Gateway Conference

[SUPERBUNNY]

Re: Gateway Conference

The Gateway is absolutely the way to go for both SDSU and NDSU if we are lucky enough to get an invite. A stable conference with 4 home and 4 away games is ideal. Plus, it's very well respected in D-IAA.

USD/UND aren't even a blip on any conferences radar at the moment. I get the impression that our neighbors think that if they announce they are moving up, the conferences will come to them with open arms. It was a challenge for SDSU/NDSU and they have a lot more to offer than USD/UND. I just don't think that they grasp how much harder it will be for USD to make the jump compared to SDSU. Facilities, Stff, Scholarships, or just flat $$$$$$$$$$$$. They are behind in every regard and don't have near the alumni base to draw on to raise the funds.

Once again, good luck to the 'Yotes but it is going to be a brutal struggle.

SUPERBUNNY

[SUPERBUNNY]

Re: Gateway Conference

OK, let me rephrase that.

Would you like to make an extra 50-100k per game and have more than 4 home games this season with UWL and NAIA Penn included???

Don't get me wrong, I like playing heavy hitters, but as I pounded on before we have a loaded schedule and could use some mid range home games.

My original intent by their "enhancement" would be to add confernce games on top of our whopping 4 per year in the great west or good local options for non-conference if we were in the Gateway.  A Gateway schedule would provide plenty of top level teams.

We can make the $$$,$$$ by scheduling a big dog like Nebraska, Minnesota, Iowa State, etc. I'm a little torn on the USD issue. I miss the rivalry but I don't ever want to have to go the %*#@hole facility of theirs for another athletic event again. My solution would be to join the Gateway if offered and offer to play USD at home every year. That would be the best of all worlds in my book!

SUPERBUNNY

[Rabbitlivinginverm]

Re: Gateway Conference

If UND and/or USD move up, the Great West should welcome them with open arms. I don't see any downside to adding two regional schools who have pretty darn good football teams to boot. Adding them would only enhace the strength of an already strong football conference. USD may have hit their pinnacle last year or maybe this year but they're still going to be pretty good. UND is always tough. Access to the Mid-Con is a different story though....

[SUPERBUNNY]

Re: Gateway Conference

If UND and/or USD move up, the Great West should welcome them with open arms.  I don't see any downside to adding two regional schools who have pretty darn good football teams to boot.  Adding them would only enhace the strength of an already strong football conference.  USD may have hit their pinnacle last year or maybe this year but they're still going to be pretty good.  UND is always tough.  Access to the Mid-Con is a different story though....

When I said that USD/UND aren't on any conferences radar, I meant except the Great West Football Conference. They would love to have two more schools!

SUPERBUNNY

[EQguy]

Re: Gateway Conference

I wonder what Poly, Davis and Utah think about adding 2 more Dakota schools to the conference. As it is right now they only have to make that trip one time a year. If you add the other two that makes two trips in every year. To offer some perspective, The trip to Poly this year will cost SDSU in the neighborhood of $70 to $90K.

[NightHawk78]

Re: Gateway Conference

The problem that Davis, Poly, and S. Utah face is, with the exception of the BS Conference :P, there are not many D-1 playoff teams west of the 100th meridian. They would probably accept another trip to the Dakotas because it would (probably) guarantee them another home conference game and they have to fly to just about every away game (unless it's in central Calif.) as it stands now.

[Jacks02]

Re: Gateway Conference

I don't care if we never play USD again. In fact, I'd prefer it be that way.

[02stater]

Re: Gateway Conference

The Gateway is absolutely the way to go for both SDSU and NDSU if we are lucky enough to get an invite. A stable conference with 4 home and 4 away games is ideal. Plus, it's very well respected in D-IAA.

USD/UND aren't even a blip on any conferences radar at the moment. I get the impression that our neighbors think that if they announce they are moving up, the conferences will come to them with open arms. It was a challenge for SDSU/NDSU and they have a lot more to offer than USD/UND. I just don't think that they grasp how much harder it will be for USD to make the jump compared to SDSU. Facilities, Stff, Scholarships, or just flat $$$$$$$$$$$$. They are behind in every regard and don't have near the alumni base to draw on to raise the funds.

Once again, good luck to the 'Yotes but it is going to be a brutal struggle.

SUPERBUNNY

There seems to be some misconception about UND. UND has announced that they will be moving up. No speculation about that. I wouldn't take them so lightly, either, as they arguably have a stronger athletic program right now than SDSU has in terms funding and facilities, if not on the field, which is at least debatable. USD is another story. I think they are danged if they do, danged if they don't move right now. Can't afford to move up, can't afford not to lest they be left behind in athletics and academics. SDSU definately garners the headlines these days.

