ESPN says Creighton to C7 in 2014

[tribecalledquest]

I think Drake would like to maintain a healthy public/private balance, but I don't think they would be quick to leave the only conference they've really ever known.

Being a member of a dwindling minority in a conference full of scholarship football playing schools is always a concern.

I agree 100%. I've said all along that the privates have to push for another private for sure. This whole thing is happening because a similar group of private schools want to be in a league of like schools. Bradley and Drake should be no different.

To me Oral Roberts is the no brainer first choice.

[Deanthonybowdenfan]

If Creighton is gone to the C7, im going to miss the Valley for sure. Its probably a good thing for us, especially for the long run, and could take us to a higher level with our basketball program. But its not like the Valley has been a bad place for us or anything. We have rivalries here, some with a lot of history, all the Valley schools are midwestern schools, most of them are fairly close to us. Traveling to many of our games is not a big hassle in the MVC, in the C7 it will be a long way between us and the rest of the schools.
We will fit in fine in the C7, and will have a better chance to get better recruits and take our basketball to the next level, I'm definately going to miss playing our rivals though, IF we do go to the new league.

[pafan]

A shot across the bow. What I think Bradley is really saying is, "If Creighton leaves and is replaced with a public school, we're outta here." I'd suspect Drake and Evansville have similar feelings.

I strongly doubt Evansville will leave the Valley, unless the Valley disintegrates (defined as: three or more departures of current MVC members before the 2014-2015 season).

Keep in mind that Evansville's options aren't fabulous.

There's the Horizon, to which Evansville is a bit of a geographic outlier these days. (Nearest schools are Wright State and Valpo, about 5 hours drive each). Even in an MVC without CU and WSU, the MVC is an equal to the Horizon, competition wise.

There's the Summit, which generally stinks on a competitive level, is pretty terrible on travel, and seems like a leading candidate to have members plucked by other conferences.

There's the OVC, whose biggest drawback is FCS football, although there are several non-football members. The OVC is again a poor basketball conference.

[bisonnation]

I know some of you guys will never agree but NDSU, SDSU, or Oral Roberts would be solid additons. Not as sexy as some teams but we are solid schools. Oral Roberts seems better on the surface, they haven't made the big dance since 2008 while NDSU and SDSU have. And the Dakota schools outdrew them. And soon enough NDSU will have a better facility than ORU. Too bad you can't add 3. Would love to join our natural rivals in the Missouri Valley Football Conference. We would be stable and solid. With conference reallignment happening, stable is a good thing. Look how long the MVFC has stayed in tact for football?

[Haha]

As much as I hate to say it wichita state isn't going anywhere. There is no where for them to go. They have the budget/facilities/fan support but are an ODD duck. Not private, no football, and geography wise wichita sits on the edge of a population desert between the Great Plains and the front range.

[Haha]

It's going to be ugly but my guess is ORU or gulp ...Valpo

Makes me wonder about isur and msu, it is known via Foia that sunbelt at least has them on list of consideration.

Heck bradley might be an a-10 candidate .

[kochhead22]

If/When Creighton does leave i'm definitely worried about Wichita State. I like Sexton as a guy but i don't know how much faith i have in him getting out there and finding us a new home, i feel like he'll sit back and listen to Elgin and add be happy when the Valley adds some mediocre team to replace Creighton.

[TylerDurden]

I'm still the only one in the world who believes, but WSU to the Mountain West makes so much sense for all parties, but for whatever reason the MWC is standing still. They should have a lot of interest in cutting the legs out from under a major threat to their upper-major kingdom.

Alright Elgin. You had time to find a plan, whatever that plan was. Now let's see some cards.

The MWC doesn't want a non-football-playing member. Neither does C-USA or any other league that plays in the FBS. That's the reason you're looking for to explain the lack of interest toward WSU. I can certainly appreciate your efforts following this shuffling, but if you don't have football, you don't make sense to a football league. It's that simple.

Schools with a FCS football team have more immediate options than WSU, if we're talking about them jumping to an existing league. Now, if you want to talk about forming a new league, there are possibilities. Most of that potential lies in the ability to get a lucrative TV deal. The new Fox network provides an opportunity to explore some options, but IMO, it would be a difficult sell.

If WSU wants to move "up" it needs to add football. I do think they could get into the discussion for a depleted A10, although they're probably a far-fetched option mainly based on academic profile and geography. And the reality is, an A10 without Temple, Xavier, Dayton, SLU, Butler, etc. isn't really a better option than the MVC without Creighton. Moving leagues laterally for the sake of moving is a mistake, again, IMO.

I just don't see a non-football league that's a better option for WSU after schools shift leagues this summer.

[Haha]

http://blogs.gazette.com/afasports/2013 ... tain-west/

Just some reporter blabbing but at least someone outside of Wichita has thought about it.

I would like to add I don't believe WSU has any shot at moving to MWC.

[unipanther99]

I continue to think Denver would be the best option. They have been putting a fairly good team together the past few years. I know their in-city fan support is minimal right now, but that can change. They are private, so Drake, Bradley, and Evansville can be accommodated and they have a nice arena.