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2025-26 Around College Hoops
- Thread starter Jason Svoboda
- Start date
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Crazy how quick their perspective/opinions change…
Well McCollum sure forgets where he comes from doesn't he.
Good for Rob Martin. Thought he had pretty good potential in his one year, just stuck behind some really good players. Cool to see him becoming a March darling.
I'm calling a little b.s.
Did Purdue play any of these quality mid-majors on the road or a neutral court?
I do credit Purdue for doing better than most P5programs with scheduling (I respect Painter & their program), but even what they do doesn't provide true parity.
Scheduling parity would need to be created from the NCAA. People more knowledgeable than me could figure out that system. Keep it simple & transparent. Carrots and sticks. Would love a system where Sycamores had 2 P5 home & 2 P5 away games each season, & perhaps one A-10 or equivalent.
However, if Matt Painter's staff reads this, what I really meant to say is Purdue rocks. Now please schedule another buy game with the Sycamores.
the other issue that "hurts" the P5 is the self-induced conference expansion -- the big "ten" played 20 conference games, acc & $ec 18; unless the ncaa moves to a min 35 game season, every mid-major is going to have a helluva hard time scheduling p5 - home or away
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why are you dissing Kurt Rambis? Terry Dischinger?? Clyde Lovellette??? hell, even Slick Leonard???
I'm not exactly sure which 4 mid majors he's talking about as I counted 5. None of the schools are all that comparable with ISU, except for maybe High Point, only because they're the only school on this list that plays in a one bid league. Gonzaga, St Louis, and VCU all have enough money to be able to compete in the Big East, so they're not really comparable to ISU. High Point is a private school located in the Triad region, which is one of the fastest growing areas in the country. Likewise HPU has seen increased enrollment every single year since 2005 and 300% growth the past 20 years. Utah State has FBS football and their entire athletic budget is around triple of ISU's.
High Point has had just as much success the past two seasons as McNeese State (who made an upset last year) and they have FCS football. Those schools are comparable to ISU as far as playing in one bid leagues, except their one bid leagues are significantly worse than ours, so their automatic bid is easier to win. Both the Big South and the Southland conferences were ranked worse in the NET than the MAC, and the MAC barely got a 31-1 team into the dance.
Also, so far those mid major schools are 0-4 in the second round.
Let's also do a conference count for the Sweet 16 so far. 4 schools are from the Big Ten, 2 from the SEC, and the ACC and Big 12 have one each. Barring an upset by Utah State today, the Sweet 16 will be all power schools again.
Last season the Sweet 16 was also just the power 4 conferences (no Big East team made it). The Elite 8 was four 1 seeds, three 2's, and a 3. The Final 4 was all 1 seeds. The tournament in the NIL Portal era isn't even that exciting anymore. I've yet to watch a game and I've only watched highlights of the VCU and High Point upsets. And this is coming from someone who used to be glued to the TV for 4 straight days once March Madness started.
I don't expect any mid-major to advance beyond the round of 32 in today's basketball climate. 8 million roster has more talent than 3 million.
In my view, a successful ISU men's
program has 20+ win season more years than not, earns Thursday Arch bye more years than not, & achieves postseason play about half of the seasons (NCAA, nit, or cbi).However, I asked grok what an extra 3 million annually would do for ISU men's
program, & it said ISU could become a mid-major powerhouse. Basketball is the front porch for the University. Drop football to pioneer league, & may ISU build a big & beautiful front porch.
March Madness just doesn’t have the same feel like it used too with the transfer portal and NIL. Impossible for mid-majors to make the tournament and when they do it’s tough sledding. It’s turned into college football where you have about 2-3 competing for that title, another 10 that could challenge and then…everyone else…..I’ve tuned into about 10 total minutes of game time this tournament.
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I hate to break it to you, but mid major basketball is probably going to collapse soon if things don't change. People aren't going to continue to give money or care when they know their team will just get bought out, the round of 32 is the best they can ever hope for, and your entire season is basically win your conference tournament or else.I don't expect any mid-major to advance beyond the round of 32 in today's basketball climate. 8 million roster has more talent than 3 million.
In my view, a successful ISU men's
However, I asked grok what an extra 3 million annually would do for ISU men's
Basketball is the front porch for the University. Drop football to pioneer league, & may ISU build a big & beautiful front porch.
We also don't need to drop football to win 20 games and make an NIT, especially now that most of the power schools prefer to either opt out altogether or play in the FOX Tournament out in Vegas instead. As weak as the MVC was this season, the conference still got 4 teams into that tournament and that was with Belmont opting out. I'm also doubting that the CBI will ever have a tournament again. Who is going to pay to play in a tournament just so half of their team can transfer out afterwards?
