2024-25 Around College Hoops

WANTED: Passionate Sycamore Fanatics. That You?

Register NOW to join our community of die-hard Sycamore fans.

Register Log in
I am also someone who hasn’t really heard of St. Thomas, but the more I look into them the more I think they could be a sleeping giant. They apparently have a ton of money, a decent recruiting base where basketball is becoming insanely popular, and they would be decent travel distance partners for Drake and UNI. Continuing to expand East or South will further alienate both schools. St. Thomas is also apparently breaking ground on a brand new arena. Lastly, St. Thomas is nearly a top-100 KenPom and NET team, so they’d be a good add from a competition standpoint.

In saying that, as a state school that continues to fund football, I’m not a proponent of adding another private school with a war chest to outspend us with. Taking a state school in MSU and replacing them with another private is probably not best for ISU. I’d be much more comfortable adding a school that spends somewhere around our level, or at least within arms reach.
 

Become a Supporting Member to remove this ad and help support the site.
If I had to choose, the finalists would be St Thomas, Wright State, NKU, or Omaha. All have baseball as a secondary sport and would fit in the void of 'success' that Mo St has had recently.. some would honestly be an improvement
 
I would want to add a state school to replace a state school

So Northern Kentucky or Wright State would get my vote

But some of this will depend on geography and which way the league wants to go with footprint in mind.

It’s not just about adding one school, it’s about expanding your footprint and then when the next team leaves (Illinois State?) you can look at colleges in your new, expanded geography

That’s why I think it could make sense to add a Northern Kentucky and look at adding Wright State of another opening pops up later.
 
Just watching some college basketball. Ex Villanova Jay Wright just said something interesting that i've never thought of. They were talking about Creighton. He said something to affect of "during my days at Nova, when you traveled to Omaha you new you were going to be in for a high scoring game, they wanted to pressure you and get up and down. Now if they came to your place the game was going to be more in the 60s as they wanted to slow it down and make it more possession by possession."

Just something interesting as it's SO hard to win on the road that is makes sense that you would want to make it as low possession as possible to give yourself the best chance to make a few plays the last 5 minutes.
 
BrokerZ said:
In saying that, as a state school that continues to fund football, I’m not a proponent of adding another private school with a war chest to outspend us with. Taking a state school in MSU and replacing them with another private is probably not best for ISU. I’d be much more comfortable adding a school that spends somewhere around our level, or at least within arms reach
Click to expand...
I understand what you're saying, but I woikd vote based on what's best for the Valley. St Thomas is a potential top 100 NET team with cash to burn, and have the chance to be close to Drake/Bradley/UNI level within a season or 2. NKU or UT-Arlington add a sub 200 NET team as a potential Q4 loss for everyone
 

Become a Supporting Member to remove this ad and help support the site.
MovingScreenOfDeath said:
I understand what you're saying, but I woikd vote based on what's best for the Valley. St Thomas is a potential top 100 NET team with cash to burn, and have the chance to be close to Drake/Bradley/UNI level within a season or 2. NKU or UT-Arlington add a sub 200 NET team as a potential Q4 loss for everyone
Click to expand...

Then we need to move. If it's all private schools and we have an administration that wants to continue to fund football, we're not a fit for the Missouri Valley.
 
I don't really care what the MVC does at this point, but if I had a vote I'd just stay at 11. I don't feel like there's any program out there that actually improves the conference, and staying at 11 would get rid of the unbalanced conference schedules.
 
Jason Svoboda said:
Then we need to move. If it's all private schools and we have an administration that wants to continue to fund football, we're not a fit for the Missouri Valley.
Click to expand...
What would moving on look like? OVC?

I'd rather admin doubles down on 🏀 & ⚾.

Believe 🏀 can become a consistent winner, but u make good point about competing with other better funded programs.
 
RunSyc said:
What would moving on look like? OVC?

I'd rather admin doubles down on 🏀 & ⚾.

