OT: Wichita State Moving to the AAC?
http://www.kansas.com/sports/college/wichita-state/article139945788.html
A source directly connected to AAC members described Wichita State’s candidacy as strong and expectations among many schools are that the Shockers will be added. Another source involved in college athletics termed it “almost inevitable.”
A timetable is unclear for the possible addition of the Shockers, who would join the AAC for all of its current sports and give the conference a 12th basketball member.
Nine of the conference’s 12 members (football-only Navy will vote) are required to approve a new member. A vote could happen at spring meetings or by conference call.
I wonder if this move would keep Marshall at WSU for the remainder of his career. His press conference after losing to UK again made it seem like he was fed up with the poor seeding and matchups his teams always get in the NCAA tournament. I'm sure IU will try hard to pry him away from WSU this offseason if they can't land Steve Alford. (I would rather have Alford in Bloomington; his results without Lonzo Ball don't even meet IU fan expectations)
March 21st, 2017 at 10:21 PM ^
They should absolutely move. They were the best fanbase in Indy on Sunday and they deserve more respect than having to go up against Kentucky on the first weekend
March 21st, 2017 at 11:11 PM ^
I was in Indy on Sunday now I dont know if you are talking about size or what but they did stand most of the game and cheer.
can keep IU from getting a great coach like Marshall
March 21st, 2017 at 10:21 PM ^
Yes he may end up spending the rest of his career at Wichita State but it wont be because of their conference affiliation.
It will be because of this IMO
March 21st, 2017 at 10:35 PM ^
March 21st, 2017 at 10:47 PM ^
...yeah, she was out of her mind bat-shit-crazy during the game. Should not be drinking before a game.
I thought at first glance it was David Lee Roth.
Dude looks like a lady?
Ahh yeah beautiful girls
March 21st, 2017 at 10:22 PM ^
AAC has surprisingly good teams in this league with potential to grow as a strong conference. SMU, Cincinnati, Memphis, UConn and Temple are usually good. Then there's teams with a pretty good basketball past like Houston and Tulsa.
March 21st, 2017 at 10:29 PM ^
If they are going to go after schools without football they should add Dayton and VCU too.
March 21st, 2017 at 10:35 PM ^
The A10 isn't a shabby conference itself tho. Outside of UConn, the AAC and A10 seem pretty equal.
I guess the AAC rakes in more cash since the schools are larger.
March 21st, 2017 at 11:47 PM ^
Is UConn really that far ahead of the rest of the AAC? They've never even won the regular season championship--it's been Louisville, Cincinnati, Temple, SMU.
And I'm not sure historically they're clearly the top, either. I know they've got the four titles, but Cincinnati's been to more final fours, Cincinnati and Temple both have more wins, Temple has a better winning percentage all-time. Houston's got some history too, even if they never quite managed to win a national title. If you rolled each school's all-time best five out there, Houston or Cincinnati would probably win it (which one depends on just how great you think Oscar was).
March 22nd, 2017 at 12:11 AM ^
- SMU 57-15
- Cincinnati 56-16
- Tulsa 34-20
- Connecticut 42-30
- Memphis 39-33
- Temple 38-34
- Houston 36-36
They might want to win some games if they're supposed to be head and shoulders above the rest of their league. Right now Ollie's coaching resume pretty much consists of one really good month.
March 21st, 2017 at 10:24 PM ^
March 21st, 2017 at 10:33 PM ^
Probably a good move. The AAC has some basketball contenders and this is a move from a low major to mid major league
March 21st, 2017 at 10:37 PM ^
March 21st, 2017 at 10:39 PM ^
AAC not ACC
American athletic conference
March 21st, 2017 at 10:40 PM ^
Am I missing something? The AAC = American Athletic Conference
March 21st, 2017 at 10:40 PM ^
wut?
March 21st, 2017 at 10:51 PM ^
Surely didn't stop notre dame, louisville, and pitt from joining the ACC.
BTW, considering the poor showing of the ACC in the Sweet 16, maybe Wichita State should join the ACC.
Why would they take a step down?
March 21st, 2017 at 11:16 PM ^
Even if it was the ACC, the ACC still has to explain South Bend, Indiana in most sports save for one. That being said, if th ACC version of footprint includes the St. Joseph River, then why not the Arkansas River, eh? I get it.
WSU would be an interesting addition to the AAC, in all seriousness.
Didn't Boise State try to be in the BIG East for a while?
Nothing says "Atlantic Coastal" in the AAC.
March 21st, 2017 at 10:59 PM ^
March 21st, 2017 at 11:12 PM ^
What makes Syracuse a better job than IU?
Syracuse was irrelevant before Boeheim kinda like UConn and Duke before Calhoun and K.
IU had success even before Knight and is in a fertile recruiting area of the country.
March 21st, 2017 at 11:20 PM ^
but I think the assumption being made there is that Alford is going to IU and that Syracuse would be the next to open up.
March 22nd, 2017 at 12:08 AM ^
They beat us in one of those Final Fours in the '60s.
*Sigh*
I also think there will be less pressure and expectations at Syracuse. Your job security is probably quite a bit higher as well.
March 22nd, 2017 at 12:14 AM ^
that's a conference --- like the AAC --- that has 11 full-time schools plus 1 football affiliate (Hawaii). Thus, a 12th full-time school that does not have football makes sense.
Problem is --- in the Mountain West, you're playing a lot of your road games at 8, 9, and even 10 local time (9, 10, and 11 ET). As opposed to the ACC, where your road games would be at 6, 7 or 8 local time (7, 8, and 9 ET).
For that reason alone, the AAC is better. Better exposure and friendlier for your fans. Competition as a whole is better in the AAC too, of course (though the MWC has had their moments).
The AAC makes sense for Wichita. They played with AAC-member Tulsa in the Missouri Valley Conference as recently as the late 90s: fairly big rivalry then.
I haven't followed college baseball in quite some time, but I'm pretty sure Tulane is a solid baseball program (or at least they were), but other than that, I guess all they have is they are good at producing NFL running backs?
March 22nd, 2017 at 12:40 PM ^
Tulane baseball kind of went to hell after Katrina. They haven't had a top-30 team in over a decade.
March 22nd, 2017 at 12:22 PM ^
Houston, Cincinnati, Tulsa, Memphis all were in the MVC with Wichita at one time or another. Somehow Wichita and Drake got left behind. (Smaller markets, obviously.)
Good for Wichita, but bad move for the conference. Wichita's success is entirely tied to their coach and they had a long tournament drought before he got there (They had one appearance in 2006 but hadn't been to the dance since 1988). If Marshall leaves, you're stuck with a rudderless basketball program in the middle of nowhere Kansas in a location that is not conveniently located geographically with the rest of your conference.
Wichita has been on fire as a program, but I fear a lot of that is due to Marshall. I think if the AAC is looking for a basketball member they should try for Dayton. There already is a program in Ohio, and Dayton seems like a program that could still do okay once Miller leaves.
They expect to be good- willing to pay for a coach
With the Koch brothers --have monetary resources
Recruiting players to SE KS always a challenge
March 22nd, 2017 at 12:32 PM ^
I've always figured Dayton would hold out for a Big East spot. It's a Catholic school with a big Xavier rivalry, and they think if Butler and Creighton could get in why not them?
If the next Big East expansion doesn't include them, they might look around.
March 22nd, 2017 at 10:22 AM ^