Drakey wrote:UAB would be a plus for the Valley as long as they DON'T have a scholarship Football program. Better yet, no football program at all. I personally would be fine with all of the Football schools leaving and being replaced with non-football schools. In the long run that is the only way to build a basketball conference above the other mid-majors. If the Valley wasn't such a hodge podge of schools they might even be able to attract the good Midwest basketball schools who are playing way out of their geographical area.
Yeah...because Drake, Evasnville, Loyola and Bradley have done so much to help raise the profile of the Valley the last decade.
Let's say ALL 5 of UNI, Illinois State, Southern Illinois, Missouri State and Missouri State left. Does UAB still want to join a conference that has Wichita State and then a bunch of teams that almost never finish out of the cellar of the previous conference?
Let's pretend UAB does join. You're now at 6 teams. Still not enough for an AQ. Who are you pulling in with Drake, Bradley, Evansville, and Loyola as your future selling points?
Do you think WSU wants to stick around in a conference that loses it's only other team to be worth a damn for more than 1 year in the last decade? They barely want to be here with UNI they sure as hell won't stick around without the other schools that consistently finish top half of the conference.
Maybe Drake should drop football? Maybe that would help them missed Thursday night more than once a decade....maybe....
To get back to 10 do you would have a conference of:
WSU
Evansville
Drake
Bradley
Loyola
Belmont
ORU
Valpo
Then some combo of SIU-E, Austin Peay, UAB, Green Bay, Milwaukee, Illinois Chicago
That sounds like a winner of a conference...sounds like the Horizon league now. Congrats on kicking out the good teams to essentially join the Horizon or OVC.