O.T. Conference Shuffle ( OU and Texas inquire about joining SEC)

[Soderball]

A-10 just continues to get worse. How can we prevent VCU and UD from moving on to better things? SLU is foundering.

 

Of course it's not LaSalle or whatever that move on. It's a program with resources and desire to compete at a high level.

 

Why is the MAC a downgrade? The A-10 is also a one-bid conference and is locking in to that position. Mountain West and WCC are already better than we are.

[Dr Bird]

28 minutes ago, CenHudDude said:

If this is true, should the A-10 bar them from competing in the 2025 tournament?

 

 

Personally I do not think so.  It makes the conference look petty. IIRC, Loyola got to play in the MVC tourney their last year (21-22) and won it and got the auto-bid.

[CenHudDude]

That was good for LUC.  I have seen other conferences bar leaving members though.  I Don’t know if the A-10 by-laws address this or not.

[Soderball]

30 minutes ago, Dr Bird said:

Personally I do not think so.  It makes the conference look petty. IIRC, Loyola got to play in the MVC tourney their last year (21-22) and won it and got the auto-bid.

because it's the only bid we get.

[TheA_Bomb]

14 minutes ago, CenHudDude said:

That was good for LUC.  I have seen other conferences bar leaving members though.  I Don’t know if the A-10 by-laws address this or not.

Really what conferences? I can't recall any

[HoosierPal]

UMass reportedly will apply to stay in the A10 for men's lacrosse, as an affiliate member.  High Point and Hobart currently are affiliates on the Men's side.  And their hockey team remains in Hockey East.

[wgstl]

Time to call our friends at the uni of Toronto and have them take umass spot 

[Bay Area Billiken]

UMass has started to recover in Men's Basketball under Coach Frank Martin, NET of 86, would claim the last NIT bid.  The A10 is #8 in Conference NET, whereas the MAC has free fallen to #24.  The A10 will be a 2 team NCAA Tourney league if Dayton does not win the A10 Tournament.  The MAC is without question a Juan Bid league in Hoops, with the only NCAA Bid being the auto bid to whoever wins the MAC Tourney. 

So this move is definitely a downgrade in Basketball, sacrificing the Basketball team for the D-1, FBS Football team, which has been wallowing in the deep abyss as an Independent.

At this point, it is in the A10's best interests to not replace UMass, and stay at 14 teams, unless from SLU's perspective the replacement comes from the Central Time Zone.  Drake of the MVC has a NET of 46 and as of today, per a pure following of the NET, would have the 35th of the 36 NCAA At Large Bids.  Right now the best candidates for A10 expansion are Drake and Bradley, both from the MVC and both being old SLU MVC rivals.  Bradley, NET 65 is NIT bound absent winning Arch Madness.  No one else comes close to moving the needle.  

This being said, I don't think the majority East Coast with its Southern Spur A10 would be particularly interested in playing in Des Moines and Peoria.

 

[NextYearBill]

Put us in the Valley and out to pasture. 

[billiken_roy]

13 minutes ago, Bay Area Billiken said:

 

At this point, it is in the A10's best interests to not replace UMass, and stay at 14 teams, unless from SLU's perspective the replacement comes from the Central Time Zone.  Drake of the MVC has a NET of 46 and as of today, per a pure following of the NET, would have the 35th of the 36 NCAA At Large Bids.  Right now the best candidates for A10 expansion are Drake and Bradley, both from the MVC and both being old SLU MVC rivals.  Bradley, NET 65 is NIT bound absent winning Arch Madness.  No one else comes close to moving the needle.  

agree.  but please no more lesser teams.  at least try to match what umass was.  they were nothing great but i dont want some of the no doubt one bid conferences that never has and never will get an at large berth.  

i absolutely do not want to go to the mvc.   i would likely turn in my slu affiliation for sure at that point.  

the conference going downhill has all to do with the worthless leadership of the conference.   and honestly our milk toast president hasnt done anything to make it better. 

[slufan13]

We missed our chance at glory. Then hired some horrible coaches. But hey at least we have cool looking buildings 

[Soderball]

26 minutes ago, Bay Area Billiken said:

UMass has started to recover in Men's Basketball under Coach Frank Martin, NET of 86, would claim the last NIT bid.  The A10 is #8 in Conference NET, whereas the MAC has free fallen to #24.  The A10 will be a 2 team NCAA Tourney league if Dayton does not win the A10 Tournament.  The MAC is without question a Juan Bid league in Hoops, with the only NCAA Bid being the auto bid to whoever wins the MAC Tourney. 

