star2city

Getting back to the Big Sky expansion issue, a fan of UBC informed me that high school football in British Columbia is actually played by U.S. rules: NFLCFLFutures.com So a UBC IAA football team playing American college rules would actually be more accomodating to BC high schoolers than Canadian rules. Interesting. With IA football not UBC's initial option, UBC would have to look toward the Big Sky and the Great West IAA leagues. The Big Sky's metro expansions in the past have not been shining successes largely because the teams added were third, fourth, or even fifth tier in their respective markets of Portland, Sacramento, and Los Angeles (Northridge St). UBC would be at worst 2nd tier (after the BC Lions) in the very large Vancouver market. Fullerton would love UBC if it becomes available (TV $'s), and Big Sky college presidents would love UBC's academic rankings. On another note, after reading this thread, a likely skeptical Mplsbison started a thread on Anygivensaturday.com referencing the IndyStar article posted here about the possibility of Canadian schools in the NCAA: http://www.anygivensaturday.com/forum/showthread.php?t=11896 The next day, another thread was started on USCHO with the same IndyStar reference: http://board.uscho.com/showthread.php?t=59397. Strangely, fans from other schools on these boards didn't throw hissyfits like many of the Bison and Jack fans here did, as the concept of Canadian schools in the NCAA wasn't ridiculed on the other threads. Are Bison and Jack fans fearful of something? Interesting also that the writeup on Wikipedia about UBC Thunderbirds and the NCAA includes this statement, indicating the NCAA is much more serious about a Division I applicant (TV money?) than a DII applicant:

By 2007-8, the women's hockey team is scheduled to be maxed out in scholarships. Women's BB and volleyball scholarship additions would begin the following year, 2008-9. So the answer is "no", the number of women's hockey scholarships will not be hurt by the DI move. As far as being competitive in the WCHA, it seems there's "more" than scholarships at issue.

Well said, DStrait! The Big Sky has to be creative to get the existing DI core member it needs: Denver U. Moreover, if UBC gets approved as an NCAA school, UBC, with a large captive TV audience in the Vancouver metro area, would be an incredibly attractive addition to a conference like the BSC. As written earlier in this thread, DU, UND, & NDSU would IMHO be the odds-on favorite addition, with DU by itself also possible, but a DU, UBC, UND addition gives the Big Sky the potential to take many of its sports offerings to the next level, upgrades its academic profile, increases its TV prospects, and offers future growth (i.e. Calgary, Winnipeg).

If you would have read this thread , you would have found this: http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/arti...20486/-1/ZONES0 Mplsbison, you wouldn't look like such an idiot if you would just read (listen) first, then write (speak).

Seems this subject is creating a lot of fear among bisonville fans. A Big Sky with UND but not NDSU? That has to be shere lunacy, says the bison fans (as their worst nightmare has that as an actual possibility). So the mere concept is rejected out of hand for psychological protection of their insecurities.

This only occurred after a lot of despair, resignation, and gnashing of teeth. This credibility coming from the same the in-touch bison fans that said "NDSU/SDSU is a lock for the Big Sky."

The Big Sky would absolutely be better than the MidCon, even without Montana. If the BSC added UBC, UND, and DU, Montana would be tickled, as it would be in a Montana-centric conferece. With the addition of DU, the BSC would also be autobid stable for the forseeable future. The MidCon could very well be wiped out by defections early next decade. As far as basketball, with the MidCOn lost its only name school in Valpo. BTW, UND can play NDSU, SDSU, and USD non-conference games. There are no other natural MidCon rivalries. UND would actually have a better overall schedule if it got in a different conference from NDSU/SDSU. FYI, the MidCOn does not sponsor football and the Great West autobid is nothing but a pipe dream. (UCDavis is gone to IA as soon as it gets a chance is a given, Montana going IA is doubtful.) The Big Sky is much more prestigious academically and covers the geography where UND wants to recruit students (with the exception of the Twin Cities market, which isn't in either conference footprint.) The MidCon may offer slightly better athletic recruiting markets, but most of the prospective athletes would never have heard of the MidCon schools anyway. You are one of the few bison fans that ever wanted in the MidCon in the first place. Face it, most bison fans will put on a happy face when they get in the MidCon, but underneath it all they will be very disappointed. As a Sioux fan, I would be very disappointed if UND only has the MidCon as an option, too.

