Belmont to the Valley

[orangetennis]

Fans do and don’t matter. I should rephrase to donors I guess.

I have a strong feeling the largest donors at WSU will have a say in the move, and I don’t think the MVC will keep donors happy.

I can't imagine a world in which Wichita comes crawling back to the valley with their tail between their soiled legs. They're too prideful to do that.
Looking forward it might be the best decision they could make but they will be too busy looking backward to see that vision. They would feel like they're admitting a mistake or failure.
I still feel that Murray will come to their senses and let byegones be bygones and join Belmont.

[BrockLesnar]

I venture to say the AAC will survive. If it doesn't it would appear to be natural for those schools to want East Coast conferences like the Big East, A10, CUSA, and the ACC. Three went Big 12, two of the 3 are within reasonable geographic travel. While UCF is out of the region. It would make sense in recruiting and culture to not move far away. The MVC would have no shot at AAC schools. Yeah, Tulsa/WSU used to be MVC, but they left for a reason.

[ofpantherandman]

I can't imagine a world in which Wichita comes crawling back to the valley with their tail between their soiled legs. They're too prideful to do that.
Looking forward it might be the best decision they could make but they will be too busy looking backward to see that vision. They would feel like they're admitting a mistake or failure.
I still feel that Murray will come to their senses and let byegones be bygones and join Belmont.

You're probably right about Wichita. I get the feeling the problem with Murray isn't that they are hesitant, it's that the MVC is hesitant. Murray would accept the invite the minute it was presented.

[CyCarp]

Not sure if true, but the new rumor is that Murray WILL be joining also...
https://twitter.com/KySportsRadio/st...730646023?s=19

[BrockLesnar]

Liberty plays FBS football so they're a non-starter.

Liberty could move their football to let's say CUSA, but there would be the geographic footprint issue with them. No MVC team recruits Virginia except Belmont and Liberty doesn't recruit in MVC states except Tennessee (Belmont territory). So, yeah, they're not an add. I would then say a better group of four adds would be Belmont, Murray State, Northern Kentucky, and Western Illinois. All four would fit geographically and have comparable facilities, academics, and athletic department budgets.

[BCPanther]

Liberty could move their football to let's say CUSA, but there would be the geographic footprint issue with them. No MVC team recruits Virginia except Belmont and Liberty doesn't recruit in MVC states except Tennessee (Belmont territory). So, yeah, they're not an add. I would then say a better group of four adds would be Belmont, Murray State, Northern Kentucky, and Western Illinois. All four would fit geographically and have comparable facilities, academics, and athletic department budgets.

Western Illinois has a bottom 50 budget and plays in what's basically the West Gym in a city you can't fly into. Their average RPI/NET over the past decade is 322.

Sounds like it's going to be Murray anyway and then I'd guess we'll consider 14 if/when Arlington and Little Rock get the boot from the Sun Belt.

[Khan4Cats]

Western Illinois has a bottom 50 budget and plays in what's basically the West Gym in a city you can't fly into. Their average RPI/NET over the past decade is 322.

Sounds like it's going to be Murray anyway and then I'd guess we'll consider 14 if/when Arlington and Little Rock get the boot from the Sun Belt.

It would be Arlington or Little Rock, not both. No way the privates give up the balance, which is probably why we're seeing Murray coming so quickly after Belmont. The conference is in an odd situation of private-public split as well as football (scholarship)-non-football, but it has kept the balance now will likely try and maintain that. Basketball is still the king of the conference, even for the scholarship football schools-though Missouri State has been making noises otherwise, they have always been more of a basketball school back to the Spoonhour days.

[BCPanther]

It would be Arlington or Little Rock, not both. No way the privates give up the balance, which is probably why we're seeing Murray coming so quickly after Belmont. The conference is in an odd situation of private-public split as well as football (scholarship)-non-football, but it has kept the balance now will likely try and maintain that. Basketball is still the king of the conference, even for the scholarship football schools-though Missouri State has been making noises otherwise, they have always been more of a basketball school back to the Spoonhour days.

You're probably right.

Missouri State kind of hit the lottery in that Springfield started growing like crazy and geographically they're kind of a nice bridge between the Midwest and the South. The Sun Belt also isn't the football laughingstock it used to be so if that invite comes, I'd be surprised if they didn't take it.

[orangetennis]

Liberty could move their football to let's say CUSA, but there would be the geographic footprint issue with them. No MVC team recruits Virginia except Belmont and Liberty doesn't recruit in MVC states except Tennessee (Belmont territory). So, yeah, they're not an add. I would then say a better group of four adds would be Belmont, Murray State, Northern Kentucky, and Western Illinois. All four would fit geographically and have comparable facilities, academics, and athletic department budgets.

I thought Northern Kentucky just changed conferences? Would they change again so quickly?

[06panther10]

It would be Arlington or Little Rock, not both. No way the privates give up the balance, which is probably why we're seeing Murray coming so quickly after Belmont. The conference is in an odd situation of private-public split as well as football (scholarship)-non-football, but it has kept the balance now will likely try and maintain that. Basketball is still the king of the conference, even for the scholarship football schools-though Missouri State has been making noises otherwise, they have always been more of a basketball school back to the Spoonhour days.

Trying to figure out why this arbitrary public private balance matters to certain people.

[clenz]

I thought Northern Kentucky just changed conferences? Would they change again so quickly?

NKU was D2 until 2012. ASUN from 2012 to the end of the 2014/2015 season and then joined the Horizon from 2015 until present day.

They have big aspirations and moving to a new home to get there won't bother that admin at all. I can think of a lot worse adds than NKU

Valpo changed was in the Horizon less than a decade before joining the Valley.

When you get a chance to move up you don't think about "I've only been with this current car for a couple of years. I can't just trade it in for a much better one that is asking me to be in it"

[clenz]

Trying to figure out why this arbitrary public private balance matters to certain people.

College presidents are weird.

[BCPanther]

Bradley likes to think the have some kind of big swinging dick...

[BrockLesnar]

Western Illinois has a bottom 50 budget and plays in what's basically the West Gym in a city you can't fly into. Their average RPI/NET over the past decade is 322.

Sounds like it's going to be Murray anyway and then I'd guess we'll consider 14 if/when Arlington and Little Rock get the boot from the Sun Belt.

I thought UW Milwaukee would be a good add too. The Southern schools of the MVC would hate to travel there, though. The same could be said for South Dakota State, South Dakota, and North Dakota.

[orangetennis]

I thought UW Milwaukee would be a good add too. The Southern schools of the MVC would hate to travel there, though. The same could be said for South Dakota State, South Dakota, and North Dakota.

Same could be said for northern scools traveling to UT-Arlington.
That said, I'd like a NKU and UTA combo to get the Valley into the Cincinnati and Dallas markets.