What happens to each MVC team?

[CBB_Fan]

Then, those schools would start by getting teams like SIU-E, the Dakotas, and similar schools, eventually ending up with a 9-10 team league.

Why does everyone constantly mention the Dakotas, SIU-E, and other scrubs that just put up their D1 flag for expansion candidates? We're the MVC, not the Summit League. Logical expansion candidates include the best of the Horizon (Milwaukee, Loyola, Valpo), Denver, and Oral Roberts. Anything below that caliber of schools would be absolutely idiotic.

This league wouldn't be the MVC of old. The question is whether the other teams try and go to those scrub conferences, or invite scrub teams to the MVC. Now, I'm not saying those teams wouldn't also be candidates, but you are inflating the value of the remaining schools.

Say the conference ends up being Drake, Bradley, MSU, Evansville, SIU, and Indiana State. What type of foundation is that? That is a conference between the WAC and Mid-American (going by Sagarin ratings, because they are easy to calculate). Oral Roberts would be the best team in that conference by those same rankings.

[Kyle]

Can UNI afford to upgrade to FBS? They're under pressure to stop bleeding taxpayer money, and I'm not sure they're going to get enough TV money in the MAC to offset the increased scholarships and travel. The UNI-Dome would be the smallest venue in 1-A, and it would not be easy to expand.

Average attendance for a MAC football game is 14,342.

Average attendance for a UNI football game is 13,189.

[Kyle]

I also think attendance would jump if we were playing teams like NIU and Ohio instead of South Dakota and Western Illinois.

[Kyle]

Haha. I think it's funny how N I U is automatically changed to UNI on this site.

[BradleyBrave]

Bradley would join the Big Ten in all sports. We would restart our football program and pound the Illini like everyone else in the league.

[GoShockers89]

.

[Snaggletooth]

NIU test

[Snaggletooth]

UNI test

that is funnier hell...

NIU
NIU
NIU
N IU
N I U

[isumvc1]

there is no way Indiana State is going I-A in football, just sayin'

With recent reports, I think it is fair to say that the conference's days are probably numbered. That isn't to say it will immediately disappear, but in 5-10 years the conference could be practically emptied.

I think Creighton will eventually go to the Big East, but may not be in the first expansion (I think Butler, Xavier, and Saint Louis will join first, and then we'll see a second round of expansion after a media deal is signed).

Illinois State and UNI may be the next to leave. Illinois State goes to the MAC, and UNI either follows them or goes to C-USA. This would probably be announced a year after Creighton is expected to leave for the new Big East.

Wichita State would be absolutely desperate to leave then, and would be lobbying the MWC and A-10 incredibly hard. They go as an all-sports member to the MWC if Gonzaga does not fill that role (they have 9 all-sports members and 10 football schools counting Hawaii, which is football only). However, they would first try and get into the new Big East, but only have a 5% chance of getting in, if that.

The question is what happens to the rest of the conference. I think indiana State will try to get into the MAC, and those Evansville to the Horizon League rumors may get stronger, but ultimately I think what happens is that the MVC survives by stealing teams from other conferences. You'd have Drake, Bradley, MSU, Evansville, SIU, and maybe Indiana State. Then, those schools would start by getting teams like SIU-E, the Dakotas, and similar schools, eventually ending up with a 9-10 team league.

[uniftw]

there is no way Indiana State is going I-A in football, just sayin'

This.


The MVFC has a handful of teams that could go FBS/want to go FBS (UNI, ISUR, SIU, NDSU, SDSU). The likely case is NDSU, UNI and ISUR making the move before the others.