John Marinatto has resigned as commissioner of the Big East. Joseph Bailey takes over as interim commish. Here's the release sent out by the conference:

"After a great deal of thought and prayer, I have decided to step down as Commissioner of the BIG EAST Conference and formally advised our Board of Directors," stated Marinatto. "I have been associated with this league for my entire adult life and have had the tremendous honor of serving as its Commissioner since 2009. Our recent expansion efforts have stabilized the Conference for the long term, and we are likewise well positioned for our very important upcoming television negotiations. As a result, I felt this was the right time to step aside and to let someone else lead us through the next chapter of our evolution. I am proud of what we have been able to accomplish and would like to take this opportunity to publicly thank both our membership and my staff for their unwavering encouragement, support and loyalty -- especially during this past year. I am extremely confident about the future of this league that I love very much."

“I know I speak for the entire Conference when I express my sincere gratitude to John for his leadership and dedicated years of service,” said Dr. Judy Genshaft, President of the University of South Florida and Chair of the BIG EAST Conference. “John helped build the BIG EAST into what it is today, and played a critical role in our successful expansion efforts, and for all of that we thank him.”

Joseph A. Bailey III will today assume the position of interim Commissioner of the BIG EAST until a new Commissioner is selected. Bailey has extensive experience in the global sports industry as a leader, advisor and recruiter. He has served as the Chief Executive Officer of the Miami Dolphins, Chief Operating Officer of the World League/NFL, Vice President of Administration of the Dallas Cowboys and other senior positions. Most recently, he has served as the Managing Director of RSR Partners, a leading executive recruiting firm.

“Joe is a proven leader who will do a terrific job guiding the conference through this time of transition,” said Genshaft. “His experience as a manager and his knowledge of the sports industry make Joe uniquely qualified to serve as interim Commissioner. He will move the Conference forward with a steady-hand as we explore new opportunities.”

“The BIG EAST has a terrific future,” said Bailey. “I’m excited to participate in shaping a new structure and strategic plans for the Conference, and I look forward to engaging on these matters with the leadership of all of the Conference’s members, old and new alike.”

The Conference also announced that it has retained The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) to review its organizational design and structure. As the BIG EAST transitions to a national conference, its members will take this opportunity to position the Conference to maximize its media rights, branding and other strategies.

The search for the new Commissioner of the BIG EAST will be chaired Dr. Gregory H. Williams, the President of the University of Cincinnati and a member of the BIG EAST Executive Committee.

The Big East Conference has filed suit against West Virginia University in Superior Court for the State of Rhode Island, Providence County. This breach of contract lawsuit seeks an order requiring West Virginia to comply with the Big East bylaws, as well as damages resulting from West Virginia’s improper attempted withdrawal in violation of those bylaws.

Here's what Big East commish John Marinatto had to say:

“Today’s legal action underscores The BIG EAST Conference’s stated position that it will vigorously pursue the enforcement of its rights and West Virginia University’s obligations under the conference’s Bylaws which West Virginia formally agreed to and helped construct.”

Personally, while it may appear a bit petty of the Big East to be so defensive about holding teams for 27 months before they can withdraw, I'm actually all for it. Marinatto's leadership of the conference has been questionable at best since Mike Tranghese's retirement, but I'm with him on this one. What's the use of having bylaws in a contract if teams can just flout them at will, whenever a perceived better offer presents itself?

Ultimately, I'd be surprised if Syracuse, Pitt and WVU remain with the Big East for three more seasons, as they'd currently have to. It would be just too awkward and uncomfortable for everyone involved to have three teams that don't want to be here sticking around for so long.

But they'll have to pay up, far more than just the current $5 million exit fee. Sort of like in baseball, if a GM for one team wants to leave to become GM of another team before his contract is through. There's got to be some sort of compensation for the team losing said GM -- or, in this case, the conference losing teams.

Here's what the Big East commish said about West Virginia's move to the SEC:

"This move by West Virginia does not come as a surprise. League officials, members of our conference and the candidate schools to whom we have been talking were aware of this possibility. We have taken West Virginia’s possible departure into account as we have moved forward with our own realignment plans. West Virginia is fully aware that the Big East Conference is committed to enforcing the 27-month notification period for members who choose to leave the conference. We are confident that in the coming weeks we will complete our own realignment program, adding a number of high-quality members to remain among the top conferences in both football and basketball.”

Big East commish John Marinatto held a conference call this afternoon to explain the Big East's current realignment situation. Here's my story.

He noted that the 14 current members have voted unanimously to double the conference's current $5 million exit fee to $10 million once any "targeted" school joins the Big East. He also said everyone's on board with a 12-team football model.

Oh, and Pitt and Syracuse aren't going anywhere soon.

Marinatto held the call today so that tomorrow's Big East men's basketball media day won't be dominated by realignment questions, and that we beat reporters can concentrate more on the upcoming seasons for the teams we cover. There still promises to be plenty of realignment questions tomorrow anyway, of course.

For UConn, Jim Calhoun, Alex Oriakhi, Jeremy Lamb and Shabazz Napier will be in the house (which, this year, is at the New York Athletic Club, thanks to the ongoing renovations at Madison Square Garden).

Oh, one more thing: happy to announce that I'll be Connecticut's AP Top 25 voter for a third straight year. I'll be submitting my first ballot on Sunday night. Any suggestions?

Big East commissioner John Marinatto on TCU's official decision to join the Big 12:

“Although never having competed as a member of the BIG EAST Conference, we are disappointed with the news that TCU is joining the Big 12. As noted earlier today, our presidents met via teleconference this morning to focus on the future and have authorized us to engage in formal expansion discussions with additional institutions. We anticipate taking action in the near future.”

The Big East presidents have approved expansion, agreeing that the league would be better served by increasing the number of Bowl Subdivision football-playing members to 10. They unanimously approved the process to evaluate the terms and conditions for potential expansion candidates.

"Today, our Board of Directors affirmed a set of key strategic initiatives, including expansion, designed to enhance membership stability and maximize our value," stated Commissioner John Marinatto.

Marinatto said the conference will refrain from commenting further on the expansion process.

***Jim Calhoun won't be available to the media before practice today as both he and George Blaney were attending the funeral of an old friend. Calhoun apparently is a pall bearer at the funeral. He is expected to be at the Huskies' 4:30 p.m. practice.

We'll talk with assistant coach Andre LaFleur prior to practice.

***Some UConn-AIC notes:

Calhoun graduated from AIC in 1968. He was a two-time All-New England player for the Yellow Jackets and, in fact, twice played against UConn (scoring nine points on Dec. 4, 1963 and a team-high 27 on Dec. 1, 1964)

UConn is 20-0 all-time against AIC in the regular season, and Calhoun is 6-2 (all while at Northeastern). The only three times the Huskies have played AIC under Calhoun have been exhibition games. UConn defeated the Yellow Jackets, 75-59, on Nov. 1, 2006 at Gampel Pavilion – but trailed 36-35 at halftime! In 2008, the Huskies rolled to an 83-58 rout. On Nov. 4, 2009, UConn rolled to a 106-67 whitewash behind 28 points and 12 assists from Kemba Walker, 25 points from Stanley Robinson, 17 from Gavin Edwards and 16 points and 16 rebounds from Alex Oriakhi

UConn is 39-6 in exhibition games under Calhoun, including 32 wins in a row dating back to a loss to Marathon Oil on Nov. 21, 1993 at Gampel.

More to come ...