mksioux

You think UND officials might cancel a future contract because UND officials (who are no longer there) decided not to enter into a contract 11 years ago under entirely different circumstances? Is that it?

I understand. I foster rescue dogs. Even after they've moved into their new home and are thriving, they still have a fear of abandonment that never leaves them.

You're right. UND is too much of a risk. NDSU should stick with safer bets...like the Montana schools.

You know, you might be on to something. Maybe UND has been publicly lobbying to get the series resumed just so that it can turn around and cancel the series again.

So what if it was outside of my original post? There are multiple reasons UND wouldn't back out of a home-and-home agreement with NDSU. I cited just one reason in my original post. I didn't think to cite all the other obvious reasons because I didn't think the idea was all that controversial. I guess I momentarily forgot Bison fans' long memories and their prolonged and sustaining paranoia when it comes to all things UND. My bad. And, strictly from a political fallout standpoint, I still think you fail to understand there is a big difference between not agreeing to enter into a contract in the first place and exercising a cancellation clause in an existing contract, screwing over a fellow NDUS institution in the process. The latter is much more likely to cause political fireworks. But like I said, that's just one reason. The bottom line is that, for multiple reasons, UND simply wouldn't do it.

He's saying that by refusing to schedule NDSU after NDSU moved up to DI in 2003, UND has shown it is willing to take a PR hit when it comes to not playing NDSU. That is apparently the evidence UND would cancel the back-end of a home-and-home agreement with NDSU if given the chance.

Stop digging man. The two scenarios aren't even remotely similar. And it's not just because of a PR hit that UND wouldn't cancel a game with NDSU. UND actually wants the series to resume, and actually wants to play in Fargo, which is not something that can be said for many other programs. Moreover, I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't recall UND ever cancelling the back end of a home-and-home with anyone, so it's not UND's style to back out of home-and-home agreements in general. My whole point is that UND is much more of a reliable scheduling partner than any other OOC FCS program NDSU (or SDSU or USD) might want to schedule on a home-and-home basis. But it's a moot point anyway since everyone agrees the first game would be in Fargo. And, for what it's worth, I don't think NDSU would ever cancel the back end of a home-and-home with UND either. For the record, I think what Montana State did was bush league. I've never been a fan of schools setting up home-and-home agreements just to back out of the return game. And that's especially true this close to the season.

Relax man. Apples and oranges comparing UND choosing not to schedule NDSU after NDSU moved up to a different division versus cancelling the back-end of a home-and-home. But call me a fool if it makes you feel better. I know NDSU's fan base is a little worked up right now, so I won't take it personally.

My thought is that quality home-and-home OOC games at FCS are very rare and often get bought out after the first game. UND had Idaho State and Central Arkansas back out, and I'm sure Montana would have bought out this year if UND hadn't become a conference mate. I'm actually a little surprised that Montana didn't buy out the game, conference-mate status notwithstanding. NDSU also seems to have a history with quality FCS schools buying out the return trip. One thing that is certain is that UND wouldn't do to NDSU what Georgia Southern, Montana, and Montana State did. It would be political armageddon if UND or NDSU ever bought out a home-and-home game with the other. I also never worried much about South Dakota State buying out the return trip to Grand Forks. I don't think UND would ever buy out a return trip to any of the Dakota 3, and I highly doubt any of the Dakota 3 would ever buy out a return trip to UND. I guess what I'm saying is that it seems to me that the Dakota 3 ought to schedule UND in OOC games more than is currently happening. I know NDSU's OOC model is one FBS game, one cupcake, and one quality FCS game and that they want variety on that one quality FCS game. UND doesn't provide variety, but at least they could be assured the games will actually be played. But maybe they need to get burned a few more times before they will settle on UND.

This has always been my thought. UND should have insisted on the preservation of its TV deal prior to the formation of the league (not just once the league entered into negotiations with television providers). But Jayson said we're being naive to think UND had that much bargaining power. He said UND did all it could to keep its TV deal. I have no basis to doubt him. Maybe I'm just thinking like a fan when I view UND and Denver as the ringleaders in the formation of the NCHC. Maybe I'm being elitist when I think that UMD, CC, UNO, and Miami would have followed UND and Denver even if UND had insisted on keeping its TV deal as a precondition. I obviously was not privy to any of the negotiations, but it just seems to me that Denver and UND were the main schools in the creation of the league and could have set a few ground rules. But I guess that wasn't the case.

I think you're right. Compare it to the NHL. NBC/SN has the national contract for NHL games. The Minnesota Wild would not be allowed to go out and contract with CBS/SN to air its games. But the Wild is allowed to contract with FSN-North to carry its games becaue FSN-North is a regional network. However, if you're a DirecTV subscriber, you can buy FSN-North and watch the Wild from anywhere in the country. But it's still a regional channel and the fact that it's available nationally through DirecTV does not violate NBC's exclusive national contract with the NHL. The only games FSN-N is not allowed to air are the games NBCSN decides to air. I believe Denver still has some sort of deal with Root Sports, and I believe you can get Root Sports anywhere in the country through DirecTV. Nevertheless, I do not think Denver's Root deal will be impacted by the CBSSN deal, except that Root will not be able to air a game that CBSSN is airing (or apparently a Friday night doubleheader game even if CBSSN is not airing it). The bottom line is that if Midco Sports Net could somehow make its way on to DirecTV's sports tier, that would be huge. But I think it's a long-shot.

