Big 10 moves back to 18 game conference

[getreal4]

Drake & UNI will likely lose their home & away with Iowa. Can't blame the Big 10, very good move from an overall conference standpoint.

[bcrawf]

We won't lose the series with Iowa, Lickliter has already talked about how great that series is to have a NCAA caliber team locked in every year...

[salukibob]

As if Indiana didn't need more reason to cancel the return trip they owe us to Carbondale next seson.

[SycamoreFanatic]

Actually Sampson made a statement about the toughness of his non-conf schedule and mentioned the trip to SIU along with games with Conn, GA Tech, etc. Probably if you stop bringing it up that you expect them to buy it out & continuing to remind them of that factor, they will come to Carbondale.........but only this one time for sure! They won't come back to Terre Haute for awhile but we sure enjoyed it when they did.

[salukibob]

Actually Sampson made a statement about the toughness of his non-conf schedule and mentioned the trip to SIU along with games with Conn, GA Tech, etc. Probably if you stop bringing it up that you expect them to buy it out & continuing to remind them of that factor, they will come to Carbondale.........but only this one time for sure! They won't come back to Terre Haute for awhile but we sure enjoyed it when they did.

First time I've mentioned it. :naughty:

[DoubleJayAlum]

As if Indiana didn't need more reason to cancel the return trip they owe us to Carbondale next seson.

With SIU making the Sweet Sixteen last year, I think it is less likely that the game will be cancelled. The "downside" of an IU loss goes away when the coach can say it was a sweet sixteen club and remind people SIU almost beat KU.

[Aegyptus]

Why are they doing that? They are still not going to play everybody twice. Still, one team is only going to have 1 home game against Ohio State or something like that. It is not like they can all schedule Northwestern as the team you don't play twice. So, you are still going to have people complaining that some teams have an easier schedule.

I don't understand why the Big 11 and Notre Dame do not restart negotiations. I know Notre Dame like to be independent in football to get the fat NBC contracts, but those seem less important now a days, and now that their basketball program is a decent program, it seems like affiliation with the Big 11 is a much better idea. I don't know what they would call the new league (although they should base it on academics because what a powerful academic league), but they should do it and be done with it. Then the Big East would pick up Memphis and Conference USA would pick up some other Texas team from the MWC and that's that. It needs to happen - the Big 11 needs to bite the bullet with Notre Dame.

[bcg]

It needs to happen - the Big 11 needs to bite the bullet with Notre Dame.

The Big Ten would love to have Notre Dame. Why do you think they have left that spot open?

[Myopicraiderfan]

the Big 11 needs to bite the bullet with Notre Dame.

How would this help the Irish? If they don't make a BCS bowl they get a BCS share. If they do get a BCS bowl they get 2 BCS shares. It would be marginal if they got any additional money from bowls by joining the Big 11.

As an independent they are considered their own conference therefore they always win their conference. Joining a conference would make it less likely that they'll get the big bowls.

Give up their contract with the Notre dame Broadcasting Channel? Not going to happen just to pump up the Big 11.

I know this bugs the haters but Notre Dame is and will always be different. They CAN succeed without a conference. They will schedule whomever they want. They are special as an independent.

[Nyghtewynd]

Drake & UNI will likely lose their home & away with Iowa. Can't blame the Big 10, very good move from an overall conference standpoint.

Yep, I expect the in-state series to now be over within three years. The Big 10 did this to make non-conference scheduling easier, and now it is. UI and ISU will dump UNI/Drake (probably just playing one of the two every year and only at home), and other MVC schools will lose games also. The landscape's changing, and the MVC isn't doing enough to react to it. Expansion is looking better and better by the day.

[bcrawf]

If that happens Nyghtwynd...

UNI will simply not play either one of them. We are nobody's "Little Brother" and Rick Hartzell will not let that happen...

[Aegyptus]

Yep, I expect the in-state series to now be over within three years. The Big 10 did this to make non-conference scheduling easier, and now it is. UI and ISU will dump UNI/Drake (probably just playing one of the two every year and only at home), and other MVC schools will lose games also. The landscape's changing, and the MVC isn't doing enough to react to it. Expansion is looking better and better by the day.

Yes, it is something we are going to have to consider more strongly if BCS schools increase their in conference games to avoid the out of conference losses to teams from the Valley. I am not totally sure this move by the Big 11 was because of the fear of non-conference losses, but I am sure it did not hurt.

[MSU Bleeds Maroon]

The landscape's changing, and the MVC isn't doing enough to react to it. Expansion is looking better and better by the day.

Color me puzzled. The only way I can connect "Valley expansion" to "easier scheduling" is to start considering 20- or 22-game conference seasons. Is that what you mean, or am I missing something?

[DUShock]

With SIU making the Sweet Sixteen last year, I think it is less likely that the game will be cancelled. The "downside" of an IU loss goes away when the coach can say it was a sweet sixteen club and remind people SIU almost beat KU.

That's SHOULD HAVE beat KU :cursing:

Go Valley!!

Go Shocks!!!!

[Nyghtewynd]

Color me puzzled. The only way I can connect "Valley expansion" to "easier scheduling" is to start considering 20- or 22-game conference seasons. Is that what you mean, or am I missing something?

I mean that other than exempt tournaments it's going to get harder for MVC schools to schedule games. I take expansion to mean that each Big 10 team will have about four non-con games to schedule every year, and they're using at least three of them on cupcakes. Therefore, the MVC will have two options--either schedule garbage teams and have the RPI return to pre-Renaissance conditions, take nothing but buy games every year, or add a REALLY good team or two (possibly combined with losing a bad team or two) and trying to create a better conference where scheduling is easier.

