Boy, that’ll turn that POS football conference around. GEEEEZZ! Another basketball team joining the a-she-she.
Louisville will join the Atlantic Coast Conference, becoming the sixth former Big East school to leave for the ACC, sources told ESPN.
The ACC's presidents and chancellors voted to add the Cardinals Wednesday morning to replace Maryland, which will leave for the Big Ten in 2014.
Louisville is expected to join the ACC in the same season, sources said. Big East rules require a $10 million exit fee and 27 months notice, but the Cardinals -- like several schools before them -- should be able to negotiate a higher buyout to leave before the 27-month period.
The ACC also considered UConn and Cincinnati for membership. However, sources told ESPN the league only wanted Louisville because there is a sense among league presidents that the ACC can add more schools at a later date if the ACC lost any other schools.
On Sunday morning after Louisville coach Charlie Strong taped his weekly coaches show he remarked: "Maybe this will be the last show we do as a member of the Big East."
Strong was right.
The addition of the Cardinals and loss of the Terrapins should provide the ACC an immediate upgrade in football and several areas.
In the past four seasons, Louisville is 27-22, compared to 17-32 by Maryland. Under Coach Charlie Strong, UL is 23-14 in the past three years, including 9-2 this season. The Cardinals can win the Big East title by defeating Rutgers Thursday.
The Cards' future looks strong as well. Of Louisville's 22 starters, only five are seniors compared to 10 sophomore or freshmen starters.
Louisville also has managed to maintain one of the nation's top athletic budgets, despite receiving only $3.2 million annually from the Big East's current media rights deal. The Cardinals' current budget ranks higher than any current ACC member.
In 2011-12, the latest date available from the Office of Postsecondary Education's Equity in Athletics, Louisville had a budget of $84.4 million. The ACC's highest budget was Florida State ($81.4 million), while Maryland's budget was only $57.5 million.
The Cardinals' basketball program will fit in with the ACC's elite basketball programs. Since the 2004-05 school year, Louisville has reached two Final Fours and two Elite Eights.
Louisville is among four current and future ACC schools that have won 20 or more games in each of the past 10 seasons. Only nine schools in Division I have accomplished that, including Duke, Syracuse and Pittsburgh.
Last year, Louisville averaged 21,503 fans, the nation's third-highest number behind only Syracuse and Kentucky. The city of Louisville also has had the nation's highest rated college basketball television market in each of the past 10 years.
Over the last six years, Louisville is the nation's only school that has reached both the men's and women's basketball Final Four, a BCS bowl game, the College World Series and the Men's Soccer College Cup.
The addition of Louisville will not affect the ACC's new media rights deal. When the ACC added Notre Dame in all sports but football in September, sources told ESPN the ACC's media rights deal was expected to increase to about $18 million annually.
When Louisville joins the ACC in 2014, the league would have a 14-team football league in 2014 with Notre Dame a full ACC member in every sport but football.
The ACC will mark Louisville's third football conference since 1996 when it joined Conference USA after being an independent for the previous 21 years. UL was in C-USA from 1996-2004 before leaving for the Big East in 2005.
Louisville's departure marks the seventh school in the past year that has announced it is leaving the Big East along with West Virginia, TCU, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Notre Dame and Rutgers.
Because of all the defections, the Big East is scheduled to add nine schools between 2013 and 2015 -- Boise State, San Diego State, SMU, Houston, UCF, Memphis, Tulane, East Carolina and Navy.
Louisville's move to the ACC is the latest in the never-ending musical chairs known as conference realignment. In the past few years, the nation's top five conferences -- SEC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and ACC -- have announced the addition of 12 new members, causing a wave of disruption among virtually every Division I conference from coast-to-coast.
The uncertainty on the college landscape has been so rampant that two league members issued statements about their commitment to the ACC. Athletic directors from North Carolina and Virginia each issued statements, reiterating they had not been in contact or were interested in any other conferences
Link: http://espn.go.com/college-sports/story/_/id/8685541/acc-votes-add-louisville-cardinals-source-says
Louisville will join the Atlantic Coast Conference, becoming the sixth former Big East school to leave for the ACC, sources told ESPN.
