Our budget is nowhere near the rest of the AAC. I doubt we could afford the travel for all sports. And with the schools the AAC is about to lose I bet their television contract gets renegotiated and they will get paid less.

I have been looking forward to the day NIU leaves the MAC for many years but I do not realistically see a path out at this time. There may still be some strange twists here with realignment though. Outside of the AAC, the Mountain West just issued a strange statement saying they are reviewing strategic options for growth. Maybe they are looking to add a couple of the left behind AAC schools. I feel like all options have to be on the table right now with basically everybody jockeying for position and the MAC likely just a bystander per usual.

During the presser a couple weeks back STF also said thinking out of the box will be the new norm and looking West and South for partners could be considered. The comment was not necessarily specific to NIU but rather future realignment at the G5 levels so who knows what is really happening behind the scenes with some of these schools and conferences.

(09-09-2021 07:10 PM)HuskieTap22 Wrote:  I have been looking forward to the day NIU leaves the MAC for many years but I do not realistically see a path out at this time. There may still be some strange twists here with realignment though. Outside of the AAC, the Mountain West just issued a strange statement saying they are reviewing strategic options for growth. Maybe they are looking to add a couple of the left behind AAC schools. I feel like all options have to be on the table right now with basically everybody jockeying for position and the MAC likely just a bystander per usual.

During the presser a couple weeks back STF also said thinking out of the box will be the new norm and looking West and South for partners could be considered. The comment was not necessarily specific to NIU but rather future realignment at the G5 levels so who knows what is really happening behind the scenes with some of these schools and conferenc

I feel like "West" would be schools like Western Illinois or Northern Iowa and "South" would be schools like Illinois State, SIU, EIU, Indiana State or Western Kentucky (I'm probably missing somone).

Ideally, one of those "West" schools would be someone like North Dakota State and/or their instate rival but that'd be a pretty big gap in the coverage map as I know they like to have some kind of border connection even though they made the exception for Buffalo. But the gap between Ohio and New York is much smaller than Illinois and North Dakota although it gets much smaller if you add Iowa.

Edit**** And...obviously...when I said "Western Kentucky" I meant to say "Eastern Kentucky" because why in the world would WKU take a step down in conference?

Although, the same could probably be said about all of those FCS schools as well...

(09-09-2021 08:23 PM)Big Red Wrote:  

(09-09-2021 07:10 PM)HuskieTap22 Wrote:  I have been looking forward to the day NIU leaves the MAC for many years but I do not realistically see a path out at this time. There may still be some strange twists here with realignment though. Outside of the AAC, the Mountain West just issued a strange statement saying they are reviewing strategic options for growth. Maybe they are looking to add a couple of the left behind AAC schools. I feel like all options have to be on the table right now with basically everybody jockeying for position and the MAC likely just a bystander per usual.

During the presser a couple weeks back STF also said thinking out of the box will be the new norm and looking West and South for partners could be considered. The comment was not necessarily specific to NIU but rather future realignment at the G5 levels so who knows what is really happening behind the scenes with some of these schools and conferenc

I feel like "West" would be schools like Western Illinois or Northern Iowa and "South" would be schools like Illinois State, SIU, EIU, Indiana State or Western Kentucky (I'm probably missing somone).

Ideally, one of those "West" schools would be someone like North Dakota State and/or their instate rival but that'd be a pretty big gap in the coverage map as I know they like to have some kind of border connection even though they made the exception for Buffalo. But the gap between Ohio and New York is much smaller than Illinois and North Dakota although it gets much smaller if you add Iowa.

Edit**** And...obviously...when I said "Western Kentucky" I meant to say "Eastern Kentucky" because why in the world would WKU take a step down in conference?

Although, the same could probably be said about all of those FCS schools as well...

But, come to think of it, if C-USA gets poached enough to put it in some danger, I could see the MAC target some schools like Middle Tennessee or Western Kentucky.

Please don't laugh too hard ...

My "dream add" if Buffalo left would be Illinois State moving up to FBS, and shifting Toledo to the East Division with all the other Ohio members. Need a slight increase in football capacity and an IPF, which their fans have wanted for years, but they're set with everything else. Enrollment strong. Great rivalries for both NIU and Ball State.

Plus IllSt is noth west and south, so there you go Sean.

