American Athletic Conference

[MoValley John]

The statement from the MVFC is exactly the position I would expect them to take. Not sure expressing the opinion in the manner that they did was very professional, far from it. Obviously, the proper way to do this would be to communicate this position privately to Dr. Bardo and IADDB. Maybe they have done that but for some reason felt compelled to make that position publicly known. Perhaps it is because WSU has been so public about their desire to find a new conference althouhg Dr. Bardo has said that one possible result of the study is that they would determine the Valley is the best fit for WSU.

As far as the MVFC position goes I can't blame them. If WSU announces they are bringing back football with the intent of starting at the FCS level then moving to FBS status as quickly as possible I don't blame the MVFC for not wanting to take them. Now if WSU announces they are bringing back football with the intent of playing at the FCS level then the MVFC should take them.

The ironic thing is that the Missouri Valley Conference is the poster child for being on the wrong side of conference realignment. The history, with a few minor exceptions, is clear on that. Former members of the Valley include among others: Butler, Cincinnati, Creighton, Houston, Iowa, Iowa State, Kansas, K-State, Louisville, Memphis, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, St. Louis and Tulsa.

It would be nice if Wichita State could be added to that list but whether or not a window of opportunity will open for WSU remains to be seen. At this point it doesn't look too promising but perhaps something will open up with the next round of conference realignment. Whether or not there will be any opportunities without FBS football (or even with FBS football) remains a big question mark.

I am a little concerned we don't have more seasoned and astute leadership in the Athletic Department to assist Dr. Bardo with this. No doubt that was a big factor in deciding to hire outside consultants to help him evaluate this.

I agree with this. As an outsider, I see the remarks as pretty reasonable and expected. Could they have been worded better? Yes, but she just about parroted what any conference official, from any conference would say regarding the situation.

I can also see Shocker fans being put out by the remarks. That said, if this were Missouri State, and Missouri State were considering adding football to move upward, the comments would be the same. The only time conference administrators didn't stand up to a school that was posturing to leave was Dan Beebe and Texas negotiating to leave the Big 12. We saw how well that worked out for everyone.

[Shoxtastic]

If you think the Valley's meager shot of the bow was fun, wait until September when the Shockers get an Evansville-esque TV schedule from the conference.f

I feel like the answer from the other conferences has been "You already reside in the best FCS conference in the country. Bring back football, play at that level, and when the next round of realignment happens, as long as your hoops stays as strong as it is, you are in good shape."

It feels like the conference office knows that and is positioning themselves to negotiate a long-term commitment to the Valley out of WSU in order to sponsor football in the Valley. I agree with the others of you who have said there was a lot of bravado early that has turned into a whimper, and I think the conference smells blood in the water to put WSU and its 'loud mouth' in its place both privately and publicly. Buckle up folks, the next bit should be some kind of interesting.

[1972Shocker]

I feel like the answer from the other conferences has been "You already reside in the best FCS conference in the country.

That well could be the answer they are getting. Problem is, that WSU doesn't technically reside in the best FCS conference in the country. The conference we reside in does not have football. Perhaps the distinction between the MVC and the MVFC is a thin wall but it is apparently enough of a wall to be an issue.

I suppose the MVFC making known their position is helpful. It at least tells WSU that if they intend to migrate to FBS football that they may have to go independent at the FCS level for a few years which could well influence the ulitmate decision that will be made.

[1972Shocker]

If you think the Valley's meager shot of the bow was fun, wait until September when the Shockers get an Evansville-esque TV schedule from the conference.

I think the 1st minor shot off the bow was WSU not being selected to host any of the Valley's championships next year. Not a big deal but probably a message being sent.

Now we have this statement from the MVFC. Not a surprising position but again a message being sent.

You may very well be correct about what kind of TV schedule we get although the networks may have more to say about that then does the Valley. The thing is if the Valley loses WSU what does that do to their attractiveness to the television networks going forward especially coming on the tail of losing Creighton and replacing them with Loyola.

[Kung Wu]

Do the MVC schools that partake in the MVFC make more money from recent MVFC success than they do basketball success? Maybe those schools don't consider the MVC (basketball) conference to be as financially important as the MVFC conference? Is that possible or no?

