CAA & Realignment

The CAA Basketball
Landscape... for now.

The CAA is entrenched as a mid-major conference when it comes to basketball, and as Division 1.5 football in the FCS.  No one is jumping from a larger or better conference to join the CAA.  However, if/when a CAA team decides to jump ship, to a FBS conference, for whichever sport, Tom Yeager appears to have a plan in place.  In a conference call earlier today, the CAA Commissioner wanted to clarify how the constant realignment rumors are affecting the CAA and that the conference does have plans in place should it be affected.  CAAHoops.com has provided a full in-depth analysis on the conference call.  The link is after the jump.

• CAAHoops.com - So Close, Yet So Far

As a Blue Hen, I am against going anywhere.  There are tons of posts on other sites frequently about joining the Big East (if it exists at that point) or ACC, mostly for football reasons.  But financially, it does not make sense for Delaware at this point in time.  The first major issue is capacity, meaning that a new arena and larger football stadium would be needed for this to happen.  In these economic times, there is zero chance of a brand new BOB being built.  The second, and this is my view (not a set in stone fact), is the competition level.  On the court, Delaware would become the doormat of either league, so you are pretty much throwing the programs under the bus to benefit the football program.  In football terms, you could compete in either of those conferences, but in no way would you have the success that Delaware has enjoyed as a member of the A-10/CAA.  You're going from being a top team in the SEC of I-AA football to a .500 program instantly.

Yes, the financial windfall would be great if either occurred, or the Hens could join a smaller FBS conference like the MAC (as UMass is doing now) so as to stay competitive.  Yes, if you give them a 5-10 year period in a major conference, they might just be able to compete for conference titles.  Unfortunately, I'm pessimistic on the whole situation if they move.  Schools get reputations and end up being stuck in positions after a while.  Look at Rutgers football.  They had their year with Ray Rice and looked like they could take over Big East Football.  Now they're back on the bottom while South Florida gets their 15 minutes of fame.  Should Delaware take a hit to it's reputation just for the financial benefits? We could argue this for hours.  My hope is to remain in the CAA for now.  If there comes a time where Blue Hens football (or basketball, if there is a miracle out there somewhere) gets so dominant that playing in the CAA is pointless, then pick up and move on, but until then, do not rush for the greener pastures.