On of the others Big Red suggested:
--- WIU. Definite no. Very familiar with, no close airport, no close interstate, very small enrollment (under 8,000), athletic budget less than half of anybody in the MAC.
--- SIU has declining/ed enrollment, budget problems, budget conflicts with SIUE. EIU, Indiana State ... also no for various reasons.

----

Here's a somewhat weird idea should Buffalo stay ... leave football the way it is (12), and add 2 for all other sports (especially mbb). Could we pry Northern Kentucky loose from the Horizon? That would be a great add, and they wouldn't be going up to UWGB for anything. Also, NKU does not want a football program. Anyway, other non-football candidates?

And if we're talking about someone elevating to DI, how about DII Southern Indiana. Located just west of Evansville, potential rival to Ball State, building a new indoor athletic facility including new basketball arena.

(09-09-2021 08:58 PM)pvk75 Wrote:  Please don't laugh too hard ...

My "dream add" if Buffalo left would be Illinois State moving up to FBS, and shifting Toledo to the East Division with all the other Ohio members. Need a slight increase in football capacity and an IPF, which their fans have wanted for years, but they're set with everything else. Enrollment strong. Great rivalries for both NIU and Ball State.

Plus IllSt is noth west and south, so there you go Sean.

On of the others Big Red suggested:
--- WIU. Definite no. Very familiar with, no close airport, no close interstate, very small enrollment (under 8,000), athletic budget less than half of anybody in the MAC.
--- SIU has declining/ed enrollment, budget problems, budget conflicts with SIUE. EIU, Indiana State ... also no for various reasons.

----

Here's a somewhat weird idea should Buffalo stay ... leave football the way it is (12), and add 2 for all other sports (especially mbb). Could we pry Northern Kentucky loose from the Horizon? That would be a great add, and they wouldn't be going up to UWGB for anything. Also, NKU does not want a football program. Anyway, other non-football candidates?

And if we're talking about someone elevating to DI, how about DII Southern Indiana. Located just west of Evansville, potential rival to Ball State, building a new indoor athletic facility including new basketball arena.

I'd like Ill St, it'd just make my job harder when that troll rears his ugly head again

Sent from my SM-N981U using Tapatalk

Well now there is this from the Sun Belt not long after the Mountain West comment.

Brett_McMurphy
With upcoming moves w/in Group of 5 leagues,
@SunBelt will be aggressive in pursuing new members & could grow its membership from 10 to 12 schools, sources told @ActionNetworkHQ
8:40 PM · Sep 9, 2021

I suspect the other G5 are smelling opportunity to move up the chain with the AAC in flux.

Round 1 in this realignment was UT-OU to the SEC, which hammered the Big12, forced the ACC-B1G-PAC12 alliance, and put the SEC on the throne.

Round 2 goes to the Big 12, taking BYU, UH, UCF and Cincinnati, which dropped the hammer on the AAC.

Round 3 will go to the ACC, the current most agrieved party, not least because of the SEC and Big12 moves. That kinda threw it's multi-year "we are the P6" campaign into a dumpster full of oily rags and tossed a match in after it.

AAC's biggest problem is the MWC lickin' some chops a-way out west thar. They already got Boise State and Air Force. Colorado State is only 63 drive miles from Denver, and SDSU is building a new stadium and sitting in a humongous market almost by its lonesome. Holy hell would be raised if Fresno State, San Jose State, Utah State, Wyoming, Nevada and UNLV got left holding the cactus.

Meanwhile ... UConn's football is almost in the swamp. Nobody I've read really wants Liberty, so whatever. Notre Dame will Notre Dame. Army doesn't want a conference. BYU -- last of the big available independents -- to the Big12. UCF, UH and Cincinati get Golden Tickets. And also, the Big12 could still take two more ... Memphis + somebody?

Posters all over the boards keep talking about the P5 going to P4, but what about the G5 going to G4? ... MWC, AAC, SBC and MAC? Do some math. Four x 14 = 56 schools. Poor C-USA.

And so we wait.

CBS article out today that suggests AAC is focused on four MWC schools (Air Force, Colorado State, Boise State, and San Diego State) plus UAB to rebuild the conference. The AAC has been chasing teams out West for a while so not sure it happens but seems like they are going to try.

