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Conference realignment

Da Coach said:
Lindenwood has had a pretty decent football program for D2, but their basketball program has not been very good for years.
Teams like SEMO, SIUE, and EIU are assured they won't finish last in the OVC for the foreseeable future.
On the other hand, Southern Indiana University, the other D2 joining the OVC, has had a pretty strong D2 program, though that doesn't translate to Division I.
The OVC is really taking a step down by replacing a teams like Belmont and Murray State with a couple D2 programs.
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I thought that Brad Soderberg had some good teams when he was there after getting canned from SLU.
Lindenwood


On May 14, 2009, Soderberg was named head coach of Lindenwood University in Saint Charles, Missouri.[SUP][3][/SUP] In his first season as head coach of the Lions, Soderberg led the Lions to one of the best seasons in school history, a record of 23–10, and set a school record for most home wins in a season, going 13–1 at home.[SUP][4][/SUP] On March 29, 2010, the university announced the transfer of Kramer Soderberg, Missouri player of the year during his senior year of high school, from Miami University (Ohio) to join his father's program.[SUP][2][/SUP]

In his second season as head coach of the Lions, Lindenwood set a new school record for most straight wins after Defeating Missouri Valley 77–66 for the team's 12th straight win on January 6, 2011.[SUP][5][/SUP] The Lions finished the regular season 26–4 won the 2011 HAAC Regular Season Championship and earned an automatic bid to the 2011 NAIA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament. The 26 wins set a new best record in school history.[SUP][6][/SUP] Soderberg led the Lions to their first NAIA Division I Tournament win when the 20th seeded Lions defeated 14th-seeded St. Catharine College 78–72. Lindenwood's defense held St. Catharine ten points below its season average and forced 13 turnovers in the game. Offensively, Lindenwood made 33 of 40 free throws. All three of Lindenwoods guards finished with double digit points, Kramer Soderberg finished with 27, Bazzell with 14 points, and Rose with 13.[SUP][7][/SUP] Soderberg's Lions eventually fell in the second round to 3rd-seeded Mountain State University, ending Lindenwood's final season in the NAIA and Heart of America Athletic Conference with the best record in school history with a 29–6 overall record.[SUP][8][/SUP]

In 2011, Lindenwood began the transition from the NAIA to the NCAA's Division II. Competing as an independent, Lindenwood finished the season with a 26–3 record and was invited to the NCAA's Division II Transitional Tournament in Spearfish, South Dakota. Soderberg led them to the Division II Transitional National champions by defeating Minot State and Sioux Falls to end the season with a final 28–3 record.[SUP][9][/SUP]

Lindenwood announced their entry into the Mid–America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA).[SUP][10][/SUP] Although ineligible for post-season play during the transition to Division II, Soderberg's Lions finished their first regular season in the MIAA in a third place tie in the fifteen team league.[SUP][11][/SUP]
 
Those good years were before they became Division II. I was referring to their more recent teams.
Lindenwood has not had a winning record the last 4 seasons.
 
Conference realignment continues.
Mount St. Mary's is expected to leave the Northeast Conference (NEC) and join the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC).
https://twitter.com/RoccoMiller8/status/1511418416984256515

And 4th Division II school is moving up from D2 and joining a D1 conference.
Stonehill College, a small (2,500 students) Catholic college in Easton, Massachusetts announced today they will begin transitioning to Division I and join the NEC.

The other three new D1 schools are:
Lindenwood (Ohio Valley Conference)
Southern Indiana (Ohio Valley Conference)
Texas A&M-Commerce (Southland Conference)
 
Da Coach said:
The OVC is really taking a step down by replacing a teams like Belmont and Murray State with a couple D2 programs.
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If the OVC wishes to survive as an independent conference, they don't have much of a choice. I suppose other choices were to either merge with another conference, like what their football is doing with the Big South, or to disband.
 
Big 12 officially adding new members in 2023
AP Top 25 @AP_Top25
Cincinnati, Houston and UCF are now set to join the Big 12 in 2023 along with BYU. The Big 12 is on target to be a 14-team conference for two years before Texas and Oklahoma leave for the SEC.
 
ESPN is reporting that UConn is in early talks with the Big 12 "for potential membership" - https://www.espn.com/mens-college-b...uconn-big-12-early-talks-potential-membership

The Big 12 just expanded to 16 teams this season despite losing Oklahoma and Texas to the SEC. - https://www.espn.com/mens-college-b...uconn-big-12-early-talks-potential-membership

Such a move for UConn would be a big step for their football program. They were 3-9 last year as an FBS Independent, and they drew an average of 24,659 per game.
 
