Rutgers AD Tim Pernetti yesterday said that he is “not interested in becoming the Big East’s next commissioner.” He added he still has “a lot to get done” at the school. Pernetti: “I’m flattered that people would suggest that. Beyond that, I’ve really not spent much time thinking about anything except what we’re trying to get done at Rutgers” (NEWSDAY, 5/16).
PRESS PAUSE: Incoming Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby said that he would “prefer conferences hit the pause button on realignment.” Bowlsby: “My opinion is college athletics would be well served by some period of smooth water and not all the angst and disorganization that goes with moves.” USA TODAY’s Steve Wieberg notes Bowlsby “declined to address FSU or whether the comments were likely to heighten expansion sentiment in the Big 12” (USA TODAY, 5/16).
POSITIVE OUTCOME UNLIKELY: In San Diego, Brent Schrotenboer questions whether the Mountain West Conference will be “granted an automatic berth into the lucrative Bowl Championship Series.” Schrotenboer notes “no decision has been made” and documents show that the “gatekeepers of the BCS have serious questions about the future makeup" of the MWC. More importantly, the conference “wasn’t able to fully answer those questions,” which leaves the league’s BCS bid “in doubt for the 2012 and 2013 college football seasons” (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 5/16).
MOVIN' ON UP? The AP's Hank Kurz Jr writes with Virginia Commonwealth Univ. leaving the Colonial Athletic Association to join the Atlantic 10, the school is "looking to make the most of its rise to prominence in men's basketball.” VCU President Michael Rao said moving to the A-10 is "the next step." Rao: “Premier universities are premier across the board and that includes athletics." A-10 Commissioner Bernadette McGlade said that the conference “began looking for potential new members as part of a long-term strategic plan adopted about 18 months ago.” Rao said that the move “will take effect in all sports on July 1” (AP, 5/15).
