From Bobcatattack.com ESPN's Andy Katz said that Ohio is one of a few schools that Gonzaga is talking too about filling an open date in this years hoops OOC schedule. Both Ohio and Gonzaga had teams backout of contracted games.

Makes sense to me.

Gonzaga wants to play tourney teams like Ohio.

Not small gym MAC schools drawing 2,500

KitKat... who you callin' small gym MAC school?

I'd love to see tha Zags in the Convo, it's great for the whole conference. :wave:

CountryRedHawk Wrote:KitKat... who you callin' small gym MAC school?

You know who you are.....

Turns out that Washington refused to move its game with Gonzaga which conflicts with the Gonzaga at UMASS game. UMASS scheduled a Holiday tourneyment with other powers and a game with Boston College which cause the mess to happen prompting the game to be move once already.

This could be the break the MAC needs to get a top 25 team to come visit. Ohio also has Kentucky and Cincinnati in December plus a good Detroit team and a improved Rhode Island squad. The rest of the MAC would get a boost from Ohio's sos. Some concern on the Ohio board about the risk of playing 4 games vs Kentucky, Cincinnati, Gonzaga, and the bracketbuster. 4 L's vs 4 top 25 teams could make Ohio on the wrong side on the bubble and the selection commitee wouldn't take MAC team with more than 8 losses as an at-large. 22-4 in the other games plus getting to the MAC final would be a lot to ask. 22-8 still wouldn't guarantee an at-large......ask Buffalo or even the 1995 Ohio team that won the preseason Nit and was 23-9. Despite the risk, I think playing a home and home with a team like Gonzaga is something Ohio should do to build the program. Gonzaga would draw a whole lot more than Western Carolina...even in early December. Espn, 2 or U, or FSN Ohio would love to show this potential matchup.

If you put that together with other teams SOS in the MAC, and the MAC could be a powerhouse this year. Especially if Ohio continues to win, Miami continues to win, and the other teams continue to win, and beat top ranked teams. I personally loved the TCU game last year at Miami(The NIT fiasco.) That is the most animated I have seen Millett in a VERY long time. Well, other than the Kent blowout earlier in the year. I'd love to see TCU come back. The home openner last year at Miami was a packed game too. Purdue was a good openning game. I'd like to see a team like MSU, or Michigan or even the Hoosiers come to a MAC school. I doubt the Illini would, or OSU. Maybe Temple SHOULD leave the A-10... the MAC is moving on up!

I hope this gets worked out for OU. I was looking forward to the schadenfreude of seeing Larry Hunter back in the Convo, but playing Gonzaga is a much better deal than playing a Kevin Martin-less WCU. Also, finally getting someone to play the Zags will be good for the whole conference.

CountryRedHawk Wrote:I personally loved the TCU game last year at Miami(The NIT fiasco.)  That is the most animated I have seen Millett in a VERY long time.  Well, other than the Kent blowout earlier in the year.  I'd love to see TCU come back.

Um...were you at either the Buffalo comeback or the Wichita State game? Both of those were considerably more animated than the TCU game, where the animation consisted mainly of the band and a group of fifteen or so MHTers. (Of course, I had just had surgery and was on some nifty painkillers at the time, so I may have a fuzzy memory of events. )

The TCU game was the whole crowd, or at least that's the way it seemed to me from my band vantage point. I haven't seen the police have to HOLD back the crowd in Millett after a game. They were really trying to go after the refs!(It wasn't even TCU, it was the refs!) Oh, well, Sam Lickliter is back, so all hell just broke loose. :mad: :jet: :cuss: :cuss: :devil:

Really? The police were holding the crowd back? I don't remember it being that bad, especially since there were like 1000 people there, but like I said, I had a lot of percocet in me at the time. I dunno. I just found the overall crowd atmosphere at both the WSU and Buffalo games (especially the Buffalo game) much more exciting.

(The Buffalo game was one that I missed...I was not in the house.) It wasn't the whole crowd, and I swear there were more than 1000 people there. I swear there were, in fact more people than I thought were going to be there. The section at the end(with the Band) was almost full. I dunno, there were a few very excitin games last year, though I think the Convo might have beaten us... grrrr. We'll have to fix that next year! Percocet? I'm getting valium, and some other drug for my wisdom teeth... muahahaha.

Kit-Cat Wrote:

CountryRedHawk Wrote:KitKat... who you callin' small gym MAC school?

You know who you are.....

Those out there that haven't won a MAC title in football for almost 40 years...

You know who you are.


BTW,
That would be a great game to get signed.

Kit-Cat Wrote:Makes sense to me.

Gonzaga wants to play tourney teams like Ohio.

Not small gym MAC schools drawing 2,500

Yeah because we all know OU packs the Convo every night! :rofl:

Defintely nice game for the Bobcats and MAC.

Kit-Cat Wrote:Makes sense to me.

Gonzaga wants to play tourney teams like Ohio.

Not small gym MAC schools drawing 2,500

BG has a hard time getting 2,500 to the gym, so it can't be them.

Indiana is coming to play at Ball State on New Year's Eve this year. A sellout crowd (11,500) is guaranteed.

Teams like Gonzaga, Southern Illinois, Nevada, Western Kentucky, Creighton, Pacific, Hawaii, Utah State, St. Joseph's,Xavier, Dayton, and Temple are who the MAC should schedule home and homes. These are elite Mid-Majors which the MAC competes against for at-large bids and national headlines. The MAC is deeper than the conferences that those other mid-major elites play in. Yet, the MAC has a tougher time getting a team into the dance as an at-large and having a team climb the national rankings. The MAC needs to continue to beat the other mid-majors head to head.

GlassBowl9 Wrote:

Kit-Cat Wrote:Makes sense to me.

Gonzaga wants to play tourney teams like Ohio.

Not small gym MAC schools drawing 2,500

BG has a hard time getting 2,500 to the gym, so it can't be them.

Gotta admit.

OUBOBCATJOHN Wrote:Teams like Gonzaga, Southern Illinois, Nevada, Western Kentucky, Creighton, Pacific, Hawaii, Utah State, St. Joseph's,Xavier, Dayton, and Temple are who the MAC should schedule home and homes. These are elite Mid-Majors which the MAC competes against for at-large bids and national headlines. The MAC is deeper than the conferences that those other mid-major elites play in. Yet, the MAC has a tougher time getting a team into the dance as an at-large and having a team climb the national rankings. The MAC needs to continue to beat the other mid-majors head to head.

speaking of St. Joe's...after UB's visit there in the NIT this past year, there's a good possibility for a UB/Joe's series over the next few years.

OUBOBCATJOHN Wrote:Teams like Gonzaga, Southern Illinois, Nevada, Western Kentucky, Creighton, Pacific, Hawaii, Utah State, St. Joseph's,Xavier, Dayton, and Temple are who the MAC should schedule home and homes. These are elite Mid-Majors which the MAC competes against for at-large bids and national headlines. The MAC is deeper than the conferences that those other mid-major elites play in. Yet, the MAC has a tougher time getting a team into the dance as an at-large and having a team climb the national rankings. The MAC needs to continue to beat the other mid-majors head to head.

I agree. We have played SIU, Creighton and Hawaii for the Bracket buster, but it would be nice to schedule these teams otherwise. Ultimately, it would be nice to have some of the bigger teams have to play in our places. It was a fun atmosphere for the NIT and bracket buster games.

As for the MAC Center, it's not bad, but I would like something more like Ohio, Miami, BSU or Buffalo has. Our AD has said he likes what we have, so no chance of that happening soon.