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Missouri Valley Football Conference Commissioner Patty Viverito said today her league is cooperating with the Summit League football study.

North Dakota State is a member of both conferences.

“It’s not secret that the Summit conference recently announced its intention to study football," Viverito said. "Given that three Missouri Valley Football Conference teams are also members of the Summit conference, it’s important that this study be conducted cooperatively and transparently.

http://areavoices.com/bisonmedia/?blog=84234" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

It is now likely the Summit and MVFC will join forces. If that happens it will add USD, SUU and UND to the MVFC. Thats not that earth shattering and it gives you 2-6 team divisions as well as a full slate of 9 conference games.

We don't want your basketball teams.

Football, whatever.

Basketball, stay the hell away please.

JBB wrote:

Missouri Valley Football Conference Commissioner Patty Viverito said today her league is cooperating with the Summit League football study.

North Dakota State is a member of both conferences.

“It’s not secret that the Summit conference recently announced its intention to study football," Viverito said. "Given that three Missouri Valley Football Conference teams are also members of the Summit conference, it’s important that this study be conducted cooperatively and transparently.

http://areavoices.com/bisonmedia/?blog=84234" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

It is now likely the Summit and MVFC will join forces. If that happens it will add USD, SUU and UND to the MVFC. Thats not that earth shattering and it gives you 2-6 team divisions as well as a full slate of 9 conference games.

Unbalanced schedule. Bummer.

UNI31f wrote:We don't want your basketball teams.

Football, whatever.

Basketball, stay the hell away please.

The MVFC does not sponsor basketball.

9 conference games seems a little much. It only leaves 2 slots for non-con matchups, one of which will be filled (for pretty much every MVFC team) with a road "money game" at a BCS/FBS school. Possibly even BOTH being money games, given the financial situations of many of the athletic programs.

How many conference games do the other conferences have currently?
The MVFC (as it is now) has 9 teams, so that means a round-robin 8 game schedule.

JayJ79 wrote:9 conference games seems a little much. It only leaves 2 slots for non-con matchups, one of which will be filled (for pretty much every MVFC team) with a road "money game" at a BCS/FBS school. Possibly even BOTH being money games, given the financial situations of many of the athletic programs.

How many conference games do the other conferences have currently?
The MVFC (as it is now) has 9 teams, so that means a round-robin 8 game schedule.

Which is the way it should be for an FCS conference - where it gets settled on the field.

houndawg wrote:

JayJ79 wrote:9 conference games seems a little much. It only leaves 2 slots for non-con matchups, one of which will be filled (for pretty much every MVFC team) with a road "money game" at a BCS/FBS school. Possibly even BOTH being money games, given the financial situations of many of the athletic programs.

How many conference games do the other conferences have currently?
The MVFC (as it is now) has 9 teams, so that means a round-robin 8 game schedule.

Which is the way it should be for an FCS conference - where it gets settled on the field.

My opinion is that this is a lot of posturing. However, the Summit is probably trying to leverage the XSD's and SUU into the MVFC somehow, it gives them a little credit by association, so to speak. I'm still unsure on UND's name situation, although I thought it was finally put to rest, but who knows. NDSU will throw a giant sized tantrum if UND get's in(at least it's fanbase will) However, a few seasons of UXD's vs XDSU's in bball and everybody will warm up to playing each other in fball again. I'm not keen on an East West Division any ways. But if it were to happen it would look like this
Which would make the freakin' NCC codgers ecstatic. Of course this scheduling would get State out of the brutal scheduling it's in now.
My assumption is SDSU would like to become a full time MVC member. While NDSU still wishes to apply for an NFL franchise.
West
SDSU
NDSU
USD
UND
SUU
MSU

East
SIU
WIU
YSU
UNI
IND ST
ILL ST

That would give the East the two best programs in the MVFC (UNI and SIU) along with ISUR and YSU both oh whom appear to be on the verge of good/great again. Coupled with the bottom feeder Sycs.

The west would have all the middle of the road teams and SDSU.

