havoc wrote:BCPanther wrote:
All of a sudden you are building a league around ... Evansville (never should have been invited).
If we want to look at six year windows, the six years prior to joining the MVC, Evansville made three trips to the NCAA tournament, won one game, went to the NIT once, and averaged around 10,000 fans per game. If someone like that wanted to join the Valley today, I don't think very many people would have to many objections
A great illustration.
If I were to select teams to build a conference, past results would be a consideration, but not a large one. The biggest consideration I would make would be financial viability and stability. Ask these questions:
1) Can the school afford to invest in the program at the same level of the other members?
2) Can the school afford to compensate coaches at the same levels as other members?
3) What are the facilities like? Is there a budget to keep adding or improving them?
4) What is the school's plan to stay competitive at the highest levels of the conference? Is there a plan?
5) What is the level of community support in the program?
6) Where do athletics fall in the school's culture? What percentage of the student body goes to games?
