Nick's entire interview with Rick Chryst has been posted over at VanDelay Sports for anyone interested. Nick covers topics including the inclusion of Temple as a football-only member, the addition of a 14th team, resistance/conflict from/with MAC Presidents and more.
http://www.vandelaysports.com/
Thanks for posting Luke.
For all on this board, I would enjoy any and all feedback, either posted here or to my macfootball@hotmail.com account. I hope you enjoy reading and that it asks the questions you would have asked.
-Nick-
(04-21-2009 08:50 AM)Nick in Cleveland Wrote: [ -> ]Thanks for posting Luke.
For all on this board, I would enjoy any and all feedback, either posted here or to my macfootball@hotmail.com account. I hope you enjoy reading and that it asks the questions you would have asked.
-Nick-
I'm glad he admits the Temple thing could have been handled better in terms of the 14th team; would have liked to see if he is leaving Dr. Steinbrecher his opinions on who should be that 14th team. It sounds like Chryst thinks Temple is here to stay for football with his comment Temple will still be a good addition in the long run.
All in all I liked Chryst as commissioner.
Good interview. Lots of things were implied and some were left unsaid.
I hope to hear the new commish's thoughts once he moves in, as well.
Quote:The last decade at the MAC has seen significant growth in football evident by their inclusion in the NCAA’s Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A) and the Bowl Championship Series arrangement. I did not realize just how close the MAC was to becoming I-AA, now known as FCS.
I would like to hear some more elaboration on this point. When the NCAA was reconsidering the attendance requirements were they also looking to reclassify the MAC as FCS? It sounds to me the NCAA was close to the shutting the door on the MAC if that attendance requirement came through hard and fast (orginally 20,000 in seat average was suggested).
Personally I think he does a lot of finger pointing back at the programs, saying how they can't deliver an at-large bid for the MAC in basketball.
Then a lot of the back patting on the TV deal ect I don't know about either. The Sun Belt is a new FBS conference and they also I believe are no longer paying their TV production costs. Given the MAC is the only non-BCS conference in the Mid-West/Northeast it should have a better TV deal.
In some ways the MAC already has the best non-BCS TV deal with the MAC GOTW. Big Ten scheduling and referee agreements are without parallel to what any other non-BCS conference has together.
Leagues like the WAC, A-10, and CUSA are a raid away from being destroyed. OTOH, the MAC has the most stability of any non-BCS, short of a Big East raid for Temple which right now isn't likely for a program that hasn't had a winning season in 20 years and was previously booted from the said conference.
The economics will eventually dictate more realignment and the MAC can wait with open arms for Temple and UMass basketball when the Big East splits.
(04-21-2009 09:53 AM)mpurdy22 Wrote: [ -> ] (04-21-2009 08:50 AM)Nick in Cleveland Wrote: [ -> ]Thanks for posting Luke.
For all on this board, I would enjoy any and all feedback, either posted here or to my macfootball@hotmail.com account. I hope you enjoy reading and that it asks the questions you would have asked.
-Nick-
I'm glad he admits the Temple thing could have been handled better in terms of the 14th team; would have liked to see if he is leaving Dr. Steinbrecher his opinions on who should be that 14th team. It sounds like Chryst thinks Temple is here to stay for football with his comment Temple will still be a good addition in the long run.
It does sound like he wanted WKU pretty badly, but I have to agree with the MAC presidents on that one; WKU particularly at the time (2005) was not ready for MAC football facility wise.
If you look at the Big Ten agreements, the addition of Temple to the Little Ten (MAC) makes sense with Penn State in the Big Ten.
In PA its
1. Penn State
2. Pitt
3. Temple
In KY its
1. Kentucky
2. Louisville
3. Western Ky.
One difference to is that Temple may be the least regarded of the PA teams but its in the biggest PA market, a market with more population than all of Kentucky combined.
UMass is in a more populated state with only 1 other FBS program and a mid level one at that with Boston College. Academically, they'd be a nice solid add for the MAC and they aren't directional.
UMass fans consider themselves too good for the MAC. They are getting desperate to move up, though.
(04-21-2009 06:32 PM)uakronkid Wrote: [ -> ]UMass fans consider themselves too good for the MAC. They are getting desperate to move up, though.
I know but again the MAC will take them for football only and believe me at this point in time they could accomplish a lot more for growing their program in the MAC than sitting in the Colonial.
They want to be in the Big East but the MAC baby step is needed before it can happen. When the Big East expands they'll be looking at who can help them now, not theoretically down the road in 10 years. A move to FBS will get fundraising going in Amherst.
If Temple bolts at the first chance they get this will be considered a very bad move considering all the scheduling problems they created.
I just don't see them sticking around.
They let us take them to the dance but they will go home with someone else.
We really need to work on our own network or we will be left behind.
(04-21-2009 08:50 AM)Nick in Cleveland Wrote: [ -> ]Thanks for posting Luke.
For all on this board, I would enjoy any and all feedback, either posted here or to my macfootball@hotmail.com account. I hope you enjoy reading and that it asks the questions you would have asked.
-Nick-
Did he talk anything about the bowls?
I would think that renegotiating with the GMAC would be his final major contribution as commish.
