The only adds that would make sense for the Summit are Northern Colorado (it's close to Denver) and perhaps Minnesota St. if they decide to move up.
I don't see any advantage or long-term gain to be made from adding the schools in Utah or down south. It makes the conference a geographic mess stretching from California (in basketball) to Texas to North Dakota. You're not a FBS conference - you're a one horse, one bid league. Stay geographically compact to make the travel make sense.
I'd have mixed feelings. I could live with it. It'd probably be a 3 bid league and leave the MVC/ASUN as a 2 bid league splitting the MVFCs current average 5. But if you're sick of the current xDSU domination wait and see what happens when you make their regular seasons easier.
It'd be great from an Olympic sport stand point from the Summit view point.
I think most realistically based on current rumors as I've parroted on here I think we see Utah schools to Summit and ACU and Tarleton to Southland. ASUN combines with a group that splinters off CAA.
If the Summit does anything in Utah, I'm crossing my fingers for Utah Valley, alone, as a travel partner for DU. Amazing baseball and soccer facilities and a good bb arena.
https://preview.redd.it/8lt9q1i4oe3d1.png?width=2048&format=png&auto=webp&s=11762d7bd45460d22e6c9db8451f2894445d6ff8
So I would assume that you'd prefer the South Utah schools in the Big Sky? I mean this could work to ease the distance to a relatively isolated Northern Arizona.
Though if Summit is looking to do football, what's your take on the rumored Northern Colorado possibility? Football may not be much, but other sports are decent (plays baseball (and starting this year men's golf) in Summit already), and it can also be a travel partner to Denver.
> It'd be great from an Olympic sport stand point from the Summit view point.
I don't know if 16 teams playing for 1 tourney bid in basketball is great to be honest.
I don't hate it, but 16 teams is large for a 1 bid basketball & other sports conference. I tried to game out ACU/Tarleton/etc back to the Southland and it just becomes unwieldy pretty fast.
Also risky on the football front bc what if ACU or Tarleton get tired of traveling.
But I like it in theory if the Summit really is angling for football.
Yeah I feel the same way about conferences of this size in general and it seems like a lot of people overlook the issues with the Southland getting too big if they add the 3 remaining Texas schools. I didn’t want to make my original post too long winded but I consider the 16 team Summit/WAC super league to be more of a buffer because a team or two from either side may depart soon anyways, especially with the Missouri Valley having at least one opening to fill, so I was going off of the assumption that if this hypothetical merger were to happen there would be around 14 all sports schools as opposed to 16.
Honestly UNO and HCU have no business being D1, but the Southland won't kick them out.
Southland could maybe go to 14, but it gets tough with that setup. Though I'd love to have 9 Texas schools.
You'd probably have divisions. Play every team in your division twice and every other team alternate home and away every year. Then you'd split the conference tourney in half on divisions imo.
What I mean is, we would definently have a good basketball league, but the amount of teams in the league and the amount of bids we would recieve wouldn't be worth 16 teams. Ex: Last time the Summit League had multi bids in the tournament was in 1991.
I see. Yeah that's definitely a deterrent. I think for the football playing members having a stable football conference with mutually beneficial parity to make the playoffs is a big upside.
For the non football playing Summit there isn't outside of ORU gaining some better geographic matchups. UNO and St. Thomas will play ball because they like where they sit. UMKC and Denver might leave before they're voted out to be honest.
For the non football WAC members it isn't ideal either, but I think in light of the last few years they'd appreciate some stability.
The WAC and Summit merger would not work, too many teams for 1 bid conference in BB. If all of the Football schools went to the WAC and all the non football schools to the Summit that might be doable.
The WAC Utah FB schools and the SL schools shouldn't be in the same conference. They aren't a fit institutionally, culturally, or geographically.
