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Full Version: Eastern Illinois cutting athletic scholarships, but no sports
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Eastern Illinois, which has laid off nearly 400 employees lare year, decided not to drop any of their 20 odd sports. Each team will be dropped one scholarship, making them all less competive.

http://www.beloitdailynews.com/article/2.../301269841

Last spring, EIU had an enromoment of 6600 on its main campus, but somehow increased it by 5% this spring.
EIU just has terrible geography. School located in a dead town in the middle of nowhere, and their region is already served by Illinois an hour north so there’s no niche for them. EIU should’ve been located in Effingham (intersection of 57/70; 200 ft cross; “gateway to the bible belt”).

EIU used to be a respectable low major under long-time coach Rick Samuels but foolishly fired him in 2005 and have been treading water ever since.
Yea, firing 400 employees while maintaining an Athletic Department that loses 9 million a year. That could pay for 120 full time employees that might be more academic related.

My guess is that EIU is giving the athletic department the same haircut it gave the rest of the school. Nothing wrong with that.
Makes the OVC just the wee bit more attractive for Murray State to stay ... or something
It'll be interesting how OVC schools respond to this stuff. This is a band-aid where stitches are needed, and EIU will probably have to cut more down the road. For now, they look like most of the other OVC schools, but if they won't be competitive in the conference, will the conference look to replace them, or will others just leave?

It's the northern outpost for the conference. Is their presence vital?
The OVC has been degrading steadily. Any self respecting school is either out or is looking. The Murray State board says their time is short. Expect Belmont, Jax St, and EKU wil be gone too.
(01-29-2018 09:27 AM)NoDak Wrote: [ -> ]The OVC has been degrading steadily. Any self respecting school is either out or is looking. The Murray State board says their time is short. Expect Belmont, Jax St, and EKU wil be gone too.

Yeah, EKU and Belmont come to mind right after Murray State. I do wonder about Tennessee State and whether OVC picks up MEAC and SWAC schools, or if TSU moves over to one of them.

With Jacksonville State...what's it worth to them, and where do they go? OVC is a step up over Southland and Big South...it's not like SoCon, CAA, or the MVC is going to reach out for them, and Sun Belt is highly unlikely. How far south would the Horizon or Summit go? Would they even be wanted by that group?
(01-29-2018 09:50 AM)The Cutter of Bish Wrote: [ -> ]
(01-29-2018 09:27 AM)NoDak Wrote: [ -> ]The OVC has been degrading steadily. Any self respecting school is either out or is looking. The Murray State board says their time is short. Expect Belmont, Jax St, and EKU wil be gone too.

Yeah, EKU and Belmont come to mind right after Murray State. I do wonder about Tennessee State and whether OVC picks up MEAC and SWAC schools, or if TSU moves over to one of them.

With Jacksonville State...what's it worth to them, and where do they go? OVC is a step up over Southland and Big South...it's not like SoCon, CAA, or the MVC is going to reach out for them, and Sun Belt is highly unlikely. How far south would the Horizon or Summit go? Would they even be wanted by that group?
Have expressed this before. See the A Sun wooing wannabe FBS schools like EKU, Jacksnville St, JMU, Delaware, Stony Brook, and Albany. Lipscomb would be gone in a second to the OVC and NJIT to AE but Belmont to the SoCon.

OVC picks up W Ill, which doesnt want any part of a Dakota centric coference, and S Ind. The OVC still maintain schools, but very low budget ones
The OVC is not going to collapse. But it's becoming a bottom feeder. A league without any passionate fan bases and declining student interest. The refrain one hears over and over is only Murray and Belmont have any fan bases at all in basketball, and they are the only programs who invest in it (their budgets blow the rest of the conference out for Basketball, which is the leagues primary sport). Several schools are near the bottom of D-I in budgets. Simply put Murray State doesn't feel like they belong there anymore.

It is interesting that SIUE has been quietly active from the moment they got into the OVC to land somewhere else, having flirted with the WAC back when they took UMKC and last year with the Horizon. While they are one of the few relatively healthy Illinois schools with good leadership (rare in Illinois) they are not super attractive, lacking any athletic tradition nor having much of a fan base. Still they clearly see the OVC, like Murray State, as somewhere to get out of. But that doesn't seem to be true of any other schools beyond Murray and SIUE. Belmont is content, and the others are threadbare programs lacking ambition. (Well there has been the odd rumor that EKU wants to move up to FBS, but that is a long long long road from where they are, and it's hard to see a taker).

So there are not many vultures circling around the OVC, pretty much for the same reasons with the SLC, as there is not much meat left on the bone.
OVC’s in no danger. This arena will be added to their repertoire the minute someone leaves.
https://amp.courierpress.com/amp/1058628...ssion=true
(01-30-2018 11:42 AM)IWokeUpLikeThis Wrote: [ -> ]OVC’s in no danger. This arena will be added to their repertoire the minute someone leaves.
https://amp.courierpress.com/amp/1058628...ssion=true

USI is the perfect revenge add when the MVC adds Murray State.

Given that EKU and JSU want FBS, and Morehead State doesn’t play football in the conference anyway, it’s time for the OVC to phase out FCS football and add basketball-first schools.
(02-03-2018 06:47 PM)chargeradio Wrote: [ -> ]
(01-30-2018 11:42 AM)IWokeUpLikeThis Wrote: [ -> ]OVC’s in no danger. This arena will be added to their repertoire the minute someone leaves.
https://amp.courierpress.com/amp/1058628...ssion=true

USI is the perfect revenge add when the MVC adds Murray State.

Given that EKU and JSU want FBS, and Morehead State doesn’t play football in the conference anyway, it’s time for the OVC to phase out FCS football and add basketball-first schools.

There just too many OVC schools that want scholarship football: Austin Peay, SE Mo St, UTMartin, Tenn Tech, E Ill, Tn St. USI can fill in for some sports, but they will need football schools like W Ill. The OVC wil effectively be a just a small step above DII. Ask why Samford left, and UNA and Kennesaw St have not joined. The OVC rejected NKU as it was too ambitious for its taste. Belmont would do well to leave and Lipscomb will easily slip in its place. The Atlantic Sun has big plans for football, and EKU and Jax St are listening, while KSU and UNA and the two public FL schools have plans.

Even though Kennesaw St didn't have a football team at Div II, they moved up with every intention of being an FBS school in a Big East type league per its President's comments. Moving to the OVC is the exact opposite of that goal.
The only reason UNA(North Alabama) is not on the way to the OVC now is they were turned down--unwisely I might add.Now they have gone down a different route--but still prefer the OVC IMO.Travel costs in the A-SUN and Big South will continue to pressure them toward the OVC.Also the OVC will be able to say they added a Division I ready school.Of course this is 4-7 years down the road.
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