. Here's how I see it.

Losing ATM without replacing them would obviously make the conference weaker in the sense that one of the power teams would be gone. But, that is the scenario only if no one else is added. I don't think that will happen.

Team #1 - Notre Dame. This is the #1 team on the Big-12's shopping list. You add this team and all memories of losing ATM will be gone. This is a powerhouse very much the equivalent of ATM but plays a different style. No more thuggery, but rather a talented skill oriented team that is coached much like ISU is.

Team #2 - BYU. This is a bit of a downgrade. The Lady Cougars made the 3rd round of the WNIT last year. They had a close loss to TCU, but also got pounded by several teams. Good squad, but not an ATM.

Team #3 - Air Force. This is definitely a step down. Probably like adding Colorado back into the mix without Chuckie. They did beat TCU, but obviously played in a much lesser conference and were a bottom tier team.

Would like to hear thoughts on this. Obviously the conference would still be one of the best in the country with Baylor, OU, Texas, ISU and others involved.

 

[Wesley]

And if we are in Big East?

 

[theshadow]

And if we are in Big East?

Trade out: Oklahoma, Texas A&M, Baylor, Texas

Trade in: UConn, Louisville, Notre Dame, Rutgers

 

[acoustimac]

And if we are in Big East?

Won't happen. Big 12 will stay together. Period.

 

[Sigmapolis]

Sounds like kind of a wash for the women's team either way. I will admit, though, I won't miss the style of play Texas A&M brought to the table, and it would be interesting to see Notre Dame trying to adapt that sort of crispness to the way Baylor or Oklahoma likes to play women's "basketball" sometimes. Probably go about as well as it does for us sometimes... hitting threes or not, there's your outcome.

A little "relief" in the form of a return of Colorado mk. 2 wouldn't hurt on the schedule either, because I can imagine how brutal things are going to be going forward, even without a home-and-home with Texas A&M every year. Though, thank you to the original poster for thinking about something besides football in all of this.

:smile:

 

[simville02]

Honestly, the first thing I thought of when I heard Texas A&M might leave, I thought about not seeing Gary Blair on the visitor's bench anymore. He's always been a classy guy and has said many great things about Iowa State, the coaches, and the players -- even mentioning Hoiberg in a post-game interview. He's a very respectable figure.

I'm sure this is only because it's what I'm used to, but I don't want to see Big12 women's basketball break apart. Of course, it helps that our conference has had a lot of success. As the original poster pointed out, the replacement teams that have been mentioned in this mess of a situation could bring a lot of interesting matchups in as well.

I guess I just feel like we have something special already and don't want to see it destroyed.

 

[BenEClone]

If the national champion leaves, it hurts. But, Houston is strong in WBB and I can't forget losing to BYU in Ames in the NCAA tournament. Either school would be a good WBB competitor. Notre Dame, a strong contender for NC this next year would be even better.

 

[NYCy]

WELL . . . this is definitely happening now, effective next season A&M is leaving the Big 12. It was reported in today's New York Times.

If the Big 12 stays together completely and ISU is still part of it, then the replacement team will NOT be of A&M's caliber in women's basketball. I mean, TCU?? Air Force?? BYU?? Gimme a break. A&M won the National Championship last year and has an incoming 2012 recruiting class with 5 (FIVE!) ESPN Top 60 recruits. Losing them in WBB is an enormously staggering blow to our WBB conference, even with Baylor, Oklahoma, and ISU still hanging on. A&M's going to the SEC and will now seriously battle Tennessee for supremacy (in fact I predict A&M will win the SEC title next year).

I just hope that the Big 12 stays together and adds in some other schools, rather than breaking apart completely, which would probably spell disaster for Iowa State. I mean, what if we are left as an "orphan school" after Mizzou goes Big 10, KU and KSU go Big East (for basketball), and the Oklahoma schools go Pac 12? Then Iowa State might be stuck going to a non-BCS conference like the WAC (Idaho, Hawaii, Fresno State) or MAC (Toledo, Ball State, Buffalo) or (*gasp*) MVC (Drake, UNI)???? I shudder to think -- that would be embarrassing.

Maybe this is all just hysterics. But fun to ponder!

 

[ISUAgronomist]

Then Iowa State might be stuck going to a non-BCS conference like the WAC

No, we won't.

 

[mred]

No, we won't.

Right. The Big East went after the remaining North schools when the conference almost imploded last summer. They'd probably still want us.

 

[mred]

the replacement team will NOT be of A&M's caliber in women's basketball. I mean, TCU?? Air Force?? BYU?? Gimme a break. A&M won the National Championship last year and has an incoming 2012 recruiting class with 5 (FIVE!) ESPN Top 60 recruits. Losing them in WBB is an enormously staggering blow to our WBB conference

With as densely populated as our conference is with good teams, is it really that bad to lose one and replace it with a lower one? Air Force is awful, but TCU and BYU are respectable teams. TCU has recently been similar in quality to OSU and BYU maybe a notch below that.

 

[NYCy]

With as densely populated as our conference is with good teams, is it really that bad to lose one and replace it with a lower one? Air Force is awful, but TCU and BYU are respectable teams. TCU has recently been similar in quality to OSU and BYU maybe a notch below that.

Yes, it really is that bad. If you want to be the best you have to play against the best. You want the national champion in your conference because it boosts your own team's RPI, strength of schedule, and visibility (e.g. ESPN games), which all in turn help boost NCAA tourney seedings. Also top recruits like to know they're going to be playing against championship quality teams, and without those top teams you lose some cachet.

 

[acoustimac]

Yes, it really is that bad. If you want to be the best you have to play against the best. You want the national champion in your conference because it boosts your own team's RPI, strength of schedule, and visibility (e.g. ESPN games), which all in turn help boost NCAA tourney seedings. Also top recruits like to know they're going to be playing against championship quality teams, and without those top teams you lose some cachet.

Believe me...as long as OU, Texas, Texas Tech, Baylor and Iowa State are in the conference...the Big 12 will be respected. Losing ATM is a loss no doubt, but I won't miss them at all. I absolutely despise their style of play.

 

[Royalclone]

You may be forgetting that a team like TCU, which is coming into its own, would be gaining more revenue in a conference like this, and the prestige of the conference would help their recruiting to step up another notch. I think TCU be a good addition. The question is whether the league boss in Austin would allow it.

 

[simville02]

Losing ATM is a loss no doubt, but I won't miss them at all. I absolutely despise their style of play.

I'm going to miss A&M. It's always been a game to look forward to. Gary Blair is a world-class guy.

 

[acoustimac]

I'm going to miss A&M. It's always been a game to look forward to. Gary Blair is a world-class guy.

I agree...I do like Gary. I just don't like the style of play. That is more a statement of what the officials let happen than anything.

 

[BenEClone]

We may never see a Big12 season without A&M, or perhaps, just one. What if the conference splits and we end up elsewhere. The Big East has merit - home and home with UConn, Rutgers, DePaul and Notre Dame (maybe) has appeal and would expand our recruiting base to the metro areas to the coast.