Missouri State leaving MVC for CUSA

[mvfcfan]

I'm not a fan of Deborah Curtis, but if true I'll have to give her credit where credit is due when it comes to getting Murray State in the conference.

When it comes to replacing Missouri State, selfishly the only thing I want at this point is someone regional that's close enough for me to travel to for an away game. I suppose Eastern Illinois, IUPUI, Northern Kentucky, Southern Indiana, and Fort Wayne would be my top 5 choices. I suppose NKU is the only realistic choice, so yeah give me them. The MVC has pretty well solidified itself as a one bid league so I'm not going to be too picky at this point. Just don't make it a one bid league that involves flying the volleyball team to Dallas or Minneapolis.

But no big deal if Drake and UNI have to fly their volleyball teams to Cincinnati, right....

I'm lukewarm at best on St Thomas but I'd almost prefer them or someone that everybody has to fly to. Don't love the imbalance of Drake and UNI having to spend way more on travel than the rest of the league...

Doesn't bother me at all. The MVC can move the conference tournament to Indianapolis too as far as I'm concerned.

[BCPanther]

I had heard the Drake President was a hard no on Murray St in 2017, so that lines up there. Fortunately, he must’ve changed his mind come 2021. Also, Bradley’s president then supposedly joined him in opposition, but fortunately BU upgraded presidents in time for the next expansion cycle.

I don't think Drake flipped. When the league was at 10, it took a minimum of 8 yes votes for a school to get added. In 2017, Murray had 7 yes. In 2021, the no from Loyola was replaced with a yes from Belmont, so Murray got their 8 votes. UIC hadn't been added yet at the time of the vote.

I get the frustration from the Iowa schools to a point, but it isn't like we are looking at an east coast school. Hell, Highland Heights, KY is about 300 miles closer to Cedar Falls than Arlington. I am sure CVG can handle anything that comes from Iowa just as easily as DFW can.

Not the point.

UNI and Drake don't need to give everyone else yet another bus trip while adding a flight (to be clear this is for non-revenues). It's about the budget imbalance of that scenario rather than adding another flight. That's why my preference is somewhere that everybody has to fly to. That said, I know it's going to be NKU and that's fine. It is what it is and the league needs to continue the momentum it's got right now.

[BEARZ77]

Of course, neither of those schools play baseball which is the biggest travel sport there is.

[IllinoisState]

Wartburg College is only 30 minutes from UNI and 2 hours from Drake.

[MissouriValleyUnite]

Wartburg College is only 30 minutes from UNI and 2 hours from Drake.

I’d prefer Simpson College, personally. Is Homer the mascot?

[TylerDurden]

Where did I claim they didn't play a season in the horizon without Drew? I know they did. Once again I would like to iterate that my information is that terms were being agreed upon as Drew was leaving. As for why they didn't pay the exit fee, I am not aware of that. All I know is that terms were being agreed upon in early 2016, with Drew leaving in late April.

I am not claiming that Drew was the coach up until joining the MVC. That is ridiculous. My claim is only that terms were being agreed upon as Drew was exiting. Terms in early 2016 and Drew exiting in late April of the same year. Lottich took over to finish out the Horizon tenure and was coach through last year.

Whoever told you that there were negotiations/agreements/whatever in 2016 was misinformed. It's just not true. It's also not the scapegoat you think it is. It's more of an indictment.

Valpo couldn't give the required notice and avoid paying the exit fee altogether because this agreement you keep claiming was in place was, in fact, not in place.

They didn't pay when they were supposed to because: 1.) They didn't have the money; and 2.) they thought they could get away cheaper through the legal process. What they didn't anticipate is just how petty the Horizon League is/was.

It's really that simple.

[Drakey]

I would prefer St Thomas simply because they have much more potential than another afterthought state school. Where is Northern Kentucky in the sport hierarchy in Kentucky? 6th? 7th? St Thomas is #2 in Minnesota. While they have not been at it long, their situation is very similar to Creighton's. From what I've heard they are loaded with money.

[BCPanther]

I would prefer St Thomas simply because they have much more potential than another afterthought state school. Where is Northern Kentucky in the sport hierarchy in Kentucky? 6th? 7th? St Thomas is #2 in Minnesota. While they have not been at it long, their situation is very similar to Creighton's. From what I've heard they are loaded with money.

https://tommiesports.com/feature/lee-an ... rson-arena

It's going to be an awfully impressive complex up there.

[IllinoisState]

I would prefer St Thomas simply because they have much more potential than another afterthought state school. Where is Northern Kentucky in the sport hierarchy in Kentucky? 6th? 7th? St Thomas is #2 in Minnesota. While they have not been at it long, their situation is very similar to Creighton's. From what I've heard they are loaded with money.

Same here. I want the best we can get. I do understand UNI and Drake being at the far end of the conference and being a small private school and the number 3 school in the state don't help your athletics budgets, but there aren't any good options to the west unfortunately.

[Khan4Cats]

Wartburg College is only 30 minutes from UNI and 2 hours from Drake.

There are at least 20 high schools in Iowa with larger enrollments than Wartburg.