I'm surprised we haven't seen any reloading by the OVC. WIU seems incredibly logical and an easy move but hasn't happened yet.
The MEAC and Southland were always going to struggle to rebuild if they didn't want to or weren't able to get D2 upgrades
Who does the WAC want as #14? Did they not have that part figured out when they jumped?
Will the ASun be able to get UTC? If not who be there #6
We're done for the year. Schools are out of session, nobody is doing anything now.
Check back in the fall a few weeks after football starts to see how sentiment are going.
(06-02-2021 09:38 PM)solohawks Wrote: [ -> ]I'm surprised we haven't seen any reloading by the OVC. WIU seems incredibly logical and an easy move but hasn't happened yet.
The MEAC and Southland were always going to struggle to rebuild if they didn't want to or weren't able to get D2 upgrades
Who does the WAC want as #14? Did they not have that part figured out when they jumped?
Will the ASun be able to get UTC? If not who be there #6
The WAC wasn’t going to wait around to identify a committed #14 before pulling the trigger on their expansion plan. They had an opportunity to achieve conference stability, reestablish football and lower non-football travel costs with divisional play and they grabbed it. “The perfect is the enemy of the good” as the saying goes.
As for who the WAC would most like to add, West Texas A&M looks like a pretty good fit but their administration apparently isn’t ready yet to make the financial commitment to move up to D1.
The ASun hasn’t found a sixth FB school to join EKU, Jax St., UCA, UNA and KSU? Color me shocked. The Big South and ASun should realign with one league having FB - EKU, Jax St., UCA, UNA, KSU, Charleston Southern, Campbell, Gardner-Webb, NC A&T and Hampton - and put the rest of the Olympic/non-FCS FB schools in the other.
(06-02-2021 10:32 PM)Stugray2 Wrote: [ -> ]We're done for the year. Schools are out of session, nobody is doing anything now.
Check back in the fall a few weeks after football starts to see how sentiment are going.
Robert Morris was announced June 15 last year. Ooey-Pooey was announced June 28 a few years ago.
(06-03-2021 12:55 AM)IWokeUpLikeThis Wrote: [ -> ] (06-02-2021 10:32 PM)Stugray2 Wrote: [ -> ]... saying thing stupid of the top of his head without researching first ...
Robert Morris was announced June 15 last year. Ooey-Pooey was announced June 28 a few years ago.
Hum.
The one to keep our eyes on is the ASUN going for #6 for 2022 football. Keeping my eye on the OVC; they seem vulnerable.
(06-03-2021 01:35 AM)Stugray2 Wrote: [ -> ] (06-03-2021 12:55 AM)IWokeUpLikeThis Wrote: [ -> ] (06-02-2021 10:32 PM)Stugray2 Wrote: [ -> ]... saying thing stupid of the top of his head without researching first ...
Robert Morris was announced June 15 last year. Ooey-Pooey was announced June 28 a few years ago.
Hum.
The one to keep our eyes on is the ASUN going for #6 for 2022 football. Keeping my eye on the OVC; they seem vulnerable.
I wouldn't be surprised if WIU made the move this month
That's the biggest no Brainer and the public comments from WIU from February seem to indicate a willingness
(06-03-2021 01:35 AM)Stugray2 Wrote: [ -> ]The one to keep our eyes on is the ASUN going for #6 for 2022 football. Keeping my eye on the OVC; they seem vulnerable.
Agreed.
Unless the WAC/ASUN agree to extend their partnership a year for football, the ASUN's need for a sixth institution is paramount (and yes, I get that they & the WAC seem to have gotten initial approval on waiver - but think about scheduling here as well).
The ASUN will be able to get a Division I school - likely from the OVC, but potentially from the SoCon. Down the road, would not be surprised if West Florida or West Georgia end up in their lap too, but the taking a squad from OVC or SoCon seems to be the next domino.
The OVC is they are plucked from will be at six football members and also keeping their eyes out.
But who from the OVC? Murray State or Austin Peay? I think the SoCon with Chattanooga may be more for the pickings
I just see no scenario where a SoCon member jumps to the ASUN. SoCon has an actual paid ESPN TV deal with the conference maintaining ownership of their 2/3 tier rights that they sell to RSNs and local media groups. Their basketball has become an upper mid-major league. The SoCon tourny is a yearly blockbuster with sellout crowds. And a $1 million dollar buy out too that all members agreed on a few years back.
