Conference Realignment - May 1

[Pinkie]

I wonder if the valley is more likely to add a school or lose one first.

[CBB_Fan]

It looks like there will be five football leagues- PAC12, Big10, SEC, ACC, Big12. If schools aren't making every attempt to join one, they are going to be in a bad place. I'd think UCONN and Louisville have to be willing to sell their souls to get an invite somewhere at this point.

I think the four team playoff will reduce that down to four major conferences. My guess would be the PAC12, B1G, Big 12, and SEC, with Clemson and Florida State leaving the ACC (which will mostly focus on basketball).

[MVCfans]

Thanks to Andrew Durre for thoughts on conference realignment.

link: The MVC Report - Conference Realignment – MVC’s fate in the hands of others (part 1)

[TheAsianSensation]

I'm world famous now!

Anyways, I think a lot of what I've posted in here wound up somewhere in the articles I wrote. As always, I expect my writing to instigate so if you're wondering about my reasoning on some of those things, lemme know.

[Red]

The MVC Report - Conference Realignment – MVC’s fate in the hands of others (part 1)

I think you are right that we really don't have options as a conference. You think we'll lose teams soon? I know Illinois State wants to eventually jump up in football.

[TheAsianSensation]

The MVC Report - Conference Realignment – MVC’s fate in the hands of others (part 1)

I think you are right that we really don't have options as a conference. You think we'll lose teams soon? I know Illinois State wants to eventually jump up in football.

I just don't think we will. No one is in a position to proactively push for a move anymore. None.

That said, I listed several options that have maybe a 10% chance of coming true....but all of those 10%s add up.

I know ISU wants to jump, but by the time they're ready, we have no idea what FBS will look like. There's a chance, if that breakaway from the NCAA happens, that ISU will end up on the same level as the MAC anyways without doing anything.

If ISU can accelerate the process like heck and try to get in by the early 2020s to be a factor for the next round of playoff format negotiations, maybe. But it would really, really need to be fasttracked.

[TheAsianSensation]

And one more thing about Illinois St that the fans need to understand: they're in a race against time now.

The MAC is their only viable conference, really, since I don't see any other conference letting ISU serve as a geographical outlier.

The MAC is at 13 teams. Teams like James Madison, Delaware, Youngstown St, Villanova, App State, and a few others in the east and midwest are in varying states of "ready to move up to FBS NOW" to "could be ready and willing in a couple years". These all are teams that probably view the MAC as their only option (or best option) to move on up. So if the MAC adds 3 of them and goes to 16, then ISU wants to move up....well, too bad. They're full. The door is shut.

ISU may now be racing against these schools to get to FBS first.

[uniftw]

And one more thing about Illinois St that the fans need to understand: they're in a race against time now.

The MAC is their only viable conference, really, since I don't see any other conference letting ISU serve as a geographical outlier.

The MAC is at 13 teams. Teams like James Madison, Delaware, Youngstown St, Villanova, App State, and a few others in the east and midwest are in varying states of "ready to move up to FBS NOW" to "could be ready and willing in a couple years". These all are teams that probably view the MAC as their only option (or best option) to move on up. So if the MAC adds 3 of them and goes to 16, then ISU wants to move up....well, too bad. They're full. The door is shut.

ISU may now be racing against these schools to get to FBS first.

The MAC wants 18 football schools, fwiw.

[Ali]

The MVC Report - Conference Realignment – MVC’s fate in the hands of others (part 1)

I think you are right that we really don't have options as a conference. You think we'll lose teams soon? I know Illinois State wants to eventually jump up in football.

I'd like to see UNI made quicker moves in that direction too.

[TheAsianSensation]

The MAC wants 18 football schools, fwiw.

I'll be shocked if it ends up that way.

And even if it does, it could easily be 18 football schools as 6 football-only members and 12 full members. I think ISU (and other MVC teams) would need a full invite.