If Missouri State leaves, who do you add?

[SalukiWorld]

The only reason to move from the MVFC to the Sun Belt is money. Money is great for your university but it doesn't really benefit the fans at all. You'll be stuck in a low-level FBS conference where the best you can hope for is a conference championship that nobody cares about and playing in the GoDaddy.com Bowl on a December Tuesday Night in Shreveport, Louisiana where it's 40 degrees against some Mountain West school. And then on top of that you go to a worse basketball league than you're already in when your premiere sport is basketball.

[Drakey]

The only reason to move from the MVFC to the Sun Belt is money. Money is great for your university but it doesn't really benefit the fans at all. You'll be stuck in a low-level FBS conference where the best you can hope for is a conference championship that nobody cares about and playing in the GoDaddy.com Bowl on a December Tuesday Night in Shreveport, Louisiana where it's 40 degrees against some Mountain West school. And then on top of that you go to a worse basketball league than you're already in when your premiere sport is basketball.

Doesn't it cost more to run an FBS program than you get playing in a conference like the Sun Belt?

[unipanther99]

The only reason to move from the MVFC to the Sun Belt is money. Money is great for your university but it doesn't really benefit the fans at all. You'll be stuck in a low-level FBS conference where the best you can hope for is a conference championship that nobody cares about and playing in the GoDaddy.com Bowl on a December Tuesday Night in Shreveport, Louisiana where it's 40 degrees against some Mountain West school. And then on top of that you go to a worse basketball league than you're already in when your premiere sport is basketball.

Doesn't it cost more to run an FBS program than you get playing in a conference like the Sun Belt?

Even some power 5 teams don't turn a profit. It's all about how much you are willing to spend for what level of exposure?

[BEARZ77]

The only reason to move from the MVFC to the Sun Belt is money. Money is great for your university but it doesn't really benefit the fans at all. You'll be stuck in a low-level FBS conference where the best you can hope for is a conference championship that nobody cares about and playing in the GoDaddy.com Bowl on a December Tuesday Night in Shreveport, Louisiana where it's 40 degrees against some Mountain West school. And then on top of that you go to a worse basketball league than you're already in when your premiere sport is basketball.

No offense, but I do have to laugh at people who assume their perspective from outside looking in, is more valid than the professionals who are being paid to make those determinations and have access to all the factors being considered. I've made many of the same arguments you make over the years against low level FBS football, and still maintain some of them, I'm a basketball guy first and foremost. But I also recognize we have a very business savvy President who has done a fantastic job for Missouri State and so I trust his judgement, which is not the same as agreeing with , because sometimes I don't. But until he starts to have things not work out consistently, I'll believe he knows what he's doing and if he decides it's in Missouri State's best interest to move, I'll voice any concerns I have and then get behind his decision. I luv the Valley, been a Valley fan[ 1964] long before I was a MSU alum , and my preference is to find a way to meet our goals while a member of the MVC. But if he[we] think there's a way to better meet those, so be it.

[Drakey]

The only reason to move from the MVFC to the Sun Belt is money. Money is great for your university but it doesn't really benefit the fans at all. You'll be stuck in a low-level FBS conference where the best you can hope for is a conference championship that nobody cares about and playing in the GoDaddy.com Bowl on a December Tuesday Night in Shreveport, Louisiana where it's 40 degrees against some Mountain West school. And then on top of that you go to a worse basketball league than you're already in when your premiere sport is basketball.

No offense, but I do have to laugh at people who assume their perspective from outside looking in, is more valid than the professionals who are being paid to make those determinations and have access to all the factors being considered. I've made many of the same arguments you make over the years against low level FBS football, and still maintain some of them, I'm a basketball guy first and foremost. But I also recognize we have a very business savvy President who has done a fantastic job for Missouri State and so I trust his judgement, which is not the same as agreeing with , because sometimes I don't. But until he starts to have things not work out consistently, I'll believe he knows what he's doing and if he decides it's in Missouri State's best interest to move, I'll voice any concerns I have and then get behind his decision. I luv the Valley, been a Valley fan[ 1964] long before I was a MSU alum , and my preference is to find a way to meet our goals while a member of the MVC. But if he[we] think there's a way to better meet those, so be it.

