The Big East Is on the Verge of Adding New Members

The Big East, in a effort to pull the conference back from the brink, moved to extend invitations to several universities after a unanimous vote by the league presidents at their annual meeting Tuesday.

Commissioner John Marinatto would not identify the universities that would be invited, but they will be Boise State, Navy and Air Force as football-only members and Central Florida, Houston and Southern Methodist for all sports, according to a person briefed of the matter who was not authorized to speak publicly about the decision.

Marinatto said that he hoped to expand the conference to 12 teams in football. He said that would enable the league to have a championship game and perhaps a western division. The timetable for expansion is unclear, but Marinatto was hoping to add members over the next week. The departures of Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Texas Christian and West Virginia had left the Big East with only five football-playing members, threatening the league’s survival. But the Big East has assumed the lead role in the latest round of realignment after the Big 12 accepted West Virginia last Friday.

Representatives from Pittsburgh, Syracuse and West Virginia did not attend Tuesday’s meeting because those universities, having announced their intention to leave the conference, lost voting privileges. The 13 remaining members attended.

On Monday, West Virginia filed a lawsuit against the Big East seeking an immediate exit from the conference. West Virginia intends to join the Big 12 next football season, but the Big East requires at least 27 months before member universities can withdraw.

Marinatto cautioned that the league’s provision comes with a required June 30, 2014, departure. That means those three universities will not be able to join their new conferences until the start of the 2014 season.

Marinatto said there was no discussion at the meeting about finding a replacement for West Virginia.

There has been pressure by Big East basketball universities to add members with better basketball programs, leaving the league with a variety of options.

Temple and Memphis would be good for basketball, but Villanova has objected to Temple; and Memphis football is considered among the worst team in the Football Bowl Subdivision. Brigham Young could emerge as a potential addition, especially if a second division is established.

There is a notion among administrators that after expanding to the preferred 12-team model, that additional teams could be added to fortify the league in basketball and protect it against future defections.

With varying degrees of discretion, Connecticut, Louisville and Rutgers have sought to join other conferences. Marinatto said the administrators in attendance on Tuesday were engaged and excited by the conference’s plans.

“We’ve been through this a number of times,” Marinatto said. “We’ve expanded over the course of our 32-year existence more times than any other conference in the country. It’s an exercise we’ve been through. Hopefully, we don’t have to go through it very often.”