The ACC's presidents and chancellors voted to add the Cardinals Wednesday morning to replace Maryland, which will leave for the Big Ten in 2014.
Louisville is expected to join the ACC in the same season, sources said. Big East rules require a $10 million exit fee and 27 months notice, but the Cardinals -- like several schools before them -- should be able to negotiate a higher buyout to leave before the 27-month period.
The ACC also considered UConn and Cincinnati for membership. However, sources told ESPN the league only wanted Louisville because there is a sense among league presidents that the ACC can add more schools at a later date if the ACC lost any other schools.
On Sunday morning after Louisville coach Charlie Strong taped his weekly coaches show he remarked: "Maybe this will be the last show we do as a member of the Big East."
Strong was right.
The addition of the Cardinals and loss of the Terrapins should provide the ACC an immediate upgrade in football and several areas.
In the past four seasons, Louisville is 27-22, compared to 17-32 by Maryland. Under Coach Charlie Strong, UL is 23-14 in the past three years, including 9-2 this season. The Cardinals can win the Big East title by defeating Rutgers Thursday.
The Cards' future looks strong as well. Of Louisville's 22 starters, only five are seniors compared to 10 sophomore or freshmen starters.
Louisville also has managed to maintain one of the nation's top athletic budgets, despite receiving only $3.2 million annually from the Big East's current media rights deal. The Cardinals' current budget ranks higher than any current ACC member.
In 2011-12, the latest date available from the Office of Postsecondary Education's Equity in Athletics, Louisville had a budget of $84.4 million. The ACC's highest budget was Florida State ($81.4 million), while Maryland's budget was only $57.5 million.
The Cardinals' basketball program will fit in with the ACC's elite basketball programs. Since the 2004-05 school year, Louisville has reached two Final Fours and two Elite Eights.
Louisville is among four current and future ACC schools that have won 20 or more games in each of the past 10 seasons. Only nine schools in Division I have accomplished that, including Duke, Syracuse and Pittsburgh.
Last year, Louisville averaged 21,503 fans, the nation's third-highest number behind only Syracuse and Kentucky. The city of Louisville also has had the nation's highest rated college basketball television market in each of the past 10 years.
Over the last six years, Louisville is the nation's only school that has reached both the men's and women's basketball Final Four, a BCS bowl game, the College World Series and the Men's Soccer College Cup.
The addition of Louisville will not affect the ACC's new media rights deal. When the ACC added Notre Dame in all sports but football in September, sources told ESPN the ACC's media rights deal was expected to increase to about $18 million annually.
When Louisville joins the ACC in 2014, the league would have a 14-team football league in 2014 with Notre Dame a full ACC member in every sport but football.
The ACC will mark Louisville's third football conference since 1996 when it joined Conference USA after being an independent for the previous 21 years. UL was in C-USA from 1996-2004 before leaving for the Big East in 2005.
Louisville's departure marks the seventh school in the past year that has announced it is leaving the Big East along with West Virginia, TCU, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Notre Dame and Rutgers.
Because of all the defections, the Big East is scheduled to add nine schools between 2013 and 2015 -- Boise State, San Diego State, SMU, Houston, UCF, Memphis, Tulane, East Carolina and Navy.
Louisville's move to the ACC is the latest in the never-ending musical chairs known as conference realignment. In the past few years, the nation's top five conferences -- SEC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and ACC -- have announced the addition of 12 new members, causing a wave of disruption among virtually every Division I conference from coast-to-coast.
The uncertainty on the college landscape has been so rampant that two league members issued statements about their commitment to the ACC. Athletic directors from North Carolina and Virginia each issued statements, reiterating they had not been in contact or were interested in any other conferences
Link: http://espn.go.com/college-sports/story/_/id/8685541/acc-votes-add-louisville-cardinals-source-says
