I just finished watching the UMass introductory press conference. I thought it was informative and very well done!

Of note, Dr. Steinbrecher mentioned that conversations with UMass picked up in late September.

MACtion!

For anyone interested, the presser can be seen on YouTube here:

https://youtu.be/-JfAb831NyY

I appreciated hearing the coaches' perspective on the move.

Ty, I'm about to get my eye done and will watch it later. Thanks again

Home about 20 minutes and skip the first 19-20 minutes, on opening remarks.

UMass focused questions. No questions on the conference or a possible 14.


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Still listening but things seemed very thoughtful, covering athletics, facility, students, campus vision. Not really much rahrahrah. Commissioner Steinbrecher was on campus during a game in November and disappointed did not seem him. Not so many smiles, perhaps they did not want to be selected for questions.

(03-07-2024 03:57 PM)Steve1981 Wrote:  Still listening but things seemed very thoughtful, covering athletics, facility, students, campus vision. Not really much rahrahrah. Commissioner Steinbrecher was on campus during a game in November and disappointed did not seem him. Not so many smiles, perhaps they did not want to be selected for questions.

Welcome back ! Feels like you never left.

Listen for the past hour, actually 1:20 minutes as almost the first 20 minutes was waiting. Talks started in September, they talk about faculty, academics, academic and leadership consortium and our Chancellor jumped in as he was a product of the academic consortium. About building the next department head, deans, chairs, provost etc while Javier Reyes was at Arkansas in the SEC. Seemed very thoughtful, covering athletics, facility, students, campus vision. Not really much rahrahrah. Commissioner Steinbrecher was quietly on campus during a game in November and disappointed did not seem him.

Hey UDel did what was best for them and we did what was best for us. This has a feel of a long term commitment. The investment in athletics will accelerate with 8 to 10 times the conference revenue growth. As our AD said, we are hitting the gas, no brakes. Frank Martin is a real team player, his wife ran track at UMass, football helps raise all programs and their budgets all went up from his career. Don Brown and Frank Martin had offices next to each other at Northeastern. They both recruit in programs that were at the bottom with no bells and whistles. You recruit players that believe in your vision, the school and not the conference.

(03-07-2024 04:52 PM)Steve1981 Wrote:  Hey UDel did what was best for them and we did what was best for us.

So, you also have the sense that Delaware isn't in the conversation? That's the sense I'm finally picking up.

At this point, I think it's going to be Western Kentucky. (No inside knowledge; just a hunch.)

(03-07-2024 05:01 PM)Schadenfreude Wrote:  

(03-07-2024 04:52 PM)Steve1981 Wrote:  Hey UDel did what was best for them and we did what was best for us.

So, you also have the sense that Delaware isn't in the conversation? That's the sense I'm finally picking up.

At this point, I think it's going to be Western Kentucky. (No inside knowledge; just a hunch.)

Hunch as well. Think their eyes are on the American and CUSA sort of shares that footprint.

I hope it's WKY but would they really pay an exit fee to jump from one G5 to another?

Without divisions I could see the MAC just staying at 13 for awhile. We could potentially keep our series with UConn for the last weekend of the season in a 13 team MAC as well.

Four other senior MAC officials were with Commissioner Jon Steinbrecher., who announced them in his introduction.

The Boston Globe receives this a bit skeptically. Good for Minutemen football, maybe not for UMass basketball:

https://www.bostonglobe.com/2024/03/07/s...tball-mac/

Meanwhile, here is a very good "tick tock" of how the deal came to be in the Hampshire Gazette. As others have said, the discussion apparently started in September:

https://www.gazettenet.com/Inside-the-ti...C-54314721

It was obvious Steinbrecher was avoiding attention: "I actually came to a game in November, very quietly, and wandered the campus ... "

Gotta say I like the way Brown and Martin sound ... no-nonsense, we-want-to-win attitudes. BBall is going to be tough; football will get tougher. That Oct. 5 game at NIU is going to be real interesting.

FYI everyone ... UMass football games this coming season:
8/31 EMU
9/7 @ Toledo
9/14 @ Buffalo
9/28 @ Miami-O
10/5 @ NIU

Big changes coming in 2025. Umass has 10 games listed on fbschedules, including two homers with Buffalo and BGSU.

(03-07-2024 08:26 PM)Schadenfreude Wrote:  The Boston Globe receives this a bit skeptically. Good for Minutemen football, maybe not for UMass basketball:

https://www.bostonglobe.com/2024/03/07/s...tball-mac/

Meanwhile, here is a very good "tick tock" of how the deal came to be in the Hampshire Gazette. As others have said, the discussion apparently started in September:

https://www.gazettenet.com/Inside-the-ti...C-54314721

Thanks for posting and will look forward to tomorrow's stories. The Berkshire Eagle in Pittsfield general covers UMass well. Both Channel 22 and 40 TV carried stories and were present. Doubtful about Boston stations. PVK, all 5 MAC games will be interesting. #MACtion!!! May we fly one of these flags!

