Who are the mvc teams in 5 years?

[BUBalum05]

Let's get crazy with realignment...
How about a 12-17 team super conference of basketball only schools from MVC and A-10, and take in the Big East cast offs when that conference dissolves because of the football grab. Although, this would be a nightmare for NCAA Tournament selection committee with all these pesky mid-major programs trying to crash the tournament because now they only have 1 automatic bid. ;-) Let's call this conference the "Big Ball Conference" because it has to have "Big" in the name to be legitimate.

Bradley Braves - Missouri Valley
Creighton Bluejays - Missouri Valley
DePaul Blue Demons - Big East
Duquesne Dukes - Atlantic 10
Evansville Purple Aces - Missouri Valley
GW Colonials - Atlantic 10
La Salle Explorers - Atlantic 10
Marquette Golden Eagles - Big East
Providence Friars - Big East
St Bonaventure Bonnies - Atlantic 10
St Johns Red Storm - Big East
St Joseph Hawks - Atlantic 10
St Louis Billikens - Atlantic 10
Seton Hall Pirates - Big East
VCU Rams - Atlantic 10
Wichita State Shockers - Missouri Valley
Xavier Musketeers - Atlantic 10

 

[TheAsianSensation]

The problem is every time I try to break up the BEast and A-10 and try and find a way for Bradley to be included in the spinoff conference, I can't find it.

Remember, the Georgetown/Villanova/Seton Hall/St John's/Providence faction will want to build a conference around them and will dent into whatever conference forms below them.

 

[thefish7]

The problem is every time I try to break up the BEast and A-10 and try and find a way for Bradley to be included in the spinoff conference, I can't find it.

Remember, the Georgetown/Villanova/Seton Hall/St John's/Providence faction will want to build a conference around them and will dent into whatever conference forms below them.

It only works for me when I break east and west regions up. I personally think that the megaconference thing isn't that appealing in basketball (I actually think it'll prove fruitless eventually in football) and so that works for me. Also I think there's a decent chance that Gtown and Nova will add FBS football. I guess one way you could do it is do a two-sided megaconference of doom with a midwest and east division.

East
Duquesne
George Washington
Georgetown
Providence
Saint Johns
Saint Joes
Seton Hall
Villanova
Two of Richmond, St Bonny, Drexel, George Mason, ODU, VCU, Charlotte
*Four of above if GT and Nova do football

Midwest
Bradley
Butler
Creighton
Dayton
DePaul
Drake
Marquette
St Louis
WSU
Xavier
And one of Detroit, Eville, or Valpo

You could play 14 games in your division, 5 games in the other division, and 9-11ish non-con games. People like to talk about "market" and Detroit Mercy in the same breath, but Bradley is worth a lot of money to someone-- relatively large endowment, good attendance, and a market that would watch that conference, it also is no academic slouch. I think also a 20-team conference or a 2-conference alliance like this could probably support a TV network of its own and really rock and roll on basketball and soccer. I think it's far too difficult to achieve and has way too many moving pieces, but I don't buy that Bradley is unattractive to conferences either and ranks easily "above" any of the "and" schools I put at the bottom of each division as well as some of the others in list.

EDIT - The funny thing is, if you end up with GT and Nova due to football the East division in this structure isn't really all that interesting. I kind of think that's why a 10-12 basketball midwestern conference is a really good solution for those schools in the Midwest division and in some ways as long as you're not worried about football and having 85 members that that solution is maybe most lucrative for those schools.

 

[TheAsianSensation]

Detroit vs. Bradley (or Drake or E'ville) is going to be the signature decision of how much market matters in realignment. I honestly think Detroit has more options available to them because of market than a Horizon team typically would.

One thing about a megaconference of, say, 24 schools, the ones you listed....I have a gut feeling if they go to 24 schools, you start entering Gonzaga/St Mary's/BYU/San Diego/San Francisco and a couple others into the mix. Seriously.

