Butler to the A-10 is likely

[J.J.]

ESPN’s Andy Katz first reported a couple of weeks ago that Butler was interested in taking Temple’s place in the Atlantic 10, and other media outlets are saying the same thing.

According to the Green Bay Press Gazzette, “multiple sources” have confirmed that Butler’s move from the Horizon League is a “done deal.”

According to the Press Gazzette, the change likely wouldn’t occur until 2013-14, one year after Temple leaves for the Big East.

I don’t know if it’s true — no one at the University of Dayton or in the A-10 is talking for the record. UD Athletic Director Tim Wabler said only, “I can’t confirm or deny it.”

Butler AD Barry Collier also was tight-lipped with the Indianapolis Star, commenting that all colleges are monitoring the “ever-changing landscape.”

http://www.daytondailynews.com/dayton-sports/university-of-dayton-flyers/commentary-butler-looks-to-be-moving-to-a-10-1347853.html

[bigbluefan1965]

Okay, call me crazy if you want for suggesting this, but does anyone think an agressive Robert Morris may try to fill the voide in the Horizon left by Butler? The Colonials have certainly grown their basketball program the last several years and if they were willing to make the football commitment I'm sure the MVC football conference would love them as a cadidate, especially if some MVC football schools re-allign. Western PA to Ohio, Michigan, etc, is a lot better than being isolated in the Northeast Conference. and the Horizon is a better conference. My money is on RMU to be the first NEC team to leave for greener pastures followed by Quinnipiac to the America East.

[J.J.]

Okay, call me crazy if you want for suggesting this, but does anyone think an agressive Robert Morris may try to fill the voide in the Horizon left by Butler? The Colonials have certainly grown their basketball program the last several years and if they were willing to make the football commitment I'm sure the MVC football conference would love them as a cadidate, especially if some MVC football schools re-allign. Western PA to Ohio, Michigan, etc, is a lot better than being isolated in the Northeast Conference. and the Horizon is a better conference. My money is on RMU to be the first NEC team to leave for greener pastures followed by Quinnipiac to the America East.

On the surface, yes it sounds crazy - but after after a quick glance it isn't out of the realm of possibilities.

Travel wise it isn't too much better than the NEC. Sure, a few schools would be very close - Youngstown State, Cleveland State, Detroit-Mercy, Wright State. Even Valpo, UIC and Loyola (Il) are closer to RMU than CCSU QU, or Bryant. However, the 2 Wisconsin schools (Milwakee and Green Bay) are farther than any current NEC school.

Yes, the Horizon League is usally a "better" basketball league (by RPI), but I think it would increase their budget to compete. I also don't know much about other sports would be adversly affected (like MLax which the Horizon doesn't sponsor). Also, would the NEC allow RMU to stay in the NEC as a football-only affiliate?

Bottom line, I think RMU to the Horizon is a plausable scenario - but it is probably not very likely.

Quinnipiac isn't going anywhere yet. We will have to see what, if any teams from the AE leave for the CAA (if VCU and/or GMU also leave for the A-10).

Lots more stuff to happen, but I am confident our AD is on the case, if and when an opportunity arises for Central.

[bigbluefan1965]

I saw the travel disatance to the Wisconsin schools but that is only two games a year and I'm sure the league would find a way to make it a single trip if it could attract a quality program from the Pittsburgh area. RMU would be playing in a higher rated conference theoretically raising it's rating on any index, thus they would be more attractive to OOC schools clloser to them. That should balance out the cost of the Wisconsin trip(S).

I agree, money is always an issue for any small scool and the impact a conference change has on other sports other than basketball is important also. However, I don't think Men's XCross has much of a future in the NEC. I still think QU wants out and would jump at a chance at a small move like a "lateral" move to the AE if they had the opportunity.

RMU and QU are the two programs I am most concerned about the NEC losing because without them the conference is basically useless. The most likely candidate to replace either if they leave is NJIT...which is sad and there is no second candidate if they both leave.

[bigbluefan1965]

Okay, before I say this let me state I know it's not a feasible idea, just a little analysis.

JJ- After you brought up the impact on other sports I went and did a little more research. RMU most likely would not want to give up an affiliation with a Men's XCross conference and the Horizon most likely will be looking for a school that offers baseball. After losing Butler the Horizon League will only have five members in it's baseball conference, thus losing an AQ to the College World Series.

With that said, if you look at it from a school profile and athletic team offerings CCSU would be a perfect fit. Too bad CCSU is the absolute wrong geographic fit. Even if geographic footprint of a conference doesn't matter these days, it would not be possible for CCSU to meet the budget requirements of a conference like the Horizon. Unfortunatley CCSU is geographically exiled to the Northeast corridor which is what plagues several teams in the NEC and AE if they dream about advancing their programs.

