The Sicatoka

DU ended up in the Sun Belt because there was really no other home for them at the time. Now, with NMSU and a couple others leaving the Sun Belt it's even less attractive. From chatting with some folks more familiar with DU athletics, back when they went DI DU's preference would have been the WCC. DU already has teams playing in other conferences while they're in the Sun Belt today (hockey, lacrosse, independent gymnastics, skiing, and others). So the BSC wouldn't support all their athletic programs: That's nothing new to DU.

I think you may need to re-read Fullerton's statement: It doesn't say those they are evaluating have to play DI-AA football. It says they'll be looking at the schools that are going to be playing DI-AA, however, it does not say that will happen at the exclusion of others (those who don't play DI-AA football). The more important words are "... of every school that is available." The Sun Belt is coming apart. Who is available? Gamble (Montana State, where NDSU's Chapman came from) is interested, but even he reiterates the past hurdle:

Because the SF Argus-Leader story will disappear over the weekend, I'll post it here. This is a quote of a SF Argus-Leader story. Credit them.

Free sushi for me! http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/players.html

Come on people! Sometimes you have to take the good (Sioux hockey information) with the bad (no comment).

I was told that Pat Sweeney had the list of applicants for the job on the WDAZ sports last night. How come no one has posted it here yet?

WYOBISONMAN said, "It is incredible the amount of conference turmoil. Makes me wonder when it will find an equilibrium point." -- I agree. Isn't the point of this conference shell-game trying to move up? Would Gonzaga rather be in the WCC or the WAC? Would DU rather be in the Sun Belt or the Big Sky or WCC*? The flip side is: Which schools fit into which conference's demographics and desires? Who does the WAC want? Gonzaga? DU? Who would the WCC want if they were looking? * DU wanted into the WCC when it went DI a while back. The WCC didn't want them (geography) and DU was left to go with the Sun Belt.

Let me guess: You heard it from .... an anonymous source.

The closing date for applications was 07/28/04. http://www.UND.nodak.edu/org/hr/professnl.htm

But the only discussion that really matters is the one between Ottawa and Brandon.

The posturing being done by Bochenski with Ottawa seems very similar to what Vanek is doing with Buffalo.

- To get out of playing games in a building in need of repair? - To get badly needed additional training space for all the athletes? - To get the recruiting advantages of both a new building and The Ralph? - To have television-ready facilities? - To be able to sell adult beverages? - To give people something to second-guess on an internet board?

Crazy, out of the blue thought: Isn't Gonzaga in Spokane, WA? Gonzaga would go from the far north outpost of the West Coast Conference (nearest conference foe: U of Portland in Portland, OR) to near the middle of the Big Sky. However, Gonzaga would lose all the California exposure that comes with WCC basketball. If there's even a remote thought of taking a "no football" Denver, wouldn't that (a "no football" Gonzaga) make some sense too? This speculating IS fun.

Wasn't it just recently that the Portland State Vikings begged the BSC for permission to drop mens and womens tennis, normally required for Big Sky membership, and the conference reluctantly agreed? That shows a recent willingness to move from the "all sport" philosophy, yes? Plus, only one BSC school currently meets the DI-A football attendance requirements that go into effect in August. I'm not sure which others would consider it (considering they don't meet the minimums). But like you say, who knows.

The BSC as a ten-team conference with nine playing football? That wouldn't make bad scheduling in the BSC revenue sports: Football: Nine teams would mean eight conference games (four home, four road) and room for each team to have three non-conference games in an 11-game schedule. Basketball: Ten teams would mean two games (home/road) against nine other conference opponents for an 18-game confernence schedule leaving room for 10 to 12 non-conference games.

First, cfn567b27 is correct. Until the Ottawa puts out the press release the deal isn't done: Very similar to the Vanek situation. (Let's face it, in terms of "cheap" Ottawa's in Buffalo's realm.) Then again sagard said, "Seems as though my favorite team is not likely done losing players either." Hey, what exactly do you mean when you say players. Is there someone beyond Vanek?