Villanova was given every chance to upgrade to FBS and chose not to last year, so I think their fate is sealed. Georgetown plays in the budget-limited Patriot League, so I'm not sure if they have the resources or not.

 

[SFP]

It all starts with a vision and creating a value proposition which others believe will benefit them as well. In these situations it is best to lead with contingent of like minded players and start selling. I can't imagine what would happen with the alums if the worst case scenario played out. I hope the powers to be are seeking advice from experienced individuals. This is not a job for the meek.

 

[Bravesfan]

Tulsa got a bit trapped by having to make sure their football team had a home, and the WAC wasn't going to do a football-only invite with their grand manifesto 16-team disaster.

There's rumblings that Tulsa could be a candidate for the Big East in a football-only role, in that Frankenstein of a conference. Tulsa could come back for other sports then to the MVC.

Frankenstein is a perfect description for the Big East. What a mess they are!

 

[Bravesfan]

Let's get crazy with realignment...
How about a 12-17 team super conference of basketball only schools from MVC and A-10, and take in the Big East cast offs when that conference dissolves because of the football grab. Although, this would be a nightmare for NCAA Tournament selection committee with all these pesky mid-major programs trying to crash the tournament because now they only have 1 automatic bid. ;-) Let's call this conference the "Big Ball Conference" because it has to have "Big" in the name to be legitimate.

Bradley Braves - Missouri Valley
Creighton Bluejays - Missouri Valley
DePaul Blue Demons - Big East
Duquesne Dukes - Atlantic 10
Evansville Purple Aces - Missouri Valley
GW Colonials - Atlantic 10
La Salle Explorers - Atlantic 10
Marquette Golden Eagles - Big East
Providence Friars - Big East
St Bonaventure Bonnies - Atlantic 10
St Johns Red Storm - Big East
St Joseph Hawks - Atlantic 10
St Louis Billikens - Atlantic 10
Seton Hall Pirates - Big East
VCU Rams - Atlantic 10
Wichita State Shockers - Missouri Valley
Xavier Musketeers - Atlantic 10

LOL! Love the mandatory "Big" name for the conference.

Trade Evansville, La Salle and St. Bonaventure for Butler, Dayton and either George Mason and/or Old Dominion, and I think we would have a great conference here!

Too bad this conference would take about five or six spots away from the 4 superconferences.

 

[Bravesfan]

Detroit vs. Bradley (or Drake or E'ville) is going to be the signature decision of how much market matters in realignment. I honestly think Detroit has more options available to them because of market than a Horizon team typically would.

One thing about a megaconference of, say, 24 schools, the ones you listed....I have a gut feeling if they go to 24 schools, you start entering Gonzaga/St Mary's/BYU/San Diego/San Francisco and a couple others into the mix. Seriously.

Villanova was given every chance to upgrade to FBS and chose not to last year, so I think their fate is sealed. Georgetown plays in the budget-limited Patriot League, so I'm not sure if they have the resources or not.

Am I the only who feels the Valley is doing the right thing by not doing anything? I think we have a solid to strong conference on a year to year basis. I find it truly refreshing that we are staying out of this insanity right now. The only change I would have made was by trying to lure Dayton and/or Butler into the conference, either expanding to 12, or letting one or two of the consistently weaker teams out. But aside from this, I think we are doing very well as we are, and I don't see why we can't build mid-major powers from within than ruining a good thing.

 

[SFP]

Am I the only who feels the Valley is doing the right thing by not doing anything? I think we have a solid to strong conference on a year to year basis. I find it truly refreshing that we are staying out of this insanity right now. The only change I would have made was by trying to lure Dayton and/or Butler into the conference, either expanding to 12, or letting one or two of the consistently weaker teams out. But aside from this, I think we are doing very well as we are, and I don't see why we can't build mid-major powers from within than ruining a good thing.

