Hopefully this is just phase 1 of expansion

[Redhawk]

Four of the last eight finals had WSU as a participant. The most of anyone in the conference.

The ISU Redbirds have been in the finals 5 of the past 10 years while UNI Panthers 4 of the last 9.

Did you know that prior to their 2010 Championship appearance WSU had not made it to the finals
for 22 straight years?

Arch Madness survived without the Shockers then and it will now!

[musiccitybulldog]

Next March Shocker fans will be on here wishing they were back.

Will be interesting to see how the tournament plays out. Will Valpo bring a crowd?

[shocktheheart]

Next March Shocker fans will be on here wishing they were back.

Will be interesting to see how the tournament plays out. Will Valpo bring a crowd?

Why would WSU be wishing they were back? They are going to be a top 10 team. Fifteen of our league games are going to be with a team that had a RPI of 150 or better last year and only three games with a RPI of 150 or worse. Last year we had four games in the MVC with a RPI of 150 or better and fourteen games with a RPI of 150 or worse. Doesn't help an at large resume. Ask Illinois St.

[VUGrad1314]

I think that this marks an era of opportunity for all MVC members. Now that the Shockes, a team that outspent every Valley member by at least 2:1 have graduated to a conference with a budgetary structure more befitting of their considerable means, every Valley team now has the chance to fill the vacuum created by their departure. This should result in increased administrative commitment and expenditure on basketball on the part of each school; as well as, dare I say, a stronger (better?!) top to bottom league. Losing the profile and the top 50 games Wichita State once provided will hurt and will not be good for TV contracts in the short run but I fully expect the league to land on its feet when the time comes to renegotiate in 2-3 years, especially if we land a couple of solid expansion schools in the meantime. Remember, KenPom STILL has this conference in the top 10 WITHOUT the Shockers, and the metric where Wichita State's departure deals its heaviest damage--RPI-- is purportedly being de-emphasized by the selection committee starting this year presumably in favor of metrics like KenPom. Wichita State's departure hurts, to be sure, but it is not the death blow people are making it out to be. Good luck to the Shockers in the AAC, but they shouldn't be worried about the Valley. The conference is going to be just fine and should still come away with a nice media deal going forward.

[Born2Shock]

I think that this marks an era of opportunity for all MVC members. Now that the Shockes, a team that outspent every Valley member by at least 2:1 have graduated to a conference with a budgetary structure more befitting of their considerable means, every Valley team now has the chance to fill the vacuum created by their departure. This should result in increased administrative commitment and expenditure on basketball on the part of each school; as well as, dare I say, a stronger (better?!) top to bottom league. Losing the profile and the top 50 games Wichita State once provided will hurt and will not be good for TV contracts in the short run but I fully expect the league to land on its feet when the time comes to renegotiate in 2-3 years, especially if we land a couple of solid expansion schools in the meantime. Remember, KenPom STILL has this conference in the top 10 WITHOUT the Shockers, and the metric where Wichita State's departure deals its heaviest damage--RPI-- is purportedly being de-emphasized by the selection committee starting this year presumably in favor of metrics like KenPom. Wichita State's departure hurts, to be sure, but it is not the death blow people are making it out to be. Good luck to the Shockers in the AAC, but they shouldn't be worried about the Valley. The conference is going to be just fine and should still come away with a nice media deal going forward.

Why would the administrators spend MORE when they dont have to?

[VUGrad1314]

Because doing so now will help grow the profile of their program and university by making them more competitive and they will be more likely to see a return on their investment as opposed to trying to do the impossible and compete with the Koch brothers. Trying to do that is in their minds a misallocation of funds because the return just wouldn't be there.

[Jsnhbe1Birds]

Business 101. Spend money to make money

[Born2Shock]

Because doing so now will help grow the profile of their program and university by making them more competitive and they will be more likely to see a return on their investment as opposed to trying to do the impossible and compete with the Koch brothers. Trying to do that is in their minds a misallocation of funds because the return just wouldn't be there.

Most of them will still see the auto-bid as the way to the tourney. Why spend more? You are vastly over-estimating the financial commitment these administrators have. Most are very content with the status quo, and now that a path to the tourney is seen as being easier, they will maintain that very same status quo.

[VUGrad1314]

I may be overestimating the commitment of the administrators to athletics but I think you are underestimating what a game-changing event the departure of Wichita State is. It has created a situation where there is no clear frontrunner; no dominant power to stifle a program's competitive ambitions. Literally any program in the conference can now take that mantle and run with it. Administrators are smart enough to know that the conference is at a crossroads, and the pathway to the most money (multiple tournament bids)is through everyone going for the brass ring at once to elevate the conference's collective metrics. More investment means more postseason bids, more postseason bids means more visibility, more visibility means more students, and more students means more money. Colleges are BUSINESSES and the people running them aren't stupid and understand the concept of strategic investment. For current MVC members, there is no better time than the present to make such investments in their athletic programs. They may not HAVE to spend more , but they're going to WANT to spend more with the goal of becoming the next Wichita State. And from what I have gathered from reading here on this site, commitment appears to be up at several institutions. If the MVC is as married to the status quo as you suggest, then why is the expansion process ongoing?

[Cdizzle]

I may be overestimating the commitment of the administrators to athletics but I think you are underestimating what a game-changing event the departure of Wichita State is. It has created a situation where there is no clear frontrunner; no dominant power to stifle a program's competitive ambitions. Literally any program in the conference can now take that mantle and run with it. Administrators are smart enough to know that the conference is at a crossroads, and the pathway to the most money (multiple tournament bids)is through everyone going for the brass ring at once to elevate the conference's collective metrics. More investment means more postseason bids, more postseason bids means more visibility, more visibility means more students, and more students means more money. Colleges are BUSINESSES and the people running them aren't stupid and understand the concept of strategic investment. For current MVC members, there is no better time than the present to make such investments in their athletic programs. They may not HAVE to spend more , but they're going to WANT to spend more with the goal of becoming the next Wichita State. And from what I have gathered from reading here on this site, commitment appears to be up at several institutions. If the MVC is as married to the status quo as you suggest, then why is the expansion process ongoing?

Good for the MVC if programs decide to commit. But this logic is beyond flawed. Programs that aspire to be great do everything they can to get there regardless of the headwinds. Bradley is a good example of this. They had success in the late 90s and again in the mid-2000's. Since then, they have endured just a horrible decade. But they have kept investing. They have kept trying to find solutions. It hasn't worked out yet, but it will.

And then there is Evansville.