DFWJC
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One topic that keeps getting overlooked in the selection process and current athletic conference re-alignments is academic standing.
I know some of you say it means little, but I know for sure through various sources that in the larger conferences, it is a fairly large factor (maybe even 25%).
Here is a link that ranks schools with each conference academically.
http://www.usnews.com/education/articles/2009/03/03/college-rankings-by-athletic-conference
They are by category, so National Universites are rated together and smaller schools are inteir own category (ie. Boise is 56th in their regional category but maybe 170 overall).
Obviously, a school's reputation on the football field combined w/ their overall sports program, alumni base, and TV market are all big factors.
But you will see that the teams being picked off are almost always in the upper 1/2 of their conference academically. As the picking grow slimmer then things may change.
The Big 10, for example had always said they would never take a school that was not a part of the Assoc. of American Universities.
list
http://www.aau.edu/about/article.aspx?id=5476
The just madean exception with Nebraska, but they are pretty highly rated anyway and bring all of that tradition.
Here is the Big 12 as of 2010.
University of Texas–Austin (47)
Texas A&M University–College Station (61)
University of Colorado–Boulder (77)
Baylor University (80)
Iowa State University (88)
University of Kansas (96)
University of Nebraska (96)
University of Missouri (102)
University of Oklahoma (102)
Kansas State University (tier 3)
Oklahoma State University (tier 3)
Texas Tech University (tier 3)
Cross reference athletics (especially, but not only football) and academics and you see why the SEC and Pac 12 grabbed who the did.
The Big 12 had 7 schools in the AAU last year and 4 have been picked off.
The SEC only had 2 and now have 4.
I know some of you say it means little, but I know for sure through various sources that in the larger conferences, it is a fairly large factor (maybe even 25%).
Here is a link that ranks schools with each conference academically.
http://www.usnews.com/education/articles/2009/03/03/college-rankings-by-athletic-conference
They are by category, so National Universites are rated together and smaller schools are inteir own category (ie. Boise is 56th in their regional category but maybe 170 overall).
Obviously, a school's reputation on the football field combined w/ their overall sports program, alumni base, and TV market are all big factors.
But you will see that the teams being picked off are almost always in the upper 1/2 of their conference academically. As the picking grow slimmer then things may change.
The Big 10, for example had always said they would never take a school that was not a part of the Assoc. of American Universities.
list
http://www.aau.edu/about/article.aspx?id=5476
The just madean exception with Nebraska, but they are pretty highly rated anyway and bring all of that tradition.
Here is the Big 12 as of 2010.
University of Texas–Austin (47)
Texas A&M University–College Station (61)
University of Colorado–Boulder (77)
Baylor University (80)
Iowa State University (88)
University of Kansas (96)
University of Nebraska (96)
University of Missouri (102)
University of Oklahoma (102)
Kansas State University (tier 3)
Oklahoma State University (tier 3)
Texas Tech University (tier 3)
Cross reference athletics (especially, but not only football) and academics and you see why the SEC and Pac 12 grabbed who the did.
The Big 12 had 7 schools in the AAU last year and 4 have been picked off.
The SEC only had 2 and now have 4.
