Shox
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Wichita State to study reinstatement of Football, women's soccer....AAC, MWC?
News broke yesterday that Predident Bardo is going to follow through with his promise on hiring that he will study football when the time is right. A large part of this is being driven by conference affiliation and the future tier of Wichita State Athletics. Tulsa is the Shox #1 rival and we would fit nicely into AAC west.
Quote:A Wichita State University football program, last seriously discussed in 1998, is an official topic once again, its potential and pitfalls under investigation by president John Bardo.
So are all aspects of his athletic department, which underlines the preliminary and all-encompassing nature of WSU’s look into football, conference affiliation, other sports and facilities. Bardo and deputy athletic director Darron Boatright are in the early stages of a fact-finding mission that may dramatically alter the course of Shocker athletics as part of a wider plan to shape the university and community.
So, Shocker fans who dream about soccer teams, membership in a higher-profile conference, a boathouse for NCAA crew on the Arkansas River, luxury boxes in Koch Arena or football, this is your time. Bardo is dreaming with you — while gathering information — and wants to know what people want, what they will pay to support and what makes sense for the future.
Read more here: http://www.kansas.com/sports/college/wic...rylink=cpy
Quote:In Bardo’s world, there are no pipe dreams and little slumber. He’s been at Wichita State just more than three years and is already transforming the place into a world-class research university. The man puts words into action and that’s why this announcement is so provocative, so interesting.
Quote:How many times have Shocker fans wondered about the possibility of football’s return? How often do we question WSU’s place in the Missouri Valley Conference?
Likewise, most have have resigned themselves to the Valley, so often described as “mid-major.” Fifty years ago it was the “Valley of Death” in basketball with the likes of Cincinnati, Louisville, Memphis, Tulsa and others. Those universities found greener athletic pastures while WSU stayed behind.
Can Wichita State do better?
Read more here: http://www.kansas.com/sports/spt-columns...rylink=cpy
Quote:Wichita State wants to know if it is time for the Shockers to move on.
President John Bardo and deputy athletic director Darron Boatright are looking at conference affiliation as part of a comprehensive examination of WSU’s future in athletics, one that will include considering new sports, new facilities and a new set of conference partners.
The Missouri Valley Conference is a collection of schools with little in common with Wichita State, outside of the relationships and traditions formed over many years of conference membership. It is home to four private schools. It is home to five other public schools, all located in smaller cities and with different academic and research focuses.
When Bardo looks at his university, he sees more in common with former MVC members such as Louisville, Memphis, Houston and Cincinnati than he does with Indiana State and Northern Iowa. When he looks at his city, he sees a situation much different from Terre Haute, Ind., or Cedar Falls, Iowa.
In May, WSU won the MVC’s All-Sports trophy for the ninth time in 12 years. Its recent dominance in men’s and women’s basketball, as well as other sports, causes fans to look for bigger challenges, bigger names and increased TV exposure.
Should another major shakeup affect membership in the top conferences, known as the Power Five, he wants WSU prepared.
“I want us to be positioned, whatever is right for this university, that we can do,” he said. “I don’t think we can be in the Power Five immediately, or anything like that. I want to be really sure that we know where we are.”
The American Athletic and Mountain West conferences stand out as reasonable options, long targeted by fans as dream destinations. The AAC has 11 all-sports members, including Memphis, Cincinnati, Tulsa and SMU, and Navy plays football. The Mountain West, with schools such as New Mexico, Wyoming, UNLV and San Diego State, also has 11 all-sports schools, with Hawaii playing football.
Read more here: http://www.kansas.com/sports/college/wic...rylink=cpy
http://www.kansas.com/sports/college/wic...64285.html
http://www.kansas.com/sports/spt-columns...64375.html
http://www.kansas.com/sports/college/wic...64335.html
(This post was last modified: 12-09-2015 02:06 PM by Shox.)
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