Good Read on the Down Low Bulls

[jchem1995]

TAMPA — The published reports surfacing from Cincinnati and Connecticut have raised eyebrows — even some dander — locally.

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Turns out, administrators at both schools have met (to varying degrees) with Big 12 officials, who presumably will expand their league at some point. Meantime, any ongoing efforts by Bulls brass to market USF to the Power Five conference might best be described as covert.

"I'm very confident of where we sit and what we're doing," Bulls athletic director Mark Harlan said Friday.

Exactly what that is remains unclear. Naturally, some Bulls fans are fidgeting as a result.

Last week, the Tampa Bay Times requested any correspondence (emails, letters, formal documents, etc.) in the past eight months between Harlan or USF president Judy Genshaft and Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby or any of three Big 12 presidents believed to be part of a Big 12 expansion subcommittee.

None exists, the school indicated, which only might suggest USF has done a more thorough job of covering its tracks in any Power Five pursuit.

"I'm not going to comment on any specific conversation that I have had with anybody in that particular conference," Harlan said. "But suffice to say that I am always in contact with leaders in our industry and always will remain so."

So, too, are Cincinnati president Santa Ono and Connecticut counterpart Susan Herbst, as recent reports have indicated.

In a delayed response to a public records request by the Cincinnati Enquirer, UC provided documents revealing Ono has taken extensive strides — including two trips to Texas and meetings with every Big 12 president — to position his university for a possible Big 12 invite.

Similarly, the Hartford Courant reported that when Kansas State's women's basketball team played at Connecticut in November, Herbst hosted K-State president Kirk Schulz (chairman of the Big 12 board of directors) and his wife for dinner. Anyone really believe the virtues of the Huskies brand never were brought up between courses?

"I did read that (Cincinnati Enquirer) article and I certainly respect that institution or any institution's approach," Harlan said. "But I do know that there are different ways of doing things, and I'm very confident in our strategy."

The only public glimpse Harlan offers of that strategy is the part of which he has made no secret from the beginning: to make USF athletics as strong as it can be, across the board, so that it will be an attractive option if and when conference realignment/expansion occurs.

"When deck chairs start moving around again, if there is an again, it's so unpredictable that it's almost tireless effort to try to predict when those things come up," Harlan said. "So I've just decided that the best thing we can do is just focus on ourselves and rise to the things that I know would make us great if things happened again.

"We are serious about trying to add great value to (the American Athletic) conference. It's very important to me and this institution that we do so. But also, we're aspirational, as we should be. And if there are things that happen, we want to make sure that we're in the best position, despite the fact that maybe approaches to those things are different from institution to institution."

[Bear]

hmm.,

 

the plot thickens

[raptorcj]

Those with their dander raised need to sit back & take a breath. The strength our athletic programs are building will do far more talking than Harlan or Genshaft could do. The AAC isn't a terrible proving grounds for us, just look at it as buying time for greater consideration. IMO Harlan's approach is the right one for USF.

[Dogma]

History lesson

All the Christmas cards/videos and attention whoring CInci did last round did absolutely jack-spit int their expansion goals/hopes.

Meanwhile teams that had left did everything behind the scenes and surprised everyone with their departures (including infamous halftime notification to the then BEast commish)

[El_Toro_86]

Harlan is taking the right approach

[TyBull]

It is the RESULTS that matter most.

[usfbullrider]

Harlund relying on strippers for Big12 invite I see.

[NewEnglandBull]

I like our AD's strategy best. Going around prostituting yourself is bad form for a university. 

[Rocky Style]

He's basically saying yes we are working on it, but not going public with everything. So yeah, that's the right approach.

[TromBull12]

Thought this was a post about the queer community lmbo