However, if one dares to dream it would be quite a fantasy if CCSU was in a conference like the Horizon and playing MVFC football with YSU and others.

Although, it would be like returning to the old Mid-Continental Conference which despite the losing seasons was one of my favorite periods in CCSU athletics in regards to the quality of everday competition and conference schedule . I also like the concept of CCSU being in a conference with more public schools. At least people recognized the school names and it felt like my friends had more respect for CCSU athletics back then, it just felt more "big time" D-1.

unfortunately reality has to set in again.....I love New England but sometimes I feel like we are painted into a corner up here.

[J.J.]

Lots of stuff needs to happen before any conference realignment has an impact at our level.

First, the C-USA/MWC merge needs to be finalized. Until we know what the final makeup will be, there are just too many unknowns to speculate.

Second, the WAC and Sun Belt need to stabilize from any defections of the merger. Charlotte (A-10) is likely to head to the Sun Belt. Georgia State (CAA) is another possibility for the Sun Belt. Who knows what the WAC does (or can do)..

Then the CAA will have to find replacements most likely from the AE and/or SoCon. I just can't imagine CCSU (or any NEC member) would be on the CAA's radar, but who knows.

But once we have a better idea of what the A-10 and CAA will really look like in the future, then we will have a better idea of what, if any, options CCSU and other NEC schools have.

[deman]

Robert Morris is not going anywhere without upgrading their tiny gym. Check out the crowds that attend Horizon League basketball games. IMO, Robert Morris doesn't generate the revenue that would be required to compete in a conference like the Horizon League. I seriously doubt that Robert Morris is even on the Horizon League's radar.

[J.J.]

Robert Morris is not going anywhere without upgrading their tiny gym. Check out the crowds that attend Horizon League basketball games. IMO, Robert Morris doesn't generate the revenue that would be required to compete in a conference like the Horizon League. I seriously doubt that Robert Morris is even on the Horizon League's radar.

Not that this means anything, but with if the Horizon does lose Butler, Robert Morris may get a look.

From the Cleveland Plain Dealer:

In terms of league roster, the Horizon should go looking to replace the Bulldogs, perhaps even grow the league by adding three new teams. And there are some options.

If it wants to keep an Indianapolis presence, then IUPUI out of the Summit League is worth looking at. The convoluted initialized school name (Indiana University-Purdue University in Indianapolis) screams minor league, but this school has been to the NCAA Tournament in recent years and has produced an NBA player.

If the HL wants to have more of an imprint in the Detroit market, it could go after Oakland University, another Summit League team in the suburbs of the Motor City; or even try to lure Wayne State, a very solid Division II program that fits the league profile with its urban Motown campus.

If the league wants to establish itself in a new market it could look East to Robert Morris, outside of Pittsburgh, which plays in the Northeast Conference. The plus for Robert Morris and Oakland is they are private universities like Butler.

http://www.cleveland.com/sports/csu/ind ... _stat.html

[bigbluefan1965]

Robert Morris is not going anywhere without upgrading their tiny gym. Check out the crowds that attend Horizon League basketball games. IMO, Robert Morris doesn't generate the revenue that would be required to compete in a conference like the Horizon League. I seriously doubt that Robert Morris is even on the Horizon League's radar.

Not that this means anything, but with if the Horizon does lose Butler, Robert Morris may get a look.

From the Cleveland Plain Dealer:

In terms of league roster, the Horizon should go looking to replace the Bulldogs, perhaps even grow the league by adding three new teams. And there are some options.

If it wants to keep an Indianapolis presence, then IUPUI out of the Summit League is worth looking at. The convoluted initialized school name (Indiana University-Purdue University in Indianapolis) screams minor league, but this school has been to the NCAA Tournament in recent years and has produced an NBA player.

If the HL wants to have more of an imprint in the Detroit market, it could go after Oakland University, another Summit League team in the suburbs of the Motor City; or even try to lure Wayne State, a very solid Division II program that fits the league profile with its urban Motown campus.

If the league wants to establish itself in a new market it could look East to Robert Morris, outside of Pittsburgh, which plays in the Northeast Conference. The plus for Robert Morris and Oakland is they are private universities like Butler.

http://www.cleveland.com/sports/csu/ind ... _stat.html

Hmmm, maybe I'm not thinking to outside of the box with my comments???

...and for what it is worth, I do have a serious concern about the NEC losing what little quality it has as the re-allignment dominos start to fall. The thing that concerns me the most as a CCSU alum is I honestly don't believe CCSU has any type of plan or vision. I think they are sitting on their hands, There is no "behind the scenes" plan that they are keeping hush-hush as not to offend the NEC. I just don't see anything positive in the future, in fact I see a little doom and gloom on the horizon for the NEC and CCSU.

[J.J.]

Hmmm, maybe I'm not thinking to outside of the box with my comments???