I certainly have never said anyone should be fired. I have no basis to make such a statement (and wouldn't make it even if I did). However, I do find it frustrating that Faison has seemingly been so diplomatic about this whole deal. Maybe that's his demeanor and style and he doesn't want to rock the boat with the NCHC and the other NCHC A.D.s. But if he fought hard behind the scenes for UND to keep its FCS deal, like you imply, then a comment such as that to a Herald reporter might go a long way toward appeasing the rabid fan base. But I know that in today's environment, A.D.s have to be politically correct, so I guess that isn't likely to happen. But I can tell you that the general consensus out there is that UND simply fell on the sword for the conference. As for your CFL comparison, it's a little different in this situation. It would be more like if when you moved down to the States, you couldn't watch CFL games at all. Then you could start watching them on webcasts. Then, all of sudden, the CFL worked out a deal with a U.S. national television provider to provide all the games on TV. Then, that arrangement ended, you couldn't see the CFL on TV anymore, and you had to go back to webcasts. Have UND fans been spoiled with the FCS deal? Absolutely. But it's frustrating when, for years, television exposure and viewing opportunities have been expanding, then all of a sudden it goes the other direction. While personal viewing options is obviously important, I think a lot of us care about the overall exposure of the program. The main problem with webcasts has been quality, but another problem is that a webcast is a destination viewing option. Nobody stumbles across a webcast when browsing for something to watch. I think a lot of us were excited about the FCS deal, not just because that meant we personally got to watch games from our living room on TV, but because of the exposure opportunities for the program in general. I guess that's another frustrating part of this deal and, from the outside looking in, it makes it appear like UND is regressing, not progressing. But like you said, I don't have all the details. Just one fan's impression.

I'll admit that a part of my overall negativity toward the CBS deal stems from my poor experiences with webcasts. The only decent webcast I've seen is the NCAA regional games through ESPN. I assume ESPN has the best quality of everything and the most resources to produce a decent webcast. Every other webcast I've seen -- especially for hockey -- has been terrible. My overall perception is that webcasts have miles to go before they can be considered even close to on par with television. (And please, tech nerds, don't jump in here and tell me all I need to do is buy this, download that, do this, do that. I'm just a regular guy with a regular laptop with an HDMI cable to an HDTV. Webcasts should be geared to non-tech-nerd people like me if they are ever going to be accepted in the mainstream.) For the time being, I guess all we can do right now is trust you Jayson when you say the quality is going to be good, but I'll have to take a wait and see approach.

Maybe "some" people may have said that, but they probably didn't even realize the two things were linked. The NCHC's position on TV rights not only cost UND the ability to have a national TV deal, but it also prevented Notre Dame from joining the conference. I didn't blame Notre Dame one bit for insisting on keeping their national TV deal. They'd be insane to give that up. The NCHC cut off its nose to spite its face. If the NCHC had allowed members to maintain and pursue their own national TV deals, the NCHC would be a stronger and much more visible conference.

It is my understanding that CBSSN will be producing their own games, with their own crew and equipment. But my understanding could be wrong as there has been very little concrete information made available to us about this new deal. Moreover, I suspect that when CBSSN picks up a UND game, Midco will not be broadcasting that game. Kind of like when NBCSN picks up a Wild game, FSN does not get to air it. I suspect UND is not eager to widely publicize this little tidbit of information with the public because there will be tens of thousands of fans within the Midco viewing area that will not be able to watch those particular UND games unless they upgrade to a sports-tier package.

Whatever happened to the days when I'd come on this message board after the Fighting Sioux Sports Network was created and read all about how it was the wave of the future to go in-house and how visionary it was for UND to create its own television network and control its own destiny. Posters would make fun of how NDSU was doing TV the old fashioned way with an outdated model (i.e. selling its games to an actual television station). We bragged about how great the FTA satellite option was and how you could watch Sioux hockey from the local bar or buy a satellite dish to watch UND games from the comfort of your own living room anywhere in the country. That sentiment amplified further when UND was able to distribute its FSSN feed to FCS and, all of sudden, UND went national. We all raved about how great it was and how UND was doing it the right way. Back then, it was all about producing your own content, expanding coverage and exposure opportunities, keeping alumni engaged, and thus, creating a large and rabid fan base. Having an engaged and rabid fan base ultimately leads to dollars for the University. It seems we've totally given up on this "new" philosophy and gone back to the old way of doing things. For what? $250,000 from Midco Sports Net and whatever scraps UND gets from CBS? I don't know, I get the bottom line, having to pay bills and all, it just seems incredibly short-sighted to me.

