Updated 1/6/18: MVC Expansion Poll

[RacerJoeD]

Not to butt in too much, but the weak conference that had Murray in it last season got more bids than the MVC... (and there is no way to compare how awful the OVC is in a line by line comparison to the MVC)

[E-Villan]

Not to butt in too much, but the weak conference that had Murray in it last season got more bids than the MVC... (and there is no way to compare how awful the OVC is in a line by line comparison to the MVC)

Indeed. All the more reason Murray should give the one-finger salute if a call comes in from St. Louis.

We have to fix ourselves before we can expect you to.

[RacerJoeD]

With all due respect, you have no idea how bad it actually is in the OVC

[BCPanther]

Wow. Murray got their fans to drive 2 hours to watch their best team in decades and a lottery pick.

I'm impressed. Most schools having great seasons struggle to get people excited enough to watch them.

They brought more peeps to the OVC championship than the MVC brought to its championship and led the MVC in home attendance.

Considering what the crowd for our final looked like, we have no room to throw shade.

It certainly wasn't their best team in decades either.

Agreed. A UNI fan should be the last person throwing shade on attendance. Even the year they cracked the Top 20, their attendance was mid-pack in the league. What would the arenas in Springfield, Evansville, Peoria, Normal, and Terre Haute look like with the home team ranked in the Top 20?

Back to Murray, although it has been said for 100+ pages, most of us like them. As an Evansville fan, it would be great for us..they have a lot of alumni in our metro, they travel here well and they have a quality program. But I see reasons not to at this time. Odd number of teams, Murray, KY would be the smallest town in the conference, and their media market, which isn't huge, already has a MVC team it it.

What I really don't see is why the addition of IPFUFW to the Horizon should be the cause of immediate concern for every member of the MVC? People in Ft. Wayne don't care, why the heck should we? There is no gigantic ripple that will be the result of this.

I am sure it has been said many times in these 100 pages, but adding Murray doesn't equate to more bids. Raising the profile of the league is up to the current 10 members of this conference. Without that, we are just adding another mouth at the table. If we want to be a perennial top 10 conference, then we need to act like it. I am far more concerned when 2 of our schools take buy games from an A-10 team. The A-10 doesn't allow their coaches to participate in the mid-major poll, yet we wear it like a badge of honor. I like to think top to bottom our programs bring more to the table than the A-10 ones, yet the perception is otherwise. If we are going to take buy games from them, then we shouldn't be upset when they take the MWC challenge from us, or get multiple bids while we get a single 14 seed.

We averaged 5960 in a 6650 seat building in league play that year. Take out the one game during an ice storm while the students were gone (vs SIU 1/7/15 Att: 3910) and that makes it 6704 which would put us at 101% of capacity. I'm not sure what else we're supposed to do.

Anyway, I'm all for Murray but the league presidents have made it clear that 11 isn't happening. Convince Belmont to come along and you're in the Valley tomorrow.

[Mikovio]

I know the MVC just had its worst year in awhile, and the OVC one of its best, but you's be crazy to prefer to be in the OVC long term. The OVC is Murray, Belmont and a lot of crap. And Belmont owes its success 100% entirely to the coach who just left, so it remains to be seen if they can maintain with almost no fan support.

[TheAsianSensation]

It's still crazy to me that people think that adding Murray won't result in more bids overall.

Horizon just went to 11 teams. Interesting. If 11 teams and 20 conference games their endgame? I doubt it budges the MVC's thinking on that (for the record, I'm for 11 teams but way against 20 conference games).

[uniguy]

Add the Horizon League to the list of leagues that have somehow found a way to solve the seemingly unsolvable 11-team dilemma.

The Summit and Horizon, the two midwestern leagues that are supposedly below ours, have now both proactively added teams in the last year. It can be done.

[VUGrad1314]

And with our considerable struggle adjusting to this league the MVC can use all of the firepower it can get. The fact that Valpo has underperformed to such a degree is even more proof that the Racers are needed. I really doubt they would have the same issues we have. Their administration actually cares about being successful in athletics.

[TylerDurden]

Add the Horizon League to the list of leagues that have somehow found a way to solve the seemingly unsolvable 11-team dilemma.

The Summit and Horizon, the two midwestern leagues that are supposedly below ours, have now both proactively added teams in the last year. It can be done.

I commented on the IPFW thread, but I don't see the Horizon staying at 11 for very long.

[Dawgbit]

Not to butt in too much, but the weak conference that had Murray in it last season got more bids than the MVC... (and there is no way to compare how awful the OVC is in a line by line comparison to the MVC)

And one of those teams got thumped by 30 or so by the Seminoles in round two, not mentioning any names though!