...and for what it is worth, I do have a serious concern about the NEC losing what little quality it has as the re-allignment dominos start to fall. The thing that concerns me the most as a CCSU alum is I honestly don't believe CCSU has any type of plan or vision. I think they are sitting on their hands, There is no "behind the scenes" plan that they are keeping hush-hush as not to offend the NEC. I just don't see anything positive in the future, in fact I see a little doom and gloom on the horizon for the NEC and CCSU.

BB I couldn't disagree more. I have no idea what is going on "behind the scenes," but I think our AD has the connections and vision to make sure we have a plan for whatever may happen.

[Skyhawkct]

And for all this talk a few years ago of Q going to the A-10, this just proves that there are literally dozens of institutions that would be picked over the Q. Now...Q going to the AE, that's a more plausible scenerio.

[Larryl9797]

And not to mention that sports fans should not have vision to the plans of *any* athletic department.

[J.J.]

I am guessing that the "NEC strategy" is probably pretty straightforward at this point.

- If the league loses an odd-number of teams (1 or 3) to defections, just add NJIT to get the league back to an even number, period.
- If the league loses an even number of teams (2 or 4) to defections, do nothing. A 10 or 8 team league fighting for 1 NCAA bid isn't an awful situation.

The NCAA moratorium and new requirements for reclassifying to Division I, all but eliminates any regional D-II programs from moving up in the near future.

And unless an AE/CAA merger leaves programs like UMBC or Hartford without a conference, the NEC likely isn't picking up a school from another conference.

The only programs that might willingly leave their current conference affiliation are MEAC schools such as Delaware State or Morgan State. That being said, those programs have some academic, performance, and budget issues. They might even have smaller budgets than St. Francis, Wagner, or the Mount. Not an ideal candidate for the NEC.

[bigbluefan1965]

Hmmm, maybe I'm not thinking to outside of the box with my comments???

...and for what it is worth, I do have a serious concern about the NEC losing what little quality it has as the re-allignment dominos start to fall. The thing that concerns me the most as a CCSU alum is I honestly don't believe CCSU has any type of plan or vision. I think they are sitting on their hands, There is no "behind the scenes" plan that they are keeping hush-hush as not to offend the NEC. I just don't see anything positive in the future, in fact I see a little doom and gloom on the horizon for the NEC and CCSU.

BB I couldn't disagree more. I have no idea what is going on "behind the scenes," but I think our AD has the connections and vision to make sure we have a plan for whatever may happen.

JJ - Maybe he does. I shouldnt' be hard on the new guy. Past experience tells me not to expect anything proactive out of CCSU and if President Miller has his way I would guess he would rather see CCSU flounder in the NEC just to preserve football.

Larry - I dont' think any fan or the public should be in the know about any "hush-hush" behind the scenes plans. I'm just saying I don't have enough confidence in CCSU anymore to even have a contingency plan.

- In general, if they lose RMU, QU, or MU (and Monmuth is going to right the ship and attract attention with their new indoor facility and talk of expanding the football stadium) then the NEC is sunk. LIU and Wagner IMO are non-sustainable programs and will fade in a couple years.

-Albany will jump ship soon and opt out of their affiliation with NEC footbll the minute tehy get the chance.

QU and MU go to the AE before CCSU (if the AE doesn't merge with the CAA) in my opinion, basically because of facilities. CCSU might be on the AE's radar if Albany and Stony Brook leave for a football conference, but CCSU wont' be added to the AE as it is now.

-NJIT is nothing but a waste of breath when mentioning their name as a D-I program.

Sorry guys, too much going on with the NCAA landscape and a history of poor planning has killed my enthusiasm an hope for CCSU.

[J.J.]

Another article from the Cleveland Plain Dealer confirming Butler's move to the A-10 and providing more speculation that Robert Morris is a potential candidate for the Horizon League.

"This morning, I was informed by President James Danko of Butler's decision to withdraw from the Horizon League and affiliate with another conference," HL commissioner Jon LeCrone said. "The Horizon League is among 25 NCAA Division I conferences whose membership has been impacted by realignment over the past two years.

"We are proud of the role the Horizon League played in providing a platform for Butler to significantly improve its athletics programs and achieve the highest level of national competitiveness in men's basketball."
...
LeCrone will hold a teleconference this afternoon, but early speculation is that the HL may look to expand, with possibilities including IUPUI out of Indianapolis, Oakland University in suburban Detroit and Robert Morris in suburban Pittsburgh.

"Under the leadership of our board of directors, we have an aggressive growth agenda which has been in the planning stages for some time," LeCrone said. "That agenda is values-based, collaborative, measured, informed and principled.

"We are excited about the possibilities that lie ahead. The Horizon League will continue to be defined by our student-athletes as they compete, serve and learn."

http://www.cleveland.com/sports/college ... _hori.html