There needs to be some balance here. We don't want a CAA North and South deal

UNI31f wrote:That would give the East the two best programs in the MVFC (UNI and SIU) along with ISUR and YSU both oh whom appear to be on the verge of good/great again. Coupled with the bottom feeder Sycs.

The west would have all the middle of the road teams and SDSU.

There needs to be some balance here. We don't want a CAA North and South deal

Trade UNI and MSU

I can't imagine with the economy the way it is right now and most State universities facing huge budget cuts that the MVFC would travel to Ohio and Utah...

More on the story from Fargo:

can assure you that Tom Douple and I, and also to a degree (commissioner) Doug Fullerton in the Big Sky Conference, have had some very open and frank discussions about what’s best for FCS football.”

When asked if a merger between the MVFC and The Summit was possible, Viverito didn’t discount the idea.

“Nothing’s off the table,” Viverito said.

http://www.inforum.com/event/article/id/286761/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The Big Sky is involved now. No telling where this will go. Obviously not something thats going to happen this year or next but right now its an open book. Some big changes could come from this. There are a lot of ways to combine all those schools.

Theee Catrabbit wrote: My assumption is SDSU would like to become a full time MVC member. While NDSU still wishes to apply for an NFL franchise.

Big Ten would be nice

MSUDuo wrote:

UNI31f wrote:That would give the East the two best programs in the MVFC (UNI and SIU) along with ISUR and YSU both oh whom appear to be on the verge of good/great again. Coupled with the bottom feeder Sycs.

The west would have all the middle of the road teams and SDSU.

There needs to be some balance here. We don't want a CAA North and South deal

Trade UNI and MSU

I can't imagine with the economy the way it is right now and most State universities facing huge budget cuts that the MVFC would travel to Ohio and Utah...

I agree, send SUU to the Big Sky, and invite Nebraska Omaha to the MVFC if they move up to FCS.

Theee Catrabbit wrote:My opinion is that this is a lot of posturing. However, the Summit is probably trying to leverage the XSD's and SUU into the MVFC somehow, it gives them a little credit by association, so to speak. I'm still unsure on UND's name situation, although I thought it was finally put to rest, but who knows. NDSU will throw a giant sized tantrum if UND get's in(at least it's fanbase will) However, a few seasons of UXD's vs XDSU's in bball and everybody will warm up to playing each other in fball again. I'm not keen on an East West Division any ways. But if it were to happen it would look like this
Which would make the freakin' NCC codgers ecstatic. Of course this scheduling would get State out of the brutal scheduling it's in now.
My assumption is SDSU would like to become a full time MVC member. While NDSU still wishes to apply for an NFL franchise.
West
SDSU
NDSU
USD
UND
SUU
MSU

East
SIU
WIU
YSU
UNI
IND ST
ILL ST

It is an abomination beforeth the lord and must be smited.


The Bison might be able to sniff the playoffs though.

Theee Catrabbit wrote: Great West
SDSU
NDSU
USD
UND
SUU
Cal Poly
UCD

MVFC
SIU
WIU
YSU
UNI
IND ST
ILL ST
MSU

FIFY

Gil Dobie wrote:

Theee Catrabbit wrote: Great West
SDSU
NDSU
USD
UND
SUU
Cal Poly
UCD

MVFC
SIU
WIU
YSU
UNI
IND ST
ILL ST
MSU

FIFY

I can't see the MVFC letting SDSU and NDSU out of their contracts with the MVC if it is going to leave the league with only 7 teams. One of the two...maybe. Both won't happen unless we find someone else to fill those spots.

UNI31f wrote:

Gil Dobie wrote:
FIFY

I can't see the MVFC letting SDSU and NDSU out of their contracts with the MVC if it is going to leave the league with only 7 teams. One of the two...maybe. Both won't happen unless we find someone else to fill those spots.

MVFC with Great West and MV divisions is what I meant, not 2 seperate conferences.

Only 3 conferences have less than 8 teams - Big South at 7, GWC at 5, and the Patriot at 7.

The Valley will not go to 7. If that happens the league would disband and teams will join the Big Sky, CAA, Ohio Valley, etc... as affiliates. OR the more likely try to bring back Eastern Illinois, and some other OVC teams and D2 teams looking to move to D1 (Northwest Missouri State, Nebraska Omaha, etc...)

