2024-25 Non-Conference Schedules

[tribecalledquest]

Jeff Bidwell had a great podcast the other day about the Racers' scheduling woes.

The low-major teams have been gobbled up by the highest bidders from the Power 4/5 conferences, which limits significantly the pool of available buy games.

The Racers still need a home buy game and a 1 for 1 that begins in Murray.

The non P5's should get out of the guarantee game business. Home and home and neutral's only.

[BUFanatic]

Jeff Bidwell had a great podcast the other day about the Racers' scheduling woes.

The low-major teams have been gobbled up by the highest bidders from the Power 4/5 conferences, which limits significantly the pool of available buy games.

The Racers still need a home buy game and a 1 for 1 that begins in Murray.

The non P5's should get out of the guarantee game business. Home and home and neutral's only.

Yes. We need a conference or two to get into scheduling agreements with us.

[tribecalledquest]

Jeff Bidwell had a great podcast the other day about the Racers' scheduling woes.

The low-major teams have been gobbled up by the highest bidders from the Power 4/5 conferences, which limits significantly the pool of available buy games.

The Racers still need a home buy game and a 1 for 1 that begins in Murray.

The non P5's should get out of the guarantee game business. Home and home and neutral's only.

Yes. We need a conference or two to get into scheduling agreements with us.

And to do so - the league might have to settle for a league they may not see as exactly "equal". For example - it won't be the A10 or the Mountain West.

[ReZyNeZy]

I would probably say a scheduling agreement with the HL seems most likely then. Not too much travel and most here see them as a "lesser" league, but not so much lesser that the games dont offer any form of competitiveness.

[BCPanther]

UNI has signed a H-H with UC-Irvine starting in Cedar Falls this year. Schedule is done other than announcing which non-DI we're playing and a date for Northern Illinois.

Nov 4 Non-DI
Nov 7 Milwaukee (buy)
Nov 10 UC-Irvine (First of H-H)
Nov 14 at Wichita State (First of H-H)
Nov 19 Western Illinois (buy)
Nov 28 North Texas NIT Season Tipoff
Nov 29 Utah State/St Bonaventure NIT Season Tipoff
Dec 10 Northern Illinois (3rd of 3-for-1) **Date not confirmed**
Dec 13 Omaha (buy)
Dec 16 Montana (First of H-H)
Dec 21 vs Washington State in Vegas]

[TylerDurden]

I would probably say a scheduling agreement with the HL seems most likely then. Not too much travel and most here see them as a "lesser" league, but not so much lesser that the games dont offer any form of competitiveness.

Two points:

1. The Horizon League is a lesser league. In the past 21 season (03-04 season), the Horizon has never been rated ahead of the MVC in either RPI or NET. The HL has had some good teams over the years, but they simply haven't been more than one team deep for at least 15 years.

2. If you're going to do a scheduling agreement, you want them with comparable-or-better leagues. The Horizon League would love a scheduling agreement with the MVC...the MVC, not so much.

[ReZyNeZy]

The HL was going off of Quests comment that the MVC might have to settle for a league that the MVC would not view as equals. The HL is the perfect example for Quests comment.

[TylerDurden]

The HL was going off of Quests comment that the MVC might have to settle for a league that the MVC would not view as equals. The HL is the perfect example for Quests comment.

There is no point to have a formal agreement with a league whose teams you can get games with whenever you want and/or could buy. That's not just directed at you. That's for anyone suggesting something similar. It's bad business.

Settling for a scheduling agreement with a league that isn't viewed as an equal doesn't mean doing the 20th-rated league a favor when you're in the mix to be a top-10 league. If the conference leadership is dead set on having a scheduling agreement, then there are only a handful of options and most of them think the same way - equal or better - and most of them think they're better than the company they actually keep.

Scheduling agreements are complicated to pull off because despite the rhetoric of "We'll play anyone..." most coaches turn down games that would show that very dedication because they want 1. control; 2. wins.

Scheduling isn't easy, but that doesn't mean that taking the path of least resistance does anyone any good.

[tribecalledquest]

I would probably say a scheduling agreement with the HL seems most likely then. Not too much travel and most here see them as a "lesser" league, but not so much lesser that the games dont offer any form of competitiveness.

Two points:

1. The Horizon League is a lesser league. In the past 21 season (03-04 season), the Horizon has never been rated ahead of the MVC in either RPI or NET. The HL has had some good teams over the years, but they simply haven't been more than one team deep for at least 15 years.

2. If you're going to do a scheduling agreement, you want them with comparable-or-better leagues. The Horizon League would love a scheduling agreement with the MVC...the MVC, not so much.

I never mentioned the Horizon League.

WCC would be a good one (a lot of those games already happening this season). CUSA. MAYBE CAA.

Yes, it has to benefit both leagues for sure. But I don't think the A10, Mountain West or American would have any interest in doing something with the Valley.

[E-Villan]

Performance wise, we are probably more on par with the A-10 than any other league. The A-10 enjoys a mostly false perception that it is superior, so they are never going to do anything that could put that in jeopardy.

Any type of scheduling agreement would probably have to involve multiple conference, such as the MVC, A-10, CUSA, MWC, AAC, etc. My concern is if we are doing something like that, are we just hastening a potential division separation from the P5 schools?

It is probably just best to leave it up to the schools for now. Some of us are getting home/homes with peer or even higher ranked conferences. Maybe have a conference rule that our schools no longer take buy games from A-10 or MWC schools.