American Athletic Conference

[Play Angry]

I am laughing, directly into your face, for assuming that Bob Lutz has the inside dope on what is or is not happening with any realignment talks regarding WSU.



We all want a move to happen, and sooner than later. You aren't going to get concrete proof one way or another because of the nature of these discussions.

[Downtown Shocker Brown]

A) Lutz is an idiot. He can't get an answer, and that ticks him off so he continues to stir the pot. There is no way to answer the "Are we looking?" Question. If we say yes, we alienate ourselves from the Valley. If we say no, we might miss a chance. The going answer of " We are always looking to improve the satire of our school" is the perfect non-committal answer.

B) Lutz is an putz. He thinks, since he is THE sports guy in town, that he has a pulse on what's going on. He doesn't, and that ticks him off.

C) Lutz is a jerkoff. He doesn't know how to do a proper interview because he feels everyone is beneath him and should just freely give him info like Jay Glazer and Adam Sheffter get. He doesn't, and that ticks him off.

D) Lutz is intelligent. I don't believe it either, just wondered if anyone would read this far.

E) AD Sexton, while far from perfect, can glad-hand with the best of them. Between he and President Bardo I feel confident that we are on the right path. Just hope we get to the station before the train leaves.

[ShockerFever]

I like what I've seen from Bardo, since he has put his visions and plans out there. Sexton OTOH hasn't mentioned a thing and I'm hesitant on him propping us up. Yeah, I know Sexton isn't gonna specifically comment on it, but it would be nice to hear something from the guy.

When's the last time he's spoken in speech form?

[wsushox1]

If a thread goes long enough on shockernet one of two things will happen.

A) WstateU will post scantily clad women

B) People will jab at ADES's public speaking ability.

[Downtown Shocker Brown]

If a thread goes long enough on shockernet one of two things will happen.

A) @WstateU: will post scantily clad women

B) People will jab at ADES's public speaking ability.

We need some "A"

[ShockTalk]

Lutz has been speaking frequently about the need for WSU's AD to be proactive in marketing WSU to the big East along with St Louis. The fact that he continues to talk about it leads me to believe the AD isn't doing anything.
Gotta strike when the iron is red hot.

Have any of you heard any reaching out to other conferences by the AD? With Loyola joining the conference, it leads me to believe the MoVal Commish believes its a forgone conclusion that the Shox are leaving (since the map continues to move east).

My guess is that WSU is not going to the Big East unless they expand to at least 14 teams with at least one other public school. Most likely additions is St. Louis, Dayton, VCU, and WSU. Have a friend that is from Omaha and a big CU fan (yes, that combination of being a CU fan and "good guy" does exist) and he thinks the Big East will get back to 16 teams. I think that's to many teams, but maybe not.

I'd rather see us in the MWC or AAC (A-10 just doesn't seem feasible), but being the only non-football school seems risky. I wouldn't like either unless they went into divisions. I hate to say it, but the Big East, being a basketball conference, seems the most stable situation, with 14 teams they'd do divisions, and it would be the best rated basketball conference of the 3 (and definitely better than the A-10).

[Downtown Shocker Brown]

My guess is that WSU is not going to the Big East unless they expand to at least 14 teams with at least one other public school. Most likely additions is St. Louis, Dayton, VCU, and WSU. Have a friend that is from Omaha and a big CU fan (yes, that combination of being a CU fan and "good guy" does exist) and he thinks the Big East will get back to 16 teams. I think that's to many teams, but maybe not.

I'd rather see us in the MWC or AAC (A-10 just doesn't seem feasible), but being the only non-football school seems risky. I wouldn't like either unless they went into divisions. I hate to say it, but the Big East, being a basketball conference, seems the most stable situation, with 14 teams they'd do divisions, and it would be the best rated basketball conference of the 3 (and definitely better than the A-10).

The main reason they would go to 16 would be to try to get back to 9 and 10 in the tournament.

[The Mad Hatter]

I like what I've seen from Bardo, since he has put his visions and plans out there. Sexton OTOH hasn't mentioned a thing and I'm hesitant on him propping us up. Yeah, I know Sexton isn't gonna specifically comment on it, but it would be nice to hear something from the guy.

When's the last time he's spoken in speech form?

1. I've overheard Sexton at a restaurant talking about conference realignment. I didn't hear anything specific (and I don't think he said anything specific), but he was clearly giving the message that they are very aware of the on-going shifts and constantly evaluating the best opportunities for WSU. I don't know if that makes you feel any better or not, but I think both he and Bardo are just as aware as we fans are of the realities of realignment and worried about the implications of some of those shifts.

2. I'm curious, why do you want an AD to give speeches? In my experience, a lot of the worst ADs are the ones who talk a lot publicly (ala Lew Perkins), and some of the best are the ones that you never hear from publicly. They just do everything behind the scenes to make things run smoothly and let their coaches be the public face of the athletic department. I'm not even really talking specifically about Sexton here, just generally what one wants in an AD. Schaus was certainly an example of a good AD who was also a good public speaker, but I hardly see it as a necessary part of being a good AD.

