Round of 32 is about respect for America 12

March 22, 2013 by Leave a Comment
(Photo by Justin Ford)

(Photo by Justin Ford)

When the “Catholic 7” decided to leave the sinking ship that was the Big East, and ironically take the name with them, they left the former Big East schools out in the cold.

With the traditional basketball powers like Notre Dame, Georgetown, and Villanova (all losing in the Round of 64) leaving to form a new Big East while and Louisville, Pittsburgh, and Syracuse commit to the ACC, we are left wondering if the former Big East schools will be able to compete with the larger conferences on the basketball court.

This year there are three teams from the America 12 (the front runner for new names for the new conference that will contain the members of the former Big East) in the tournament.

Memphis, Cincinnati, and Temple are carrying the torch for their new conference in this year’s tournament, and so far the three teams are representing the conference well.  They are 2-1 (Cincinnati lost to Creighton in the Round of 64), and when Connecticut gets off of NCAA suspension next year,  the conference formerly known as the Big East should be a formidable basketball conference.

Memphis hung on to beat Saint Mary’s, while Temple won a close game against North Carolina State.  Both of the teams, destined to join the A-12 (or whatever the new name will be), will face steep competition in the Round of 32 from Big Ten schools, with Memphis taking on Michigan State, and Temple facing off with Indiana.

These two games are about more than a Sweet 16 appearance, they are about getting respect for the Tigers and the Owls new conference.

Since the beef of the former Big East is no more, many analysts think that the curtains have closed on the old Big East in terms of basketball relevance.

UConn will be given a level of respect that will rival that of the schools in the larger conferences, but if nobody else in the conference can hold their own against other elite schools in the nation, the conference might only get one team into the big dance.

Memphis and Temple have the chance to help shape the perception of their new conference with wins over two of the top ten teams in the nation, but it will not be easy.

Wins against two of the best teams in the Big Ten will be tough, but if they can pull it off, both programs will draw national attention for a conference in need of a helping hand.

Although the America 12 will not be an automatic qualifying BCS conference, it can become a conference on par with the Atlantic Ten or Mountain West from a basketball perspective.  Both the A-10 and MWC have more teams in the tournament than the Pac-12 (4), ACC (4), and SEC (3).

That is what the “third round” is about for Memphis and Temple.  The Round of 32 is bigger than the pride of the schools, the Sweet 16, and keeping the dreams of a possible National Championship alive.  It is about shaping the perception of their new conference.

Perception is reality in college sports.  If a conference gets labeled as weak, they will not receive as many at-large bids and lose out on millions in revenue dollars.

Wins for Memphis and Temple would go a long way in helping their new conference gain respect in basketball.

On the other hand, losses, especially in blow out fashion, could do the opposite.

CJ Hurt covers college basketball for MemphiSport. Follow him @churtj09 for live tweets from games.

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Big East releases full 2013 Memphis football schedule

March 6, 2013 by Leave a Comment

memphis-tigers logoEarlier this morning, the “Big East” (as the conference is still known today) released its 2013 football schedules for all 10 of its football playing members.

Memphis’ first year in the new conference will include a Wednesday night nationally televised game against renewed rival Cincinnati.

Here is the full 2013 University of Memphis Football Schedule:

Sat, Sept. 7 vs. Duke
Sat, Sept. 14 at Middle Tennessee
Sat, Sept. 21 vs. Arkansas State
Sat, Oct. 5 vs. UCF
Sat, Oct. 12 at Houston
Sat, Oct. 19 vs. SMU
Wed, Oct. 30 vs. Cincinnati  (8 pm, ESPN2)
Sat, Nov. 9 vs. Tennessee-Martin
Sat, Nov. 16 at USF
Sat, Nov. 23 at Louisville
Sat, Nov. 30 vs. Temple
Sat, Dec. 7 at Connecticut

Email: kevin@memphisport.com
Twitter: @cerrito

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What’s in a Name?: New name ideas for old Big East

February 28, 2013 by 1 Comment

With the seven Catholic schools leaving and taking the name “Big East” with them, the no name conference, that will add Houston, Tulane, East Carolina, SMU, Memphis, and UCF for the 2013 season, is in desperate need of a new name.

Perhaps the most confusing thing about all of this conference realignment is what to name these new conferences.  The Big 12 has 10 teams, the Big 10 has 12 teams, and the SEC has teams outside of the Southeastern region of the United States.  It can be confusing, but if you change the Big 12 to the Big 10 and the Big 10 to the Big 12 life will make sense.

