SB Nation Houston - Big East Realignment: SMU To Accept Invite On Friday, According To Sourcehttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/46691/houston-fave.png2011-11-01T14:54:31-05:00http://houston.sbnation.com/rss/stream/22805022011-11-01T14:54:31-05:002011-11-01T14:54:31-05:00Big East Realignment: SMU To Accept Invite On Friday, According To Source
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<p>The Southern Methodist Mustangs will formally accept their invite to the Big East conference on Friday, according to <a target="_blank" href="http://twitter.com/#!/JHopkins247/status/131446553117335555">Justin Hopkins of 247 sports</a>.</p>
<p>SMU has long been rumored to join the Big East conference as the conference realignments continue to shift across the country. The Big East is the latest conference to go on the offensive as they've reportedly reached out to six schools, including SMU, about joining the conference. It's also been reported that Air Force, Navy and Boise State have been invited in a football-only situation, and Central Florida and Houston join SMU as conference members in all sports.</p>
<p>The Big East was desperately looking to expand after losing Syracuse and Pittsburgh to the ACC, and TCU and West Virginia to the Big XII conference. The expansion for all of these conferences is far from over and now begins the legal discussion on when these schools will officially join their new homes.</p>
https://houston.sbnation.com/2011/11/1/2530799/big-east-realignment-smu-to-accept-invite-on-friday-according-toBJ Kissel2011-11-01T14:08:11-05:002011-11-01T14:08:11-05:00NCAA Conference Realignment: Big East Sends Out Six Football Invites
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<p>The Big East has gone of the offensive now as it's being reported on ESPN that sources close to the associated press have confirmed that SMU, Houston, and Central Florida have been invited to join the conference with all sports. While Boise State, Navy and Air Force have been invited for football-only.</p>
<p>This is an effort to maintain their BCS standing and keep together a conference that has been picked apart after losing Syracuse and Pittsburgh to the ACC, and just recently West Virginia and TCU to the Big XII.</p>
<p>Houston has helped itself by having a fantastic season on the football field as they're currently ranked No. 13 in the BCS standings. Big East commissioner John Marinatto released this statement in regards to the invites, <a target="_blank" href="http://espn.go.com/college-sports/story/_/id/7177969/big-east-invite-six-football-according-report">via ESPN.com</a></p>
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<p>"The addition of these members will extend our reach, bring us to exciting new markets, strengthen our status within the BCS, and lay the foundation for possible further expansion, all while maintaining the high quality and standards our conference is known for," Marinatto said in a statement.</p>
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<p>.</p>
https://houston.sbnation.com/2011/11/1/2530645/ncaa-conference-realignment-big-east-sends-out-six-football-invitesBJ Kissel2011-10-26T11:52:00-05:002011-10-26T11:52:00-05:00Big 12 Realignment: Louisville, West Virginia Reportedly '50/50'
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<p>The Big 12's decision puts Houston's new conference, the Big East, on life support.</p> <p>The Big 12 is once again at the center of the conference realignment, and their decision on who to replace Missouri could have a domino effect that reverberates all the way down to the University of Houston's move to the Big East.</p>
<p>West Virginia was widely reported to have received an invitation to join the Big 12, but the New York Times' Pete Thamel reports that the conference is still trying to decide between them and Louisville, another Big East school:</p>
<p><span style="color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22px; background-color: rgba(0, 132, 180, 0.0976563);"> </span></p>
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<div class="tweet-text js-tweet-text" style="font-family: Arial, 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif; line-height: 19px; word-wrap: break-word; padding: 0px; margin: 0px;">Just filed to NYT: After being told it was accepted to Big12, WVU in holding pattern. Its "50-50" and "too close to call" with Lville.</div>
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<p>The pecking order has become clear: the SEC adds Big 12 schools (Texas A&M, Missouri), the Big 12 adds Big East schools (TCU and now either West Virginia or Louisville) and the Big East adds schools like Houston from non-AQ conferences.</p>
<p>Regardless of which school is picked, the question now is whether the Big 12 stays at 10 schools or tries to go back to 12 in order to hold a conference championship game.</p>
<p>If they do go to 12, they are likely to target the Big East again, jeopardizing the conference's BCS status and forcing Houston and the other newly invited members (SMU, Central Florida, Boise State, Air Force and Navy) to scramble.</p>
https://houston.sbnation.com/2011/10/26/2516427/big-12-realignment-louisville-west-virginia-reportedly-50-50Jonathan Tjarks