So what are the goals of a state school like MSU and why? It would seem the original purpose was to provide educational opportunities for Missouri residents. Who are they competing with? Undoubtedly the people who run the school want to make it as good as possible, but since it is funded by the state, there is really no way for it to fail. How is having a Low level FBS program going to improve the school? If it causes more students to attend, won't that primarily be at the expense of SEMO or Truman State? I understand entirely how athletics is extremely important to private schools because they DO need to attract students to survive. It is less clear to me with regard to State Schools, other than the P5 schools where sports has nothing to do with the schools and is just a licensed business.

[BEARZ77]

Like any other institution, you like to be in partnership and affiliated with similar institutions, so I think that always is part of a decision to move. The Valley really is a mix, and not just privates and publics. Illinois State is really the only school with a very similar profile anymore. Enrollment is an issue for publics, not just privates, and MSU for the first time in quite a while suffered some decrease, albeit fairly minor, in undergrad enrollment the past year. They don't want to get on the same trend some other schools have been with annually decreasing enrollment, and we certainly don't limit our outreach to just Missouri, so having exposure in other neighboring states is important.

In the Valley we no longer have any regional /natural rivals ; not saying either CUSA or SunBelt give us that, but there certainly isn't any current one in the MVC to worry about maintaining. Probably the only thing close is Drake in WBB, which obviously isn't gonna be a reason to hold service. I think Mo St has always valued the complete spectrum of athletics and so a conference like the Sun Belt is a definite solid home for baseball and soccer programs. I think we feel our WBB program will be elite wherever it is because of history and our ability to schedule at a very high level in noncon. I really think our baseball program will be back to expected levels in the next 1-2 years because of the changes we've made to really serve youth in our coaching staff. Hawkins and Petree have really had a good off season in recruiting and have brought this team full bore into the use of metrics to assess and develop players. Overall, I think in general, we'd rather be having to make trips S/SE rather than N/ NE for many sports ; no small coincidence that with Smart as the expansion committee chair, Belmont and Murray St were targets.

I'm sure there are things financially, academically and business wise that President Smart is looking at as he decides what recommendations he makes to the board. But hey, someone has to ask us first, and we haven't gotten that from anyone we felt was a good fit currently, so this could easily be a moot topic . He's said many times, we are in a very good position in the Valley and aren't looking to move just to move .

For some of our boosters , it really is an image thing; I've heard probably a thousand times over the years, "a large state university should play d-1 football" . Obviously you can thrash that statement around in a number of ways, I'm just saying that's how they view it and their sentiment. It really doesn't matter to me, because I've said many times , I see low level FBS and high level FCS merging in the future . I see some fun in having some new schools to compete with , but again, I like the MVC. I grew up watching SLU play the likes of Cinn/Bradley/Memphis/ Louisville, etc in the 60's , always been my conference.

[unipanther99]

If studies were to show that a move to the MAC would increase UNI's enrollment by 25%, I think we would go in a heartbeat - even understanding what that would do to the basketball program. I'm not advocating for this, nor do I think an invitation like that is forthcoming, I'm just using it as an example.

I think playing big boy football would probably help to fill our dorms. That's what is needed more than anything else right now in higher ed.

[BEARZ77]

Every Valley school has their unique needs and perspective, as well as goals. We've been growing for the most part, have been able to finance and complete a number of infrastructure/ facility upgrades to the point we compare very well in that arena. Unlike most Valley schools, we really are the second largest and have the most resources of the other schools in our state outside MU. Enrollment drives all that. And we're run by a business man not an academic, however you choose to view that.

[Mikovio]

I really doubt joining the MAC and playing Ball State, Bowling Green and Eastern Michigan are going to help fill dorms. What it will do is increase the football budget at the expense of the overall and especially basketball budget making it harder to attract and retain coaches. The idea that it grows the overall pie so much to make up for that seems a real stretch. That’s not to say it’s right or wrong. As a BU fan though I don’t want to be in a league with schools that will run big deficits to chase the football rabbit and make athletic department cuts elsewhere to feed the beast.

[TBS_20]

There is 0 point for any mvfc team to move to the mac or conference usa