So this move is definitely a downgrade in Basketball, sacrificing the Basketball team for the D-1, FBS Football team, which has been wallowing in the deep abyss as an Independent.

At this point, it is in the A10's best interests to not replace UMass, and stay at 14 teams, unless from SLU's perspective the replacement comes from the Central Time Zone.  Drake of the MVC has a NET of 46 and as of today, per a pure following of the NET, would have the 35th of the 36 NCAA At Large Bids.  Right now the best candidates for A10 expansion are Drake and Bradley, both from the MVC and both being old SLU MVC rivals.  Bradley, NET 65 is NIT bound absent winning Arch Madness.  No one else comes close to moving the needle.  

This being said, I don't think the majority East Coast with its Southern Spur A10 would be particularly interested in playing in Des Moines and Peoria.

 

Drake & Bradley would interest me.

 

High Point and College of Charleston are trash and i wouldn't be interested in them at all; i saw CoC at Myrtle Beach. Not impressed. Vermont would be a much better addition.

[Cowboy II]

-sure, let's replace UMass with IN St so that after their coach goes to greener pastures we get the program that since 2014 has the following KenPom rankings:108, 169, 168, 199, 138, 208, 122, 119, 230, 100

-I am afraid this is the line of thinking  whoever will make our next coaching hire will use

[Soderball]

15 minutes ago, billiken_roy said:

agree.  but please no more lesser teams.  at least try to match what umass was.  they were nothing great but i dont want some of the no doubt one bid conferences that never has and never will get an at large berth.  

i absolutely do not want to go to the mvc.   i would likely turn in my slu affiliation for sure at that point.  

the conference going downhill has all to do with the worthless leadership of the conference.   and honestly our milk toast president hasnt done anything to make it better. 

Losing UMass is a rough blow to the conference. We need to be shedding dead weight like Fordham, LaSalle, Duquesne, (or SLU)

 

I was happy to see Loyola in because of the Chicago market but to trade out Butler & X for Loyola and Davidson was ugly. Davidson was a short-sighted, brainless addition to the conference. A typical Bernadette move.

 

Davidson is a straight trash program now since elder McKillop retired. We keep bringing in WEAK teams with no fanbase.

[Soderball]

30 minutes ago, Bay Area Billiken said:

UMass has started to recover in Men's Basketball under Coach Frank Martin, NET of 86, would claim the last NIT bid.  The A10 is #8 in Conference NET, whereas the MAC has free fallen to #24.  The A10 will be a 2 team NCAA Tourney league if Dayton does not win the A10 Tournament.  The MAC is without question a Juan Bid league in Hoops, with the only NCAA Bid being the auto bid to whoever wins the MAC Tourney. 

So this move is definitely a downgrade in Basketball, sacrificing the Basketball team for the D-1, FBS Football team, which has been wallowing in the deep abyss as an Independent.

At this point, it is in the A10's best interests to not replace UMass, and stay at 14 teams, unless from SLU's perspective the replacement comes from the Central Time Zone.  Drake of the MVC has a NET of 46 and as of today, per a pure following of the NET, would have the 35th of the 36 NCAA At Large Bids.  Right now the best candidates for A10 expansion are Drake and Bradley, both from the MVC and both being old SLU MVC rivals.  Bradley, NET 65 is NIT bound absent winning Arch Madness.  No one else comes close to moving the needle.  

This being said, I don't think the majority East Coast with its Southern Spur A10 would be particularly interested in playing in Des Moines and Peoria.

 

I think UD's hold on an at-large is getting weaker with the GM loss. They literally cannot afford any more defeats. If they get an at-large they would ostensibly have a L in the conference tourney, 2 Ls puts them in the 30s-40s NET and on the NOT IN TOURNAMENT.

 

Should be rooting for them to absolutely crush SLU as they will need to, to avoid another NET rating dip.

[billiken_roy]

Just now, Soderball said:

Losing UMass is a rough blow to the conference. We need to be shedding dead weight like Fordham, LaSalle, Duquesne, (or SLU)

 

I was happy to see Loyola in because of the Chicago market but to trade out Butler & X for Loyola and Davidson was ugly.

