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Turning point
Philly's Big 5 rivalry needs a boost. Is that possible? Plus: TCU faces another challenge from a Southland team, the latest on Darryn Peterson's health, USC may get its 5-star freshman back in Jan, Illinois adds ANOTHER Balkan, and much more.
Mike Miller
December 16, 2025
Good morning! Monday featured just seven games between D-I teams, so seemed like today was a good time highlight something other than games.
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1. What’s the future of the Big 5 Classic? TBD
Big 5 used to be an event. Now? It’s almost an afterthought in Philly sports, which is a wild statement considering the college hoops history among those programs.
Even before Villanova’s underwhelming Kyle Neptune era — it was 70-63 in three seasons, including 4-5 vs. Big 5 teams — the Big 5 lacked the punch of previous decades. Temple vs. Penn at the Palestra? Cool. St. Joe’s vying with Nova? Nice. Even La Salle could sneak in a win every now and then. And it got some credit for being one of two Big 5 programs with an NCAA Tournament title.
But when Villanova won the Big 5 Classic earlier this month? It barely registered on the college hoops landscape. Fans only filled half of Xfinity Mobile Arena. And that’s with Villanova starting to resemble the Nova program under Jay Wright.
So what happened to the rivalry? And what’s ahead? Tim Casey wrote an excellent feature over at Extra Points that brought together the historical context, the current challenges, and most importantly, if the rivalry can ever regain its former luster.
While the Big 5 teams used to be filled with numerous players from the Philadelphia area who had known (and played with and against) each other for years, that is no longer the case. In fact, none of the starters on the six teams grew up in Philadelphia; only six were raised in the surrounding suburbs. And 21 of the 30 starters have transferred at least once, making it difficult for them to understand the Big 5’s history — and for fans to know them.
Still, Saint Joseph’s coach Steve Donahue and Penn coach Fran McCaffery, who are both in their 60s and grew up outside Philadelphia in the Big 5’s heyday, are in favor of keeping the traditions alive.
“I thought it was a great day of college basketball,” McCaffery said. “The fans really were into it. I’m just thrilled with the opportunity that we won our way here [to play in the championship game].”
Said Donahue: “I love this format. I think it’s done so much for the Big 5. I hope as we grow each of our programs, the interest will continue to grow because it’s the right way to do it. … Obviously we’re all going through the transfer portal, NIL, all six of us. I think as we figure this out, this event will even be better because the teams will be better.”
The contract between the schools and Comcast has one more year remaining, meaning the current format will be in place for 2026, barring any unforeseen changes. Bodensteiner said she and the other five athletics directors and Comcast executives will probably discuss and recap this year’s event in the coming weeks and incorporate any feedback, as they do each year. The Big 5 does not have a commissioner or director, so it falls on the schools’ administrators to come to an agreement on any changes in a shared governance structure.
Although the six Big 5 schools are located within 20 miles of one another, they play in five conferences that have different thoughts and imperatives on non-conference scheduling. And with the House settlement this past summer, athletics departments are now paying their basketball players and need to focus even more on maximizing revenue.
Villanova’s been ahead of the other Big 5 schools for years, which diminished the competitive landscape of the Big 5. Its success and budget dwarfs the other programs. But appealing to local fans who have memories of John Chaney or Fran Dunphy or Phil Martelli elevating these games to national prominence would be a start.
Even better would be one of the non-Nova programs being relevant. The last time someone other than Nova reach the NCAA tourney? Temple in 2019. The last time someone other than Nova won a tourney game? St. Joe’s in 2016.
Success would boost the Big 5 more than anything else.
2. TCU should avoid those Southland teams + more results
TCU opened its season with a home loss to New Orleans, then needed a late run to pull away from Lamar the following week. It hosted Incarnate Word on Monday … and you can see where this is going.
