We all know that track and field and cross country are on the lowest rungs of the totem pole of collegiate athletics (see Richmond, University of for further proof), so it's no suprise that the latest wave of conference realignment has everything to do with football, a bit to do with basketball, and very little, if anything, to do with track or XC. However, these changes do affect cross country and track and field programs to some extent, so we're going to take a look at some of the winners and losers in the conference realignment scenarios that have unfolded in the past few months.
One final note: I know that conference alignment isn't overly important in the grand scheme of either track or XC, because the regional setup crosses teams up without respect to what league they are in, but winning a conference championship is still very important to most programs, and you would be hard-pressed to tell a coach at LSU or Oregon that winning the SEC or Pac-12 doesn't mean anything.
But first, a look at some of the basic changes that have taken place in some of the largest conferences in America for track and XC:
ACC- added Syracuse, Pittsburgh, Louisville, Notre Dame; dropped Maryland
Big 10- added Nebraska, Maryland, Rutgers
Big 12- added West Virginia, TCU; dropped Colorado, Missouri, Texas A&M, Nebraska
Big East- added Houston, Memphis, SMU, Temple, Tulane, Central Forida; dropped Syracuse, Louisville, Pittsburgh, Notre Dame, West Virginia, Rutgers (DePaul, Georgetown, Marquette, Providence, Seton Hall, St. John's, and Villanova have announced they are joining in a non-football Catholic schools league).
Pac 12- added Colorado, Utah
SEC- added Texas A&M, Missouri
While other conferences like the WAC, Mountain West, and Conference USA have changed as well, these are the major changes to report.
So, how does this affect the landscape of track and field? Unlike in basketball or football, where the winning conferences (SEC, ACC) and losing conferences (Big 12, Big East) are clear-cut, in track and XC, it's different. Some of the powerhouse track conferences are not powerhouse football conferences, for instance. So, here are the big winners and losers, assuming the realignmnet is over, which of course, is never true.
WINNER: The Catholic Seven. Whatever this conference ends up being called, it's going to be must-watch cross country in November when these squads face off. Providence, Georgetown, and Villanova were all top-20 women's teams this past fall, with the Friars finishing runner-up for a national title. The men's side will be no less fun, with Georgetown a national contender, and Villanova not far behind. It's too bad that Notre Dame, whose football team won't exactly be entering the ACC, couldn't have just stayed independent in football and joined this group, making it an 8-way powerhouse. Nevertheless, the Catholic 7 meet will have a Heps feel to it, small and powerful.
LOSER: The Big-12. It used to be called the Big 8, probably should be again, and might cease to exist if Texas and others find their way out. Truth be told, Texas, Baylor, and Iowa State still make this conference relavent, Oklahmoa, Oklahoma St., and Kansas State are still great programs, and it's still one of the nation's best conferences, but losing Texas A&M, Nebraska, and Colorado hurts both the present and the future of a league that could continue to fall apart if there are more changes nationwide.
WINNER: The SEC. Just like in football, the SEC is basically the undisputed heavyweight champion of track and field conferences. In addition to the prowess of Florida State's women in cross country, mens indoor track has five of the top 10 teams in the nation in Arkansas, Florida, LSU, Auburn, and now the addition of Texas A&M. The same group anchors the women's side of things, with the addition of Texas A&M providing them a potential national champion as well. Not to mention, although Missouri has had limited success on a national scale in recent years, recruiting from St. Louis, Chicago, and other nearby cities will be much easier with the lure of competing in the SEC. Plus, many of those football teams, unlike some schools in other parts of the country (who knows why) actually ENCOURAGE their athletes to run track in the offseason. What a novel concept!
LOSER: The Big East. Once a decent track conference, and a very strong cross country one, this new version of the league is left without even a single national contender on the men's side, and only UCF on the women's. That said, there is promise here with teams like Houston, SMU, and Tulane bringing in three major cities' recruits into the fold, but a conference with no real center, and one that has no real business using the word "East" makes little sense.
WINNERS: The Big 10 and Pac-12. While neither conference really added much from a track perspective (Colorado and Nebraska have potential), each has an already powerful lineup in both genders for all three seasons, and each played great defense form the other conferences. The Pac-12 now boasts a men's XC lineup of Stanford, Colorado, Oregon, and UCLA, while the women's XC confernece adds powerhouses Arizona and Washington to that list. Meanwhile, the ever-improving Big-10 of Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana, and Michigan St. (plus the Penn St. and Minnesota women) didn't add much, but didn't have to. The only loss here for the Big-10 is that Notre Dame, who geographically belonged with them, elected instead to head into the ACC.
LOSERS: UConn. In just about every sport, UConn loses big-time. You have to believe that they are staying the Big East, or Big Country, or Big Nation, or whatever it will end up being called, because their men's basketball team is on probation. Fair? Not to Geno Auriemma's women's hoop team, the best in NCAA history, and not to the growing athletic program throughout the school, one that boasted a top-15 women's XC team this fall. Recruiting will take a hit when in a few years coaches explain that they're headed to a conference meet in... well, I guess that's not so bad. Orlando, Memphis, Dallas, Houston, and New Orleans are all nice places to visit.
WINNERS: The ACC. Notre Dame is a steal for the conference for many reasons. It's a great XC program on both sides, has a great all-sports tradition, and adds instant fans into the fold of the conference. But, ND is far from the whole story. Pittsburgh, Syracuse, and Louisville all had very competitive track programs, with the Cuse providing it a new top-20 men's XC squad to go along with Florida St., Duke, Boston College, Virginia, Virginia Tech, and NC State, all having top-25 teams in at least one XC squad. Plus, Maryland was a basement dweller for most seasons, so their loss being the only one the conference experiences is an addition by subtraction, or at least, not a significant loss. In the end, look for the ACC to line up with the SEC as top track conferences in America in a few years' time.
LOSERS: America. Why does football have to drive literally every athletic decision at every high school and college in America? These conference alignments are ridiculous, and any shred of meaning that a conference title once had in cross country or track may be out the window. Now, while this is written from the perspective of these sports, what about all of the other ones. The Big East basketball tournament at Madison Square Garden used to boast better competition than many NCAA regional tournaments, and has now dissolved. If basketball and all of its lore could be ignored, how could anyone have expected track to get its due when these decisions were made? In the end, we'll all get used to these new conferences, and then.... well, you know the rest.