Getting back to the Big Sky and expansion, there are a couple of University of British Columbia blogs that discuss UBC & the NCAA, going DI, and joining the Big Sky (among other conferences). http://tbirdbaseball.net/content/view/36/51/ IAA Football at UBC may be part of the package: http://www.scoutme.ca/index.cfm?go=content...mp;site=athlete DU, UND, and UBC would be quite attractive an addition to the BSC!!

http://www.jaxnews.com/news/2006/jn-localn...0-6g26k1322.htm Compared with DIA Troy (State), DIAA Jacksonville State has had practicallly nill publicity, but its programs are moving up in strength.

Impressive column from a man with rather impecable credentials: Amen to this: Board members: Potts didn't speak our (passive-aggressive backstabbing) language Words of warning: After this interim chancellor fiasco, this board has clearly shown that it's not up to the task.

Why UND didn

You bison fans are so damn insecure about everything. Name one item in IraMurphy's post that was hateful. You really must be insecure about Bismarck St. Mary's being a higher rated institution than NDSU to consider that 'hateful.' A quick check of Bisonville shows that many of your posts, Nanobison, show a high degree of outright contempt and hate of UND or Grand Forks. There is no comparison in the rhetoric here relative to Bisonville. The whole issue about Chapman is his character - no one is questioning Chapman's ability to get this done his way. Power by any human being needs checks and balances. The drive for so-called NDSU superiority, which in my view is driven by deep-seated bison cultural insecurity, has NDSU backers supporting anyone that furthers their cause, apparently regardless of the principles. NDSU and their leadership can do better than this and their fans should demand it.

The $1 MM + gifts were donations by alumni to finish the Betty with leather seats and marble floors etc. The REA is responsible for the debt repayment on the bonds that financed the Betty.

You've got it backwards as always: Chapman was the one that was demanding that Potts be fired. Show me where Potts wanted Chapman fired. Potts wanted Chapman to quit his insubordinating ways and follow the same rules that every other NDUS president was following. So why did the board stipulate no law-suit in Pott's settlement agreement? When a board is conspiring to fire a person, even though his last review stated he did an excellent job, most lawyers would jump on that case,

TCU had options, including staying in CUSA. They chose the option with moderately more risk that would gain them greater reward (possibly BCS status in the MWC). BTW if Canadian schools are accepted into the NCAA, it wouldn't be a stretch to see a potential for a UND/U of Manitoba travel partnership within the next decade. The Big Sky has lost 4 schools in the last twenty years (Nevada too), while the MidCon has averaged almost one defection per its 25 years. Arithmetic says the Big Sky is five times as stable as the MidCon. As far as future stability, the Big Sky will maintain at least 5 core members in the next decade, whereas every single MidCon core member wants out of there. Big Sky well exceeds the MidCon in either stability test. If were going to go DI, no sense in doing it half-assed or creating the NCC. Been there, done that. I actually agree and still expect a DU/UND/NDSU expansion, but my point remains is that there are real options out there have not been explored on this message board before.

So I smeared John Q. Paulsen? Get a grip. It is well documented that Chapman & Co want John Q. Paulsen as the board president. "Is not Pott's specific". So what about this quote? Once again, Bison fans, read, and attempt to comprehend, before you comment. Potts, if he had not taken the settlement, had every right to sue the board and North Dakota government. He chose not to.

So why is the NCAA taking months to study it UBC's application? If they were going to reject it offhand, which they've done for Simon Fraser's previous application, it would have already happened. Possible answer, the NCAA wants more TV money - expanding into the Canadian market increase the market by 10%. Not saying its going to happen, but money is always tempting to the NCAA. So why is TCU, a Central Time Zone school, the most recent addition in the MWC with Pacific and Mountain time zone schools? Why is La Tech (and formerly Rice, Tulsa, and SMU) in the WAC with Mountain, Pacific, and Hawaii time zone schools. The media packages for those conferences are worth much more. If those conferences allow schools in three or more time zones, the Big Sky, with less at stake, can too. Its based on three schools eventually leaving. By adding UBC and UND, the future options for the Big Sky become much more attractive. This is about being bold and building a conference that would be a future powerhouse - not settling for fourth-rate status that would only get worse if SUU was added. If something bold isn't done the Montana schools will leave, effectively destroying the conference because of the lack of core members. Even if GFK had a flight to Denver, because Denver is so far south, the effective air times to Northwesterly locations are no different through Minneapolis than through Denver. If La Tech / Ruston, La can be in the WAC, UND and GFK can be in the Big SKy. A lack of vision and leadership and resignation to the status quo or worse (which you seem to be suggesting) would dictate that UND's DI futures lies with the Mid-Con. If we have to settle for the MidCon after shooting for something higher, so be it. But why aspire to be associated with what is clearly the lowest level conference in the Midwest and West. Our leadership can do better than that, even if you choose not to believe it.