Luckily for the remaining teams in the old Big East, there are some solid options for the new name of the Big East.  Here are a few conference name suggestions for the remaining non-Catholic schools in the old Big East:

Conference Formerly Known as the Big East
Think of that picture like the symbol that the artist formerly known as “Prince” uses.  Any symbol will work, a dollar sign with a huge slash to symbolize the lack of money the teams formerly in the Big East will make compared to the BCS conference schools, or a frowny face which will show how sad the schools are for not being invited to the Catholic 7′s new “Big East”.  Think about it, how many conferences are recognized by just a symbol?  None, so being able to add a unique twist to the conference name might actually help make up for some of the revenue that is going to be lost.  Just pick a symbol, throw in “the conference formerly known as the Big East”, and let the merchandising of the conference begin.

Conference USA 2.0
Makes sense to me.  After all, the Big East certainly likes snatching teams from C-USA.  When they first expanded in 2005, the Big East took C-USA football members Louisville, Cincinnati, and South Florida.  This time they take Houston, SMU, Tulane, Memphis, Central Florida, and East Carolina of C-USA.  With the departure of Louisville to the ACC, this makes eight of the 12 schools (Navy is not scheduled to join until 2015) former members of C-USA.

Please Take Me Next Atlantic Coast Conference Conference
The PTMNACCC is a mouthful, but when you take into account that the ACC pillages the Big East much like the Big East pillages C-USA you can understand the name.  With Pitt, Louisville, Notre Dame, and Syracuse leaving to go along with Virginia Tech, Miami, and Boston College from 2005, the Big East is looking like a minor league farm system for the ACC.

Metro Conference
This was the conference Memphis, Cincy, and Tulane belonged to before it folded resulting in the formation of  C-USA.  Since C-USA and Big East are now taken, and nobody has the name Metro Conference, it also makes sense.  Most of the universities in the old Big East are in major metropolitan areas so the name works from that angle as well.

Catholic 7
Since St. John’s, Seton Hall, Marquette, Providence, DePaul, Villanova and Georgetown are taking the Big East name with them, why can’t the old Big East teams take the name those schools have been known by the past few months. Stealing the name of the seven schools that crippled an already struggling conference, seems like the right thing to do to spite them.

CJ Hurt covers college football for MemphiSport.  If you think you have a better name for the new look Big East tweet him @churtj09 #newBigEast for his and your amusement.  He also live tweets from different college football games throughout the Mid-South.

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Core Things to Look For as Memphis Moves to the Big East

March 30, 2012 by 6 Comments

This article originally appeared in the March 2012 issue of MemphiSport

As the Tiger basketball team winds up another season in Conference USA, it’s time to look ahead to how things will start to the look in the future as they move to the Big East. Here are a few things Tiger fans will want to keep an eye on in the future as the scene begins to change a bit.

1. Expectations:  Automatic 20 win seasons will be a thing of the past. The prospect of an undefeated  conference run will be laughable. Can Memphis fans, who are notorious for thinking their team is often better than it is, accept that finishing above .500 in conference should be considered a success?

2. Coaching: Whether it be Josh Pastner or someone else at the helm, in game decisions will become ever more crucial for the Tigers.  A poorly used timeout here or there, lack of the right play called, or a bad substitution could end up costing 4 or 5 games a year. So whoever runs the team will have be on top of his game. And let’s say you do need a new coach at some point. Is the Memphis job now more or less attractive?

3. Tournament at MSG: The Big East Conference Tournament is played perennially at Madison Square Garden. Gone will be home court advantage in the postseason and along with that will likely be regular conference tournament titles. Not being able to host the tournament is also a bit of a hit on the local economy. Will that be offset by teams in big markets making consistent trips to Memphis?

4. Travel: Depending on how the conference ends up looking logistically, Memphis may end up regularly traveling to both coasts. Will this lead to tired legs and some subpar performances? And will Tiger supporters be able to make as many road games as they are used to being able to attend?

5. Scheduling: What kinds of teams will the Tigers put on their no conference slate. It now becomes less important to have national programs on the schedule, so where does that lead? Will there be more of an effort to get local rivals on the bill or will there be more cupcakes?

6. Recruiting: Memphis has been able to recruit elite talent for some time now, but it will be required to perhaps turn it up a notch to even be a middle of the pack team in the league. Will recruiting become harder or easier in the Big East? Just like the coaching aspect, selling the program to potential recruits can no longer include guaranteeing a kid that he’ll win 20 plus games just by being on the floor.

7. National Perception: It will be hard to play the woe is me card and to keep complaining about the lack of respect for the program. Memphis has tended to be a fringe team, an outsider so to speak, and now they are joining the big boys club. Many teams relish the position of being able to have a chip on their shoulder as they always seemed to get overlooked. But that situation will definitely change now. Although you may not quite be seen as Goliath, you are definitely no longer David.