The Valley is doing nothing because it does not have too many options. It could have courted Butler and SLU but besides that what could the Valley do? In order to get stronger it would have to attract better programs and or rid itself of teams that are not putting the invest into their programs to get better. BU's best option IMO is to help lead The Big Mid Major Conference. I'd even start looking west as well and perhaps create 3 separate leagues within the conference. The east anchored by G'twn and Villanova, The mid-west with Xavier and Marquette and the west with Gonzaga and perhaps Creighton. Basketball centric private schools who could also create some type research cooperation, faculty sharing and classes. I'd have to believe it could work! Think big or else we maybe out looking in.

 

[Bravesfan]

The Valley is doing nothing because it does not have too many options. It could have courted Butler and SLU but besides that what could the Valley do? In order to get stronger it would have to attract better programs and or rid itself of teams that are not putting the invest into their programs to get better. BU's best option IMO is to help lead The Big Mid Major Conference. I'd even start looking west as well and perhaps create 3 separate leagues within the conference. The east anchored by G'twn and Villanova, The mid-west with Xavier and Marquette and the west with Gonzaga and perhaps Creighton. Basketball centric private schools who could also create some type research cooperation, faculty sharing and classes. I'd have to believe it could work! Think big or else we maybe out looking in.

I like this option as well, but all the schools mentioned for this possible new conference would have to be on the same page. I'm not sure if all would go for this idea, but I like the premise. I agree that we either do something like this, or just stay where we are at for now. Again, maybe I'm in the minority, but I don't think the Valley is in any grave danger right now as long as we consistently have three or four teams in NCAA Tournament contention in any given year.

If the superconference template continues to develop as it has been, and the Valley does find itself on the outside looking in in a few years, then each team has to fend for themselves. Therefore, the most important thing for the Bradley program (and leaving out the Valley as a whole for a moment) is to become more competitive within the next 2 to 3 years, and stay at that level year in and year out. Then when the other superconferences start purging the best of the remaining mid-major conferences, Bradley, Creighton, Wichita St. and anyone else who is competitive should be in good shape to join somewhere else.

 

[TheAsianSensation]

Am I the only who feels the Valley is doing the right thing by not doing anything? I think we have a solid to strong conference on a year to year basis. I find it truly refreshing that we are staying out of this insanity right now. The only change I would have made was by trying to lure Dayton and/or Butler into the conference, either expanding to 12, or letting one or two of the consistently weaker teams out. But aside from this, I think we are doing very well as we are, and I don't see why we can't build mid-major powers from within than ruining a good thing.

I'm coming to think that standing pat is now right. The real answer would've been to court Butler a few years ago and if you had to add Wright St to do it, fine. Elgin got caught in a reactive position instead of a proactive one.

The big worry right now is the distance between the MVC and power conferences. There's a Big 6, MWC, and A-10 right now. Those 8 are on the brink of establishing a tier ahead of everyone else. The MVC and WCC are a solid 9/10 right now, but they're in danger of losing the lead draft.

 

[Bravesfan]

I'm coming to think that standing pat is now right. The real answer would've been to court Butler a few years ago and if you had to add Wright St to do it, fine. Elgin got caught in a reactive position instead of a proactive one.

The big worry right now is the distance between the MVC and power conferences. There's a Big 6, MWC, and A-10 right now. Those 8 are on the brink of establishing a tier ahead of everyone else. The MVC and WCC are a solid 9/10 right now, but they're in danger of losing the lead draft.

Agreed about Butler. That would have been a great snag for the MVC, and a natural rivalry for Bradley. Two similar schools with similar enrollments (and two "BU's" ), and both with the potential to be dominate schools within the conference. But that opportunity came and went, and unless the A-10 gets taken apart in the future, I don't see Butler moving anywhere. Not to mention that the Valley could have had a major market added to their tv contract, plus Butler from a geographical standpoint would have fit the Valley better than an east coast conference.

And even the WCC might be a touch ahead of the Valley right now. They have the premier "mid-major" program in the country (with no offense to Creighton or Xavier), and two other strong programs in St. Mary's and BYU that are consistent NCAA Tournament contenders year in and year out. While the bottom of the WCC is a little weaker, even struggling programs like Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount have a lot of basketball history on their side as well. So we'll see who wins out in the long term, but if the opportunity came along to add a solid mid-major and/or some Big East castoffs, the Valley could still add a strong team or two sometime in the future if things worked out. But for the time being, I don't think the Valley is hurting itself by standing pat.