So many twitter posts, lost track who posted this. Sure there was a lot more matter at the press conference.

There is one angle that has been over-looked, IMO, about UMass joining the MAC. It occurred to me when reading a Cleveland Plain Dealer article from 2017, with the link posted by BeatWestern!

That is UMass name recognition and potential in MBB. UConn is the biggest example, but you could add Gonzaga I suppose. They beat the c--p out of everyone and won multiple tournament games. It took years and a move (UConn) from the AAC to the Big East. UMass is no UConn (sorry, UMass people) nor a Gonzaga, but there is still that lingering cachet and potential.

It's important because slowly but surely, even the A10 has been relegated to a one-big leage in the men's NCAAT. Combined pressure from $$, TV/streaming ratings, the selection committee's "notions," and of course the "power" conferences has relegated non-power leagues to solo spots ... the MAC, MVC, etc. Put all that together and you can almost comprehend why the CFP commitee smacked Florida State up side the head (the Plain Dealer article mentions critical injuries too).

The link below is swiped from BeatWestern!'s post (with thanks) on the main csnbbs realignment board, the thread "Illinois State and the MAC?"

Read it and you can maybe understand my point: UMass has that cachet for whatever reason(s). And now it's a future MAC member. Who you play in conference is a big point argued everywhere by "power" teams playing in "power" conferences to justify all those NCAAT bids (and how come others don't get in).** (Note: see comments on the main board I mentioned in the thread
"The NET is Extremely Flawed.")

And if you look at the UMass MBB program now ... looking good!

https://www.cleveland.com/sports/college...d_the.html
----------------------------------------------------------------

** Sorry for length, but with the changes jizzled at the last minute to the MBB NIT, "power" teams will practically be guaranteed 50+ bids in the two tournaments. That's a huge chunk from 6 of 32 conferences. So aside from the 40 or so from the "others," what does that leave more than 250 other DI programs?

Good article here by Garrett Cote of the Daily Hampshire Gazette:

https://www.gazettenet.com/UMass-athleti...C-54307276

Excellent reporting here by Steve Helwick of Hustle Belt:

https://www.hustlebelt.com/2024/3/8/2409...reyes-2024

UMass coaches discuss impact of conference change on athletic programs
https://www.westernmassnews.com/2024/03/...-programs/

This is a short segment that was not on the 6PM news.

https://www.gazettenet.com/MAC-basketbal...e-54314504

Quote:AMHERST – UMass director of athletics Ryan Bamford confirmed on Thursday that UMass will increase its men’s basketball budget upon entrance to the Mid-American Conference for the 2025-26 academic year. UMass spent $4.5 million on men’s basketball last year, more than the highest MAC budget (Ohio University, $3.4 million) and more than double the lowest (Western Michigan, $1.6 million).

MAC head coaches are already feeling the pressure. The Daily Hampshire Gazette spoke with Toledo men’s basketball head coach Tod Kowalczyk and Miami (OH) men’s basketball coach Travis Steele to hear their thoughts on the first new addition to MAC basketball in over 25 years. Both coaches said they believed the addition of UMass will serve to spur MAC institutions into increasing their investment in the sport.

“Hopefully what it does is it raises the bar for all of our institutions to have the same commitment level that UMass has… if you want to be successful, that’s what it takes,” Kowalczyk said. “Obviously UMass is committed to men’s basketball at a high level and there are some programs in our league that are as well, and some others that probably need to increase funding. Hopefully with UMass’ commitment, that will set a standard that men’s basketball is really important to the Mid-American Conference.”

Before taking the job at Miami last year, Steele spent 13 years at Xavier, including four years as an assistant coach when the Musketeers competed with UMass in the Atlantic 10.

“It’s going to push all of us, the schools that have been here, to do more, which I’m excited about,” Steele said. “When you add a program like UMass that has the brand, they have the facilities, they have the budget... it’s going to push people if we want to compete, which is good. It’ll only make our conference better.”

UMass intends to enter not only with the highest athletic department budget and men’s basketball budget, but also with the most NIL money.

“The MAC in basketball, from an NIL perspective, is doing very little,” Bamford said. “We’re going to go in and we’re going to be spending probably half a million dollars a year in NIL collective money for men’s basketball.”

Steele said he thinks UMass will come into the MAC and immediately slot in as one of the league’s best teams.

https://open.spotify.com/episode/1f1eMqz...0ja0R7uX7Q

UMass pod. Great stuff.

(03-07-2024 08:26 PM)Schadenfreude Wrote:  The Boston Globe receives this a bit skeptically. Good for Minutemen football, maybe not for UMass basketball:

https://www.bostonglobe.com/2024/03/07/s...tball-mac/

Meanwhile, here is a very good "tick tock" of how the deal came to be in the Hampshire Gazette. As others have said, the discussion apparently started in September:

https://www.gazettenet.com/Inside-the-ti...C-54314721

FYI the Globe has a history of not liking most anything UMass does.