SiouxVolley

Most people are simply gullible. Larsen didn't deny communication with the MVC on expansion. And if he did, he could be another Susan Rice, who never said anything that was believable. Not using his weak denial as evidence, but saying it is weak. The Nashville TV report is all I've got that NDSU is a serious MVC candidate.

Kolpack tweeted this about NDSU AD Larsen about going to the MVC: "I haven't had conversations with anybody about anything". That leaves him open to texts and emails. Why didn't he say he's had no communication with anyone regarding the MVC? Bresciani is the one that does the selling and upfront negotiations anyway.

Nashville's News Channel 5 listed NDSU, Murray St, Belmont, N Kentucky, Valpo, and Omaha as finalists. Those schools were probably invited to send applications.

Maybe so, but we're awfully slow in getting in the good graces of the MVC fb schools. I dare say that NDSU has already made a good impression on them.

The FBS angle you mentioned is a valid concern. Being in the MVC would give NDSU added assurance that they'd be part of the inner circle. The MVFC affiliates would be beggars in comparison. But I'd rather we take a chance on Montanas, Idaho, NMSU etc as the Illinois/UNI gang won't accept us. The BSA remodel makes NDSU barely acceptable, but Valpo's setup is not exactly stellar. Murray St has a pretty good setup with 8500 seats and is the main school in the Jackson Purchase area of Kentucky, so it has its own little fiefdom of counties that are allegiant to it.

And that goes for hockey too? NDSU will not make any public move for the MVC immediately. The legislative session must end by May 2nd. No one from the NDSBOHE has ever made a motion to tie the two together in DI.

Presidents look at the MVC schools listed as non-research and non-prestigious. NDSU looks at their basketball pedigree and wets their pants. The Montanas and Idaho have much more prestige IMHO, but I am not steeped in the bizons deep seated inferiority complex. They just want to get accepted and go to the more expensive country club as that would make them so much better in their eyes than the other Dakotas.

Those schools you mentioned are the very ones NDSU now considers their peers. UND and SDSU have always been looked down at by their fans, even though SDSU was a "partner". NDSU believes they can go it alone, but with UNI, Ill St, Mo St and SIU's full support. NDSU wants a conference tournament that actually draws their fans. A Tuesday in Sioux Falls doesn't create any excitement, but a weekend in St Louis creates a late winter option to a Minneapolis Final Four.

The US National Womens soccer team got beat by a 15 year old boys team, FC Dallas under 15, 5-2. So would the UND women's hockey team beat a local bantam team if checking was not allowed? This is what women's hockey is competing against for viewers: boys bantam hockey. Why should UND have to subsidize that?

On the UNI board, one poster claims that only 1 school will be selected out of 3 or 5 finalists. If that is true, NDSU's chances go way down. A smart thing for the MVC to do is to only give new schools payments for six credits, until they have been in the league for six years. After that, they share equally as every one else.

They can if they threaten to leave. The MWC would probably take the Zags, and the WCC will then waste away as the Zags are the WCC's cash cow. This is what will likely happen to the MVC, as the Shockers were it's cash cow.

Will be interesting how UCSD proceeds down the D1 path. The WAC could take it, giving them three Southern California schools. UCSD has to humble themselves academically and accept a WAC invite though, which might not happen. Sac St than might have an out of the Sky too, as it would be lesser travel. The Big Sky and WAC really need to realign among themselves.

Would think the Slummit is much harder because even if we were the favorite, Sioux Falls is a very big hurdle with SDSU and USD crowds. Letting WIH go is a much bigger savings than Big Sky travel.

NDSU has positioned itself financially in decent shape, as witnessed by the Kolpack story that ran which had millions more unallocated funds by UND but he played it off with a graphic that NDSU was so much better off. Pravda couldn't have run a more slanted story. If Belmont gets added or even Omaha or NKU, their will be flights. The MVC doesn't necessarily have travel partners for mbb, but they do for the other sports. Wichita St was an outlier too. I'm of the opinion that the MVC will dissipate in strength no matter what, as no school will take the place of Wichita St, just like no school has stepped up as a replacement for Creighton, or Tulsa before that, or Memphis before that, or St Louis before that, etc. NDSU wants to separate itself from the rest of the Dakotas and then want to make a jump as Taylor and Bresciani have played up the MVC connections ever since they got in the MVFC. SDSU fans will find out that they are not real partners in NDSU's eyes, just a junior partner that can be conveniently disposed of. NDSU wants to have UNI as their rival, not SDSU. What an expanded MVC with enough fb schools does is a bigger question. The FBS capable schools like ISU RED, Mo St and maybe even UNI are getting anxious.