8. Attendance: Memphis has long been a program that draws well, but with such a large arena to fill, there are usually seats to be had for most any game, especially against league foes. Will more big time opponents regularly visiting FedExForum actually make tickets almost virtually impossible to come by?

9. Athletic Director: Who will lead the program going forward? It is possible that more schools will still leave the Big East. Leadership will be crucial during this time. Say what you want about R.C. Johnson, he has kept the basketball program successful. From the hiring of Calipari and Pastner to finally landing Memphis a spot in The Big East, he has kept Memphis on the map.

Michael Jones is the Tiger basketball beat writer for MemphiSport. You can follow him on Twitter @MemphisMichaelJ. 

-Photo courtesy of the BIG EAST Conference/American Eagle Outfitters

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How will this season end for the Memphis Tigers?

February 28, 2012 by Leave a Comment

Tuesday’s 84-55 demolition of Central Florida shows just how good this University of Memphis basketball team can be when they’re on their game, but fans have to be wondering if this is a sign of things to come or just another teasing moment.

A tumultuous, rollercoaster season is finally winding down for the Tigers, so it’s time to start looking toward the postseason. If, of course, there is one.  And at this point, it’s entirely possible there won’t be. It’s also entirely possible it could last longer than many expect it to.

Predicting exactly how this season will wind up for the Tigers is like determining what the weather will be in Memphis. As the saying goes, “if you don’t like it, stick around, it will change.” This crazy bunch called the Tigers is tough to nail down when it comes to figuring out who they really are. They havissues and then seem to straighten everything out. And when you think they finally have everything together,

The team was up and down at the beginning of the year, failing to win games against superior opponents but also not falling to inferior foes. But they were consistent in many ways: they couldn’t seem to defend, constantly gave up offensive rebounds and rarely appeared to be putting forth the energy required to live up to their potential.

Then after an embarrassing loss at Georgetown, there was a long team meeting followed by a 6 game winning streak featuring an upgrade in defensive play, overall effort and seemingly improved team chemistry. The streak was finally capped off by a 22 point win at Houston, clearly an inferior opponent but a win that showed a complete game by the Tigers.

Then came a loss at UCF where Memphis held the lead for most of the contest but failed to grab a rebound late and got a bad break on what many feel was a bad call at the end of the game. Still, no one panicked. It’s acceptable to lose on the road in your conference once in a while. Hey, winning is hard. Just ask Josh Pastner.

The Tigers rebounded once again (figuratively at least) to follow up the UCF loss with an 18 point win against SMU and continued to impress by posting solid victories over Rice and Marshall. So once again, all was right with the world. Memphis was back to playing with intensity, giving great effort and more importantly, notching wins.

Then came Southern Miss. The Tigers lost to the Golden Eagles for the first time in nearly a billion years, and Memphis actually held the lead late in that one. So even though Memphis had lost again after a very brief winning streak there was no reason to be overly concerned. Southern was a quality team with a very good RPI ranking, and the game was on their home floor.

Memphis got back to its winning ways in stellar fashion, gritting it out against a very tough and talented Xavier team that threw everything they had at the Tigers. The fun continued with a solid double digit road victory against East Carolina and then a resounding performance against UAB that resulted in a 34 point victory. In that game, the Tigers looked like they might well have become the team that many pundits had predicted they would be in the preseason polls. Another solid win at Tulane seemed to affirm that this U of M team was really starting to become a force.

Then against all odds, it happened again. Memphis failed to bring its A, B, or even C game in a home contest against UTEP and found a way to lose 60-58. As elated as fans had been before, they were just as disappointed after that result. It began hard to know what to expect from this team. Not that it had been exactly easy before.

So Pastner once again went to his back of tricks, taking the names off of the back of the jerseys. Many sports talk radio hosts shunned the notion, laughing it off and saying that it means nothing to the players. But as corny as it was, it may well might have worked. Let’s face it, kids are different. How were they supposed to have been bitter and jaded enough to know that it was just silly?

Since they have all become anonymous, the Tigers have once again started playing with fire and togetherness. Gutty performances has led them to fairly inspiring wins over East Carolina and on the road against Marshall. The win against the Thundering Herd was especially impressive, as many prognosticators had seen this as a possible loss months ago, but the contest wound up as a 20 point blowout in the Tigers favor. An even more impressive smashing of Central Florida has shown that the Tigers can also serve revenge cold.

Things seem to be falling into place. Wesley Witherspoon has been turning in some solid performances. Joe Jackson has returned the starting lineup and has been performing at a high level, even disproving some who don’t believe he can ever be a true point guard. And Chris Crawford has accepted his role on the bench to put some pretty nice numbers as well. Add Will Barton’s steady presence to the mix and the possibility of Adonis Thomas returning and one can’t help but form at least some degree of optimism concerning the short term future of this unit.

