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ESPN Regional Television (ERT), a subsidiary of ESPN, announced that the Sheraton Hawai‘i Bowl will be played on Tuesday, Dec. 24, on Hawaiian Airlines Field at Aloha Stadium. Kickoff is 3 p.m. HT (8 p.m. ET) and the game will be televised nationally on ESPN. Now in its 12th year, the bowl will pit a team from the Mountain West against a team from Conference USA. The game will be played on Christmas Eve for the ninth time. “We are excited to pair our warm weather with some great football for the entire nation to view on ESPN,” said David Matlin, Sheraton Hawai‘i Bowl Executive Director. “While mainland families are enjoying their Christmas Eve traditions in frigid winter conditions, they can escape from the weather for a few hours for football in paradise.” Last year’s Sheraton Hawai‘i Bowl featured Fresno State of the Mountain West and SMU of Conference USA. The Mustangs earned the victory while tying an NCAA record for interceptions returned for touchdowns in a season, defeating the Bulldogs, 43-10. The Sheraton Hawai‘i Bowl has been known for its high-scoring (the winning team has scored 40 or more points nine times), thrilling offenses, and close games (two overtime games and five games decided by one touchdown or less). Read more: http://www.nola.com/tulane/index.ssf/2013/04/conference_usas_tie-in_sherato.html

Tulsa will join the soon-to-be-renamed Big East Conference in 2014, while East Carolina will be added as a full member, sources told ESPN. The league's presidents are expected to vote on adding the Golden Hurricane by next week, sources told ESPN's Andy Katz. A source told ESPN that the addition of Tulsa is "imminent." Adding the Golden Hurricane would give the league 12 schools when Navy joins in 2015. East Carolina and the Big East initially announced it was joining the league as a football-only member. However, because of the recent defections, the Pirates will join as a full member in 2014, sources said. League commissioner Mike Aresco has not named expansion candidates, but said on Tuesday's teleconference announcing the league's media rights extension with CBS that the league expected to have "something relatively soon" on a new member. Read more: http://espn.go.com/college-sports/story/_/id/9100852/tulsa-golden-hurricane-join-big-east-according-sources

"Go West, Big East!" Never made sense, did it? So let us all hope the Big East comes to its senses now that Boise State and San Diego State are staying where they belong, in a geographically friendly conference home for all their sports. Their agreement to join the Big East was never practical. It was never convenient. It was not done to expand the Big East footprint from East to West, no matter that starry-eyed -- or was it bleary-eyed? -- talk of staggered Saturday start times from noon to 10 p.m. ET. It was done as a last-ditch effort to stay nationally relevant with the biggest program outside the power conferences joining up (Boise State) and a travel partner to come along for the ride. From the moment they agreed to join the Big East as football-only members, folks wondered how long this disjointed marriage would last. Now we have an answer. They did not even make it to their first football season together. And in the end, that is good for the Big East. What this league must do is re-focus its efforts and try to become a regionalized brand again, with Texas as its western-most boundary. Look, the Big East has already lost its battle to have a seat at the big boy table in the future playoff structure. It will not get the same TV dollars as the other big conferences. So it should come to terms with what it is -- and that is a league that has an opportunity to play its way into the national spotlight with a lineup it can help cultivate. Read more: http://espn.go.com/blog/bigeast/post/_/id/41643/big-east-must-refocus-priorities

The seven Big East Catholic, non-FBS schools met with Big East commissioner Mike Aresco on Sunday to express their concerns for the direction of the conference, multiple Big East sources confirmed to ESPN.com on Monday. Sources said the New York meeting was the first among the seven schools (Marquette, DePaul, St. John's, Georgetown, Providence, Seton Hall and Villanova) and ultimately could lead to them splitting from the Big East's football members. Sources said the seven schools discussed a number of options but most importantly wanted to have "lots of dialogue to better understand the best course of action for the future." Another source said no decision was made on what future action to take. "It's too early to say on that," said a source. At issue is whether the Big East basketball-only schools have the power to dissolve the league, and retain all the assets and brand name. A source with knowledge of the situation said that until July 1, the seven have the majority votes and the necessary three-fourths to have controlling power. There are only three remaining football members -- Connecticut, Cincinnati and South Florida. Read more: http://espn.go.com/college-sports/story/_/id/8735330/big-east-direction-concerns-conference-catholic-schools-sources-say

Finally, the Big East -- the true essence of the league, not the ramshackle Ellis Island it has currently become -- is doing something. After years of having their fate decided for them, the seven Catholic basketball-playing schools gathered with commissioner Mike Aresco in New York on Sunday to discuss their options, according to published reports confirmed and detailed by ESPN's Andy Katz and Brett McMurphy. No decisions, votes or decisive actions were taken, but at least the seven universities -- DePaul, Georgetown, Marquette, Providence, St. John's, Seton Hall and Villanova -- that represent Dave Gavitt's original hoops-oriented vision are working to determine their future instead of having it dictated to them. There's no doubt the options aren't great. The Catholic schools could band together, perhaps dissolve the league and forge out on their own, partnering maybe down the road with other like-minded, basketball-first institutions in the hopes of luring TV revenue. That sounds a lot better than it likely will be, at least fiscally. If current reports are true that a new deal might net $60 to $80 million, that's an average payout to the non-FBS football schools of between $1.1 to 1.4 million a year. The Atlantic 10's television deal split with ESPN, NBC and CBS nets each school about $350,000. Read more: http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/8735643/did-big-east-core-catholic-basketball-schools-wake-college-basketball

