Many Big East fans will always remember the year 2013: The year that was a new beginning for the conference.
This was the inception of the “new” Big East. No longer did large schools with rich traditions such as Syracuse, Notre Dame, Louisville, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and Connecticut call the conference their home. Many people thought that the glory days were over as the “Catholic 7” schools, which included Villanova, Seton Hall, St. John’s, DePaul, Providence, Marquette and Georgetown, who would be joined by Xavier, Butler and Creighton.
Most believed that this would lead to the demise the conference, as all of the major FBS programs had left in search of football money.