(06-03-2021 08:31 AM)solohawks Wrote: [ -> ] (06-03-2021 01:35 AM)Stugray2 Wrote: [ -> ] (06-03-2021 12:55 AM)IWokeUpLikeThis Wrote: [ -> ] (06-02-2021 10:32 PM)Stugray2 Wrote: [ -> ]... saying thing stupid of the top of his head without researching first ...
Robert Morris was announced June 15 last year. Ooey-Pooey was announced June 28 a few years ago.
Hum.
The one to keep our eyes on is the ASUN going for #6 for 2022 football. Keeping my eye on the OVC; they seem vulnerable.
I wouldn't be surprised if WIU made the move this month
That's the biggest no Brainer and the public comments from WIU from February seem to indicate a willingness
WIU was one I really thought we’d see move. Perhaps they are waiting to make sure that OVC football is stable before jumping.
(06-03-2021 12:24 PM)Yosef Himself Wrote: [ -> ]I just see no scenario where a SoCon member jumps to the ASUN. SoCon has an actual paid ESPN TV deal with ownership of their 2/3 tier rights that they sell to RSNs and local media groups. Their basketball has become an upper mid-major league. The SoCon tourny is a yearly blockbuster with sellout crowds. And a $1 million dollar buy out too that all members agreed on a few years back.
And the geography of the SoCon isnt that bad for UTC.
They also have in state rival ETSU.
As much as it makes sense to create an FCS version of the SEC in the ASun, it makes no sense for UTC to leave the SoCon.
With 2021 taken care of, I dont think we will see any action by the ASun until near the end of after the 2021 football season so that 2022 will be up and running at 6. Austin Peay, Tennessee Tech make the most sense to me.
Does the OVC even have a plan? I’ve heard nothing out of them.
(06-03-2021 04:25 PM)Fighting Muskie Wrote: [ -> ]Does the OVC even have a plan? I’ve heard nothing out of them.
They said they were exploring expansion after EKU/JSU left but nothing since. I assume they’ve made no decisions as there’ve been no rumors. It’s possible someone like Belmont really doesn’t want WIU.
(06-03-2021 12:24 PM)Yosef Himself Wrote: [ -> ]I just see no scenario where a SoCon member jumps to the ASUN. SoCon has an actual paid ESPN TV deal with the conference maintaining ownership of their 2/3 tier rights that they sell to RSNs and local media groups. Their basketball has become an upper mid-major league. The SoCon tourny is a yearly blockbuster with sellout crowds. And a $1 million dollar buy out too that all members agreed on a few years back.
I agree with this.
(06-03-2021 04:25 PM)Fighting Muskie Wrote: [ -> ]Does the OVC even have a plan? I’ve heard nothing out of them.
Valid question. Living in Nashville (the OVC is headquartered in nearby Brentwood) ... I've heard nothing of substance. Just the cliched "we're reviewing our options."
As a Belmont and Tennessee State U. fan, it's concerning.
Before July 1? I don't think so, but something happening before September 1 is a possibility. Honestly, the last few weeks have just been when these sorts of conversations start back up again. No administrators wanted to do heavy lifting during basketball tournament preps.
The WAC expansion conversations that eventually lead to the Texas 4 exodus started over the summer. This is the time of year to start working on the big picture issues, now that day to day operations have slowed down a bit.
Looking around FCS, I see a lot of conferences with fewer than 9 football schools—that’s going to make OOC scheduling a real free for all:
WAC—7
Southland—6
OVC—7
ASUN—5
MEAC—6
Patriot—7 (5+2)
NEC—8 (7+1)
Ivy—8
Big South—7 (5+2)
The only big conferences are:
SWAC—12
CAA—12
MVFC—11
Big Sky—12 (10+2)
Pioneer—11
SoCon—9
(06-03-2021 12:30 PM)Fighting Muskie Wrote: [ -> ] (06-03-2021 08:31 AM)solohawks Wrote: [ -> ] (06-03-2021 01:35 AM)Stugray2 Wrote: [ -> ] (06-03-2021 12:55 AM)IWokeUpLikeThis Wrote: [ -> ] (06-02-2021 10:32 PM)Stugray2 Wrote: [ -> ]... saying thing stupid of the top of his head without researching first ...
