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[bigdawg]

We're a heck of a lot more civil than the majority of conferencne boards I've visited. And this board is a heck of a lot better than the old board. Which was still better than many others until a few ruined it.

Not sure what he's complaining about as this board is a freaking dream come true.

[MoValley John]

If anyone thinks this conference board isn't civil, they haven't really looked at many other message boards. To some degree, this board is overly civil and that civility leads to a lack of discussion, some censorship and limits some participation. On the other hand, if it weren't policed, this place would turn into the old west. If I were running this place, and thank God I'm not, I would operate this site like a faucet. I would allow more trash talk and off topic discussions to take place during the Summer, and tighten the spigot as basketball season neared. That would keep interest up during the offseason, keep this place active and maintain top of the mind awareness of the site during slow periods. As with any media, when activity slows, viewership slows and habits change. Keeping people on a webpage is a lot like keeping people on a radio station; once you lose them, it's tough to get them back. On the other hand, it is just as hard to corral that behavior once it's been allowed. So, I don't know the perfect answer. Again, thank God I don't make the decisions, they are tough to make and you never make everyone happy. But back to my fist point, if you think this board isn't civil, you might want to venture out to a few more conference boards. And if you're really gutsy, go to this team board and see how civil they are with each other and fans from other schools: http://texas.rivals.com/forum.asp?sid=902&fid=61&style=2

Onto what I have posted, having discussions about funding is very important, and while I refuse to back down on discussing the published problems at both UNI and MSU, I am very particular to point out that these problems exist at every Valley school. Unfortunately, that message seems to get lost and people might get the idea that I'm picking on UNI and MSU, I'm not. Every fan from every team in the Valley needs to be concerned about maintaining their athletic budgets. Fans are the one's that care, fans are the people that can make a difference. The politics in the legislature at every state house within the Valley footprint is largely made up of alumni that attended schools not in the Valley. These elected officials have no concern about cutting athletics at Valley programs. No concern at all. If the budget gets strained and the political sentiment is right, it would be just as easy for the Indiana statehouse to cut Sycamore athletic funding as it would be for Panther funding to be cut at the Iowa capitol.

And the private schools need to be concerned as well. I don't know exactly how it all works, but Fr. Schlegel was just as instrumental in returning Creighton to respectability as was Dana Altman. From what I'm told, his predecessor didn't have the commitment, nor the belief in the importance of athletics and slashed the Creighton athletic budget. I thionk he would have been happy if he could have shelled the whole program. Fr. Schlegal just retired and some Creighton fans were worried that his replacement might do just the same thing. From what I understand, that is not the case. In fact, it appears that the new president is even more committed to athletics, so Creighton should be in good shape. How the other private Valley schools are structured, I also don't know, but if push comes to shove, just like their public counterparts, the funding within the private schools is also of concern.

While we shouldn't be under the illusion that everything is roses at UNI and MSU, just because rumors, talks and other dialog hasn't hit the media, every Valley school is equally at risk. Fans are the frontline defense against budget cuts. Fans on message boards are some of the most loyal. Fans here need to be on top of the budget situations at each school and they need to be the first to donate, volunteer, purchase tickets and show up. If you don't think your school is at risk, as I said in an earlier post, you have your head in the sand.

Rant over, civility restored.

[MoValley John]

We're a heck of a lot more civil than the majority of conferencne boards I've visited. And this board is a heck of a lot better than the old board. Which was still better than many others until a few ruined it.

Not sure what he's complaining about as this board is a freaking dream come true.

Yeah, but you're a midget loving, cat roping, mush mouthed gurglehead!

Okay, I was just kidding. I really hope I don't get banned...

[glm38]

I'm really not sure the discussions regarding rival MVC schools funding and finances serves any useful purpose on this board? I agree it is very important for the fans of the respective schools to be well informed and mindful of their own school's financial situation. But I've learned absolutely nothing that I didn't already know about MSU financial issues here. I think that would be the same for UNI, CU, etc, etc. These are issues best left for our individual fan boards.

Does it profit me or anyone to know that UNI or any of the other schools are having financial issues? Is that relevant to anyone other than their own fans? To me the manner in which these issues are discussed by fans of rival schools is just confrontational and serves no real purpose.

I suppose you could make the argument that we all need to watch out for schools defecting or dropping out of a sport or sports due to lack of financing. But that's a pretty thin argument.

I much prefer our discussions about basketball.

[2livewu]

Yeah, but you're a midget loving, cat roping, mush mouthed gurglehead!

What's wrong with loving midgets? They need love too!

[MoValley John]

I suppose you could make the argument that we all need to watch out for schools defecting or dropping out of a sport or sports due to lack of financing. But that's a pretty thin argument.

I much prefer our discussions about basketball.

Okay, since you want to keep this focused on basketball, let me rephrase the whole UNI situation. UNI is currently competing in the minimum sports allowed to be considered D-1. Some UNI fans have mentioned that they may add an additional women's sport, but unitil that sport is actually added, UNI is at the bare minimum. In other words, if funding drops and UNI has to cut just one sport, be it tennis or cross country, they are no longer a D-1 program. That is the reality of the situation at UNI. Sure, they have assurances from the state legislature that funding will not be cut, but until they become more self-sufficient, until their athletic funding isn't so heavily dependent on the state government, they will always be at the mercy of those lawmakers. And with current funding only allowing them to participate in the bare minimum, any cuts could force them to cut a sport which will end their participation in D-1 basketball and affiliation in the Valley. This is how the financial situation at UNI affects basketball and everyone concerned with the Valley.

[valleychamp]

I suppose you could make the argument that we all need to watch out for schools defecting or dropping out of a sport or sports due to lack of financing. But that's a pretty thin argument.

I much prefer our discussions about basketball.

Okay, since you want to keep this focused on basketball, let me rephrase the whole UNI situation. UNI is currently competing in the minimum sports allowed to be considered D-1. Some UNI fans have mentioned that they may add an additional women's sport, but unitil that sport is actually added, UNI is at the bare minimum. In other words, if funding drops and UNI has to cut just one sport, be it tennis or cross country, they are no longer a D-1 program. That is the reality of the situation at UNI. Sure, they have assurances from the state legislature that funding will not be cut, but until they become more self-sufficient, until their athletic funding isn't so heavily dependent on the state government, they will always be at the mercy of those lawmakers. And with current funding only allowing them to participate in the bare minimum, any cuts could force them to cut a sport which will end their participation in D-1 basketball and affiliation in the Valley. This is how the financial situation at UNI affects basketball and everyone concerned with the Valley.

Once again, you are misinformed. The minimum # of sports required to be D1 is 14.--http://www.ncaa.org/wps/wcm/connect/public/NCAA/About+the+NCAA/Who+We+Are/Differences+Among+the+Divisions/Division+I/About+Division+I

UNI currently sponsors 15 sports, and will be adding another women's program in the near future.