NDSU grad: Congratulations for again showing ignorance by making this an NDSU vs UND or Fargo vs Grand Forks spat. Nothing could be further from the truth. Read that editorial I posted again: there is absolutely no reference to UND or Grand Forks. The Forum didn't praise NDSU or criticise UND/'Grand Forks. The Fargo editorial was nothing more than a smear against Potts' character:

Welcome to Siouxsports, biobengal. Agree that UBC most resembles a PAC10 university academically, but its athletic department most resembles a DII school like St. Cloud St's or even Bemidji St's. But with more funding and scholarships, UBC could quickly become a power. As far as American conference options, the MWC wouldn't take UBC without a strong football program. The WAC's commissioner has recently stated they won't take a non-football school (although they had flirted with Denver U and really wanted Gonzaga.) The WCC might be a good fit, except that the WCC normally doesn't take public schools. The Big Sky is the only other western conference left. UBC would not be approaching the NCAA unless it already had informal discussions with some conference, IMO. As far as other Canadian candidates, there is also the Bison of the U of Manitoba, which could be a future travel partner of UND.

The NCAA will decide whether to accept UBC by this October. From this article, UBC hopes to compete in basketball, baseball, swimming, as well as hockey, among others. UBC has great facilities for hockey, poor for basketball, and pathetic for football. That's not exactly a Pac-10 stadium. UBC would keep its football program in the CIS. Read the article in the first post, very slowly. Denver will not be adding football. Wrong. Losing three schools would leave five core members. It needs a sixth core member now for the continuous membership critieria. Adding a UBC, a DU, and a UND would give all current members at least one school that makes travel easier or adds a rivalry. It's called consensus building and its part of the political process. Let it soak in a little longer. Bison media types tried to hype a 10-team Big Sky with NDSU: this option has much more chance than that.

The Forum keeps pushing the ethical limits with their handling of this story. First, their most recent editorial, Forum editorial: Potts as consultant a bad idea

Fully agree: the success of other sports helps and is not a hindrance. Louisville and Cincinnati would not be BSC football schools if it were not for the prominence of their basketball programs.

You disappoint me, MplsBison. Thought you didn't participate in Bisonville's groupthought sessions. Just because NDSU has been rejected twice, doesn't mean anything. UND's DI move has been better strategically timed.

Woden: I don't doubt these long-term plans whatsoever. It would take $50 million minimum for a new stadium, however. Any idea when the practice facility will get built? We need that now. Also, if they demolish Memorial, what would we do for an outdoor track in the mean time?

Fullerton has stated that the Big Sky will lose up to three teams in the next conference realignment. Soon, the Big Sky will have to add a DI "core" member to protect itself. The options are limited to Denver U and SUU. If it wanted SUU, it already would have happened. The BSC needs DU. For Denver U to jump from the SunBelt to the Big Sky (which most would view as a demotion), DU would have the ability to practically name the terms of expansion: maintaining DU's sports structure (lax, hockey, skiing, gymnastics, swimming, none of which are in the Big Sky) and have built in rivals (which it doesn't really have in the Sunbelt.) DU could enter the Big Sky as the only expansion school, but that really wouldn't be serve any of DU's goals. IMO, a Big Sky expansion of DU, UND, and the U of British Columbia would get DU to move over. With UND, DU would get a rivalry carrying over into other BSC sports (and possibly the promise of a lax rival). With UBC, DU could get a rival beyond BSC sports in hockey, lax, and skiing. BSC presidents would be thrilled with all three as academic institutions, a 12 basketball/10 football conference scheduling alignent would be perfect, Portland St/E Wash/and even Sac St would be thrilled to add UBC, the BSC's prestige would be enhanced (more DI championships, better academics, more large TV markets), the BSC would have natural future schools (U of Alberta, U of Manitoba), and the BSC could encompass more sports (e.g. lax, hockey in the event of a BTHC). Flame away, NDSU and SDSU fans.