The American Athletic Conference is Not a Joke

By Michael Schneid 

The Big East as we all once knew it is officially gone. It became officially official on July 1.

The Big East is still in business and is operating as usual with all sports, except football. The Big East consists of the "Catholic 7" plus Butler, Xavier, and Creighton.

The football teams that left the Big Beast, Cincinnati, Connecticut, South Florida, and Temple find themselves in a new, rebuilt conference, named the American Athletic Conference.

People immediately laugh at the ridiculous of the name. But why is it so ridiculous? If nothing else, it's patriotic. It emphasizes "athletics." They don't want to be called the AAC (a division III conference actually has that nickname), they simply want to be called "The American." I don't see what's so funny about that.

When you look at the name and the teams, you immediately want to dismiss this conferences. A few leftovers from the Big East and the best of Conference USA. Some want to say the American is C-USA 2.0.

But Cincy and Uconn are both above C-USA level. In both football and basketball. Both schools have a combined 3 BCS bowl appearances and a combined 5 National Championships in basketball, including Uconn's most recent run in 2011.

The American hit a lot of major markets - Hartford, Tampa, Orlando, Memphis, Dallas, in the future New Orleans.

When people think about Cincinnati and Uconn being "losers" in the realignment game, that's not really fair. It depends on your interpretation of what makes a school a winner or a loser.

From a basketball perspective, Cincinnati is a winner. The Bearcats went 9-9 in Big East conference play last season. Of the 15 teams they played in those 18 games, they play only two of them this season, Louisville and Uconn. With teams like Georgetown, Marquette, Syracuse off the schedule, Cincy has a chance to improve further on their record. And after three straight tournament appearances, Cincy is on track for a fourth.

Teams like Cincy, Uconn, Memphis won't be hurt from playing the American. Teams will be forced to bolster their non-conference schedules and the conference play will be even more competitive because it is much more wide open. Teams like SMU, Houston, UCF have a chance to make a major name for themselves moving forward.

The American has a TV contract with ESPN, something C-USA did not, so SMU, coached by Larry Brown, has a chance to play a possibly ranked Uconn team on ESPN. When was the last time SMU basketball was on TV? Or Central Florida? The teams at the bottom of the conference receive a major boost, in exposure and financially.

Now football is a different story. Cincinnati, along with Uconn, and USF, the three remaining Big East teams, all will have a hard time getting respect. While Big East basketball was so well respected, and with tournament bids the ultimate sign of a strong program, football is a much different story.

The Big East hardly got recognized to begin with. Now under a different name, with teams that are far less accomplished than the departing teams like Pittsburgh and Syracuse, earning respect will be even harder to come by.

Cincinnati went 9-3 last season and played in the Belk Bowl against 6-6 Duke. Michigan went 8-4 and played South Carolina in the Outback Bowl on New Year's Day. The difference between the Big East and the Big Ten.

Playing in bowls like Belk, Beef O' Brady's, and BBVA Compass make national exposure and respect a challenge. Especially when the opponents are bottom of the standings BCS schools or Conference USA schools.

Beginning in 2014, the five major conferences (ACC, Big 12, B1G, Pac 12, SEC) will automatically earn a spot in the "Access Bowls" which is the same as the former BCS bowls, beginning in 2014. When the playoffs begin, those five conferences will undoubtedly receive the most attention. If Alabama and Oregon are 12-0  and Ohio State and Oklahoma are 11-1, and Cincinnati or Boise State are 12-0, there is a strong possibility one of the "lower tier schools" like Cincy and Boise will be left out in favor of a one-loss Big 12 or Big Ten school. 

If an American Athletic team goes .500, you have a chance at making the NCAA tournament. If a football team goes 6-6, you will go to a weird-named bowl game, like the Idaho Potato Bowl.

I think its also fair to say, teams like Memphis, Temple, UCF, SMU, and Houston are bigger winners. You can't call the conference as a whole, a loser. Memphis has swept through C-USA basketball the last two years. This year, UConn, Cincy, Temple, and defending champion Louisville will provide much stiffer competition. Which may even better prepare them for the NCAA tournament, where they have failed to advance to the Sweet 16 under Josh Pastner.

The American Conference as a whole is a realignment winner because there are no expectations. When Missouri and Texas A&M moved to the SEC, expectations immediately skyrocketed, especially in football. Nebraska is under more pressure now in the Big Ten than they were in the Big 12.

Look at West Virginia. If they didn't win "that joke of a football conference" every year and go to a BCS game, the season was a failure. Cincy and Uconn do not have "BCS-or-bust" expectations, despite both recently playing in bowl games. There isn't pressure he like there is at other schools, in other conferences.

There's no pressure for Cincinnati because if they go 8-4 or 7-5 in football, so what. National media will say they are in a lower tiered conference anyways. But the conference is satisfied to have a team with winning record and players and fans will enjoy a bowl game experience. But if they are constantly at the 10-11 win mark, respect will come nationally.

 Same thing with basketball. Expectation was that the old Big East had 10 NCAA tourney teams every year. The American has a chance to create their own legacy. Their own champions and impact the field of 65 every year.

The expectation is that we assume The American doesn't exist, so when teams make it onto the national radar or spotlight, eyes will open and people will listen. The conference will either do what the national media expects, or there will be six major conferences again in the future, not five like people say now.

The American Athletic Conference is a realignment winner. And the teams will prove it on the field and on the court in the coming years.