Seton Hall's Kevin Willard Is Pissed UConn Is In The Big East Because He Can't Roast Recruits About 'Having To Play Tulane, Tulsa And East Carolina'

[Source] – “I can’t tell recruits now, ‘You know what it’s like to play at Tulane, East Carolina, Tulsa and those places?’ That doesn’t work anymore,” he said. “They always have had a great history in this area. (The return) adds a different layer to recruiting, but they were always going to be tough here.”

What an all-time ricochet shots at Tulsa, ECU and Tulane. I can’t say I don’t love it though. It’s part of the major problem with the AAC. It’s also why UConn has to be breathing a sigh of relief. Now, I don’t think Hurley would have had a major problem recruiting at UConn, he’s already showing that. But, recruiting to play against Nova, Seton Hall, Xavier, etc., way easier than recruiting in the AAC.

Now, back to the American for a second since I always get into this fight at least once during the season. The conference, while improved, will always be in no-man’s land because of the bottom of the conference. Until teams like ECU, Tulane and USF (good this year, but consistently) stop being ranked sub-250 the conference will never truly succeed. Cincinnati, Houston and Wichita are all fine programs that can help carry the conference. But, we’ve seen this come up during NCAA Tournament seedings. The conference will hurt usually a seed line because of the bottom.

For UConn fans I will say this. I am real curious to see how Hurley does in the Big East. This will be by far the best competition he faces during his coaching career. What he did at URI was strong, but there were plenty of years that felt like there could have been more. He’s only made the NCAA Tournament twice in his career. There are legit questions about just how good of a coach and how successful he’ll be at UConn.

PS: Never change, Patrick Ewing. I love that he’s out here legit pissed off

Georgetown coach Patrick Ewing acknowledged UConn’s role in helping build the original Big East and said their return “helps the conference,” but looked like he ate a bad oyster as he talked about it.  

It is what it is,” he said. “They’re here and they’re here to stay . . . We have to deal with it.”