The scenario I fear with UND moving up is that the Big Sky will once again come calling. If you recall, about the same time the Mid-Con news started to heat up, the Big Sky began to make some murmers about expansion, and even sought out UND, wondering what their intentions were/are. Although NDSU is now, or will be, a Mid-Con member, it is my understanding that either xDSU school could leave with a $500,000 buyout. NDSU and UND would make good traveling partners for those western schools, both have airports to fly directly into rather than boarding a bus for a Brookings or Vermillion, and both have decent midsized market towns. I wouldn't doubt that at the time, if UND had announced that they would reclassify, UND and NDSU would have gotten bids, and left SDSU in the cold.

I wouldn't see any problem with adding both xSDs, assuming our little sisters to the south make the move, to either conference we are in. It doesn't hurt to have schools that can be identified geographically by name in the league, and I think regionally, would make all four schools more attractive in future conference reshufflings. Besides, I think a game against either xSD would be a whole lot more interesting than a game against Oakland.

[Jacks99]

Re: Gateway Conference

I wonder what Poly, Davis and Utah think about adding 2 more Dakota schools to the conference.  As it is right now they only have to make that trip one time a year.  If you add the other two that makes two trips in every year.  To offer some perspective, The trip to Poly this year will cost SDSU in the neighborhood of $70 to $90K.  

When UNC was in, SDSU traveled to 5 locations west. Whats different about them coming here?

[filbert]

Re: Gateway Conference

[quote author=SUPERBUNNY link=1158947230/30#30 date=1159461803]The Gateway is absolutely the way to go for both SDSU and NDSU if we are lucky enough to get an invite. A stable conference with 4 home and 4 away games is ideal. Plus, it's very well respected in D-IAA.

USD/UND aren't even a blip on any conferences radar at the moment. I get the impression that our neighbors think that if they announce they are moving up, the conferences will come to them with open arms. It was a challenge for SDSU/NDSU and they have a lot more to offer than USD/UND. I just don't think that they grasp how much harder it will be for USD to make the jump compared to SDSU. Facilities, Stff, Scholarships, or just flat $$$$$$$$$$$$. They are behind in every regard and don't have near the alumni base to draw on to raise the funds.

Once again, good luck to the 'Yotes but it is going to be a brutal struggle.

SUPERBUNNY

There seems to be some misconception about UND. UND has announced that they will be moving up. No speculation about that. I wouldn't take them so lightly, either, as they arguably have a stronger athletic program right now than SDSU has in terms funding and facilities, if not on the field, which is at least debatable. USD is another story. I think they are danged if they do, danged if they don't move right now. Can't afford to move up, can't afford not to lest they be left behind in athletics and academics. SDSU definately garners the headlines these days.

The scenario I fear with UND moving up is that the Big Sky will once again come calling. If you recall, about the same time the Mid-Con news started to heat up, the Big Sky began to make some murmers about expansion, and even sought out UND, wondering what their intentions were/are. Although NDSU is now, or will be, a Mid-Con member, it is my understanding that either xDSU school could leave with a $500,000 buyout. NDSU and UND would make good traveling partners for those western schools, both have airports to fly directly into rather than boarding a bus for a Brookings or Vermillion, and both have decent midsized market towns. I wouldn't doubt that at the time, if UND had announced that they would reclassify, UND and NDSU would have gotten bids, and left SDSU in the cold.

I wouldn't see any problem with adding both xSDs, assuming our little sisters to the south make the move, to either conference we are in. It doesn't hurt to have schools that can be identified geographically by name in the league, and I think regionally, would make all four schools more attractive in future conference reshufflings. Besides, I think a game against either xSD would be a whole lot more interesting than a game against Oakland.
[/quote]

Quibble #1: UND has announced that they're going to announce moving up next year. This is not quite the same thing as actually reclassifying--i.e. filing the paperwork and paying the fee to the NCAA. They can still back out with zero financial loss, although the P.R. hit for doing so might be pretty steep.

Quibble #2: You don't get off of the airplane at an airport and go right onto the football field. Teams board buses to go from the airport to the hotel, regardless if the hotel is 5 miles across town or 50 miles over the rolling prairie. So the difference you're talking about is maybe fifteen minutes versus one hour of travel to and from the airport. Is that really that big an issue? Try figuring out a way how to get to Macomb or Carbondale, Illinois without spending an hour on a bus.