In the current BCS system, the SEC, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac-12, ACC and Big East each received an automatic BCS bowl berth, earning each league $23.6 million. If a league received a second BCS bowl berth, it earned an additional $6.2 million. So while the SEC, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac-12 and ACC will increase from $23.6 million to an average of $91 million during the 12-year period, the Big East will see a decline in revenues in the new format. That's because automatic-qualifying designations will end in 2014. The Presidential Oversight Committee and the commissioners determined the Big East was no longer a power conference because of the number of teams that have left the league. So the Big East will be included in the "group of five." Those conferences must determine how to distribute their $86.25 million amongst themselves. In the past, those leagues, formally known as the non-automatic qualifying conferences, gave each league the same base amount and then rewarded the conferences based on their cumulative BCS ranking as a conference. Exactly how that will be done in the new system is still being negotiated among the conferences, sources said. Although the Big East's average annual revenue from the new playoff will be reduced by about $5 million annually, the remaining smaller conferences -- C-USA, Sun Belt, MWC and MAC -- will see an increase of at least five times what they received in the BCS system. Also included in the new $470 million of annual revenue is $37.5 million for schools that meet the NCAA's minimum academic requirement, or Academic Progress Rate scores. Each conference will receive $300,000 per school to be distributed to each league member that meets the NCAA's minimum APR. Read more: http://espn.go.com/c...mat-sources-say

Boise State, San Diego State and BYU have had conversations with Mountain West membership about the possibility of returning to the league, sources told ESPN. The talks originated after last week's decision in Denver by the BCS commissioners to award an automatic access bowl berth to the highest-rated champion to the "Group of Five" conferences. That decision in essence put the Mountain West on equal footing, as far as playoff access is concerned, with the Big East starting in 2014. The "Group of Five" includes the Mountain West, Big East, Conference USA, Mid-American and Sun Belt conferences. Sources said Monday those talks are expected to bring on greater significance after Maryland announced it was leaving the ACC for the Big Ten. ESPN reported Rutgers will announce Tuesday it is also leaving for the Big Ten. That means the Big East will lose Rutgers and then potentially either UConn or Louisville to the ACC. A San Diego State official said: "Nothing changes, we are committed to the Big East." With the Big East losing two more schools and having the same playoff access as the Mountain West, Boise State and San Diego State are reconsidering their options. One of the main reasons both schools opted to join the Big East was the draw of more television revenue. However, it's unknown how much more the Big East's future media rights will be worth compared to the Mountain West's after losing Rutgers to the Big Ten and another member to the ACC. It's also unknown how much the Mountain West's media rights deal would increase if Boise State, San Diego State or BYU returned to the MWC. Even though Boise State and San Diego State don't join the Big East until July 1, 2013, the schools would have to pay an exit fee to get out of their contract. Both schools signed contracts with the Big East on Dec. 6, 2011, with a $5 million buyout, but that amount was increased to $10 million in January when Navy announced it was joining the league in 2015. BYU, which left the Mountain West after the 2010 season to become an independent, would have to get out of an eight-year contract with ESPN to rejoin the Mountain West or Big East. Read more: http://espn.go.com/c...urn-sources-say

DENVER -- The BCS commissioners and Presidential Oversight Committee settled on a rotation of six bowls for the semifinals of the upcoming college football playoff system. Also, the highest-rated champion from the "Group of Five" conferences -- the Big East, Conference USA, Mountain West, Sun Belt and Mid-American -- will receive an automatic berth in one of the six access bowls. Earlier, ESPN reported the six-bowl rotation would be used, as well as an automatic bid awarded for the "Group of Five" conferences. On Monday, the BCS commissioners and Presidential Oversight Committee reached an agreement on additional details to implement for college football's postseason. The national semifinals will rotate through the six bowl games, setting up two playoff games and four major bowl games each season. The national title game will be bid out each year through a separate process similar to the Super Bowl. The six games will include three "contract bowls" and three "host bowls." The spots in the contract bowls are reserved for teams that have deals with those bowls. The contract bowls are: Rose (Pac-12 vs. Big Ten); Sugar (SEC vs. Big 12) and Orange (ACC vs. Big Ten, SEC or Notre Dame). While a Big Ten or SEC team could be selected to the Orange Bowl, the commissioners have agreed that when the Rose and/or Sugar bowls are hosting the semifinals, the Big Ten or SEC champion will not be placed in the Orange Bowl. Instead, it would have to be placed in one of the three other access bowls to increase the worth of that bowl, sources told ESPN. Those remaining three access or "host" bowls still must be determined, but the leading candidates are the Fiesta, Cotton and Chick-fil-A, sources said. With the "Group of Five" earning an automatic bid, that will lock up seven of the 12 berths in the six access bowls along with the Rose, Sugar and Orange. The other five berths will be filled with at-large teams chosen, based on their final rankings, by a yet-to-be-formed selection committee. Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby wasn't concerned that his league does not have a second contract bowl. "I like our opportunities on the open market," said Bowlsby, noting the Big 12 has had at least two teams in the top 12 BCS rankings in 11 of the past 14 years. The "Group of Five" conferences fought to get automatic access to the six major bowls. It was especially important for the Big East, which has had an automatic berth into the BCS bowls, but in the new system the conference will not have guaranteed access unless its champion is the top-rated among the "Group of Five." "I think that it's great," University of South Florida president Judy Genshaft said. Added Big East commissioner Mike Aresco: "This is a better plan for us. We'll work out the revenue. We'll be fine." As far as the "Group of Five" not getting the same access or revenue as the Power Five leagues (Big Ten, SEC, Pac-12, Big 12 and ACC), Nebraska chancellor Harvey Perlman said the Presidential Oversight Committee unanimously approved it. "They did it with a smile on their faces," Perlman said. "They thought it's fair." read more: http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/8624387/college-football-playoffs-six-access-bowls-sources-say

