“I am thrilled that my hometown team and alma mater the University of Memphis is being invited to join the Big East,” Cohen said in a statement. “Joining the Big East will not only be great for the University of Memphis, but it will be an economic catalyst for the City of Memphis.“Thanks to Louisville coach Rick Pitino for his strong support. And Congratulations to Dr. Shirley Raines and R.C. Johnson.”
The Big East will also be adding Central Florida, Houston, SMU, Navy, San Diego State and Boise State in the coming years, and soon will lose West Virginia to the Big 12 and Pittsburgh and Syracuse to the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The Big East’s plan has been to get to 12 football teams and eventually have a conference championship game. Memphis, plus incumbent schools Cincinnati, UConn, Louisville, Rutgers and South Florida, could get the conference to that point by 2015. Click here to read the full article