Leatherneck Nation

From Elmhurst, IL to Sioux Falls, SD
http://www.thesummitleague.org/general/ ... 0522mvqj3e

ST_Lawson wrote: ↑Wed May 23, 2018 10:21 am From Elmhurst, IL to Sioux Falls, SD
http://www.thesummitleague.org/general/ ... 0522mvqj3e

That pretty much guarantees SDSU will be the Basketball hosts well into the future.

It is time for Western to find a new conference! We and IPFW are outliers.

Tere North wrote: ↑Wed May 23, 2018 10:24 am

ST_Lawson wrote: ↑Wed May 23, 2018 10:21 am From Elmhurst, IL to Sioux Falls, SD
http://www.thesummitleague.org/general/ ... 0522mvqj3e

That pretty much guarantees SDSU will be the Basketball hosts well into the future.

It is time for Western to find a new conference! We and IPFW are outliers.

Easier said than done. Outside of football, I doubt any of the conferences in the region would want us.

Tere North wrote: ↑Wed May 23, 2018 10:24 am

ST_Lawson wrote: ↑Wed May 23, 2018 10:21 am From Elmhurst, IL to Sioux Falls, SD
http://www.thesummitleague.org/general/ ... 0522mvqj3e

That pretty much guarantees SDSU will be the Basketball hosts well into the future.

It is time for Western to find a new conference! We and IPFW are outliers.

I thought that the fans of WIU, IPFW, Denver and ORU might feel this way. I understand the frustration but I don't know where else the tournament will make as much money as it does in Sioux Falls.
They don't play basketball, volleyball, soccer, etc.. games at the Summit League office but it does seem to me that moving the office within a 5 hour drive of 5 of the 9 leagues members seems to make sense. This way the leagues officials can drive to over half of the campuses and not pay for flying.
I am a big fan of making the conference as strong as it can be. I don't want UMKC in the conference unless they improve some things even though they would be in the driving distance. I wish Oakland and IUPUI would have stayed. If they add, I would like it to be teams like NMSU, Grand Canyon or maybe even Northern Colorado. You give me a team like those and I could care less where they are located.
First and foremost I want all of the teams that are in the conference to stay and make it a strong conference.

ST_Lawson wrote: ↑Wed May 23, 2018 10:30 am

Tere North wrote: ↑Wed May 23, 2018 10:24 am It is time for Western to find a new conference! We and IPFW are outliers.

Easier said than done. Outside of football, I doubt any of the conferences in the region would want us.

I understand reluctance to take us in, but we simply cannot afford the budget associated with travel in the Summit league.

The solution is obvious. Get ready for the new MIGA (Make Illinois Great Again) Conference. Start the countdown for earning the conference autobids to national tournaments. It will take a while but be worth the wait. Also, if your school is not playing football today, you are in this new conference because the state is going to kick in the money to make sure this happens. Eight is the perfect number for schools in an athletic conference. Illinois has enough athletic kids to recruit from if they did not all go elsewhere. Rivalries become something to look forward to once again on campuses. Kids who played together on the same team in high school might be competing against each other in college and shaking hands after the game. Abe's Axe is that prestigious trophy that is rewarded to the conference winner each year. What's not to like.

WIU
EIU
SIU
ISU
NIU
SIU-E
UI-CC
UI-S (you always need a cinderella/potential up-and-comer in the mix to spur interest)

OK, who is up for the first Commish job?

I nominate you.

rocki wrote: ↑Thu May 24, 2018 7:49 amI nominate you.

Yeah, I was going to say....sounds like he just volunteered himself

Should I accept the job, if I make ISU and Redbird Arena the host for all conference basketball tournaments, am I going to irritate anyone? Gut tells me it is pretty close to center mass. It would be very interesting to get all of the current ADs in the same bar and after maybe two or three beers, pop this on them and get their feelings about it.

Not a bad footprint if I do say myself.

http://www.geomidpoint.com/?ml=40.0268& ... =1&r=0&w=0

sealhall74 wrote: ↑Thu May 24, 2018 8:55 am Should I accept the job, if I make ISU and Redbird Arena the host for all conference basketball tournaments, am I going to irritate anyone? Gut tells me it is pretty close to center mass. It would be very interesting to get all of the current ADs in the same bar and after maybe two or three beers, pop this on them and get their feelings about it.

Not a bad footprint if I do say myself.

http://www.geomidpoint.com/?ml=40.0268& ... =1&r=0&w=0

If you have it at ISU, then it's essentially a "home game" for them. How about the Peoria Civic Center. You'd have to schedule around a few things (Bradley basketball, IHSA basketball tournament, Peoria Rivermen Hockey), but it's a big arena, has great basketball history...especially for Illinois, wouldn't be anyone in the conference's "home arena", but would be close enough and easy enough for everyone to get to.