I realize that most Sioux fans are hoping for a Big Sky or Mid-Con invite, but if neither of those materialize in the next couple of years, there was a bit of a safety net in some of the sport-specific "conferences" that NDSU helped create. However, 5 of the 6 schools in the United Basketball Conference and 5 of the 8 schools in the United Soccer Conference are on that quoted list. The most likely selections (NDSU,SDSU,IPFW) are members of both. I hope that Mr. Buning has a chance to slip UND into those conferences before they implode. They may be glorified scheduling alliances, but there're better than nothing.