Believe 🏀 can become a consistent winner, but u make good point about competing with other better funded programs.
Click to expand...

I would as well but no AD is going to take this job and cut the program if they have career aspirations.

But yeah, moving downward is limited to essentially the OVC or Horizon. The move would need to keep geographical tightness for logistics costs.
 

Become a Supporting Member to remove this ad and help support the site.
MovingScreenOfDeath said:
I understand what you're saying, but I woikd vote based on what's best for the Valley. St Thomas is a potential top 100 NET team with cash to burn, and have the chance to be close to Drake/Bradley/UNI level within a season or 2. NKU or UT-Arlington add a sub 200 NET team as a potential Q4 loss for everyone
Click to expand...
Why are they a potential 100 NET team? b/c of this one season?
 
MVC NET: 159

MVC NET without Missouri State: 150.9

MVC NET with St. Thomas (103) as the 12th team: 146.9


CUSA NET: 146.7

CUSA NET with Missouri State: 156.9

Replacing MoState with St Thomas would gain the conference 2 spots to be the #8 ranked conference instead of #10.
 
If the conference is going to replace MO State or expand then they should take a serious look at going to 14 with Northern KY, Chattanooga, and E TN State. I don't know how any of those programs are doing this season, but those programs have all been consistently good at basketball for quite a while now. You can't just add a school because they are having a good season this year, or not add a school because they are having a bad season this year. Consistency matters, and St Thomas has only been D1 for 4 years (previously D3) under one head coach, so that's not a move I'd feel comfortable with. They could lose their coach and their entire roster this off-season, and be back to square 1 and not do anything relevant again for the next 30 years.
 
Last edited:
Sycamorefan96 said:
If the conference is going to replace MO State or expand then they should take a serious look at going to 14 with Northern KY, Chattanooga, and E TN State. I don't know how any of those programs are doing this season, but those programs have all been consistently good at basketball for quite a while now. You can't just add a school because they are having a good season this year, or not add a school because they are having a bad season this year. Consistency matters, and St Thomas has only been D1 for 4 years (previously D3) under one head coach, so that's not a move I'd feel comfortable with. They could lose their coach and their entire roster this off-season, and be back to square 1 and not do anything relevant again for the next 30 years.
Click to expand...

legitimately speaking, any loss of a football school needs to be matched with a football school UNLESS the ISU trustees, leadership, AD, etc come to the realization that football at the FCS level is a dying proposal. IF lSU drops football, then the MVC can replace with a school the MVC Leadership feels is a best fit.

I imagine you're tracking the current, future (?) college landscape when virtually ANY college but ESPECIALLY mid-majors can lose their coach and entire roster after every season and "not do anything relevant again for the next 30 years..." Embrace that reality

And let all of us know what Jeff Jackson asks of you wrt approval, concurrence on the new member - longtime readers are anxiously awaiting to hear
 

Become a Supporting Member to remove this ad and help support the site.
4Q_iu said:
legitimately speaking, any loss of a football school needs to be matched with a football school UNLESS the ISU trustees, leadership, AD, etc come to the realization that football at the FCS level is a dying proposal. IF lSU drops football, then the MVC can replace with a school the MVC Leadership feels is a best fit.

I imagine you're tracking the current, future (?) college landscape when virtually ANY college but ESPECIALLY mid-majors can lose their coach and entire roster after every season and "not do anything relevant again for the next 30 years..." Embrace that reality

And let all of us know what Jeff Jackson asks of you wrt approval, concurrence on the new member - longtime readers are anxiously awaiting to hear
Click to expand...

The qualifications for new members is that at least 75% of the existing membership wants them in the conference. So a hypothetical new member would need 9 of 11 schools to vote in favor of them to be added.
 
sycamorebacker said:
Doesn't sound any different to me. We have played teams from all levels before.
Click to expand...
That is not true. We have never played exhibitions against Division 1 4 year programs. Now the exception has been charity type events that the P5’s have been doing but outside of that, hasn’t been the case.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top