[Aegyptus]

I mean that other than exempt tournaments it's going to get harder for MVC schools to schedule games. I take expansion to mean that each Big 10 team will have about four non-con games to schedule every year, and they're using at least three of them on cupcakes. Therefore, the MVC will have two options--either schedule garbage teams and have the RPI return to pre-Renaissance conditions, take nothing but buy games every year, or add a REALLY good team or two (possibly combined with losing a bad team or two) and trying to create a better conference where scheduling is easier.

Well, Nyght, I am waiting for the reaction to this expansion/contraction talk, but nothing yet ... too many recruits out there at the moment I guess.

Whenever it does start, however, I hope you stick to your guns on this. It is the right conversation to have, even though it might not be the polite conversation to have.

[Panthera Pardus]

Can we all calm down for a second? I, for one, think that it's probably a good thing that the Big 10 do something like this. Me thinks a lot of the reason behind this decision had to do with the legions of people whining about "Yeah, but Team X only played Ohio State ONCE!" expanding your conference to 18 will at least eliminate a little bit of that.

Besides, the Valley has played an 18-game schedule for quite sometime now. Why should people hold this against the Big Ten? As far as cupcakes go, every single Valley team had at LEAST one on their non-conference schedule last year (I know that no one in Cedar Falls was really oozing excitement over the UNI/UMKC matchup). Those who live in glass houses and all that...

[btisu22]

This may also have something to do with their new Big 10(11) network. :puke:

[Aegyptus]

I have heard the network is not doing that well, actually. More Big Ten games may help that, true, although I am not sure an additional Iowa-Penn State matchup is any better than having an Iowa - Northern Iowa matchup.

It is not like we are holding this against the Big 11. From their standpoint this is a good business decision. Part of the factoring of that decision is the Iowa losses, the Wisconsin loss, the Purdue loss, all at the hands of the Valley, add in the Indiana loss to Butler and all the other Big 11 losses to mid majors, and cutting 1-2 nonconference games from the schedule seems a lot more acceptable. When you are playing nobodies and padding your win record for tourney time, then fine. But, when you start losing some of those games and you are kept out of the tourney because of that, then it is a different story. Add in this pressure this year because of the unbalanced schedule, and presto, an 18 game conference schedule.

This does have a big impact on the Valley. The Indiana and Iowa schools traditionally play each other. That is a big boon to the Valley because lately we have been winning a lot of those games which helps out RPI in the long run.

The Big Ten is becoming proactive in attempting to increase its tourney eligibility. The question is, is the Valley? Given our 2 (possibly 1) teams in the tourney last year, it is a legitimate question.

[Nyghtewynd]

Right. This doesn't have anything to do with the whole major/midmajor thing. It has to do with reality. How can MVC team give themselves the best chance to get into the NCAA tournament? By playing a good schedule and winning. If it's getting harder to create a good schedule, what are other ways to do so? By changing the makeup of the conference, for one.

[SalukiSpike]

Considering the UNI/Drake/Iowa State/Iowa matchups are state mandated, I doubt they go away.

[Nyghtewynd]

Considering the UNI/Drake/Iowa State/Iowa matchups are state mandated, I doubt they go away.

:doh:

[getreal4]

What mandate? :no: There has only been the ecouragement from state legislators to play in state opps

[chuckywang]

The Big Ten would love to have Notre Dame. Why do you think they have left that spot open?

Because there's nobody else to fill it?

[btisu22]

[QUOTE=Aegyptus]I have heard the network is not doing that well, actually. More Big Ten games may help that, true, although I am not sure an additional Iowa-Penn State matchup is any better than having an Iowa - Northern Iowa matchup[QUOTE]
I didn't think the network aired until August? That is what the commercials are saying. again:puke:

[Aegyptus]

What I had heard is that they are having trouble in getting cable companies to pick up the channel. They already have a good deal with DirectTV, but they also need to contract with the cable companies like Comcast, Insight, Charter, etc. to get the channel in the homes of the average cable user in the Midwest. I think that is what they are having trouble with. Obviously, I am not involved in the negotiations, so it is just hearsay on my part.

I can understand the difficultly, however. ABC/ESPN and CBS will still pick up all the good games, like Ohio State/Michigan and Indiana/Purdue. The games with the big television draws will still be on the traditional networks. So the Big Ten channel is only going to broadcast the games the other networks passed over. So, you really are talking about Iowa/Penn State kind of matchups. Those are not particularly big draws. Also, much of the college basketball season in the Big Ten is picked up by ESPNU if the major network does not pick it up. I assume that will continue, so most of college basketball will not be on the new channel. A few basketball games and few football games, but mostly baseball, volleyball, softball, swimming, etc. Plus, the Big Ten schools may put some academic programming on the station as well, from what I hear. Anyway, who would want to watch that? Obviously, when you are DirectTV with 9000 channels, it is no problem to put the Big 10 Network in. But, if you are Comcast, with a basic package of 70 channels, it is much harder to but the Big 10 network in over a channel like National Geographic or something.

[yeager]

What mandate? :no: There has only been the ecouragement from state legislators to play in state opps


I had always heard those teams had to play also every year demanded by the state.

[DUBulldog]

I had always heard those teams had to play also every year demanded by the state.

Urban legend......this comes up once-twice a year on this board, and people like Nyghtewynd and myself just bash our heads against the wall at having to explain it...............again. :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead:

[Panthera Pardus]

Considering the UNI/Drake/Iowa State/Iowa matchups are state mandated, I doubt they go away

There's only one thing to say about this persistent rumor...

http://www.visindavefur.hi.is/myndir/angry_mob.png

"BOOOOOOOOOO!"