Leatherneck Nation

Do any of the old timers know why 30 years ago why Cleveland State, Illinois-Chicago, Northern Illinois, Wright State, Milwaukee and Green Bay left the Mid-Continent Conference to the Midwestern Collegiate Conference in the same year?

Bad bad day for WIU.  I feel like we got caught with our pants down.  We were left behind along with a couple other schools which left the Mid Con trapped in a leaky boat.  I have no idea why Valpo stayed on for a while before going on to the Horizon too and the MVC.  When the Mid Con's head quarters moved from Elmhurst to South Dakota the writing was on the wall.  Then there was a name change to the Summit.  WIU just seemed to go with the flow.  Our move to the OVC was well over do in my opinion.  The Summit basketball tournament was really quite good for in the Dakota's.  They played in front of a home crowd every time Dakota played.  jc ;)
 

Athletic programs are like people - you tend to hang out with those similar to you.  So if you are situated in a big or moderate size city, you dont want to travel to a podunk place out in the sticks to play your games.  It applies to the other side of the fence as well - we are a good fit in the OVC. I agree with NFS71, the move happened about 8-10 years later than it should have.  Now, how soon can we make up for that lost time? 

screamingeaglepride wrote: ↑Wed Jan 17, 2024 5:15 pm Do any of the old timers know why 30 years ago why Cleveland State, Illinois-Chicago, Northern Illinois, Wright State, Milwaukee and Green Bay left the Mid-Continent Conference to the Midwestern Collegiate Conference in the same year?

 

The Midwestern Collegiate Conference was seen as higher prestige even though it was going through turmoil. They got 2 bids in 1989, 1990, 1993, 1995, & 1996. Schools like Xavier, Butler, Loyola, & La Salle were still in the league, although Xavier and La Salle left soon after. 

Also, that league had a lot of city schools. City schools tend to want to be with other city schools and not rural schools.