Thanks. I was going to say the same thing, only more sarcastically. And the reality is that we're going backwards more than 5 years. Prior to the FCS deal, Sioux fans outside of the coverage area at least had the FTA satellite option to watch Sioux hockey games. After this year, as I understand it, internet will be the only option.

UND, as one of the primary forces behind the formation of the conference, likely could have set preconditions for the conference that would have allowed it to keep its TV deal largely intact. I highly doubt that taking such a stance would have prevented the other schools from wanting to join the new conference (when being left behind in the WCHA was the alternative). And if I'm wrong about this, then Faison at least owes it to the fans to explain that the NCHC would not have been possible if UND had insisted on maintaining its TV deal. Or that he fought hard to keep the TV deal, but was unable to do it. He's never said anything like that as far as I'm aware. As far as I can tell, UND simply fell on the sword for a crummy conference TV deal. It has been several months, but I still shake my head when I think about this deal.

South Dakota State beat UND in 2010, which is the last time UND played them.

I don't blame coaches for conference realignments. Those decisions are made multiple levels above them. I agree that, for football, that conference realignment can almost guarantee the end of rivalry games. But it's different for hockey, especially with Minnesota entering a 6-team conference. Minnesota has plenty of flexibility for non-conference games. Yet Minnesota has chosen to go in a different direction. They obviously have the right to do that, but it appears from the outside looking in, that ending the rivalry is Lucia's doing. I agree that to say Minnesota is "scared" to play UND is just message board smack talk and I don't subsribe to that theory. The only public comment we can chew on is Lucia's comment about the rivalry not being "healthy." As others have said, that explanation just doesn't make sense. There must be other reasons why Lucia does not want to schedule UND. I think Minnesota fans would agree that UND is at least their second biggest rival behind Wisconsin and it just doesn't make logical sense to not continue to play despite conference realignment. And I don't think it shows an inferiority complex to lament the loss of a good old-fashioned rivalry game for no apparent reason. It's just too bad, that's all.

Lucia ending one of the longest lasting and most intense rivalries in college hockey is far worse than Coach Kill cancelling a couple UNC non-conference games. Maybe neither school "needs" the other school, but rivalries are what college athletics are all about. It would be more enjoyable for fans and players of both schools if the rivalry were to continue. It's very unfortunate that Lucia does not see it that way. While he has not publicly closed the door on scheduling UND in the future, I think the writing is on the wall that the UND-Minnesota hockey rivalry is, for all intents and purposes, dead. Maybe I'm too old school, but I don't understand this "unhealthy rivalry" talk I've been hearing from Lucia. To me, true rivalries are not supposed to be altogether "healthy." The best rivalries have a bit of derangement and irrationality to them. I suspect there are other reasons at play for why Lucia does not want to schedule North Dakota. Unfortunately for UND fans, the reality is that our biggest football rivalry is dead and our biggest hockey rivalry will be dead after this season. And, oh yea, our nickname is dead too.

With two games remaining, UND has already given up the second most points in the 118-year history of UND football. UND needs to give up less than 37 points per game in the remaining two games to avoid being the worst defense in history of UND football. If, at a minimum, there isn't a new defensive coordinator next season, that will tell me UND is not serious about its football program.

You're absolutely right about the Big Sky and Root. But I don't agree with you about the NCHC and CBS. With the Big Sky, UND joined an established 11-member conference that already had a TV deal in place. Obviously UND had no say in that deal. UND was desperate to get into a conference and was excited just to get an invitation into the Big Sky. UND certainly wasn't going to cause any waves about the ROOT deal. Besides, the ROOT deal is not a bad deal. It stinks only in the sense that unless you have DirecTV, most UND alums are out of the ROOT footprint. But at least ROOT only blacks out their games they are actually covering and does not limit UND's television options for all the games that ROOT is not covering. All things considered, the Big Sky's deal with ROOT is pretty good. It's a completely different story with the NCHC. UND and Denver basically started that conference. It was a new conference with only 6 original members and UND had every opportunity to provide significant input on the television deal. In my opinion, UND could have easily said that they would not agree to any conference deal that prevented UND from televising its games on Fox College Sports. UND had leverage and chose not to use it "for the good of the conference." More importantly, the NCHC/CBS deal is garbage. CBS has exclusive national rights to every single game NCHC members play regardless of whether CBSSN is airing it. What that means is that while CBSSN only airs one game per week, all the other NCHC games that weekend are not allowed to be aired nationally on any other outlet even though CBSSN has no interest in televising those games. ROOT has no such restrictions on the games they are not airing. For example, if Fox College Sports had chosen to air all UND football games (with the exception fo the Montana game that ROOT aired), ROOT could not have prevented it. Therefore, the ROOT/BigSky contract is much much better than the CBS/NCHC contract. In my opinion, there is absolutely no blame on UND for the TV situation yesterday. None. But UND should share plenty of the blame for the lousy NCHC/CBS deal that starts next season.

Sounds like the title of a bad country song.

I'd love to see it happen, but I'm not optimistic. UND can't even get the Gophers on the schedule in hockey after this year.