A few years ago TCU announced their intentions to leave the Mountain West Conference and join the Big East Conference. After years of non-AQ status the Horned Frog program wanted AQ status.
That was before the Big Ten expanded by one school (Nebraska) but caused a chain reaction of conference shuffling that left the Big East on life support in football.
West Virginia gone, Syracuse and Pittsburgh one foot out the door and heading to the ACC. Suddenly the move to the Big East didn’t look so good.
When the Big 12 Conference came a calling TCU charged its mind and accepted the Big 12’s invitation last October.
Now the Big East wants pay back.
The conference filed a complaint in federal court in Washington D.C. Monday that TCU had committed to pay $5 million if it failed to follow through with the membership agreement reached on Nov. 29, 2010.
The complaint alleges, “The Big East made demand for the payment owed under the agreement, but Texas Christian University has refused to make that payment or acknowledge its obligation to do so,”
TCU said in a statement regarding the Big East’s lawsuit, “TCU administrators were surprised by this lawsuit and believe it is premature. The University is hopeful for an amicable resolution of this matter.”
The Big East Conference has the right to force a member institution who wants to leave for another conference to wait 27 months before exiting.
The question is was TCU ever a member of the Big East even though the Horned Frogs intended to join but changed their mind.
That 27 month waiting period is currently being legally challenged by Pittsburgh. Pitt has sued the Big East complaining that the 27 month waiting period is unenforceable after West Virginia left the conference last year and immediately joined the Big 12 this year after a $20 million settlement.
Pittsburgh as well as Syracuse have accepted invitations to the ACC. Pitt wants to join for the 2013-12 academic year and is suing for that right to move on and is seeking monetary damages.
I hope the Big East Conference has enough cash on hand to pay their legal fees.
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