So who knows what to make of this Tigers team? Have they finally turned it around and become the squad everyone expected them to be? One thing is for certain. There is little margin for error now, regular season or postseason. Will they simply fail to show up again one night soon and end their season prematurely? Or did the loss to UTEP finally represent a culmination in understanding that you must always bring your A game?

So how will this season end for the Tigers? Anyone want to make a prediction? You won’t find one here. Except maybe this: Prepare to be surprised… one way or another.

Michael Jones is the Tiger basketball beat writer for MemphiSport. You can follow him via Twitter @MemphisMichaelJ.

-Photos by Justin Ford

 

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Twitter Fancap: Tigers Burn Blazers

February 12, 2012 by Leave a Comment

MemphiSport’s Twitter Fancap lets you be part of the story. Because the fans make it happen. During each game, the best tweets will be picked to help provide insight into how things played out. To be included, just include the hashtag #gotigersgo or tweet @MemphisMichaelJ.


 

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5 Things Tiger Fans Can Look Forward To In The Big East

February 8, 2012 by 2 Comments

The move that Memphis Tiger fans have been clamoring for is finally happening.  Today the University of Memphis joined the Big East in all sports starting in 2013.  They are the fourth C-USA team to defect to the new Big East this season (Houston, SMU, and UCF) and they will again be in the same conference as rivals Louisville and Cincinnati.  According to the Commercial Appeal, the University of Memphis will have to pay C-USA $6.6 million with $500,000 in exit fees and the other $6.1 million in a per-school share of television rights revenue.  So the question all Tiger fans are asking themselves is “What do I have to look forward to in the Big East?” Well look no further than here for that answer.

1.  Reuniting with old rivals:
Memphis fans have missed their rivalries with Louisville and Cincinnati the past few years, but they have been reunited and it feels so good.  The Tigers have not played Cincinnati in football since the Bearcats left for the Big East, and the rivalry game with Louisville in football appeared to be over with too.  Memphis did play Louisville in basketball this year, but that was the first time since the Cardinals left for the Big East that these two have meet on the hardwood.  However, now that these old rivals are back expect players, coaches, and fans to be excited about renewing their old hatred for one another.  The Tigers lead the all time series with the Bearcats in football 18-12 while they trail the Cardinals in football 23-19.  Memphis also trails Louisville in basketball 52-34 and they trail the Bearcats too 36-31.  

2.  Better games for fans:
Now that the Tigers have joined the Big East the teams that Memphis will play are going be much more attractive to fans.  Instead of playing their traditional C-USA schedule, which is usually void of any ranked teams (in both basketball and football), the Tigers will get to play a very competitive Big East schedule.  This new schedule will allow for bigger games, more matchups with marquee teams, and more national exposure.  This exposure will help in recruiting, bring in more money, and give the fans some better teams to watch.  Instead of watching Memphis play Rice in football, fans will get to watch Memphis play Boise State. And can you imagine how exciting it will be when UConn or Notre Dame comes to town?  Season ticket sales are sure to increase now that the Tigers are in the Big East.     

3.  No longer need an at large bid to get into a BCS bowl, but increasing their chances of an at large selection in the NCAA basketball tournament:
In college football BCS bowls are where every team wants to be at the end of the season.  And the way it is set up now Memphis needs to go undefeated in conference play and hope that no other non-AQ finishes ranked ahead of them.  However, one loss eliminates you from BCS consideration if you are in a non-AQ conference (i.e. Boise State, Houston, and Southern Mississippi from this season).  Now all the Tigers have to do in football is win the Big East and they get into a BCS bowl, like West Virginia did this past season.  The Mountaineers finished the season ranked behind four non-AQ schools (Boise State, TCU, Houston, and Southern Mississippi), but West Virginia still went to a BCS bowl because of the automatic bid that the Big East has.  When we look at this issue from a basketball stand point we see that the Tigers are also better off.  A 19-12 record in C-USA is not the same as a 19-12 record in the Big East.  If you go 19-12 in the C-USA you have to win the conference tournament to get into the NCAA tournament, but a 19-12 record in Big East play is enough to get you into the big dance on most years.   

4.  More money:
By joining the Big East Memphis has guaranteed a much larger stream of money in the coming years.  BCS bowls bring in millions of dollars for both the participants and their conference, and now Memphis is in a conference that is guaranteed a spot in a BCS bowl.  Add to it the fact that the Big East has television contracts with ESPN (basketball and football) and CBS (basketball) and the University of Memphis will be bringing in some much needed revenue.  Also, the Big East is located in some major media markets on the east coast which will add to the university’s revenue stream.      

