If Mohammed will not go to the mountain, then…...

And what is wrong with an outreach and a spotlight (optics) for diversity and inclusion to schools that have been ignored by the majority of the NCAA conferences regarding scheduling. It is certainly a concept that is long overdue to be embraced across the spectrum of activities in U.S. society after a history of stratification, Balkanization and segregation in education, housing, athletics, religion, medical care, funeral services etc. Throughout society, mankind, not just in the US, but across the globe, has lived in a “hyper racially driven” environment. Tribalism is engrained.

Not sure why the there is perceived animosity towards the Pac 12 or any institution in providing a positive light regarding their attempt to bridge the stratification in scheduling. Why the strong opposition? Seems unwarranted.

Marketing and Public Relations is essential to the viability of any entity. From an individual who has posted their Resume on LinkedIn, to Apple launching a campaign for the new IPhone. Growing the brand in a positive light is necessary for financial success. It is a concept that HC for too long has neglected, and that Notre Dame has mastered. HC should aggressively recognize how our Public image is deficient to our peers and make the required changes.  Maybe our admission applications and USNWR ratings would improve.

Has Syracuse actually committed to playing road games against these schools in either football or men’s basketball? The only thing I saw with any specifics about scheduling commitments was this paragraph:

“The agreement was announced Thursday. The first game in the partnership features the Syracuse women's basketball team hosting Morgan State in November. A contract also has been signed for Syracuse to play Morgan State in football in 2029. The goal is to schedule up to 50 contests involving several sports.”

how have the meac and swac been any more ignored by the majority of NCAA conferences than other low-major conferences such as the patriot league, maac, america east, nec, etc.?

HC has devoted resources to PR/Communications but they haven't had a great "hook" to draw in positive attention from the public. Without being a research University we don't have as much to interest the world as some fine institutions do.

As a result, the main audience for positive HC communication is the alumni, students and families. That has been effective in the sense that HC has high alumni contribution rates and high student retention and graduation rates.

Let’s just go to church and sing Kumbaya my Lord....., then societies problems will be healed, and we can all Iive in peace.....

Oh!, I forgot, that Sunday Morning in America is still “the most segregated hour in America”... nearly 60 years after the 1964 Civil Rights Act. I really don’t understand how the scheduling of these games between the PAC and MEAC will bring about more division that has not been present for the last 400 years of life on the North American continent.

The only way for our country to deal with these societal issues is to look at it face to face and resolve the issues at hand. Being an ostrich with our heads in a hole only exposes your rear end with no resolution.

I agree!

We must continue to work to resolve injustice, regardless who is the target. To do so is the basis of out legal system.

They haven't been ignored. In fact, these 2 leagues already play the most money games against the P5 in NCAA Mens Basketball because these athletic programs are underfunded and they need the cash. Hence why they schedule like this.

In football, the HBCU are able to generate solid revenue by playing each other so typically they juat play one FBS game/year like most FCS schools do.

In a 2021 Best Countries Report done by US News and World Report, Canada was number 1 with US coming in at 6, Japan Germany Switzerland and Australia were also rated above US. In terms of social justice Canada and the Nordic countries are viewed as most committed to social justice. US ranked 18th and on racial equality specifically US was ranked 69th.

Apparently many due to their age, have never seen or experienced the “Jim Crow” era found extensively in the south and middle America. History apparently is an abstract that is found on dusty books or glossed over on a PBS documentary.

For those of us who are over 65 years of age, especially if traveling throughout the south prior to 1965, you may understand how and why the HBCU conferences i.e..the MEAC, CIAA and SWAC were formed and relegated to the shadows of attention. Occasionally they were mentioned due to programs such as Winston Salem State, with Coach Clarence Gaines, and a player Earl “The Pearl” Monroe winning a D2 championship who brought national to the CIAA.

Only within the last 30 years due to changes in NCAA structure and policies, along with the proliferation of cable sports networks and the ability of broadband internet distribution through ESPN+, Stadium, Campus Insiders, etc have these schools been seen in homes and sports bars across America. For those who enjoy history and research, reviewing the newspaper archives of major newspapers across the US, a list of box scores of games played from a week night or weekend play, you will not see these schools getting any ink on their sports pages.

Granted they are now being seen due to how current technology allows their visibility through the web with a plethora of data being available. Again, this visibility is only recently. If are you are under 55 years of age, unless a dedicated historian, your perspective on this topic is limited to what you have seen.

I strongly suggest that you research the history of the NCAA, along with Long and Ugly History of American Universities regarding their policies for access regarding religion, race, class, gender and ethnic heritage. Your forefathers were excluded as well from many of the schools that you now root to win on a Saturday afternoon. If you were Catholic, very few were in the SEC or Southern Conference colleges or universities.

Recently a traditional HBCU university, Hampton University, founded in 1868, left the MEAC in 2018 and joined The Big South. Hampton was the first HBCU school that made the transition to a non traditional HBCU league. With our long and storied history in football, HC only within the last decade has played a HBCU school, with Howard coming to Fitton Field in 2010, and playing Morgan State in 2014 and 2016. Morgan State recently had Lee Hull and Fred Farrier, HC former football players as coaches. The only HBCU schools that HC has played in basketball that I can remember in my over 50 years of following HC athletics was Hampton University on November 15, 2006 in Worcester and previously in the New Orleans Christmas Classic on December 27, 1996. The other HBCU school was Southern University in the NCAA basketball tournament on March 16, 2016. HBCU schools rarely, unless a money game show up even on non P6 schools.

Very disappointing to see the display on Crossports by several well educated citizens of the US, of the lack of historical understanding of why HBCU’s were formed and excluded from broad national attention until recently.(i.e, the last 10 years of the 20th century and now in the 21st century). 

"social justice" isn't even remotely an objective science and the rankings are not at all meaningful. japan, in particular, is laughable in light of the intentional homogeneity of their population and immigration policies.

we're clearly outside of college basketball, but as a trained scientist, i have to comment on the silliness of claiming that these rankings mean a damn thing to refute ky's statement.

there are millions upon millions of "people of color" worldwide who would love to live in and are flocking to this so-called socially unjust, racist country.