No blame on the Bulls: USF has little say in Big East politics

Those darn Bulls!

The rumor is that USF is blocking UCF from joining the Big East, and that those Tampa Bulls don't want the Knights to intrude on their recruiting territory and rain on their parade.

Fear? Probably. But is it true?

No way.

Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel has reported that USF could possibly be lobbying against a UCF addition to the Big East. He reported that he has contacted officials from both USF and the Big East about that matter, but has not gotten an informative response.

UCF News & Info Assistant Vice President Grant Heston also told the Sentinel via e-mail that the university has been hearing the rumor as well, and that they hope it is not true because if the schools shared a conference, it would "clearly be a win-win for both universities."

The Big East announced it will not be waiting for Villanova's April deadline for a decision (the original deadline was last December), but that does not mean that UCF is surely on its way to automatic-qualifying conference status.

It just means that the Big East is now opening up some options, not phone lines. It doesn't mean that USF is blocking UCF either.

The Big East will do it the right way, with due diligence, and eventually come to a conclusion that is best for the conference. Hopefully UCF is a perfect fit.

I need not go into the economic, educational and football advantages that a UCF-USF rivalry entails or how it will help the Big East remain relevant among BCS conferences.

USF has already ended a profitable rivalry by deciding they were too good for the Knights. A team out of UCF's league, but not too good to play FAU last season, or Western Kentucky for the last two.

Some have suggested that Gov. Rick Scott should get involved, because a UCF-USF rivalry would be a great economic addition to the state of Florida.

Critics say that the Big East would not benefit from UCF joining the conference. After all, it is not their responsibility to boost Florida's economy. And that UCF is too close to USF in terms of recruiting territory and television market to add anything to the conference that they do not already have with USF.

Those darn Bulls!

But, the Bulls have been disappointing over the years and have not yet reached their potential. Maybe UCF is the better USF — the USF that will reach its potential. A USF with star power like Marcus Jordan and Jeff Godfrey.

And adding another Florida team may not be redundant, but strategic for a conference that hopes to build a television network. Not to mention compete with the SEC and ACC in the southeast.

It seems as if USF is playing the filibuster card in hopes of Villanova accepting its invite soon. In the world of politics that is college football, the Bulls are certainly playing their role.

If this is true, Scott may need to get involved or the Big East may need to step up and realize that what is good for the many outweighs the good of the one.

But the chances that USF has that much power over the situation is slim. I do not believe that the Big East will allow one Bull worried about its marked territory being intruded upon by a Knight to prevent a good thing for the conference.

It' important to remain patient. This is an important decision.

But if UCF gets snubbed again, don't blame USF. Don't give that satisfaction to those darned Bulls.