Robert Morris was announced June 15 last year. Ooey-Pooey was announced June 28 a few years ago.
Hum.
The one to keep our eyes on is the ASUN going for #6 for 2022 football. Keeping my eye on the OVC; they seem vulnerable.
I wouldn't be surprised if WIU made the move this month
That's the biggest no Brainer and the public comments from WIU from February seem to indicate a willingness
WIU was one I really thought we’d see move. Perhaps they are waiting to make sure that OVC football is stable before jumping.
Except, is moving from the Summit to the Ohio Valley a slam dunk for Western Illinois?
Travel gets better. 2 schools within 250 miles (vs none), 1 school more than 500 miles away (vs 4).
But it's not like the OVC is that attractive a league to move to. Western Illinois probably isn't pulling in a lot of out of state students from Omaha and Kansas City and Denver and the Dakotas, and they probably wouldn't pull in many from Nashville and Kentucky. Snobbery-wise, Summit has turned into a decent "neighborhood", flagships-and-landgrants and US News top 200 big-city schools. (Not that it does WIU much good)
Moving to the Ohio Valley makes sense for the OVC, makes sense for the Summit, but where's the big incentive for Western Illinois to make the move? The weather is better in Nashville than in Grand Forks or Souix Falls, you save some money and hours on buses. So I expect it to happen, but I don't think it's a priority for the WIU administration.
(06-03-2021 07:25 PM)johnbragg Wrote: [ -> ] (06-03-2021 12:30 PM)Fighting Muskie Wrote: [ -> ] (06-03-2021 08:31 AM)solohawks Wrote: [ -> ] (06-03-2021 01:35 AM)Stugray2 Wrote: [ -> ] (06-03-2021 12:55 AM)IWokeUpLikeThis Wrote: [ -> ]Robert Morris was announced June 15 last year. Ooey-Pooey was announced June 28 a few years ago.
Hum.
The one to keep our eyes on is the ASUN going for #6 for 2022 football. Keeping my eye on the OVC; they seem vulnerable.
I wouldn't be surprised if WIU made the move this month
That's the biggest no Brainer and the public comments from WIU from February seem to indicate a willingness
WIU was one I really thought we’d see move. Perhaps they are waiting to make sure that OVC football is stable before jumping.
Except, is moving from the Summit to the Ohio Valley a slam dunk for Western Illinois?
Travel gets better. 2 schools within 250 miles (vs none), 1 school more than 500 miles away (vs 4).
But it's not like the OVC is that attractive a league to move to. Western Illinois probably isn't pulling in a lot of out of state students from Omaha and Kansas City and Denver and the Dakotas, and they probably wouldn't pull in many from Nashville and Kentucky. Snobbery-wise, Summit has turned into a decent "neighborhood", flagships-and-landgrants and US News top 200 big-city schools. (Not that it does WIU much good)
Moving to the Ohio Valley makes sense for the OVC, makes sense for the Summit, but where's the big incentive for Western Illinois to make the move? The weather is better in Nashville than in Grand Forks or Souix Falls, you save some money and hours on buses. So I expect it to happen, but I don't think it's a priority for the WIU administration.
WIU is a lot more competitive in the OVC budget-wise, facility-wise, and basketball-wise, where there’s a lot of D1 bottom feeders like themselves. Better chance to compete. WIU is a distant last in budget, facilities, and basketball in the Summit. This is counterintuitive as usually you want to move up to higher budget schools, but WIU does not have the ability to ever be budget-competitive with Denver, ORU, and the Dakotas and they know it.
WIU joins two in-state peers in the OVC - EIU & SIUE. EIU is WIU’s biggest sports rival - that used to be Macomb’s hottest ticket until EIU left the Mid-Continent 25 years ago. WIU/EIU is moreso ancient history from sellouts in the 80s but it’s something to older alums.
Travel expenses lower in the OVC. All bustrips (max 533 miles to TTU). UND (657), NDSU (737), & DU (893) would all be 10-14 hour drives if they’re not flying.
Nobody is leaving the MVFC for OVC football. NDSU is a legend, you want to be in that conference. The coaching staff would revolt at that even being mentioned.
There is no way WIU leaves tSL/MVFC for OVC.
Far more likely APSU and Murray State join the ASUN and Belmont starts answering the phone, maybe joining the MVC aas partner with UT-Arlington or something.