[ShockerFever]

1. I've overheard Sexton at a restaurant talking about conference realignment. I didn't hear anything specific (and I don't think he said anything specific), but he was clearly giving the message that they are very aware of the on-going shifts and constantly evaluating the best opportunities for WSU. I don't know if that makes you feel any better or not, but I think both he and Bardo are just as aware as we fans are of the realities of realignment and worried about the implications of some of those shifts.

2. I'm curious, why do you want an AD to give speeches? In my experience, a lot of the worst ADs are the ones who talk a lot publicly (ala Lew Perkins), and some of the best are the ones that you never hear from publicly. They just do everything behind the scenes to make things run smoothly and let their coaches be the public face of the athletic department. I'm not even really talking specifically about Sexton here, just generally what one wants in an AD. Schaus was certainly an example of a good AD who was also a good public speaker, but I hardly see it as a necessary part of being a good AD.

1. What restaurant was it?

2. Because an athletic director is a "leader". A high-end D1 athletic director should have a basic grasp of public speaking. If you wanna be the man, then you better act like the man. Why is that so much to ask?

Maybe Sexton has quieted down because of the few times he has gone out there, it didn't really come off that well. I dunno.

[The Mad Hatter]

1. What restaurant was it?

2. Because an athletic director is a "leader". A high-end D1 athletic director should have a basic grasp of public speaking. If you wanna be the man, then you better act like the man. Why is that so much to ask?

Maybe Sexton has quieted down because of the few times he has gone out there, it didn't really come off that well. I dunno.

1. Not sure why that is relevant, but it was at Barn'rds.

2. I guess we will agree to disagree on the public speaking thing (and coaching public speaking is my job so I think I value it pretty highly). I just don't see it as a core part of effectively running an athletic department. Frankly, I think Marshall prefers being allowed to be the face of the program rather than having to fight with the AD for the air time, but I could be misreading things.

[WSUwatcher]

Really, where the heck is WstateU when we need him?

A) Lutz doesn't have a clue. Why would anyone possibly think he might?

B) WSU could scarcely be a worse match for the Big East's current membership profile. All private, many pretty small (WSU is larger than seven of ten, and five of them have fewer than 10,000 students), nine of ten Catholic (how did Butler sneak in instead of St. Louis?). The closest matches from the Valley in demographic terms are actually Bradley, Drake, and Evansville, but none are Catholic and only Bradley is potentially $eriou$ enough about basketball to qualify -- Drake and Evansville certainly aren't, and they'd also be the two smallest schools in the league, so they clearly don't fit; and yet both match the profile more closely than WSU does.

Edit -- Actually, Loyola from the current Valley is a very good fit for the NBE demographically (overlooked them; still haven't adjusted to thinking of them as part of the MVC), but with DePaul accounting for Chicago, it's hard to picture the Ramblers being of interest.

[ShockerFever]

1. Not sure why that is relevant, but it was at Barn'rds.

2. I guess we will agree to disagree on the public speaking thing (and coaching public speaking is my job so I think I value it pretty highly). I just don't see it as a core part of effectively running an athletic department. Frankly, I think Marshall prefers being allowed to be the face of the program rather than having to fight with the AD for the air time, but I could be misreading things.

1. What did he order?

2. Coaching public speaking is your job? Ok, so you agree that being able to speak in public is pretty important if your job is right smack in the middle of the public forefront? I guess I'm an outlier when I think it looks bad to have an athletic director of a MAJOR D1 school to cower around in the dark, not engaging the people who support his institution and, quite frankly, help supplement his paychecks. I'd much rather have Marshall be the face of the AD since we know what we're getting out of him, isn't afraid of the public in a very public position, and can make good decisions. Too bad he doesn't have a say in conference realignment decisions for WSU... or does he?

[Veritas]

I am laughing, directly into your face, for assuming that Bob Lutz has the inside dope on what is or is not happening with any realignment talks regarding WSU.



We all want a move to happen, and sooner than later. You aren't going to get concrete proof one way or another because of the nature of these discussions.

Gotcha... I don't live in Wichita, but I listen to the downloaded Sports Daily at night when trying to lethargically work out. Didn't realize he was so disconnected with WSU athletics. He certainly is a huge supporter of the AD aggressively marketing WSU to the big East.

I agree with Fever that I have confidence in Bardo.

Also feel that Shox need to make a move--- ASAP.
Can't sit back and simply hope something happens.

[ShockTalk]

The main reason they would go to 16 would be to try to get back to 9 and 10 in the tournament.

Just what other 2 teams (that meet the non-football criteria) than the ones I mentioned would likely add 1 or 2 more teams to the Dance. Just don't see going to the far west for additional teams as being very likely.

[MoValley John]

Frankly, I think Marshall prefers being allowed to be the face of the program rather than having to fight with the AD for the air time, but I could be misreading things.

The coach should always be the face of the program, if not, there is a problem. The coach should also understand that the AD is his boss, period. Marshall understands this, so does your AD.

As for an earlier question, the AD has a monumental role in negotiating moves to different conferences, but ultimately, conference affiliation, and conference moves are the job of the university president. A bad AD or a bad president can make or break a move.