[bleed yellow]

The only possible rationale for her statement is that she knows WSU is gone. If not, she is incredibly insecure, silly, and shining a light on her apparent lack of intellect.

My question would be, what exactly does she expect to hear from progressive wsu leadership? Wsu's conference draws a negative reaction from most people and doesn't help wsu at all in the quest for championships. We can beat Bradley by 40 on their home court and get zero credit for it. Being in the MVC is degrading and frustrating.

[Cdizzle]

If you think the Valley's meager shot of the bow was fun, wait until September when the Shockers get an Evansville-esque TV schedule from the conference.

Nope. Because ESPN pays the bills and ESPN doesn't want to broadcast Loyola. There is a reason they want to trap WSU in the league. Giving up those benefits while WSU is still in the league would just be shooting themselves in the foot for no reason.

[SB Shock]

Nope. Because ESPN pays the bills and ESPN doesn't want to broadcast Loyola. .

They had Loyola on 5 men games last year on their MVC ESPN deal.

[SHOCKvalue]

Do the MVC schools that partake in the MVFC make more money from recent MVFC success than they do basketball success? Maybe those schools don't consider the MVC (basketball) conference to be as financially important as the MVFC conference? Is that possible or no?

I can't see that. No way.

The MVFC plays "D2" football. It's obviously not, but that's how the vast majority of college sports fans look at it - either literally or figuratively. FCS football gets almost zero eyes on it outside of the people actually at the games. Few know who the conferences and major contenders are. Its exposure on TV and in the minds of college sports fans is roughly at the same level as lumberjack competitions. I'm not necessarily putting FCS down personally, just stating the obvious.

Conversely, MVC MBB has a storied, known history at the highest level, and often has at least two teams in the national conversation each season. It has taken a hit, and appears possibly in decline, but it still plays full-on D1. No veil between us and the big boys come March, whereas FCS is seen by the big boys as a glorified, exhibition, non-con "opponent." I mean K-State lost to NDSU a few years ago, and the national narrative wasn't "solid work NDSU", it was "let's all point and laugh hysterically at K-State."

It could be argued that the Gateway Conference should have remained so, as to avoid any connections of the MVC with an almost irrelevant level of college sports. As much as we all hate the MVC, it is still outright D1 sports, not a half-step below D1.

[ShockdaWorld]

Down goes Orukpe! Down goes Orukpe!!!

[ShockTalk]

Those comments by MVCF are so stupid and biased. Like MSU wouldn't jump at the opportunity to go to the Sun or C-USA, or fans at Ill St wanting to go the Mid-American. There should be nothing WSU should have to commit to unless all schools in the MVCF have to commit. See how well that goes over.

Word of warning: The following is a rant and very well could be a silly rant.

In this age of conference re-alignment, whether your a team or conference, you are either trying to improve your position or doing things to make your situation worse. Schools are either going to come up with the funds to stay relevant or they're not and conferences, like the Valley, are going live or die by what they let their members do in this regard.

I think the MVC should strive to come both the best FCS football and best non-power 5 basketball conference they can be. That is the best way to fight off what's happening in the FBS (P5 potentially pulling away from the other conferences) and staying on the right side of college basketball conferences competing with the A-10 and Big East. If the P5 pulls away from the other FBS football conferences, those schools who have been plowing all their money into football and not also into basketball are going to be on the wrong side of the fence if there is a similar movement in basketball. There are only a handful, or less, of football schools not in the P5 that will get to tag along. However, there are many schools, but maybe few conferences, that could survive a similar pull away in college basketball. The Big East and A-10 (for the most part) are safe. The MWC will probably rebound in basketball and be safe. Other than that, it's a crap shoot.

For conferences not in the FBS lie the Valley, had better be doing all they can to stay relevant in basketball now. That's is their only avenue to stay a relevant conference and, if there is a football pull out of the P5, those other FBS conferences may be scrambling to make basketball a priority if they feel a similar thing could happen in college basketball.