 

Davidson is a straight trash program now since elder McKillop retired. We keep bringing in WEAK teams with no fanbase.

soderball, slu is without a doubt a weak sister now.   but this has not been an annual performance.   so i wouldnt put us in that group.   the answer to cutting the weak sisters has always been putting minimums on the programs.   minimum athletic facilities, minimum athletic budgets with another budget just for basketball since it is pretty much the entire conference's bread and butter.  

there has to be a way to encourage these snobby "no care about the athletic department" presidents to step up.   i do fear our own sheldon is right in line with the rest of them.   but maybe if all programs understand they have to start spending some money and bringing the face of their program into the 21st century  and try to actually win, maybe the A-10 can turn things around and those that wont comply would seek other alternatives.

[Soderball]

4 minutes ago, billiken_roy said:

soderball, slu is without a doubt a weak sister now.   but this has not been an annual performance.   so i wouldnt put us in that group.   the answer to cutting the weak sisters has always been putting minimums on the programs.   minimum athletic facilities, minimum athletic budgets with another budget just for basketball since it is pretty much the entire conference's bread and butter.  

there has to be a way to encourage these snobby "no care about the athletic department" presidents to step up.   i do fear our own sheldon is right in line with the rest of them.   but maybe if all programs understand they have to start spending some money and bringing the face of their program into the 21st century  and try to actually win, maybe the A-10 can turn things around and those that wont comply would seek other alternatives.

It was a tongue-in-cheek add, Roy. Our drop off the cliff has been a key factor in the A10 losing bids the last few years. We have all the money and fanbase to be as good as Dayton but we make weak, stupid decisions because the leadership sucks.

 

It was not literally comparing us to Duq, LaS, or these other programs that belong in the Atlantic Sun conference. The A10 is riddled with those due to bad selections by the A10 commish office. They have been going downhill ever since they let Butler one-and-done us. VCU was the only seriously good add they have made IMO.

[Bay Area Billiken]

27 minutes ago, billiken_roy said:

agree.  but please no more lesser teams.  at least try to match what umass was.  they were nothing great but i dont want some of the no doubt one bid conferences that never has and never will get an at large berth.  

i absolutely do not want to go to the mvc.   i would likely turn in my slu affiliation for sure at that point.  

the conference going downhill has all to do with the worthless leadership of the conference.   and honestly our milk toast president hasnt done anything to make it better. 

SLU is not going back to the MVC.  That is a non-starter.  I doubt the A10 Eastern power centers and the newer Southern spur would support adding Valley schools Drake and Bradley.  And frankly, why should SLU support adding any schools from either the East or the South that don't move the needle?  At least Drake and Bradley have pretty good programs currently.

[Bay Area Billiken]

16 minutes ago, Soderball said:

I think UD's hold on an at-large is getting weaker with the GM loss. They literally cannot afford any more defeats. If they get an at-large they would ostensibly have a L in the conference tourney, 2 Ls puts them in the 30s-40s NET and on the NOT IN TOURNAMENT.

 

Should be rooting for them to absolutely crush SLU as they will need to, to avoid another NET rating dip.

Dayton has a NET of 20.  Barring a complete collapse, Dayton is IN.  The NCAA cuts off today at NET 47.

[Lord Elrond]

56 minutes ago, Bay Area Billiken said:

UMass has started to recover in Men's Basketball under Coach Frank Martin, NET of 86, would claim the last NIT bid.  The A10 is #8 in Conference NET, whereas the MAC has free fallen to #24.  The A10 will be a 2 team NCAA Tourney league if Dayton does not win the A10 Tournament.  The MAC is without question a Juan Bid league in Hoops, with the only NCAA Bid being the auto bid to whoever wins the MAC Tourney. 

So this move is definitely a downgrade in Basketball, sacrificing the Basketball team for the D-1, FBS Football team, which has been wallowing in the deep abyss as an Independent.

At this point, it is in the A10's best interests to not replace UMass, and stay at 14 teams, unless from SLU's perspective the replacement comes from the Central Time Zone.  Drake of the MVC has a NET of 46 and as of today, per a pure following of the NET, would have the 35th of the 36 NCAA At Large Bids.  Right now the best candidates for A10 expansion are Drake and Bradley, both from the MVC and both being old SLU MVC rivals.  Bradley, NET 65 is NIT bound absent winning Arch Madness.  No one else comes close to moving the needle.  