5.  Easier to recruit:
This perk is more about the football program than the basketball program, but it will help them both tremendously.  Now Coach Fuente can go into top recruits’ houses and tell them that they will get good national exposure and they will have a chance at a BCS bowl.  That is something every recruit wants to hear. No longer will certain SEC schools be able to dismiss Memphis because of their conference affiliation (it almost makes you wonder what is the better job now).   Coach Josh Pastner and the basketball program already get solid top notch recruits now, and the Tigers are not in a major conference.  Imagine how well he will be able to recruit now that Memphis has joined the Big East.  Expect both the basketball and the football programs to begin signing more blue chip recruits now that Memphis has joined the Big East.

 CJ Hurt covers college football for MemphiSport.  Follow him @churtj09 for insightful tweets about college football and tweets that might change your life.  

 

 

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Memphis is the Worst Team in C-USA… Again

November 14, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Memphis and UAB fought for bragging rights of a different variety when the two teams meet in an epically bad game on Saturday.  This contest was not about the best of the best, but rather the worst of the worst, as this year’s “Battle for the Bones” decided who would be crowned the worst team in C-USA (and possibly the nation).  Both teams lived up to their hype as two of the worst teams in the nation, but in the end it was Memphis that won the unique honor of being labeled the worst team in C-USA.

Memphis dominated the game through the third quarter and took a 17-35 lead going into the fourth.   Then the Tiger defense pulled a Lebron James and forgot there was one more quarter to play.  Maybe they were preoccupied with thoughts of grandeur at the possibility of winning their third game of the season, or maybe they were trying to figure out what they were going to wear to the Lady Tiger’s first round soccer match against UT Martin.  Whatever the case, the Tiger’s allowed UAB to gain 200 total yards in the fourth quarter, and the Blazer’s were able to score 24 unanswered fourth quarter points in route to a 41-35 victory.

Although UAB won the “Battle for the Bottom”, I mean “Battle for the Bones”; they have nothing to be proud of.  The Blazers gave up a staggering 217 rushing yards to a Memphis team that ranks 114th nationally in rushing, averaging about 93 yards per game before this contest.   Let me put this awe inspiring stat into perspective for you.  If you add up the Tiger’s rushing yards from their other five conference games Memphis has an amazing 221 total rushing yards.  UAB almost gave that many yards to Memphis in one game!

These two teams were on the outside looking in when the Big East pillaged C-USA a few years ago.  They both had solid football and good basketball teams, but were unfortunately left out of Big East expansion.  Now, thanks to a decline in the prestige of their respective football programs, no conference in America wants them, except maybe the OVC.

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All Shook Up: R.C. Johnson in his own words

October 11, 2011 by 4 Comments

This article originally appeared in the October 2011 issue of MemphiSport

Much to the chagrin of Geoff Calkins, Jerry “The King” Lawler, and a growing portion of Tiger Nation, R.C. Johnson is still the athletic director at the University of Memphis. He is still the guy who will control the Tigers’ fate in the next round of conference shakeups. He is still guy who thinks he can turn Tiger football into a winning program. He is still the guy that big money boosters support. He is still the guy who hired John Calipari and Josh Pastner. He is still the guy who hired Tic Price and Larry Porter. He is still a huge Elvis fan. And most importantly, he is still in charge.

In the midst of the most scrutiny he has received since arriving in the Bluff City, R.C. Johnson talked with MemphiSport about Tiger football, the BCS, his legacy, pro wrestling and more.

 

What Elvis Presley song best describes the current state of Tiger football?  All Shook Up.

Not Heartbreak Hotel?  Not right now.

What about It’s Now or Never?  Naw, I don’t think so. I think All Shook Up because of changes we have made with the staff recently. Football is so important. It’s going to take some time and we are going to keep working on it. The bottom line is – we need to win games.

What about A Mess of Blues?  You don’t like All Shook Up? [Laughs] They all apply.

Do you think Memphis can be a football town?  Absolutely. I have been here long enough to know. It’s like “If we build it, they will come.” If we win, it will turn around. This is football country. We have a huge Tiger Nation for basketball, bigger than any besides Kentucky. But this is football country.

Why is Memphis not already in a BCS conference?  I think that is a great question. The only missing piece to the puzzle is probably if we were where TCU is in football right now, we would probably be in one. The most important things are football and the TV market.