Nick: If you could do it all over again, what are the top two or three items you would do differently?
Rick: You always have some things that you would like to do differently if you could but I don’t look back like that. I suppose if there was one thing I wish could have happened is that I wish we could have brought in a 14th member for football to make the scheduling a lot easier and for that school to have a sound basketball presence to help us out there too.
http://www.vandelaysports.com/football/a...42009.html
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FURTHER INSIGHT:
NOTE: Not all of the items posted below came from my interview...
Some items not posted within this interview. Army & Navy each had an opportunity to join the MAC for football only before Temple was added. Army would have said yes if Navy would have but Navy did not want to, they did agree to play MAC teams during the regular season for home/away deals, which you has continued to occur. If this would have happened, those two teams would have been in the east division and BG returned to the west. One or two bowl opportunites would have come our way too with the addition of those two programs. So there was a chance where Chryst and the MAC prez tried to do something positive but ultimately it didn't work out.
UMass was approached with Temple and serioulsy considered but in the end did not want to make the financial committement neccessary to move up, facility-wise, scholarshipswise or in overall football funding. They would have been a terrific fit and would have provided Temple an eastern rival and also would have brought up the MAC's b-ball image. With UMass, Temple may have joined for an all-league invitation.
Western Kentucky was a solid choice but two MAC presidents (and anything past one shoots down the deal) said "no." Chryst did everything he could but could not convice either of those two nay-sayers to change their minds. That was an opportunity lost for the MAC.
Southern Illinois and Illinois State performed due dilligence to explore moving into the MAC but as the Missouri Valley Conference took off for b-ball and the MAC's b-ball fell behind, each opted to stay put.
Just a few years ago there was an internal move to try to remove EMU from the MAC. That did not happen, but evidently it came close to happening.
The new group of MAC presidents are not looking at expansion at all and in fact, some of them are considering options to possibly move down to FCS football (I-AA) or possibly dropping more sports during these tough ecomonic times.
I hope the new commish has some 'nads, he's going to need them with the group he will be working with so that the league does not go backwards.
(04-23-2009 03:35 PM)Nick in Cleveland Wrote: [ -> ]FURTHER INSIGHT:
NOTE: Not all of the items posted below came from my interview...
Some items not posted within this interview. Army & Navy each had an opportunity to join the MAC for football only before Temple was added. Army would have said yes if Navy would have but Navy did not want to, they did agree to play MAC teams during the regular season for home/away deals, which you has continued to occur. If this would have happened, those two teams would have been in the east division and BG returned to the west. One or two bowl opportunites would have come our way too with the addition of those two programs. So there was a chance where Chryst and the MAC prez tried to do something positive but ultimately it didn't work out.
Navy and Army would have been good additions. Like you said, we could have seen more bowl tie-ins as a result.
(04-23-2009 03:35 PM)Nick in Cleveland Wrote: [ -> ]Western Kentucky was a solid choice but two MAC presidents (and anything past one shoots down the deal) said "no." Chryst did everything he could but could not convice either of those two nay-sayers to change their minds. That was an opportunity lost for the MAC.
Do we know the two MAC presidents who said no?
(04-23-2009 03:35 PM)Nick in Cleveland Wrote: [ -> ]Southern Illinois and Illinois State performed due dilligence to explore moving into the MAC but as the Missouri Valley Conference took off for b-ball and the MAC's b-ball fell behind, each opted to stay put.
Southern Illinois has no interest in moving up. Even though they're one of the top 1-AA programs their attendance is still pitiful (around 6k per game) and their stadium is garbage. They have plans to get a new stadium but it will only seat 15,000. That shows you how little interest they have in moving up to 1-A. Illinois State would not be a good addition. They have very little market value, a small fanbase, bad facilities, and are bad in football. Just in the last two years they got good in basketball again. Until recently their basketball program would have done nothing to help the MAC.
(04-23-2009 03:35 PM)Nick in Cleveland Wrote: [ -> ]The new group of MAC presidents are not looking at expansion at all and in fact, some of them are considering options to possibly move down to FCS football (I-AA) or possibly dropping more sports during these tough ecomonic times.
I hope the new commish has some 'nads, he's going to need them with the group he will be working with so that the league does not go backwards.
I say let the MAC presidents who want to move down to FCS move on their own but don't try to drag the rest of the MAC and its teams down with them. They can join the OVC or Missouri Valley for football.
Hey Nick, ask Rick Chryst how the MAC lost its backup deal with the EagleBank Bowl after just one year.
is this the start of the Mac splitting
(04-23-2009 06:39 PM)templefootballfan Wrote: [ -> ]is this the start of the Mac splitting
The MAC wouldn't split per se. I guess it is a real possibility of a few MAC schools moving down. EMU was almost ousted in a coup by MAC leadership a few years ago. Bowling Green is talking DII so they can play academic peers Findlay and Tiffin University. Kent State ouster was put to vote back in the 80's, with Akron picking up the big donations why not do it again.
Take those 3 out and you have a 10 team football conference that can play round robin.
Akron
Ball State
Buffalo
Central Mich.
Miami
Northern ILL.
Ohio
Toledo
Temple
Western Mich.
Practically another Big East there with that lineup.