I think a Mid-Continent with all four Dakota schools is potentially a very good D-I mid-major conference. I'd be slightly amused if the State U's find their way into the Gateway while the U's have to "settle" for the Great West, but I think it would be best if all four were also in the same conference for football as well (assuming UND and USD both move up).

[Ozark_Jack]

Re: Gateway Conference

filbert is right on the money with und, If they were so confident about the move then do it. They announced that the were entering a self imposed probationary year. They can back out of their unnofficial announcement in a second. They have not filed or done anything with the NCAA. They just bought themselves another year to study it.
Yes und has great facilities, and they are beholden to hockey. The other sports will be treated as second class citizens.

[02stater]

Re: Gateway Conference

Geez, didn't we go through an exploratory year, with all sorts of contingencies (like conference affiliation) that would potentially turn back a DI move? We certainly didn't turn back, even though such contingencies didn't happen. What makes a person think UND would? Their President stood up in front of the media and said they were doing it, they were just postponing their exploratory year until next. This from the Grand Forks Herald.

An eye on the future

UND is still looking for a conference when it moves up to Division I.

For football, however, the best option appears to be the Great West Conference, which also is the home to North Dakota State.

Buning said he has talked to Great West Conference commissioner Tom Douple about UND's move to Division I.

“He thought athletic directors from the Great West would starting talking soon about future scheduling. I said, ‘Plan on us being available in 2008,'" Buning said.

[02stater]

Re: Gateway Conference

filbert is right on the money with und, If they were so confident about the move then do it. They announced that the were entering a self imposed probationary year. They can back out of their unnofficial announcement in a second. They have not filed or done anything with the NCAA. They just bought themselves another year to study it.
Yes und has great facilities, and they are beholden to hockey. The other sports will be treated as second class citizens.

Basketball at UND has been down as of late, but the women especially have always been competitive with national championships in the not too distant past. Football isn't a poor bride's maid when it comes to Hockey, either. Hockey is huge up there, but the football team only averages a few hundred fans less per game than hockey. Nothing wrong with having a cash cow when making a move like this. I wouldn't mind if SDSU had nice revenue source like the team that skates in the Ralph.

[89rabbit]

Re: Gateway Conference

02Stater,

I am going to ask you flat out.  Are you a UND fan?  If you are that is fine, Sioux fans are welcome here.  The only thing that concerns me is from time to time you seem to imply that you went to SDSU.

Going back a re-reading your posts you talk about UND a lot and the one post that really made me wonder (besides that last few) was this one .  .  .

Speaking of attendance, it seems as though attendance is up over NCC days, and student participation much improved. In my day, we showed up for the first quarter and left to get drunk after that.  

Even when SDSU has had horrific football, what self-respecting Jackrabbit fan would leave before the Pride has played? 

So let us know are you a Rabbit or a Sioux?  It is fine to be either.  It is however wrong to be one while pretending to be the other.




Go State!  

[filbert]

Re: Gateway Conference

Geez, didn't we go through an exploratory year, with all sorts of contingencies (like conference affiliation) that would potentially turn back a DI move? We certainly didn't turn back, even though such contingencies didn't happen. What makes a person think UND would? Their President stood up in front of the media and said they were doing it, they were just postponing their exploratory year until next. This from the Grand Forks Herald.

An eye on the future

UND is still looking for a conference when it moves up to Division I.

For football, however, the best option appears to be the Great West Conference, which also is the home to North Dakota State.

Buning said he has talked to Great West Conference commissioner Tom Douple about UND's move to Division I.

“He thought athletic directors from the Great West would starting talking soon about future scheduling. I said, ‘Plan on us being available in 2008,'" Buning said.

I think you're a bit confused as to what the process is.

UND has done nothing officially as far as the NCAA is concerned. They are not in the exploratory year this year, 2006-07.

Yes, they've announced that they plan to reclassify to D-I and enter their exploratory year in 2007-08. They have until June 1, 2007 to send in the paperwork and the check ($10,000, I think, although I'm not sure) to the NCAA to formally begin the reclassification process.

They're a D-II school until they go through their exploratory year which would be 2007-08. After the exploratory year they have four addtional years of transition to full D-I status.

UND hasn't done anything except hold a press conference and release a statement. They are not currently, offically, in the transition process from D-II to D-I.

I have no doubt that they will go D-I, but they have not officially begun the process yet. That's all I'm sayin'.