UIC a good fit for Valley?

[flybird1]

I live in Chicago this is a Pro Sports town...UIC is a commuter campus with little student or community support so this wouldn't help much with a tv contract.. Northwestern or DePaul could capture this market if either team was able to put a decent product on the floor...Murray Sate may have good fan attendance but
is in the middle of a rural state which doesn't help much with TV revenues. As a program I do like Murray State and from a competition standpoint it would be a good fit.

I also live in Chicago, you talked about DePaul and NWestern. Why can't UIC beat it to them first. College hoops is in a sport vacuum right now, but a couple years back everyone was talking about DePaul. I'd say either Loyola or UIC is good for the Valley, which one of them has the edge I don't know. But possibly they need the right conference for Chicago to be talking college hoops again.

[ptownbraves]

UIC with an 0-2 record against Valley teams last season (UNI and Bradley). They went 7-9 in Horizon league conference play.

[flybird1]

They also beat Northwestern and took Bradley to the wire in brackbuster. I seen their coach and he looks like one to take them to the next level. UIC has the potential to become a Cincinnati of Chicago. They just need the right conference. Depaul is a wash, UIC in the right conference can take center stage.

[laxrx]

UIC, yes a few more students live on campus but they don't attend the games. There is no community feel to the place and with little tradition to draw non students. Yes the facility is nice and close to downtown but if there is no interest among the public they won't draw anymore than they do now and no tv ratings. I don't see what difference being a public University has on the decision....most of the valley schools are still public.
There are a few other choices out there including some schools with more tradition.

[Chuck A]

When was the last time you attended a UIC game or visited the campus? No community feel? No tradition? And DePaul has that?

[mvcfan]

UIC may have some potential to be a good addition if they make the right moves. But they have to be willing to invest the money to get the right leadership to make it happen. If they create excitement by winning, and market themselves correctly, they have plenty of wealth in the city to make it happen. However, if they think small and have small asparations, they will be a drag on the conference.

[Chuck A]

We have and are continuing to make the right moves. The University in essence, put pressure on Jimmy Collins to retire in order to make a change. We invested millions to build an excellent sports complex consisting of the best baseball diamonds (including softball) in the Horizon; a soccer field; softball/baseball field for intramurals and the community. A winding track encircles the entire complex. Now come news that Curtis Granderson is building a multi-million dollar baseball field that will be at the top of the HL and probably the MVC. A couple of years ago UIC updated the Pavilion and added a large video scoreboard with accentuating ribbon scoreboards. We spent money and hired a coach who sat under some pretty good coaches and allowed him to put together a pretty good staff. This past season we created quite a bit of excitement by racing out to a 9-1 record and a #10 ranking in the Mid-major poll before our 7-man rotation caught up with us.

Our school spends the money. It was a matter of getting rid of Jimmie Collins, who drove the program off the cliff.

[mvcfan]

We have and are continuing to make the right moves. The University in essence, put pressure on Jimmy Collins to retire in order to make a change. We invested millions to build an excellent sports complex consisting of the best baseball diamonds (including softball) in the Horizon; a soccer field; softball/baseball field for intramurals and the community. A winding track encircles the entire complex. Now come news that Curtis Granderson is building a multi-million dollar baseball field that will be at the top of the HL and probably the MVC. A couple of years ago UIC updated the Pavilion and added a large video scoreboard with accentuating ribbon scoreboards. We spent money and hired a coach who sat under some pretty good coaches and allowed him to put together a pretty good staff. This past season we created quite a bit of excitement by racing out to a 9-1 record and a #10 ranking in the Mid-major poll before our 7-man rotation caught up with us.

Our school spends the money. It was a matter of getting rid of Jimmie Collins, who drove the program off the cliff.

Now UIC has to spend a 7 figure salary on a coach.

[BirdFan 4Life]

This is impressive to say the least... I gotta give UIC that. http://youtu.be/O8UyRm7dKXU

The more you look at "Complete" Conf. Member, I think they most fit the bill. I know WSU will groan about another IL school...but being able to recruit the Chicago market harder is a benefit to every school in The Valley. My school, Illinois State, probably has 65 to 75% of our Alumni in the Chicago land area, along with many other Valley schools (SIU, BU, DU, UNI). This would obviously be great when said school is playing at the pavilion. People who don't live in Chicago always say "It's a great place to go visit, I just wouldn't want to live there". Even if your a WSU fan, Chicago has to be intriguing to go see for a weekend...I would think!?

[valleychamp]

UIC, yes a few more students live on campus but they don't attend the games. There is no community feel to the place and with little tradition to draw non students. Yes the facility is nice and close to downtown but if there is no interest among the public they won't draw anymore than they do now and no tv ratings. I don't see what difference being a public University has on the decision....most of the valley schools are still public.
There are a few other choices out there including some schools with more tradition.

This is going to be the case with the vast majority of mid-major schools located within larger cities. They are not going to have the college town community like many of the rest of us have.

If you want to add a major market (Milwaukee, Chicago, Tulsa, ect) to the conference you are going to have to take the good with the bad.