ESPN: Butler chatting it up with Atlantic Ten

[Jet915]

Can you imagine if we tried to reach out to Butler, SLU, Xavier and Dayton? Create a great midwest basketball only conference split into two divisions. That would make 14 teams, preferably slim it down to 12 and create two divisions that play home and home and play the other division opponent once creating a 16 game conference schedule. Pipe dream but that would be cool.

[CaliRdBrd]

Why don't we add Chicago State to the MVC? The Redbirds seems to schedule them all the time anyway:)

[Aces44]

A hypothetical.

Butler to A10 (replaces Temple). E-Ville to Horizon (replaces Butler). SLU to the MVC (replaces E-Ville).

We stay at 10 and the A10 has to figure something else out.

Great idea. Get rid of the 3rd place team so most teams can move up.

[BirdmanBB]

A hypothetical.

Butler to A10 (replaces Temple). E-Ville to Horizon (replaces Butler). SLU to the MVC (replaces E-Ville).

We stay at 10 and the A10 has to figure something else out.

Great idea. Get rid of the 3rd place team so most teams can move up.

im not saying it would happen, but E-Ville would have to leave on their own accord. I doubt anyone would get rid of them. Either way I doubt there would be much "moving up." Everyone this year would have moved down.

St. Louis 25-7
E-Ville 16-16

[Wufan]

Can you imagine if we tried to reach out to Butler, SLU, Xavier and Dayton? Create a great midwest basketball only conference split into two divisions. That would make 14 teams, preferably slim it down to 12 and create two divisions that play home and home and play the other division opponent once creating a 16 game conference schedule. Pipe dream but that would be cool.

THIS is what the "haves" without football want. We want to be a part of a conference where other "haves" w/o football can put together a conference that can rival the BCS in terms of basketball bids. The "haves" with football are trying to sink a bunch of money into a mediocre football teams. Those without football have gigantic basketball budgets that already compete with the BCS...we just want sustained competition. Geographically, it's tough to find the right mix in the mid-west unless the big 12 were to add some basketball only schools or the super dream conference were to come to fruition.

[valleychamp]

A hypothetical.

Butler to A10 (replaces Temple). E-Ville to Horizon (replaces Butler). SLU to the MVC (replaces E-Ville).

We stay at 10 and the A10 has to figure something else out.

Great idea. Get rid of the 3rd place team so most teams can move up.

"the third place team". lol, yeah ok. It was UE's best finish in 15 years, and it was a 5 way tie for 3rd (at freaking 9-9) where they could have just as easily been playing on thursday like Drake did.

[valleychamp]

THIS is what the "haves" without football want. We want to be a part of a conference where other "haves" w/o football can put together a conference that can rival the BCS in terms of basketball bids. The "haves" with football are trying to sink a bunch of money into a mediocre football teams. Those without football have gigantic basketball budgets that already compete with the BCS...we just want sustained competition. Geographically, it's tough to find the right mix in the mid-west unless the big 12 were to add some basketball only schools or the super dream conference were to come to fruition.

Ironically, WSU isn't going anywhere ever without football. So I guess you are stuck with the rest of us dragging you down, not giving you quality sustained competition, for the rest of time.

[uniftw]

THIS is what the "haves" without football want. We want to be a part of a conference where other "haves" w/o football can put together a conference that can rival the BCS in terms of basketball bids. The "haves" with football are trying to sink a bunch of money into a mediocre football teams. Those without football have gigantic basketball budgets that already compete with the BCS...we just want sustained competition. Geographically, it's tough to find the right mix in the mid-west unless the big 12 were to add some basketball only schools or the super dream conference were to come to fruition.

Ironically, WSU isn't going anywhere ever without football. So I guess you are stuck with the rest of us dragging you down, not giving you quality sustained competition, for the rest of time.

This....

WSU and Creighton can complain about football schools bringing you down, and dreaming of all of these realignments to happen, but the fact is football drives everything. There is a reason one of the top selling video games every single year is NCAA Football and all the studios have dropped their NCAA basketball series....the fact is that the general population doesn't give a damn about college basketball 46 weeks out of the year. The schools that are basketball only schools have almost no pull in any of the realignments....even less than those with smaller FBS/FCS programs. I'm willing to bet Conference USA is more willing to take Appalachian State, Georgia Southern, James Madison, Old Dominion, etc... over Wichita State, Creighton, Evansville, etc... The non-football schools that do well tend to live on the coasts - not mid-west....and they are smaller private schools...or in the University of California system.


The fact is, without football, you are screwed. Notre Dame, while they want to remain indy in football, isn't going to leave the Big East for basketball. Marquette isn't going to leave the Big East, Nova is looking to move their football program from FCS to the Big East, VCU is starting football up, UCONN has moved their football program, etc...


Argue all you want to the contrary, but the schools that will get left behind at the non-football schools....not the "little time" football schools.

[BirdmanBB]

WSU fans just want football back.

[Aces44]

A hypothetical.

Butler to A10 (replaces Temple). E-Ville to Horizon (replaces Butler). SLU to the MVC (replaces E-Ville).

We stay at 10 and the A10 has to figure something else out.

Great idea. Get rid of the 3rd place team so most teams can move up.

"the third place team". lol, yeah ok. It was UE's best finish in 15 years, and it was a 5 way tie for 3rd (at freaking 9-9) where they could have just as easily been playing on thursday like Drake did.

UNI could have just as easily been playing on thursday. Either way, should the bottom four finishers leave the conference each year? The ridiculousness of the constant "Get rid of Evansville" noise is comical.