A Sign Of The Future?

[The Sicatoka]

JBB:

About the Minnesota schools, I agree. That sort of consolidation should be looked at here. We have too many schools and too much overhead associated with them. (I believe SD has six state schools, Wyoming has less than a handful, in similarly populated states. ND has what, 13?)

I heard about that resolution also. Yes, it's only a resolution so it has no binding power; but, yes again, it shows the mindset of where the division. However, you could read that and interpret it to mean that they want the number of scholarships to go down, ... or up. Do we know where those conferences stand? (I'm asking.)

That resolution is headed for a hearing early in 2003. Like I've said before: UND has through August to send a letter and put itself in the same position that NDSU has adopted.

I preached "patience" last year regarding the hockey team at UND. I think I'm about to preach it here.

PS - Bismarck St. Mary's is the Catholic HS (like Fargo Shanley). The University of Mary (formerly Mary College) is the school that I heard whispers of having visions of DII.

[JBB]

Yes, your right about the Bismarck names, the Forum has an interesting article about both schools. They are hinting strongly that both may be future candidates for the NCC especially if NDSU, SDSU and UNO join UNC in D1 or otherwise depart the NCC. Both schools have upgraded their sports programs immensely and both would compete well, especially in an environment of reduced competition, ie reduced scholarships.

Both the RMAC and PSAC operate with fewer than the allowed scholarships. Both, I believe, would support a reduction.

I think patience is ok. But for NDSU moving when they did was fine. In the end it may turn out to be six of one or half a dozen, but the early bird may end up with the worm too. The decisions negatively affecting D2 may not be made until 2004 or later. By then the available opportunities may be harder to come by than they are now.

[U2Bad1]

Being a bismarck native that would be really cool. U-Mary has a fine athletics program and is commited to excellence.

[tony]

Mary and Jamestown College will go DII, it's just a matter of whether the rest of the DAC 10 will go with them.

Mary and Jamestown would fit in well in the NSIC especially with Morris and Duluth leaving.

[The Sicatoka]

The Mary Maurauders and the Jamestown College Jimmies in the NSIC. There's an angle that had never occurred to me.

Though, the whispers I heard about Mary said DII, and NCC. as the goal. A start in the NSIC wouldn't be a bad approach.

[tony]

Just my opinion but the U of Mary would be nuts to join the NCC. What benefit is there for them or the NCC? If they join the NCC, they're going to have to battle just to have a winning season every year, plus they'd end up spending twice as much matching up with the public schools scholarship for scholarship. Add Mary and Jamestown to the NCC and you can almost guarantee RMAC-style scholarship limits unless DII lowers the limit across the division first. No, the NCC just doesn't make sense to me.

OTOH, if they convince the whole DAC to move up, they've got an automatic playoff berth in every sport in DII in about four years. I've got to believe that it won't take their conference long to realize this.

Their second best option is to join up with Jamestown College and go to the NSIC. They wouldn't have to add scholarships, they can just abide with the NSIC limit until the DII votes to reduce football scholarships to something they can afford, plus the path to DII postseason glory is pretty gentle there compared to the NCC.

[The Sicatoka]

tony:

UMary seems to have a lot of money lately. They're building and expanding all the time out on the hills south of Bismarck. Don't ask me how, but it's there.

" ... they're going to have to battle just to have a winning season every year, plus they'd end up spending twice as much ... "

Isn't that what Sioux fans said about NDSU going DI?

[tony]

I'm not sure how you equate me saying that Mary is a better fit for the NSIC than the NCC with UND fans saying that NDSU shouldn't join DI because the competition is too hard. Then again, I'm probably a little better at seeing patterns in data than UND fans are

Suppose NDSU had an option of joining a weak DI conference and having an equal shot of making the postseason in football and basketball as they would in a stronger DI conference, I'd be saying that they should jump at the weaker conference. In time NDSU would make the weak conference respectable anyway, just like they did with the NCC.

Besides I'm not saying that Mary shouldn't go DI, I'm saying the exact opposite - all the teams in the DAC 10 who meet the minimum DII requirements* would be stupid not to go to DII.

* Must have an athletic program with a nickname and one or more school colors.