Notable numbers: #6 McDermott #12 Mitchell #19 St. Louis #24 Wallace Shawn *edit: oops!....link here

Full Story. Anyone else not surprised?

I know we're wayyyyy late getting this out, but please tell me someone has a brilliant idea for an ESPN sign for tomorrow. We're desperate, so we'll take even the terrible ideas at this point (I know you guys have some ).

MURFREESBORO — MTSU basketball’s record-breaking season earned prime-time billing for a pair of games in the upcoming campaign. Two Blue Raider games have been picked up for national telecasts by ESPNU. MTSU’s Dec. 21 game against Vanderbilt at Bridgestone Arena will air on ESPNU. Tipoff has been moved to 8 p.m. And the same network will air the Blue Raiders’ home game versus North Texas at Murphy Center on New Year’s Eve at 7 p.m. “The national exposure your university and program get when playing on the ESPN networks is fantastic,” MTSU coach Kermit Davis said. “Last year, we ended up having 15 televised games, and that was exciting for fans to see. To have two home games on ESPNU already this year is not only another great opportunity for our basketball program to grow, but it’s also a chance to see fantastic crowds fill Murphy Center and Bridgestone Arena.” MTSU posted a program-record 27 victories last season, including signature wins against UCLA, Ole Miss and Tennessee and a trip to the NIT quarterfinal. The Vandy and North Texas games have the makings of good matchups. Read more: http://www.dnj.com/article/20120911/BLUERAIDERS02/309110021/ESPNU-picks-up-2-MTSU-men-s-hoops-games

Tony Mitchell, 6-foot-8, sophomore, North Texas The former Missouri Tiger recruit only played the second half of his freshman season at North Texas after gaining his eligibility and, while he finished with solid numbers, the camp was a great stage to perform on to build his burgeoning reputation. Although aspects of his game are a work in progress, Mitchell has Dennis Rodman-like rebounding instincts and athleticism. When four or five sets of hands go up for a rebound, his go up a lot higher. He has a great nose for the ball. In addition, Mitchell shoots the ball reasonably well from the outside, although he needs to continue to improve his ballhandling on the perimeter to get ready for the NBA or he'll be relegated to tweener status. As it stands, Mitchell will be the dominant player in the Sun Belt Conference and capable of taking a talented Mean Green team a couple of rounds in the NCAA tournament. He may have helped himself more with NBA scouts than anyone at the camp. Read more: http://insider.espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/blog/_/name/ncbexperts/id/8288437/how-college-stars-fared-lebron-james-skills-academy-ncb

"If he was at Missouri instead of North Texas, we'd be talking about him as top-5 pick in the upcoming draft," one NBA scout said. "He's that good and the draft is that bad. But he's got all the tools to be a very effective NBA player." Read more: http://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap/222876/Tony_Mitchell_Projected_As_Possible_Top_5_2013_Pick#ixzz22zEz8zLj

ESPN

http://espn.go.com/college-sports/recruiting/football/story/_/id/8007576/orr-family-all-football

Texas HS Football‏@texashsfootball Dallas Skyline WR Ra'Shaad Samples -> RT @10justscored: It's official I will announce my commitment on ESPN July 5-8 at The Opening! #txhsfb

Read more: http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/7931989/a-look-coaching-hire-college-basketball

Read more: http://espn.go.com/blog/collegebasketballnation/post/_/id/58712/3-point-shot-4

Texas Arlington plans to accept an invitation to join the Sun Belt Conference, pending the approval of the school's board of regents, a source said. The Mavericks, coming from the Southland Conference, will join Texas State and Georgia State as new members of the Sun Belt, which lost North Texas and Florida International to Conference USA this week. UT Arlington does not play football, although the school intends to explore building a football program after completing an upgrade of the baseball and softball facilities. Read more: http://espn.go.com/dallas/ncf/story/_/id/7891047/texas-arlington-mavericks-moving-sun-belt-source-says