The SD schools are tied together, and the MVC doesn't want two in SD or ND. It would have to take three to get one SD team in, and that isn't remotely possible. Besides, the Sioux Falls tournament is loved by SD politicians and they would be livid if one of the SD's left. That leaves NDSU, which would explain why it wanted a replacement for itself. The possibility of NDSU could open up a Fox Sports North contract with the MVC, as then UNI, Drake and NDSU are peripheral schools. Think UNI could be pushing NDSU more than any other school including Omaha. Bresciani is out to screw UND no matter what. After all, it's what NDSU takes pride in. NDSU and Mo St could be travel partners, as they aren't bussable for many teams anyway. If Belmont or N Kentucky come aboard, NDSU will be out. NKU is effectively a Cincinnati school with a nice new arena and a possible Big metro tie in bigger than Nashville, so it might do. Murray St doesn't buy them a new metro (maybe a part of Louisville), Valpo buys a little part of Indy and a tiny sliver of Chicago, so the MVC wants either a part of Nashville, a part of Cincinnati, or a sliver of MSP with all of the Dakotas as Midcontinent would telecast NDSU.

A Nashville TV reporter has tweeted the MVC is set on the Belmont, but Belmont's response has been "we're proud of being in the OVC". Mo St'S President tweeted that he and his AD are heading home from STL and "exciting days are ahead for the MVC". That must mean Valpo and Murray St must be close to coming aboard. I still maintain that if Belmont is not added, NDSU has a good chance to be the 12th member. Bresciani won't authorize any talking about it until after the legislative session is over.

It effectively is. The American is effectively CUSA 1.0, with UCONN, Navy and Wichita St added, while the current CUSA is CUSA 3.0 with a few stragglers from CUSA 1.0 like S Miss.

Well with UCONN, Temple, Cincy, Houston, Memphis etc, it has most of the teams that are close to P5 status but not there yet. It's a relatively new conference because it's the football half of the Big East when that conference got a divorce over football. If NDSU moves on, it would be a blow to the Slummit. If other Slummit teams get picked up, the Slummit can be on its deathbed. The MVFC should be the same but the MVC could break it's teams off and disassociate itself from MVFC football affiliates.

Its not very cost effective to have just one large plane. Even airlines resister diversity in planes because of pilot qualifications, spare parts, equipment needs, etc.

Shocker fans are blaming the Dakotas for forcing more football spending by MVFC schools, thereby weakening MVC basketball. They had to get out as a result as a #10 seed for a 30-4 team shows massive disrespect by the NCAA dance committee for the MVC. Interesting perspective.

Think they have some four seated planes, but nothing bigger.

Agree totally. The WIH fans seem to be saying in unison that the state should subsidize a top notch program. Never do they talk about how it would excite more fans by allowing checking. Fans don't want to go to games now, but that is ignored. As someone else stated, let NDSU subsidize them, as they need a women's sport for Title IX.

The OVC doesn't need to do anything. Maybe Kennesaw St and IUPUI. Or take Lindenwood from DII ranks. Think the Horizon would go east to Pittsburgh and take Robert Morris. Maybe IUPUI and IPFW would be in play.

The Billiekens have had an open MVC invite for years. But they want the Big East badly, and they believe the A10 positons them better for it. With Wichita St gone, no way would they even answer the phone.

NDSU will try to sell themselves to the MVC as a way to get access to MSP cable. That might actually work in convincing the MVC, but it wouldn't work with MSP viewers IMHO. If Belmont says "no", they could get a yes. The SD's aren't interested and it would be politically suicidal for them to express interest, as the SD and Sioux Falls politicians just love the idea of the Slummit tournament.