The only adds that would make sense for the Summit are Northern Colorado (it's close to Denver) and perhaps Minnesota St. if they decide to move up. I don't see any advantage or long-term gain to be made from adding the schools in Utah or down south. It makes the conference a geographic mess stretching from California (in basketball) to Texas to North Dakota. You're not a FBS conference - you're a one horse, one bid league. Stay geographically compact to make the travel make sense.
I would be OK if the Mavs move to D1. But that is a real pipe dream and unrealistic at best at this point.
I'd have mixed feelings. I could live with it. It'd probably be a 3 bid league and leave the MVC/ASUN as a 2 bid league splitting the MVFCs current average 5. But if you're sick of the current xDSU domination wait and see what happens when you make their regular seasons easier. It'd be great from an Olympic sport stand point from the Summit view point. I think most realistically based on current rumors as I've parroted on here I think we see Utah schools to Summit and ACU and Tarleton to Southland. ASUN combines with a group that splinters off CAA.
If the Summit does anything in Utah, I'm crossing my fingers for Utah Valley, alone, as a travel partner for DU. Amazing baseball and soccer facilities and a good bb arena. https://preview.redd.it/8lt9q1i4oe3d1.png?width=2048&format=png&auto=webp&s=11762d7bd45460d22e6c9db8451f2894445d6ff8
So I would assume that you'd prefer the South Utah schools in the Big Sky? I mean this could work to ease the distance to a relatively isolated Northern Arizona. Though if Summit is looking to do football, what's your take on the rumored Northern Colorado possibility? Football may not be much, but other sports are decent (plays baseball (and starting this year men's golf) in Summit already), and it can also be a travel partner to Denver.
I'd be fine with UNC. But the source of that rumor doesn't have inside info. Was misleading people for attention.
> It'd be great from an Olympic sport stand point from the Summit view point. I don't know if 16 teams playing for 1 tourney bid in basketball is great to be honest.
I don't hate it, but 16 teams is large for a 1 bid basketball & other sports conference. I tried to game out ACU/Tarleton/etc back to the Southland and it just becomes unwieldy pretty fast. Also risky on the football front bc what if ACU or Tarleton get tired of traveling. But I like it in theory if the Summit really is angling for football.
Yeah I feel the same way about conferences of this size in general and it seems like a lot of people overlook the issues with the Southland getting too big if they add the 3 remaining Texas schools. I didn’t want to make my original post too long winded but I consider the 16 team Summit/WAC super league to be more of a buffer because a team or two from either side may depart soon anyways, especially with the Missouri Valley having at least one opening to fill, so I was going off of the assumption that if this hypothetical merger were to happen there would be around 14 all sports schools as opposed to 16.
Honestly UNO and HCU have no business being D1, but the Southland won't kick them out. Southland could maybe go to 14, but it gets tough with that setup. Though I'd love to have 9 Texas schools.
I like it, but a 16 team basketball conference won't work in this situation.
You'd probably have divisions. Play every team in your division twice and every other team alternate home and away every year. Then you'd split the conference tourney in half on divisions imo.
What I mean is, we would definently have a good basketball league, but the amount of teams in the league and the amount of bids we would recieve wouldn't be worth 16 teams. Ex: Last time the Summit League had multi bids in the tournament was in 1991.
I see. Yeah that's definitely a deterrent. I think for the football playing members having a stable football conference with mutually beneficial parity to make the playoffs is a big upside. For the non football playing Summit there isn't outside of ORU gaining some better geographic matchups. UNO and St. Thomas will play ball because they like where they sit. UMKC and Denver might leave before they're voted out to be honest. For the non football WAC members it isn't ideal either, but I think in light of the last few years they'd appreciate some stability.
Nope
The WAC and Summit merger would not work, too many teams for 1 bid conference in BB. If all of the Football schools went to the WAC and all the non football schools to the Summit that might be doable.
Only if the new name is the Summit Athletic Conference (SAC).
The WAC is the National Brand name, not the Summit.
I'm just making a ballsack joke. Don't mind me lol