OT: AAC Fans Beyond Delusional

[SJHooper]

Okay, so my new gig has a LOT of downtime. I have found myself snooping around some of the various message boards. It has come as no shock that the AAC fans are crazy, but what really got me was just HOW crazy they are. It's another level of nuttiness, especially the ECU fans! You would think we slept with their wives, shot their dogs and stole their pick ups and on the way out the door pissed on their Dale Earnhardt commemorative plates. They DESPISE us with every fiber of their being and want us to fail so badly.

Then you have all the folks who are riding UConn's national title like their horrible athletic program won something.

They basically think we are a joke, overrated, on the decline and wish nothing but the worst for us. Oh and they think they are the actual continuation of the Big East and we are the pretenders. Just blew my mind the amount of hatred and ill will they have towards us. Really really unhealthy and scary. hahaha Thank god we left those other boards! It seems to go unpunished most places too.

ECU? That's the school I always used to play against in video games because I always knew I'd beat up on them for fun. The only Carolinas that matter are UNC and NC State. Oh and South Carolina. ECU isn't even the 3rd best Carolina school. People discuss whether or not the Big East is major anymore (usually outside fans), but we can defend it and show how many tournament berths each program has, the amount of Final Four's, Elite 8's, Sweet 16's, etc. We have the evidence. They don't. We stack up St. John's, Xavier, Villanova, Georgetown, Marquette, Creighton, Seton Hall, PC, etc. with teams like Tulane, Tulsa, Houston, ECU, SMU, etc. Any true basketball fan would laugh at the comparison.

What they seem to forget is that Louisville is gone. UConn deserves credit they shut up their critics, but we still have yet to see what Ollie can do by himself. He's still got Calhoun's team. Can he get the same kinds of players? Time will tell. Memphis is good and so is Cincy. Temple was terrible.

They also forget that Larry Brown is at the age where it's not shocking when men die from old age. How long can he keep this going at SMU? Obviously not long.

We have the name brands. We are Tommy Hilfiger...people know us. They are knockoffs at the local flea market with a brand you never heard of. I was talking to a friend recently and he didn't even know what the AAC was. We have the tradition not them. We are like that quaint old house on the block. They are the new neighbors who haven't even settled yet.

[ivet]

There are some good ECU fans out there that are too smart fall into the "Down with the NBE" trap. It's just one guy who has an ironic monikor (created before the split) that likes to rile them up. The AAC will be fine, I think they are just upset at the fact that they are not getting national respect like they feel they deserve.

[stever20]

As with any divorce, there will always be animosity between the ex-husband and the ex-wife. Who gets the money (Big East), who gets the name (Big East), who gets the house (MSG - Big East).

But, let me tell ya: the AAC board is one delusional ex-wife!

They really truly believe that because UCF won the Fiesta Bowl (A Game a AAC champ will NEVER be invited to again) and that UConn won the National Title in BBall (A School BEGGING to get out of that conference) that they are now some superduper awesome conference that is on the same level as the P5. They really think that they will be getting this great coverage during FB season and that since we wont be mentioned (we never were to begin with) we'll wither and die! They seem to forget that ESPN cares very little about them and their amount of "exposure" on ESPN will be very limited if any at all. They will play their games on ESPN2/U/News and occasionally on ESPN prime so that must mean they are big time now! hahaha So crazy!

Um, AAC has a very good shot of playing in the Fiesta Bowl EVERY year(or Cotton/Peach).

I think for football it'll be tough TV wise, but basketball- you can believe we're going to see a lot of UConn, Memphis, SMU, and Cincy on TV next year. And yes, that includes ESPN.

I would not be surprised if they have another good year next year ESPN does re-up with them. Get them locked up for a longer period but paying them more. Very possibly much more. They have shown they are the best of the rest(look at the MWC and how they fell apart).

[LeMoyne00]

I think this is the dumbest thread I've ever read on this board!

They have a little something to be excited and yet a little delusional over don't they? I mean it is hard to deny their successes this academic year. What they did has only been done 3 other times (one conference win a BCS bowl game and both the men's and women's basketball tourney in the same year). They are in very rare company as the SEC did it in 2007 and the old Big East (none of our current Big East members were involved in winning titles) in 2004 & 2013.

Yes, some of them are undoubtedly delusional, but some of you are not only seeking out, but holding onto every word they say - snooping around and spying on them too... what does that say about you and us?

If this is a divorce and they are as everyone on here is calling the OVER-THE-TOP EX-WIFE, then some of you are making us look like the crazy jealous ex-husband who has to have a restraining order placed against him, because he might not want her, but he sure as hell doesn't want anyone else to want/have her either.