UAB is quite a story. Five years ago the football team had been shut down and now they are back with a winning program, a new stadium, and a chance to move up.

https://www.cbssports.com/college-footba...ssion=true

(09-09-2021 09:14 PM)HuskieTap22 Wrote:  Well now there is this from the Sun Belt not long after the Mountain West comment.
Brett_McMurphy
With upcoming moves w/in Group of 5 leagues,
@SunBelt will be aggressive in pursuing new members & could grow its membership from 10 to 12 schools, sources told @ActionNetworkHQ
8:40 PM · Sep 9, 2021

So in other words, the Sun Belt would poach the best of the MAC?

(09-16-2021 09:11 PM)uiniu57 Wrote:  

(09-09-2021 09:14 PM)HuskieTap22 Wrote:  Well now there is this from the Sun Belt not long after the Mountain West comment.
Brett_McMurphy
With upcoming moves w/in Group of 5 leagues,
@SunBelt will be aggressive in pursuing new members & could grow its membership from 10 to 12 schools, sources told @ActionNetworkHQ
8:40 PM · Sep 9, 2021

So in other words, the Sun Belt would poach the best of the MAC?

I think the theory is a couple AAC teams bolt for the MWC and then the AAC reloads with CUSA teams. Sun Belt would then try to take advantage and pickoff a couple CUSA teams too with the membership down. Marshall seems to want out of CUSA pretty bad but I think they would go to the Sun Belt over the MAC again. Doesn’t sound like much, if any, MAC movement will occur.

(09-16-2021 09:20 PM)HuskieTap22 Wrote:  

(09-16-2021 09:11 PM)uiniu57 Wrote:  

(09-09-2021 09:14 PM)HuskieTap22 Wrote:  Well now there is this from the Sun Belt not long after the Mountain West comment.
Brett_McMurphy
With upcoming moves w/in Group of 5 leagues,
@SunBelt will be aggressive in pursuing new members & could grow its membership from 10 to 12 schools, sources told @ActionNetworkHQ
8:40 PM · Sep 9, 2021

So in other words, the Sun Belt would poach the best of the MAC?

I think the theory is a couple AAC teams bolt for the MWC and then the AAC reloads with CUSA teams. Sun Belt would then try to take advantage and pickoff a couple CUSA teams too with the membership down. Marshall seems to want out of CUSA pretty bad but I think they would go to the Sun Belt over the MAC again. Doesn’t sound like much, if any, MAC movement will occur.

It's like a combination of no one wanting any of the MAC teams and the MAC teams not wanting to increase travel so none of them leave.

To be fair, the MAC is as stable a conference as you'll find.

Take that however you want to take it.

(09-16-2021 09:20 PM)HuskieTap22 Wrote:  

(09-16-2021 09:11 PM)uiniu57 Wrote:  

(09-09-2021 09:14 PM)HuskieTap22 Wrote:  Well now there is this from the Sun Belt not long after the Mountain West comment.
Brett_McMurphy
With upcoming moves w/in Group of 5 leagues,
@SunBelt will be aggressive in pursuing new members & could grow its membership from 10 to 12 schools, sources told @ActionNetworkHQ
8:40 PM · Sep 9, 2021

So in other words, the Sun Belt would poach the best of the MAC?

I think the theory is a couple AAC teams bolt for the MWC and then the AAC reloads with CUSA teams. Sun Belt would then try to take advantage and pickoff a couple CUSA teams too with the membership down. Marshall seems to want out of CUSA pretty bad but I think they would go to the Sun Belt over the MAC again. Doesn’t sound like much, if any, MAC movement will occur.

Wouldn’t mind the MAC adding WKU and middle tenn. Would fit in nicely distance wise for a lot of the schools and both have solid football and basketball. Sounds like CUsa will be the conf that might be gone when it’s all said and done.

(09-16-2021 10:55 PM)HuskiePride12 Wrote:  

(09-16-2021 09:20 PM)HuskieTap22 Wrote:  

(09-16-2021 09:11 PM)uiniu57 Wrote:  

(09-09-2021 09:14 PM)HuskieTap22 Wrote:  Well now there is this from the Sun Belt not long after the Mountain West comment.
Brett_McMurphy
With upcoming moves w/in Group of 5 leagues,
@SunBelt will be aggressive in pursuing new members & could grow its membership from 10 to 12 schools, sources told @ActionNetworkHQ
8:40 PM · Sep 9, 2021

So in other words, the Sun Belt would poach the best of the MAC?

