Then-U.S. Sen.-elect Richard Blumenthal sits courtside at the XL Center in Hartford for the record-setting 89th consecutive victory by the Huskies Dec. 21, 2010.
Remember what happened the last time a Big East school decided to hit the eject button on the conference?
Democrat Richard Blumenthal, then attorney general of Connecticut, initiated a lawsuit against Boston College, its athletic director and four officials from the Atlantic Coast Conference, accusing them of a “backroom conspiracy to try to destroy the Big East Conference and misappropriate its value for their own benefit.”
The lawsuit never went to trial but did result in a settlement, one that Blumenthal’s critics contend failed to cover the costs of the litigation.
One of the plaintiffs in that case, the University of Pittsburgh, this week announced it will defect to the ACC, along with fellow college hoops powerhouse Syracuse University. The move won’t take effect for 27 months, unless the Big East agrees to waive its bylaws.
The shakeup leaves the remaining members of the Big East in a lurch, including UConn.
Blumenthal, now a U.S. senator, declined to weigh in on the issue through an aide Wednesday.