A split in college basketball could probably handle 10, maybe 12, conferences and still have all the non-P5 conferences with a majority of teams that are competitive. The Valley use to be safe, even ranking ahead of the A-10 on occasions. Now, we're below the Summit, MAC, and CAA. A conference like the AAC will probably be doing some re-shuffling as they're most likely to have lost teams to football P-5, but will they still only take schools that also have football?

What can the Valley do? First, there needs to be a majority of schools with a backbone to kick out those schools not willing to put the money up and schedule up necessary to be a strong basketball school. If this doesn't happen, the following will need to be done by a "new" conference.

Have an "A-10" type of new basketball conference that also can include football schools, but not exclusively football as this is driven by basketball. Not sure where west coast schools would fit in, but here goes a possible group of schools: WSU, Ill St, UNI, SIU (any other Valley school willing to meet the requirements), South Dakota St, ND St, South Dakota, New Mexico St, Valpo, Youngstown St, Belmont, Murray St, SF Austin, Sam Houston St, Omaha, and Denver.

Last year in basketball, these 16 teams had 6 teams in the top 100 RPI, 5 101-150, 4 151-199, and only 1 200+. These RPIs were achieved in spite of the conference schedules they had to play. I'm not saying all 16, just as well as they could be other schools I'm missing, but some combination of 12-16 with east/west divisions. Now you would have a strong, top 10 (if not top 7 or 8) basketball conference, with schools of like mind in football.

[_kai_]

Wrote a piece about the remarks from the MVCF Commish.

Some facts and figures at the bottom of the article, average attendance increase when WSU comes to town, etc.

http://shockerhoops.net/index.php/2016/06/08/salty-missouri-valley/

[MoValley John]

Wrote a piece about the remarks from the MVCF Commish.

Some facts and figures at the bottom of the article, average attendance increase when WSU comes to town, etc.

http://shockerhoops.net/index.php/20...ssouri-valley/

What was interesting about your attendance numbers was the change between different teams. Evansville, Missouri State, Illinois State and Southern had large spikes, but Drake, Bradley, Northern Iowa, Indiana State and Loyola, didn't. I'm not sure how to read this. Then again, Loyola with a small arena, had a huge percentage jump. Also, depending on what each school charges for tickets, a full house might not move the revenue meter as much as you might think. If you gain $6,000 spectators at $10, you really didn't make a dent in your several million dollar athletic budget.

I don't know exactly where I'm going with this, but I think Wichita State winning in the NCAA's has a real, positive impact on the conference monetarily, the rest, probably not so much. Also, Wichita State's presence in St. Louis can't be undersold. Having butts in seats keeps the game on CBS.

[DwShock]

Wrote a piece about the remarks from the MVCF Commish.

Some facts and figures at the bottom of the article, average attendance increase when WSU comes to town, etc.

http://shockerhoops.net/index.php/20...ssouri-valley/

Great article Kai.

Bardo needs to get that report out soon. He promised it to the community in May. It's now June. I understand they are waiting for conference meetings and maybe they will shock us with some big news. But this game they are playing is getting old.

And as for the Valley they need to show WSU some respect simply for the reason you stated in the article. Don't tip the cow.

[_kai_]

What was interesting about your attendance numbers was the change between different teams. Evansville, Missouri State, Illinois State and Southern had large spikes, but Drake, Bradley, Northern Iowa, Indiana State and Loyola, didn't. I'm not sure how to read this. Then again, Loyola with a small arena, had a huge percentage jump. Also, depending on what each school charges for tickets, a full house might not move the revenue meter as much as you might think. If you gain $6,000 spectators at $10, you really didn't make a dent in your several million dollar athletic budget.

I don't know exactly where I'm going with this, but I think Wichita State winning in the NCAA's has a real, positive impact on the conference monetarily, the rest, probably not so much. Also, Wichita State's presence in St. Louis can't be undersold. Having butts in seats keeps the game on CBS.

I'd agree that overall, the monetary benefit of one game to their overall budgets is peanuts. The impact financially might be small, but I think an MVC sans WSU is like buying 3.2 beer and putting ice cubes in it. Watered down, and it was already teetering on undrinkable.

The real money is definitely in terms of the media contract, the conference tournament, and more than anything the tournament units produced by WSU, 14 over a 6 year period.