What is holding Memphis football back from being on the level of a school like TCU or Boise State?  I don’t think anything is holding us back. It is a matter of getting out there and doing it. I know where other budgets are, and I know what our budget is. We are in good stead there. I don’t know if there is anything Larry (Porter) wanted us to do that we haven’t been able to do outside the lines. Same with staffing. He asked for more money for weight coaches. We have two full timers and three graduate assistants just for football weight lifting. In many cases we are ahead of other schools. I think the things are in place now and it is a matter of executing them.

So you are saying Tiger football is ready right now to start competing for the Conference USA championship?  I think now more than ever. The reason I say that is what we’ve been able to do with staff salaries, the money we have been able to put into recruiting and operations, the improvements we have been able to make, the number of times we are on television. All of these things are better than they used to be. And now it is just a matter of getting the recruits in here and we will have a run at it.

What are the three most important parts of your current plan to improve Tiger football?  First is always recruiting. You’ve got to get the recruits in. That would be number one. Number two is probably getting the coaching staff where they are comfortable with one another. And then go from there. You can always put more money into a program. It doesn’t matter if you are Texas or UCLA or Michigan. But we are limited on scholarships. We are at the full amount scholarships, the full amount of staff. We continue to work on improvements for facilities. We are working on a $10 million campaign right now to build a new indoor practice facility.

If a booster called you tomorrow and offered you $100 million for Tiger football, how would you allocate it?  I think we would take a look at the on campus stadium. People don’t believe it, but I would love to have an on campus stadium. If a guy came around and gave us $100 million, we certainly would take a good, hard look at it. But the fact is there are schools that have on campus stadiums that still aren’t winning.

Wouldn’t an on campus stadium help with recruiting? You have to admit, the U of M campus is much nicer than the fairgrounds.  Oh yea, Yea. Absolutely. That’s true. But when we bring in recruits, they think the Liberty Bowl is a pretty neat place. There are a lot of stadiums that aren’t 62,000 seats. We have a new locker room. And with Tiger Lane now, there is a lot of ambiance.

Though you never get close to filling up that 62,000-seat stadium.  No, but the atmosphere is pretty good. I’ve talked to our players, they like it. Now an on campus stadium, I have nothing against it. I’d rather have it. If a guy came with $100 million, that would solve that issue. But that still doesn’t guarantee us to win. No one in any of our BCS talks has ever been critical or concerned about the Liberty Bowl Stadium.

Are you embarrassed that some local high schools have a better video screen than the one at the Liberty Bowl?  I don’t know if embarrassed is the word. We thought we were going to get new JumboTrons this year. That was the plan in place. Then the city had their school system issues. The plan was to get a JumboTron on the south end, a JumboTron on the north end, and a JumboTron at Tiger Lane. But now it has moved from the front burner to the back burner. That again isn’t the cure-all.

If things don’t work out with Coach Porter is there enough money to go hire a big time coach?  Well, I don’t know what kind of money we are talking about. We have never been without all the money we’ve needed to do what we want with coaches. That’s because of the private sector.

When basketball was struggling, you followed up the disaster hire that was Tic Price with the flashy big time hire of John Calipari. Would something like that work for football?  Not necessarily. Other schools have done it and it hasn’t always worked out. I get a lot of that on emails now saying, “We need to get a big name coach.” Again that is not the cure-all. We need to find someone that makes the right fit. I get people who say, “Don’t hire any coaches that have anything to do with the North. Hire only people who are South oriented.” Money is not the issue. It is the fit, and hopefully Larry will get this thing going.

Explain why getting paid to travel and lose to major college football programs is not part of your plan to raise money and rebuild Tiger football?  First of all, the teams that we are playing, we get to play here at home, which generates money for us. Tennessee and Mississippi State both will play us home-and-home. I did contact Notre Dame and asked them about playing a game with them where they would pay us. I’m working on schedules for 2022 and 2023. You have to work that far in advance. Notre Dame has an opening probably in 2030, but no one schedules that far in advance. I tried that because I thought it would be great for exposure. Our budget is $38 million, If a school pays us $500,000, it will probably cost $150,000 to go after we charter the airplane and everything else. $350,000 is not a whole heck of a lot of money. If we couldn’t ever get anyone to come here, the situation would be different.

But wouldn’t losing to Ohio State for money still be better than losing to Arkansas State for free?  Yea, but we want to play some of those schools we think we are going to beat. And we should be able to beat those schools. You look around the country… Tennessee opened up with Montana. Alabama plays North Texas and Kent State. Now East Carolina plays three big money games and they have been kind of successful, but they don’t use all of that money for football. We have been able to raise more money than anyone in conference.

But while the team is losing on a consistent basis, what is wrong with one game a year where you get a big check and national exposure?  There is a camp that wants to do that. There is a camp that wants to play all SEC teams in our nonconference. Another camp wants us to do what we are trying to do which is playing two name teams a year and two smaller conference schools.