 

[SFP]

Perhaps its best for the Valley to stay pat but not BU's! I hope we are talking to others and creating a few contingency plans. Not doing so would be irresponsible.

 

[BUBalum05]

Without football revenue to subsidize travel costs, it will be very difficult for schools like Gonzaga or Mt St Mary to sign up for a conference that they'll regularly have to travel to the east coast based on financial concerns, especially for non-revenue sports. Also if these schools remain fair to the student-athletes (let's not debate the student-athlete amateur status), having the teams hop multiple time zones definitely does not have the student-athlete's best interest in mind. Another drawback is to look at how poorly pro sports teams perform traveling east; let alone, long travel might affect college students studies being out of class even more to travel longer distances. Any realignment for mid-majors has to take some geography into consideration.

 

[stevebu91]

Reading through the comments thus far, I am not satisfied with the Missouri Valley or Bradley being in a 3rd Tier Basketball / Sports Conference. Our goal, through consistent winning and strong facilites, is too strive toward the 2nd Tier (with our without the MVC).

Tier 1 is unattainable unless Caterpillar's shareholders (or a similar weathly individual) decide to invest $300 million in athletics to get us to the FBS..Written with a laugh...

Our goal at BU should be the Tier 2. The MVC has not proven thus far they are proactively striving toward the Tier 2 level. They are not quite sitting in their offices with rotary dial phones... but, well, you fill in the blank on what type of communications equipment they APPEAR to be using.....

 

[LittleBrave]

I agree with the part about football. However, there are possibly more fertile grounds even for a non-football school than the MVC. I can see either Creighton or Wichita State being lured away by the CUSA or the A-10.

Definitely agree. More opportunity for these 2 to expand their markets and to have more prime games, and perhaps better chance to get At-Large bids from these 2 conferences.
I think the Valley has been stronger than CUSA in the past 5-6 seasons, but CUSA is more widely known IMO, and CUSA and A-10 I would venture to say are considered more high-major than Valley teams.

 

[LittleBrave]

I love the make-up of this conference and wish there would be no change. But if any of the top schools were to be lured away, it would not be the same, and wouldn't be able to replace them.
I can't imagine being in a different conference than ISU-red or SIU.

 

[SFP]

I love the make-up of this conference and wish there would be no change. But if any of the top schools were to be lured away, it would not be the same, and wouldn't be able to replace them.
I can't imagine being in a different conference than ISU-red or SIU.

I'm sure Maryland could not imagine being in another conference outside of playing NC, Duke and UVA but they will be and for greener pastures. I'd rather see BU playing the likes of Marquette, Butler and Xavier over ISu-red and SIU any day.

 

[Art Haines is God]

Former Missouri State Athletic Director said he felt by 2015 the A10 will split with the more north eastern private schools creating an attractive eastern private school league geared more for upper/mid majors. The more midwestern private schools will join together and form a new conference for private mid majors, he thought Creighton and BU would both move to that conference.

The MVC would merge with the Sun Belt and become a state school only conference with both football and basketball schools: ILSU, MSU, INSU, UNI, SIU would merge there and step up to big boy football.

 

[thefish7]

Former Missouri State Athletic Director said he felt by 2015 the A10 will split with the more north eastern private schools creating an attractive eastern private school league geared more for upper/mid majors. The more midwestern private schools will join together and form a new conference for private mid majors, he thought Creighton and BU would both move to that conference.

The MVC would merge with the Sun Belt and become a state school only conference with both football and basketball schools: ILSU, MSU, INSU, UNI, SIU would merge there and step up to big boy football.

This is kind of the scenario I see as being "best for everybody" in the MVC... And one I think I'd be very happy with if we end together with midwestern private castoffs from A10 and BE.