What some of you fail to understand is if Indiana State had cut football 10+ years ago when I alone lead the charge we would be in a much different spot today as a basketball program and University.
We would have been in a position to capitalize on an NIT Championship caliber coaching staff and roster - it would have been sustainable. A really good possibility that we would have left the MVC sometime in the last 10 years to a “basketball” conference and things would be much much different.
Of course - mid majors and the NCAA Tournament is problematic moving forward. Look no further than the past two NCAA tournaments, a metric system and scheduling that is inherently designed to prop P6 schools. Had we moved on this long ago we wouldn’t be in a position where we had to worry about it.
Moving forward stepping down to the Pioneer League is a step in the right direction. I feel as if some of the discussions about an on-campus football stadium continue to progress it would have the potential to be a really good product for long time fans and alumni - they should just be thankful to have something at this point. Nothing would prohibit a step up again at some point in the future if it made sense.
We would have been in a position to capitalize on an NIT Championship caliber coaching staff and roster - it would have been sustainable. A really good possibility that we would have left the MVC sometime in the last 10 years to a “basketball” conference and things would be much much different.
Of course - mid majors and the NCAA Tournament is problematic moving forward. Look no further than the past two NCAA tournaments, a metric system and scheduling that is inherently designed to prop P6 schools. Had we moved on this long ago we wouldn’t be in a position where we had to worry about it.
Moving forward stepping down to the Pioneer League is a step in the right direction. I feel as if some of the discussions about an on-campus football stadium continue to progress it would have the potential to be a really good product for long time fans and alumni - they should just be thankful to have something at this point. Nothing would prohibit a step up again at some point in the future if it made sense.
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More when you can go all-in:
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Respectfully disagree with your first paragraph. If ISU doesn't start winning, then donations could dry up, but I believe people will support a winning program, especially if the University really gets behind it. But I'm not dawging you. My bias is basketball, yours is FCS football. I get it.
Technically, moving football to non-scholarship (Pioneer league) is not dropping football. Simply playing in a different conference & reallocating much funding to men's basketball.
I still see a mid-major market, but smaller University's will have difficult decisions to make.
I just don't believe ISU has the funding to sustain a winning basketball and MVC football program. If the Prez & AD are forced to choose, then they need to choose basketball.
The whole "NCAA tournament is on shaky ground" is a bullshit narrative. Full stop.
Yes, it's set up for HMs to overwhelmingly take advantage, but as I keep mentioning, it is the ONLY sport that funds the entire D1 ecosystem. I implore you to go look at that NCAA Financial Report to see just everything that college basketball funds. You kill the golden goose and you kill the entire engine. I know HMs believe they're important, but I don't think they're that stupid to try to usurp that. They're already struggling financially -- there are literally hundreds of articles discussing them cutting anything and everything to balance their books.
March Madness rights are also signed through 2032. Further, the HMs got a sweet deal of having us lower class citizens subsidize their House back payments. If they tried to walk away, the amount of lawsuits would literally fucking bury them at every turn. Again, why bite the hand that feeds you when you cooked the meal? This is nothing more than collective bargaining agreement posturing where they're throwing their weight around.
Moreover, as I've stated for years, it is also the ONLY sport that you actually get a monetary ROI back devoid of your own organizational efforts. We get a chunk of MVC tournament units even when we're 11-20.
TL;DR: HMs are insanely arrogant but they're not fucking stupid.
Yes, it's set up for HMs to overwhelmingly take advantage, but as I keep mentioning, it is the ONLY sport that funds the entire D1 ecosystem. I implore you to go look at that NCAA Financial Report to see just everything that college basketball funds. You kill the golden goose and you kill the entire engine. I know HMs believe they're important, but I don't think they're that stupid to try to usurp that. They're already struggling financially -- there are literally hundreds of articles discussing them cutting anything and everything to balance their books.
March Madness rights are also signed through 2032. Further, the HMs got a sweet deal of having us lower class citizens subsidize their House back payments. If they tried to walk away, the amount of lawsuits would literally fucking bury them at every turn. Again, why bite the hand that feeds you when you cooked the meal? This is nothing more than collective bargaining agreement posturing where they're throwing their weight around.
Moreover, as I've stated for years, it is also the ONLY sport that you actually get a monetary ROI back devoid of your own organizational efforts. We get a chunk of MVC tournament units even when we're 11-20.
TL;DR: HMs are insanely arrogant but they're not fucking stupid.
Ok watching the Purdue game. How old is this coach for Miami??? 12-13yrs????? He looks like Stephen Erkel, but I hope he pulls a rabbit out of his hat and wins this.