What is something that you just started doing recently that looking back you should have started doing sooner to help Tiger football?  We have continued to build facilities. People forget the Billy Murphy complex, where the football offices and complex is, that was all new. We did that when we first got here. Recently we hired a group named Inspire, a marketing firm that worked at Georgia Tech last year. There are nine of them that are here. Their full time job is selling season tickets, primarily football. but. Tennessee did the same thing. That’s probably something we should have done earlier.

What has been your proudest moment as athletic director?  Well the standard answer is to say, “I haven’t had it yet.” That’s always the cute answer I read in Parade magazine. I would say the engagement we have had in the community over a period of time. Also we are graduating better now, and we have zero teams not qualifying by NCAA APR rates. Our GPA is 3.0. And that is good stuff. I think we have the whole community. My two charges when I got here were to get the community involved and raise money.

What has been your biggest regret as athletic director?  One thing is football not being where we want it. I will always regret how the Larry Finch thing was handled. I didn’t know all of the players, and I didn’t know all the ins and out of the community. If I could do that over again, I would make it better. We had to make a change… I’m just not happy with the way it all went down.

How much do you regret not leaking the letter of inquire from the NCAA when Calipari was interviewing for the Kentucky job?  We talked to schools on probation and about 75% of them said if you are really going to do an investigation, you have to keep it as quite as you can because the media will call you every-other-day wanting to know what’s going on. People will clam up because they think their name will be in the paper. We just thought it would be more efficient if we didn’t.

What do you say to people who claim you lucked into the hiring of Josh Pastner?  Josh was always on my list because Calipairi sat here and said, “I want $200,000 to hire an assistant coach.” I almost fell out of my chair. He told me it was Josh Pastner. I didn’t know Josh Pastner anymore than I knew Rick Ross. Once Josh got here, I could see he was high energy and had a bright future. He was the prime candidate to replace John internally, but because of the level of our program I felt I needed to talk to Tim Floyd and people all over. When it got down to it, I didn’t know Josh was packed up ready to go to Kentucky at the time I called him to meet me at my house.

How often do you still talk to Calipari?  Probably weekly.

Does he call you?  Yea or I call him. One or the other. We were together here for nine years. We had lots of interaction.

How much of the conversation is sports related?  About half of it. The other half is probably things he talks about or things I talk about. It’s a different relationship. It’s not the athletic director and the basketball coach. It is two guys who went through some struggles together.

How often to you talk with U of M president Shirley Raines about issues related to the athletic department?  Three or four times a week. I meet with her every Monday morning from 9:00 am to noon. I am on what they call the President’s Council. We have a regular scheduled meeting every two weeks, and talk by phone almost daily.

Does she ever suggest any big ideas or does she just let you do your thing?  We are in this together. She is the boss. We talk about things. She really doesn’t micromanage.

How often to you talk to people connected to BCS conferences and realignment?  Regularly. I have set times I call commissioners and other athletic directors. Some I have known as friends for a long time and others that I think will help us as a program down the road. We also have a committee of people from the private sector who are helping us and making contact with various individuals.

What do the BCS people you talk to think about Tiger football’s recent trend of blowout losses?  They don’t look at it game-by-game. It’s more of a bigger picture type thing.

What do you have to say about Jerry “The King” Lawler speaking out against you and Coach Porter?  I’m taking my complaints straight to Vince McMahon. [Laughs] I’m a WWE guy. I saw Jerry Lawler the other night on TV. He was in the ring with Triple H.

You watch Monday night wrestling?  Oh yeah, RAW.

Who is your favorite wrestler of all time?  Ric Flair, “The Nature Boy.” I think he has been national champion like 462 times. On the other channel, TNT or whatever it is, Hulk and Flair have their own thing going on. It’s a bunch of old guys that used to be with McMahon.

Can you do the Ric Flair “Woo”?  No I can’t. [Laughs]

Would you face your No. 1 critic/Commercial Appeal columnist Geoff Calkins in a wrestling match for charity?  Naw.

Have you ever been fired from a job?  When I was an assistant football coach at the University of Iowa in 1962 or 63.

Do you have plans to retire before the end of your contract?  I haven’t thought about that. My contract ends June 1, 2013. I still enjoy the job.

Do you think Brett Favre should have retired earlier?  [Laughs] Where did that one come from? No. He was still productive and he wanted to do it.

Is there something you are trying to accomplish before you leave?  All sorts of things. I want to get football going. I want to keep the fundraising going, and keep building facilities.

