Something's missing in the new A-10: Temple

NEW YORK - As its media day began Tuesday, the Atlantic Ten put out its preseason poll.

Quick scan for the locals . . . La Salle, third. Seems about right. St. Joseph's, fifth. Sounds fair. How far down is Temple picked?

. . . Where is Temple?

There is no Temple, of course. (Momentary brain lock, even as I knew I was writing about Temple not being here.) St. Joe's coach Phil Martelli said he had the same fleeting thought as he waited for the train at 30th Street Station - "I wonder where Dunph is?"

Fran Dunphy's Temple Owls have taken off for the new American Athletic Association, which is the biggest realignment effect of all the recent comings and goings in the Atlantic Ten, and not just locally.

In recent years, Temple and Xavier were the most consistent top performers. Historically, Temple vs. Massachusetts was the greatest rivalry, starting with John Chaney vs. John Calipari (on and off the court). UMass is still here, but the Owls and Musketeers are gone along with Charlotte, to three different leagues.

"Having grown up in Philly, not seeing Temple, that's really strange," said Richmond coach Chris Mooney. "For the league as a whole, I think it's a negative, because Temple and Xavier have been so consistently good."

Mooney, whose Spiders are picked sixth in the league, added, "For Richmond, I think it's just an opportunity. If we play a good nonconference schedule and win, we're going to be in the conversation for an at-large berth. The same as it ever was."

George Mason coach Paul Hewitt related how he ran into Martelli along the recruiting trail earlier this year and Martelli asked him where his league meetings were.

"Phil, we're in the same league now," Hewitt said.

(Like Martelli, I knew George Mason was coming into the league but didn't remember it was this season until Hewitt walked in the Barclays Center.)

St. Joe's athletic director Don DiJulia put it this way: "It's the first time we'll not have played Temple twice in 30 years. That is a significant difference. We'll miss that rivalry twice. We'll have a great rivalry once."

The A-10 is as strong as ever on the court. As La Salle coach John Giannini put it, "the difference between third or fourth and 10th is a few plays."

George Mason, for instance, is picked eighth despite returning five starters from a 22-win team. Giannini agrees with the idea that Mason is picked a little low because of unfamiliarity, just as Virginia Commonwealth and Butler were last season as they entered the league.

For Butler, it turned out to be a cameo appearance before joining the new Big East. VCU is now a star attraction. Rams coach Shaka Smart may be the star attraction. He drew the biggest crowd at media day.

"At the very least, everyone has seen us play," Smart said of the impact of recent NCAA success on recruiting. "We don't have to say, this is how we play."

The rise of La Salle also comes at a good time for the A-10. Having four starters back from a Sweet 16 team puts an obvious spotlight on the Explorers. Giannini was the coach chosen to represent all the coaches and speak at the luncheon.

Meanwhile, unlike last season when St. Joe's was picked to win the league, the Hawks may be a little under the radar, although the fifth-place prediction indicates a level of respect for what the Hawks have, since the league had five teams in the NCAA tournament last season.

One bottom line for the A-10 - and the conference deserves real credit for this - is that it remains basically where it always was, a tick behind the Big East. Davidson joins the party next season. Giannini is on target when he says having the second-most top-100 RPI teams last season (behind the Big East) got the Explorers into the tournament.

Hewitt noted that when he was a Villanova assistant, he used to tell recruits the A-10 was a "steak sauce" league, as in A-1. He meant Temple was the one. (In fact, UMass was riding high about then, and St. Joe's had some real strong years, but A-2 and A-3 aren't steak sauces.) It's anything but a steak sauce league now, Hewitt said.

"We've had a great strategic plan - the presidents, myself, our athletic directors - the last 21/2 years," said A-10 commissioner Bernadette McGlade. "Realignment has been kind of a way of life that we've all been dealing with."

As for Temple leaving, McGlade said, "When I took this job five years ago, we knew Temple's commitment to BCS football. They were very up front with it."

In other ways, the A-10 still feels like the A-10. Teams can still expect an interesting winter trip to Olean, N.Y., to face St. Bonaventure. Rhode Island and Dayton remain formidable trips. (Fordham and Duquesne are still picked at the bottom along with the Bonnies.)

Asked if he knew all the teams in his new league, Hewitt smiled and said, "I studied it this morning."

@jensenoffcampus