What are you talking about? On the system in MidCo I'm on it is blank with a simple "MidCo" logo, no ads, other than during games. That channel is owned by Midcontinent Cable, not anyone else.

NDSU's lockers at FargoDome: - Put a plan out there for a feature upgrade for tenant in a domed stadium - Find the money to implement it along the way Sounds like:

The sales tax to pay for FargoDome was supposed to "sunset" when it was paid for. It's paid for, yet the tax lives on. Everyone seems to get nailed. See what I said to 'Goon': "... everyone's taxes always seem to go up everywhere for whatever reason."

Fargo special assessments for new brand new neighborhoods are running about $250 per linear foot of frontage. (Some in the new Osgood development could approach $400 per foot.) If you have an 80 foot lot, that's $20000 you have to pay off over 15 years. Figuring 5% interest and 1/15 of the principal and you're looking at $2333 in just specials on the lot the first year and roughly the same for each of the following 14 years. Yes, just for the lot. Put your house on it and you pay the assessed value of that in consolidated taxes, in addition to the example $2333 for the lot. Your numbers seem reasonable.

Goon: It was already in the budget, thus, there's nothing new because of this. However, everyone's taxes always seem to go up everywhere for whatever reason.

Here's a link to the story in the GF Herald. Key points: - Alerus asking for $250k as a line-of-credit for concert coverage. The City of GF had already budgeted that money (actually more) for promotions of Alerus and the Canad Inn (as part of the Canad deal). "It acts like a line of credit," Alerus Center Commissioner Evenson said. "We'll take the money and go get concerts, and when the shows make a profit, we'll pay it back." - Alerus revenues are about $450,000 under projections. However, its actual net-income loss for the second quarter of the year is almost exactly what it was at the same time last year. Last year ended about "break even". - Alerus Center that would give Fighting Sioux football a bigger presence. It could cost an estimated $287,000 and would be paid for under a cost-share plan that includes the Alerus Center, UND, the city and private sponsors and donations. I believe a review of FargoDome books will show a similar approach was used for Bison signage there. - Contract negotiations with UND continued. Under the current three-year contract, UND pays the Alerus Center $17,500 per game, not counting playoff games. The Alerus Center keeps revenue from concessions. I couldn't find the Alerus Center commission having to fire the Center's director for mishandling funds.

bisonguy: Are you including Fargo's beloved "special assessments" in your numbers? Are the GF folks? There one key difference here: Fargo special assesses just about every project. GF tends to budget for new major streets over the entire city in the overall budget. (The merits of each approach can be debated to the end of time.) Ask the right person in Fargo and their taxes are low; ask the wrong person, near a major street being redone, and they nearly cry. And no, the money for Bison lockers wasn't in place. Initially, NDSU asked Fargo to pay for the locker rooms and to pay Fargo back in installments over time. I'm not sure what the plan is now. And let's do a simple "reality check" here: UND and The Alerus Center are renegotiating the contract for use of the facility. UND wants lower fees and a cut of concessions. Alerus doesn't want to give up anything the current deal gives them. Does Alerus crying "poverty" right now really surprise anyone? Dare I say "tactic" in the negotiations?

Folks in Fargo should be far from chuckling about domed stadium operations and budgets (improper advance to a "promoter" ring a bell?) and city property taxes. Both apply just about as well. And space and dollars for the local university's football program, like locker rooms (does that ring bells too)?

We're talking in the Football forum of SiouxSports.com: Athletics realm. Athletics conversation. That's where my post was aimed. (For another forum and another time, UND and NDSU are each members of the NDUS. As arms of the same 'company', why did one arm duplicate an existing corporate product line recently? Would a division of Microsoft start marketing another spreadsheet to compete with Excel?) As far as the WYOBISONMAN scenario, UMary and UND win: They got attention from WYOBISONMAN that they wouldn't have otherwise gotten.