Da Coach said:
ESPN is reporting that UConn is in early talks with the Big 12 "for potential membership" - https://www.espn.com/mens-college-b...uconn-big-12-early-talks-potential-membership

The Big 12 just expanded to 16 teams this season despite losing Oklahoma and Texas to the SEC. - https://www.espn.com/mens-college-b...uconn-big-12-early-talks-potential-membership

Such a move for UConn would be a big step for their football program. They were 3-9 last year as an FBS Independent, and they drew an average of 24,659 per game.
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UConn-Big 12 calls have been halted: https://www.espn.com/college-sports...12-discussions-add-uconn-stalled-commish-says
 
The entire Mountain West is actively crumbling as we speak
Pretty soon it'll just be Colorado State & Air Force...
https://www.espn.com/college-footba...rces-boise-state-four-schools-set-join-pac-12

oh, and I assume you all recall that just a couple months ago - NCAA gurus somehow thought
that the Mountain West was such a massively powerful conference that they deserved
SIX freaking teams in the NCAA TOURNAMENT!
The result - four of them got clobbered in their first game, San Diego State got blown out by 30 pts vs UConn;
and Utah State got embarrassingly pummelled by 40 points vs Purdue.
 
basketball nut said:
Basically, for this season, the Pac 12 has now become a mid-major conference whether they like it or not
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Currently, the Pac-12 consists of only 2 schools- Oregon State and Washington State. Every other school left and moved to either the Big 12 (Utah, Arizona, AZ State, Colorado), the Big Ten (Oregon, Washington, USC, and UCLA), or the ACC (Cal, Stanford).

However, the Pac-12 will be adding four new schools from the Mountain West Conference in 2026- Boise State University, Colorado State University, Fresno State University, and San Diego State University. They will likely continue to try to attract other new members.
But you are right, that it will not regain the prestige and level of competition it had prior to this year.​
 
Da Coach said:
Currently, the Pac-12 consists of only 2 schools- Oregon State and Washington State. Every other school left and moved to either the Big 12 (Utah, Arizona, AZ State, Colorado), the Big Ten (Oregon, Washington, USC, and UCLA), or the ACC (Cal, Stanford).

However, the Pac-12 will be adding four new schools from the Mountain West Conference in 2026- Boise State University, Colorado State University, Fresno State University, and San Diego State University. They will likely continue to try to attract other new members.
But you are right, that it will not regain the prestige and level of competition it had prior to this year.​
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Do you think the MVC is insulated geographicly from the fate that effectively killed the MWC?
 
Da Coach said:
Currently, the Pac-12 consists of only 2 schools- Oregon State and Washington State. Every other school left and moved to either the Big 12 (Utah, Arizona, AZ State, Colorado), the Big Ten (Oregon, Washington, USC, and UCLA), or the ACC (Cal, Stanford).

However, the Pac-12 will be adding four new schools from the Mountain West Conference in 2026- Boise State University, Colorado State University, Fresno State University, and San Diego State University. They will likely continue to try to attract other new members.
But you are right, that it will not regain the prestige and level of competition it had prior to this year.​
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I hope they only add "State" schools. It would make it easier to remember who is in the conference.
 
Da Coach said:
Currently, the Pac-12 consists of only 2 schools- Oregon State and Washington State....
However, the Pac-12 will be adding four new schools from the Mountain West Conference in 2026- Boise State University, Colorado State University, Fresno State University, and San Diego State University. They will likely continue to try to attract other new members...
Click to expand...

Just as UNLV and Air Force decided to stay in the Mountain West Conference, Utah State surprises everyone and joins the new Pac-12. - https://x.com/YahooSports/status/1838373121340104727



That puts the Pac-12 now at 7 members. Will UNLV and Air Force now reverse gears and leave the MWC?
 
The money would have to be pretty great for NIU to join. They’d be going from a regional bus league to flights everywhere.

The MAC doesn’t have a large buyout or grant of rights. The MWC is flush with cash now due to the payments by the schools who’ve left, and it has a much better media deal than the MAC but that should be substantially watered down when it comes time to renegotiate.

Then there’s the question of what to do with their other sports. The MVC doesn’t need a basketball drag so they’d be hoping for the Horizon.
 
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