What do you want your legacy to be?  That’s a great question. I haven’t thought about that because I haven’t thought about the retirement aspect. And I think when you know you are getting close to hanging it up, you start think about that stuff. I just think we have come a long way and we have a way to go. I want to keep going. I just don’t think we are done yet, so I haven’t thought about that.


Kevin Cerrito is the managing editor of MemphiSport and host of MemphiSport Live (MSL) every Saturday from 11:00 am – 1:00 pm on Sports 56 WHBQ. MSL was voted 3rd Best Sports Radio Show in the 2010 & 2011 Memphis Flyer Best of Memphis poll.  You can follow him via Twitter @cerrito.

Photos by Chase Gustafson.

Filed Under: Features, The Big Features Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Is a super-sized Big East a good fit for Memphis?

September 21, 2011 by 1 Comment

After all the recent speculation about realignment and the formation of super conferences, one really big thing is sure to come. A giant mess.

No one knows who will eventually end up where, but you can be certain that soon, whether it be the next few years, months, or even days, the landscape of college football and basketball will be different than it is today. And that can definitely be said about the Big East.

The league’s current fourteen to seventeen basketball playing schools (depending on what day you check) make it a bit of a logistical nightmare, and it’s quite possible that the conference could grow even bigger. With rumors rampant that the University of Memphis could be invited to join the fray and Louisville coach Rick Pitino’s public support, it’s time to examine whether membership in a behemoth Big East would be a good fit for the Tigers.

First off let’s be clear. If the U of M football program is asked to become a member of ANY conference holding BCS status, the program will leap at the chance, and it definitely should. No one could possibly question that.

For basketball, however, the situation isn’t quite as simple. Of course the opportunity to compete against the likes of Louisville, Connecticut, Georgetown and West Virginia on a regular basis brings with it an aura of prestige and ensures that Memphis remains relevant in the eyes of the national media. Plus, inclusion in a league with such marquee members is sure to bring in more money for the university. Lucrative television contracts also mean that the school gains greater exposure.

Joining the Big East would also serve to revive some old rivalries as well as automatically create new ones. Imagine having Louisville and Cincinnati back as the U of M’s primary antagonists as opposed to UAB and UTEP. It probably wouldn’t be too difficult for the fans to get behind that.

Scheduling would get bit easier in some aspects. There would be a great deal less pressure on Josh Pastner to put more big name opponents on the slate, which might help curb some of the complaints that seem to arise from the fans, media and NCAA tournament committee about the Tigers lack of quality wins late in the season.

So hopping on board the Big East train is a no-brainer, right? Well, it isn’t that cut and dry really.

Over the last several years, Tiger basketball has thrived in an environment where they were the big fish in a small pond. If they suffered a loss or two in conference, it was considered a disappointment, and piling up close to 30 wins a year became a foregone conclusion. Sprinkle a few respected teams throughout the schedule here and there, and the regular season became the perfect tuneup for the NCAA tournament. But if Memphis aligns itself with an overloaded Big East, those occurrences all become part of the past. Freedom of scheduling is gone, along with the automatic conference wins and the confidence that gets built by pounding hapless league foes.

Winning the C-USA tournament is something the U of M has accomplished all but one year since 2006. Even when they haven’t been unbeatable in regular season league play, the Tigers have still captured the conference’s automatic bid. That gets quite a bit tougher to pull off in the Big East. Not only would they have to face tougher teams, they would also likely have to play another game, maybe even two. And a late loss might well eliminate them from gaining a 1 or 2 seed in the Big Dance as they also struggle to gain position in the Top 25.

Some will argue that recruiting becomes easier when you’re part of a major conference. You gain instant credibility and name recognition just by sporting that affiliation. You get to see your name on the list of five star recruits right next to the names of major programs like a UConn or a Louisville. Something Memphis would just dream to… Oh wait, that’s already happening. The fact is that Memphis is already one of the top choices for high school phenoms looking to play their year or two in college before they head to the NBA, so joining a major conference really doesn’t do much for them as far as recruiting is concerned.

So what does the U of M basketball program gain if they join they acquire membership in the Big East?Unfortunately, the answer may be that they won’t have much of a choice when it comes down to it. It’s entirely possible that when conference realignment is finished (not that it will ever truly be complete), a school’s football affiliation will control what happens to it in basketball. There are theories that the football superconferences will only play each other as they vie for their own championship. If this happens, college hoops could very well follow suit. And at that point, you’re either in the club or you’re not. It’s that simple.

At least as simple as anything in college sports these days.

Michael Jones is the Memphis Tiger basketball beat writer for MemphiSport. You can follow him via Twitter @MemphisMJ.

Filed Under: The Big Features, Tiger Basketball Tagged With: , , , , ,