Jav Fan Posted February 23, 2004 Share Posted February 23, 2004 Not sure if this has already been covered here, but what do you think of the new regional alignment. You lose the MIAA and gain the GLIAC and the 4 schools on the West Coast (Central Washington, Western Washington, Western Oregon, and Humboldt St). My observations are: 1. Our region got tougher adding the MIAA and losing the 4 West Coast teams. Our region was getting weak with the loss of Cal-Davis, but now is much tougher. 2. Your region is a wash. The MIAA has traditionally been tougher than the GLIAC, with the exception of the last three years. I think in the future, the GLIAC will be a solid conference, but not as dominant (read GVSU) as in recent history. 3. The North (or northeast) region. Very weak. I think we'll see IUP in the semi's about 75% of the time now. 4. The South - No change. Still very tough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corella Posted February 23, 2004 Share Posted February 23, 2004 Not sure if this has already been covered here, but what do you think of the new regional alignment. You lose the MIAA and gain the GLIAC and the 4 schools on the West Coast (Central Washington, Western Washington, Western Oregon, and Humboldt St). My observations are: 1. Our region got tougher adding the MIAA and losing the 4 West Coast teams. Our region was getting weak with the loss of Cal-Davis, but now is much tougher. 2. Your region is a wash. The MIAA has traditionally been tougher than the GLIAC, with the exception of the last three years. I think in the future, the GLIAC will be a solid conference, but not as dominant (read GVSU) as in recent history. 3. The North (or northeast) region. Very weak. I think we'll see IUP in the semi's about 75% of the time now. 4. The South - No change. Still very tough. I think that most here would disagree with you about the MIAA. This year there was ( I believe) a 5-way tie for first, in college football that is not the sign of a very good conference. The MIAA as a whole has gotten progressively worse the last 5-8 years IMO. They have Pitt St, a program that is good but seems to have passed its prime, and a bunch of teams that are up and down. Most here would also probably agree that replacing the MIAA with the GLIAC made UND's region much tougher, as the GLIAC has 2 of the best teams and programs in the country in Saginaw and Grand Valley. As far as the South goes, I am not sold on its strength. 2 of the best teams from the South got torn to pieces by UND and NDSU last year, UND beat UNA in the semis in a game that was much more lopsided then the score indicated, and NDSU crushed Tusculum. Granted they were both home games for the victors, but teams that are supposedly superior from a region that is supposedly that good should put up better fights then they did. I call the South very overrated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jav Fan Posted February 23, 2004 Author Share Posted February 23, 2004 Your comments about the MIAA are encouraging. I hope they are past their prime. As for the 4 West Coast teams, I don't know if Central Washington has much coming back, but two years ago they were undefeated in the regular season, so they could be a dark horse. Last year, they had an off-year, but preseason, they were the top ranked team in the region. Western Washington has fielded some decent teams in the past, but it seemed like when they had a chance to make the playoffs, Cal-Davis knocked them out. Humboldt St and Western Oregon, to the best of my knowledge, have not been competitive. As for the GLIAC, look back prior to the last three years. Very little playoff success. How much credit goes to Brian Kelly? Only time will tell, but I think they will fall back to the competition somewhat. How does the NCC look next year? Will UND run the table again, or will UNO or SCSU step up? Are any of the other teams serious contenders? From the limited information I have, it seems like since 1999, the top four in the conference were made up of some combination of UND, SCSU, UNO, UNC, NDSU, and SDSU, and only three of those teams are left. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hansel Posted February 23, 2004 Share Posted February 23, 2004 From the limited information I have, it seems like since 1999, the top four in the conference were made up of some combination of UND, SCSU, UNO, UNC, NDSU, and SDSU, and only three of those teams are left. No team other than UND, NDSU, UNC and UNO has made the playoffs from the NCC since 1993. UM-Duluth (new to the NCC next year) did make the playoffs in 2002 from the NSIC, but it will be interesting to see how than can compete in the NCC. SCSU has been much improved the last two years but they lose their QB. I don't see anybody other than UNO or UND winning the NCC next year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jav Fan Posted February 23, 2004 Author Share Posted February 23, 2004 Well that takes care of two playoff spots. The GLIAC will likely send GVSU and SVSU. Then who? St Cloud, Indianapolis, Ferris State, Northwood, UM-Duluth, Central Washington, Western Washington? Your region does look strong at the top, but has an apparent drop-off after the top 4. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UND92,96 Posted February 23, 2004 Share Posted February 23, 2004 Well that takes care of two playoff spots. The GLIAC will likely send GVSU and SVSU. Then who? St Cloud, Indianapolis, Ferris State, Northwood, UM-Duluth, Central Washington, Western Washington? Your region does look strong at the top, but has an apparent drop-off after the top 4. Don't forget about Winona St. They should have a very easy time winning the NSIC, particularly now that UMD won't be there anymore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jav Fan Posted February 23, 2004 Author Share Posted February 23, 2004 Don't forget about Winona St. They should have a very easy time winning the NSIC, particularly now that UMD won't be there anymore. My bad. I forgot about the NSIC. No slight intended, I'm not very familiar with that conference. Is Winona a program on the rise? Or was last year a fluke? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UND92,96 Posted February 23, 2004 Share Posted February 23, 2004 My bad. I forgot about the NSIC. No slight intended, I'm not very familiar with that conference. Is Winona a program on the rise? Or was last year a fluke? They are solid. They lose a number of good seniors from this year's team, and I would question whether they'll be able to replace some of the defensive players they lose, but I don't think they're a fluke. I think it will be very tough for them to be able to compete year in and year out with the NCC and the GLIAC in the playoffs, however, as long as they fund less than half the scholarships that those conferences do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wsuwarrior Posted February 23, 2004 Share Posted February 23, 2004 My bad. I forgot about the NSIC. No slight intended, I'm not very familiar with that conference. Is Winona a program on the rise? Or was last year a fluke? Winona State is definately a program on the rise (but perhaps I'm bias ). True, we do lose some talented seniors, but we still have a lot of talent. I'm looking forward to the spring game to see what shakes down in spring practice, but I have all the faith in the world in Coach Sawyer and his staff. We'll have a quality team on the field once again this year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wsuwarrior Posted February 23, 2004 Share Posted February 23, 2004 Speaking of the regions, how do they all realign next year? I know the Northwest is the NSIC, NCC, GLIAC, and GNAC. I know that the MIAA is moving to the South. What else am I missing? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jav Fan Posted February 23, 2004 Author Share Posted February 23, 2004 I think the South (or southeastern) stays the same, while the north (northeastern) loses the GLIAC, and becomes the weakest region by far. IUP should be smiling, because they should be the strongest program by far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wsuwarrior Posted February 23, 2004 Share Posted February 23, 2004 IUP should be smiling, because they should be the strongest program by far. Agreed. The WVIAC, PSAC and NE-10 should be little more than speed bumps for IUP. It should be interesting to see how things play out in that division (or in the Northwest and South for that matter). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigmrg74 Posted February 23, 2004 Share Posted February 23, 2004 I think the South (or southeastern) stays the same, while the north (northeastern) loses the GLIAC, and becomes the weakest region by far. IUP should be smiling, because they should be the strongest program by far. No kidding, the PSAC was the one pushing most for the relinament, so that they could kick the GLIAC west to battle it out with the NCC. And leading the charge was IUP. Seems how they didn't like the 62-21 whoopin' that GVSU put on them in the playoffs in 2002. They saw that the balence of power had shifted away from them and that their only hope of going deep into the playoffs was to not have to play GLIAC teams right away. This leaves the Northeast now the weakest, and i dont think there will be a team from there in the NC game for the next ten years or so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smoggy Posted February 24, 2004 Share Posted February 24, 2004 Out of the conferences in the Northeast, do one or two of them not give the full number of scholarships ala NSIC? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bisonguy Posted February 24, 2004 Share Posted February 24, 2004 The PSAC allows a total of 70 scholies for all sports, and a maximum of 25 scholarships for football. I believe the NE-10 is "non-scholarship", but as Colgate making it to the I-AA championship proved, that doesn't mean much. The WVIAC I have no idea about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hansel Posted February 24, 2004 Share Posted February 24, 2004 Out of the conferences in the Northeast, do one or two of them not give the full number of scholarships ala NSIC? PSAC is limited to 25 scholies (out of 36). NE-10 is non scholarship (but do give some aid to athletes) don't know about WVIAV... but considering they don't make the playoffs a whole lot.. I would say they don't give the full number. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pirate Posted February 24, 2004 Share Posted February 24, 2004 My question would be, how many D-2 teams are fully funded with 36 scholarships? I believe the conferences that allow a full compliment of scholarships include the NCC, the GLIAC, the SAC, the Gulf South, the MIAA and the LSC. Are there any others? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siuoxpadupe Posted February 24, 2004 Share Posted February 24, 2004 wsuwarrior i wouldn't speak about other conferences being speed bumps...you and the rest of the NSIC are the No. 1 NCC speed bump...have fun playing in the weakest confrence in D2....AGAIN! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony Posted February 24, 2004 Share Posted February 24, 2004 pirate, the SAC doesn't offer the full 36, I think it's around 20. According to the NCAA, 33% of DII football schools offer the equivalent of 16 or fewer scholarships. The article doesn't list a median or mean. My money would be on 21 for both. When NDSU and UND started in DII, the scholarship maximum was 60. Then 45. Then 40. Now it's 36. Given that most schools offer fewer than 25, there is probably going to be another drop soon. On the other hand, DII has loosened the regulations on offering aid to athletes so what North Alabama is penalized for doing a decade or so ago would be fine now. The problem with this loosening is that it would be very easy to abuse. Have Title IX problems or don't like the way the budget numbers are looking? Don't give football players a football scholarship, give them need-based grants instead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wsuwarrior Posted February 24, 2004 Share Posted February 24, 2004 wsuwarrior i wouldn't speak about other conferences being speed bumps...you and the rest of the NSIC are the No. 1 NCC speed bump...have fun playing in the weakest confrence in D2....AGAIN! Really? Ask SDSU how their attempt against the speed bump went. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pirate Posted February 25, 2004 Share Posted February 25, 2004 Thank you Tony for that information. The current status of scholarship funding in D-2, as you point out, could be apocryphal for fully funded programs. That being a further lowering of maximum levels. How the 40 odd fully funded schools respond, will be interesting, if D-2 does reduce scholarships. In regard to the early days of D-2, when there were 60 scholarships, how many of those schools were fully funded? For the sake of argument, I will speculate that fully funded schools were proportionately the same as today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bisonguy Posted February 25, 2004 Share Posted February 25, 2004 pirate, Speculation on my part, but I would guess there were more fully funded DII schools back when scholarships were at 60. DII started in 1973, and DI-AA started in 1978. A lot of the bigger DII's packed up their bags and left for I-AA between 78-80. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony Posted February 25, 2004 Share Posted February 25, 2004 Heck, I have more information than that I've been tracking changes in DII for a bit over a decade now. In the last four years, the trend of losing big schools and replacing them with small to tiny ones has accelerated. For example, since 1999 DII has added 14 football-playing schools: Benedict (enrollment 3000, attendance rank out of 150: 24th) Bryant (3300, 109th) Charleston WV (1000, 131st) Concordia-St. Paul (1300, 106th) Findlay (3500, 118th) Lincoln MO (2600, 134th) Minnesota-Crookston (1900, 135th) North Greenville (1400, 141st) Oklahoma Panhandle (1200, 102nd) St. Anselm (2000, 124th) Tiffin (1300, 147th) Virginia-Wise (1300, did not report attendance to the NCAA) Western Oregon (4700, 95th) Mean enrollment of just over 2000. Median attendance ranking of 124. For comparison, SDSU, NDSU, UNC, and UC Davis have an average enrollment of over 15000 and an average attendance rank of 17. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
huskies679 Posted February 25, 2004 Share Posted February 25, 2004 is there a site that says how many scholarships a college football program offers. does anybody know how many scholarships are offered for each ncc and nsic school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony Posted February 25, 2004 Share Posted February 25, 2004 Sorry, huskies679, I don't think there is. Even for NCC teams, I'm not sure. For example, I never thought that St. Cloud, Augie, or Mankato offered the full 36 equivalencies. Apparently they are getting closer to it now though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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