This being said, I don't think the majority East Coast with its Southern Spur A10 would be particularly interested in playing in Des Moines and Peoria.

 

Move by UMass was 100% football based, everything else was secondary to this. Delaware getting into CUSA was apparently what set off the UMass fans to demand a change 

[Bay Area Billiken]

33 minutes ago, Soderball said:

Drake & Bradley would interest me.

 

High Point and College of Charleston are trash and i wouldn't be interested in them at all; i saw CoC at Myrtle Beach. Not impressed. Vermont would be a much better addition.

I don't see any available school in the East or in the South that is worthy of being added to the A10, and that includes from a pure basketball perspective College of Charleston (NET 102) and Belmont in Nashville (NET 131).  However, I can see interest in both from a tourism perspective.  Both have had their past moments in hoops, but both would be well out of both the NCAA (absent winning their respective conference tourneys) and NIT this season.

In the past, Boston University, a very similar school to George Washington, has garnered some interest.  But Boston U, now in the Patriot League, has a NET of 294.  Likewise, Siena in Albany, NY has previously been mentioned.  But Siena, in the Metro Atlantic (MAAC) has a horrible NET of 355.  Both would bring a TV market, and a big one in Boston, but not a good basketball program. Boston is a nice city to visit.

I think the A10 has expanded enough into the South with the additions of VCU, George Mason and Davidson, all after SLU joined the A10.  

[Soderball]

10 minutes ago, Bay Area Billiken said:

I don't see any available school in the East or in the South that is worthy of being added to the A10, and that includes from a pure basketball perspective College of Charleston (NET 102) and Belmont in Nashville (NET 131).  However, I can see interest in both from a tourism perspective.  Both have had their past moments in hoops, but both would be well out of both the NCAA (absent winning their respective conference tourneys) and NIT this season.

In the past, Boston University, a very similar school to George Washington, has garnered some interest.  But Boston U, now in the Patriot League, has a NET of 294.  Likewise, Siena in Albany, NY has previously been mentioned.  But Siena, in the Metro Atlantic (MAAC) has a horrible NET of 355.  Both would bring a TV market, and a big one in Boston, but not a good basketball program. Boston is a nice city to visit.

I think the A10 has expanded enough into the South with the additions of VCU, George Mason and Davidson, all after SLU joined the A10.  

Well the problem is that we ARE the poor man's Big East. UD especially would love to GTFO out of here just as we would; but we are stuck, and we are in a situation where there is just no other option for us to add. If VCU or UD leaves we are toast and may as well join the MVC as the quality will be the exact same. That's the problem. The A10 can't really get moved up anymore. Losing UMass hurts. I'm not seeing any programs that i would want us to add.

 

If I absolutely had to select one program it would probably be Vermont, though.

[RiseOfTheBillikens]

2 minutes ago, Soderball said:

Well the problem is that we ARE the poor man's Big East. UD especially would love to GTFO out of here just as we would; but we are stuck, and we are in a situation where there is just no other option for us to add. If VCU or UD leaves we are toast and may as well join the MVC as the quality will be the exact same. That's the problem. The A10 can't really get moved up anymore. Losing UMass hurts. I'm not seeing any programs that i would want us to add.

At least Dayton deserves it. *Puke*

[Soderball]

1 minute ago, RiseOfTheBillikens said:

At least Dayton deserves it. *Puke*

Dayton has much higher expectations. Look at Brian Gregory's record there. We were good those years and i traveled to Dayton several times; their fans were NOT happy with him, even with an NIT tournament championship; and postseason play in 5/8 years.

 

SLU is a freakin' cakewalk in comparison, even being 200+ in the NET is only a "maybe" on getting canned at this joke of a program. Took two years to fire that clown Crews even after we watched the disaster he brought in after the Rickma guys graduated. seeing Aaron Hines be #1 in MPG in the conference warranted firing Crews mid-season in his 3rd year; instead we wasted another year and a half watching that TRASH, because of Pestello and May.

[TRN]

There’s no need to add anyone to the A10, it was at 15 with LUC’s addition.  Now it’s back to 14 teams, I think 12 would be better for a non-FB conference.  I’m sure UMass’s move is more for its next conference after the MAC, probably the AAC.