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Joe Pa Says Yes to Growing Big Ten

April 26, 2010 RSS Feed Print

When legendary Penn State Football Coach Joe Paterno weighs in on anything, people listen. That's why proponents of Big Ten expansion have to be happy that Paterno likes their idea.

Paterno says he's in favor of adding three teams to the Big Ten, the Daily Collegian reports. The Big Ten, which already has 11 members, has been openly looking to add at least one new school to its conference. A more recent rumor circulating is that the league may want to add three schools.

"I've been pushing that for several years and we haven't really gotten much response," Paterno said before Saturday's Blue-White game at Penn State. "I would like us to get two teams from the East and one team from the West so we would be at 14."

Still, Paterno's athletics director, Tim Curley, wasn't ready to wholeheartedly agree with Paterno's assessment that expansion was imminent.

"I can't predict when or if anything will happen," Curley said at Saturday's game. "There is really no timeframe we are aware of."

Several schools have been mentioned as potential members, almost all of which are members of other Bowl Championship Series conferences. Rutgers University, Syracuse University, University of Missouri, and University of Pittsburgh, along with the University of Notre Dame, have all been mentioned regularly.

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Tags:: college athletics,; NCAA,; Penn State University,; colleges

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Johnny,
I did not mention Miami because I was addressing academics, BC shares nothing in common with Miami or any of the southern Universities of the ACC . It appears you have forgotten why BC exists at all, to address Catholic moral issues in an academic community much like Georgetown, Villanova, Providence, etc. I didn't mention geography when I questioned BC's fit in the ACC.
Obviously in your mind BC exists for the greater good of college sports.
I guess I was wrong based on your response BC fits in with the philosophies of the ACC schools, the Catholic presence was replaced by athletics. Thanks for setting me straight I now have a different view of what was a fine Catholic institution of higher learning.

Marty of PA 6:48PM May 03, 2010

Marty, U of Miami is farther from its nearest ACC competitor in Tallahassee than BC is from College Park, Md, and Miami is also a smidgen farther from the center of the ACC, around Durham, NC than BC. How come you're not harping on how Miami has brought nothing to the ACC? Miami is a smaller, less affluent market than the Boston metro area, Miami's sports have been worse performers than BC's since they've been in the ACC. It's sour grapes.
To say BC is on par with Harvard is perhaps accurate academically, but athletically it's a silly statement that is trotted out by people who don't know better. Of course, like NYC, Philly, and DC, pro sports are king in Boston, but people pay attention when BC does well - there was a general buzz around when Matt Ryan had BC at number 2 in the nation.
BC doesn't run the ACC championship game - the game last year had worse ratings than the prior year and BC wasn't in it! Chalk it up to a Florida location far away from any ACC member and the fact fans don't know until less than 2 weeks beforehand who is playing in the game. If the game is such a disappointment, then why is ABC moving it to primetime this coming year?
It's fine for folks to dislike BC for whatever reason, but it's tiresome to read folks spreading misinformation about the school.

Johnny V. of MA 6:39AM May 01, 2010

BC does not fit in the ACC or Big Ten. BC a fine Catholic educational institution, shares nothing in terms of educational philosophy with the rest of the ACC. BC sports are a non-factor in Boston - Red Sox, Patriots, Celtics, and Bruins are in control of the TV market. On the college sports front Harvard is as relevent as BC in Boston. If Miami or Fla St return to football prominence BC will fall deeper into a non-factor mode. BC basketball is average at best. The ACC has been very disappointed with the revenues from the ACC championship football game - BC has not delivered. Non - revenue sports are a real drain to all the ACC teams having to travel to Boston.
BC belongs in the Big East where their educational values are shared with several institutions. BC's purpose was to serve as a Catholic institution of higher learning not a sports franchise of which in Boston they might be in a fifth place tie with Harvard.

Marty of PA 9:29PM April 27, 2010

Joe Pa Says Yes to Growing Big Ten

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