[senditinjerome]

this thread scrams sour grapes....

within the span of 3 months, UCF won a BCS bowl game and UConn won the national championship. that's a pretty big accomplishment for the AAC in my book.

what substantial accomplishment(s) has this league achieved in the past 3 months?...this is supposed to be one of the best hoops leagues in the country, yet zero teams advanced past the first weekend in the tournament.

[GreatDaneAttorney]

The point is that there are some fan bases in the AAC that are claiming these accomplishments, when it's really been the Louisville, UConn, and UCF trains that are keeping that league going. The other fan bases are claiming those championships, thinking it will immediately vault their programs to elite levels. However, college athletics don't work that way. Building up programs takes time, and many programs are ultimately never successful.

Long story short, ECU fans think their league association will automatically equate to CFB playoff appearances and sudden success on the hard court, and I don't think that's a realistic expectation.

[Bill Marsh]

In my book, UConn's championships say nothing about the AAC because those are the accomplishments of one school, which was already a premium program and which owes nothing to the AAC for its success. The other folks in the AAC aren't familiar with this level of success and are a little giddy over it, trying to claim some of the success for themselves by association.

A true claim for accomplishment by a conference as a group would be more like what the Big East did in 1985 when a Big East school not only won the national championship but was joined in the Final Four by 2 other conference members and a 4th in the Sweet 16. Even last year when Louisville won it all and was joined by Syracuse in the Final Four was a moment for the Big East as a conference to shine. Otherwise, individual achievements are just that - individual.

[stever20]

The point is that there are some fan bases in the AAC that are claiming these accomplishments, when it's really been the Louisville, UConn, and UCF trains that are keeping that league going. The other fan bases are claiming those championships, thinking it will immediately vault their programs to elite levels. However, college athletics don't work that way. Building up programs takes time, and many programs are ultimately never successful.

Long story short, ECU fans think their league association will automatically equate to CFB playoff appearances and sudden success on the hard court, and I don't think that's a realistic expectation.

How is that any different than Butler or Seton Hall fans here? Saw a lot of Seton Hall fans on here this winter taking pride in how good Creighton and Nova were.

[stever20]

The point is that there are some fan bases in the AAC that are claiming these accomplishments, when it's really been the Louisville, UConn, and UCF trains that are keeping that league going. The other fan bases are claiming those championships, thinking it will immediately vault their programs to elite levels. However, college athletics don't work that way. Building up programs takes time, and many programs are ultimately never successful.

Long story short, ECU fans think their league association will automatically equate to CFB playoff appearances and sudden success on the hard court, and I don't think that's a realistic expectation.

Also- let's look at all the AAC teams outside the 3 you say....
Houston- made bowl game
SMU- made final of NIT as 1st team left out of NCAA tourney
Memphis- made NCAA tourney

Temple, USF had rough seasons.

now the incoming teams:
ECU- made bowl game
Tulane- made bowl game
Tulsa- made NCAA tourney

so of the 11 teams in next year 8 made a bowl or NCAA tourney. PLUS SMU who will be a top 10 team likely next year. That's not just a 2 or 3 team conference.

[SJHooper]

First of all, UConn is UConn. UConn is not the AAC. When Syracuse won the championship in 06 it was Syracuse who got the credit. St. John's never got any more respect from that. Had nothing to do with it. Same goes for UConn. It's UConn who won. Not the other teams. UConn was a top team long before they joined the AAC. Many casual fans don't even know the AAC exists let alone that UConn is in it. So UConn is UConn...whatever good for them. UConn being good is nothing new. They still have tons of garbage programs surrounding UConn though. UConn would get out in a New York minute if they could.

UConn cannot carry the conference alone. Other teams will need to start making runs. Houston is crap. UCF is crap. Tulsa is crap. Tulane is crap. ECU is crap. SMU is crap without Brown. The only real teams in that conference are UConn, Cincy, and Memphis. Temple is up and down and right now very much down. This is a conference with 3 major teams and from there the dropoff is deeper than the Grand Canyon.

Who cares about college football? UCF was good one year...cool? No one considers the AAC major football. UConn sucks, Cincy is decent every so often, and Memphis sucks. The original Big East was a much better football conference than the AAC and the old Big East football used to get made fun of a lot for sucking.

The AAC is nothing special as they are right now. They are in a small window of success they aren't setup for a sustained run at relevance. We are. And you know when UConn, Cincy, and Memphis get the call for the ACC or Big East (if they give up football) they will run away ASAP.