The fact is neither the Summit or MVFC can support football without affiliates because not all the schools in the Summit or MVC play football. The relationship in football works of fairly well. It adds a lot of travel compared to the base MVFC teams, but SDSU and YSU bring good programs now, and NDSU has been a good D2/transition/GWC team.

Gil Dobie wrote:

UNI31f wrote:I can't see the MVFC letting SDSU and NDSU out of their contracts with the MVC if it is going to leave the league with only 7 teams. One of the two...maybe. Both won't happen unless we find someone else to fill those spots.

MVFC with Great West and MV divisions is what I meant, not 2 seperate conferences.

Even still you will only have one conference name, and it will be Missouri Valley Football Conference. The division names would be East/West or North South even if geographically the names don't fit accurately.

How long are the xDSU contracts with the MVFC?

Summit League is trying to raise their profile. What better way than to sponsor football.

Currently, two, (and three) if UND joins) are shut out of auto-bid football.

Missouri Valley only has 5 schollie football playing teams - why should the MVC get the glory?

Summit could easily field a seven team league:

NDSU
SDSU
UND
USD
WIU
SUU
Cal-Poly (affiliate)
UC-Davis (affiliate)

Leaving the MVFC with:
ISU
ISU
SIU
UNI
MSU
YSU (affiliate)

dbackjon wrote:How long are the xDSU contracts with the MVFC?

Summit League is trying to raise their profile. What better way than to sponsor football.

Currently, two, (and three) if UND joins) are shut out of auto-bid football.

Missouri Valley only has 5 schollie football playing teams - why should the MVC get the glory?

Summit could easily field a seven team league:

NDSU
SDSU
UND
USD
WIU
SUU
Cal-Poly (affiliate)
UC-Davis (affiliate)

Leaving the MVFC with:
ISU
ISU
SIU
UNI
MSU
YSU (affiliate)

I can't see the XDSU's leaving a league like the MVFC to join a league with the bottom a bottom feeder of the MVFC and 3 other teams that would be bottom half of the MVFC.


While sponsoring football may raise the "league name", playing in that league would be like leaving the CAA for the Ohio Valley or NEC

The new Summit would instantly be close to MVFC level.

And it is not ALL about football.

If the MVC wants the xDSU's bad enough in the MVFC, then invite them as full members

My point was it would still be the MVFC(wouldn't want to lose the auto bid), but it would be a 2 division conf.

Here's an article from today's Sioux Falls paper covering the topic

http://beta.argusleader.com/article/201 ... TS/8030318" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

dbackjon wrote:The new Summit would instantly be close to MVFC level.

And it is not ALL about football.

If the MVC wants the xDSU's bad enough in the MVFC, then invite them as full members

If we could get rid of Indiana State and Evansville I would be for that. Both schools would bring baseball, which is big to the conference. NDSU would bring a great softball program. Basketball would about break even in terms of what we currently have in Evansville and Indiana State.

I don't think we will ever see ISUB leave the conference. Evansville is a team it seems a lot of MVC teams want to see leave for various reasons.

I would love to see Drake go up to scholarship football, but they aren't committed to football, so it is best they stay non-scholarship. I don't want schools not dedicated to football in the conference *coughISUBcough*.


My ideal MVFC would be this...assuming all are committed to having at least a respectable program, even if they are bad record wise.

MVFC
Southern Illinois
Northern Iowa
Missouri State
Drake
Inidana State
Illinois State
North Dakota State
South Dakota State
Youngstown State

Missour Valley Conference for all sports (non football)
Bradley
Creighton
Drake
Illinois State
Indiana State
Missouri State
Northern Iowa
North Dakota State
Southern Illinois
South Dakota State



That means that Evansville and Wichita State would leave the conference. Neither play football. WSU has a good baseball program and a solid basketball program. Their fan base believes they deserve and invite to a BCS conference for basketball, but can't fathom that without even FCS football they won't get it. They also, for the most part, refuse to accept FCS football as D1. They refer to it as Pop Warner...as do Creighton Fans.

I like that setup UNI31f.