I think the theory is a couple AAC teams bolt for the MWC and then the AAC reloads with CUSA teams. Sun Belt would then try to take advantage and pickoff a couple CUSA teams too with the membership down. Marshall seems to want out of CUSA pretty bad but I think they would go to the Sun Belt over the MAC again. Doesn’t sound like much, if any, MAC movement will occur.

Wouldn’t mind the MAC adding WKU and middle tenn. Would fit in nicely distance wise for a lot of the schools and both have solid football and basketball. Sounds like CUsa will be the conf that might be gone when it’s all said and done.

Good adds, accept for me the MAC needs less not more "Middles" and "Westerns".

(09-16-2021 11:01 PM)NIUfilmmaker Wrote:  

(09-16-2021 10:55 PM)HuskiePride12 Wrote:  

(09-16-2021 09:20 PM)HuskieTap22 Wrote:  

(09-16-2021 09:11 PM)uiniu57 Wrote:  

(09-09-2021 09:14 PM)HuskieTap22 Wrote:  Well now there is this from the Sun Belt not long after the Mountain West comment.
Brett_McMurphy
With upcoming moves w/in Group of 5 leagues,
@SunBelt will be aggressive in pursuing new members & could grow its membership from 10 to 12 schools, sources told @ActionNetworkHQ
8:40 PM · Sep 9, 2021

So in other words, the Sun Belt would poach the best of the MAC?

I think the theory is a couple AAC teams bolt for the MWC and then the AAC reloads with CUSA teams. Sun Belt would then try to take advantage and pickoff a couple CUSA teams too with the membership down. Marshall seems to want out of CUSA pretty bad but I think they would go to the Sun Belt over the MAC again. Doesn’t sound like much, if any, MAC movement will occur.

Wouldn’t mind the MAC adding WKU and middle tenn. Would fit in nicely distance wise for a lot of the schools and both have solid football and basketball. Sounds like CUsa will be the conf that might be gone when it’s all said and done.

Good adds, accept for me the MAC needs less not more "Middles" and "Westerns".

We are what we are.

As for C-USA. I'm not sure how many teams that are in a realistic location for them they can bring up from FCS, but they did it once before and really hit the jackpot. But catching lightning in a bottle twice is hard to do.

I'm not sure what Liberty would want to do (they may think C-USA is below them) but C-USA could go a long ways towards replacing a team like Appy State with them if they could overlook the political stuff.

Apparently, Liberty tried to offer up tens of millions of dollars a few years ago just to get an invite into the conference but they said "no way". Now, Liberty looks like a program that could fit in with the AAC (if they are interested) and would turn down C-USA if they came calling.

Anyway, not sure what they'll do.

I suppose right now, 14 teams is kinda the limit on these conferences, but if the MAC wanted to go to 16 and then have those 4 pods like were suggested, I wouldn't mind at all to add WKU and MTSU and then maybe a couple FCS teams like ISU or UNI or whoever from a more western area of the footprint. Getting NDSU would be a boondoggle but I don't think I see it especially with the distance gap from Illinois to North Dakota although bridging that with Iowa would help.

Anyway, a 16 team league with four 4-team pods is possibly an interesting idea. Although, it'd make for a bear of a basketball schedule.

***edit***

For some reason, I always think Appalachian State is in C-USA and I have a general mixing of my head of which teams are in C-USA and which are in the Sun Belt.

Agree NDSU too much an outlier, like NIU is only moreso geographically. Makes me think if the MAC expanded, it would be along the fringes, which means ...

I could see WKU and MTSU to go 14, but that wouldn't produce 4 equal pods. That would make a nice footprint expansion without disturbing the stability you. me and others have cited. If IllSt felt reassured that a move-up would get them their long-desired IPF, they might. A simple grandstand add would get Hancock Stadium over 20,000, and these days, doesn't seem like much more is needed. That still leaves an opening for a 16th. No guesses there.

IMO, NDSU seems to be getting tired of the MVFC and wants more. The Summit is moving their way, with the addition of St. Thomas. Also, if you read other boards, Austin Peay is rumored to be leaving the OVC, and Murray State and Belmont are always cited for looking for an out. That's FCS football, but some good pickins there maybe.

There is also the option of 2 all-sport and 2 non-football, or 2 all-sport and 2 fb-only. Options the MAC may have, but a lot of dust with AAC/SBC/CUSA needs to settle first.