Valpo to be visited by MVC this week, thoughts?

[RS]

Agree with bmlvu we should try and schedule more with teams in the OVC MVC & MAC. Its about time we drop the "whining" about not getting an invite to the MVC. Whether its because of location or facilities its done. Concentrate on improving our sports teams. Winning in the Horizon league will get you into the NCAA tournaments. How about the Horizon league finding a travel partner for Wright State. I think Northern Kentucky would be a good choice. Very good teams in Div II over the last 20 years. I feel Oakland is a done deal and would be Detroit's travel partner. UIC would be our travel partner. 10 teams would be a good number. Only really negative would be that the Horizon would only have 2 private schools.

[bbtds]

Its about time we drop the "whining" about not getting an invite to the MVC.

You obviously know nothing about "whine" making. You can not rush when making "whines." You must be patient, alert and strategic. "Whines" can only come from the fruitiest of authors. You can complete no "whine" before it's time.

whine (hwn, wn)
v. whined, whin·ing, whines
v.intr.
1. To utter a plaintive, high-pitched, protracted sound, as in pain, fear, supplication, or complaint.
2. To complain or protest in a childish fashion.
3. To produce a sustained noise of relatively high pitch: jet engines whining.

(Imagine this whole post in a high-pitched, protracted sound)

[crazyozzie02]

Does anyone know for certain that we didn't get an invite? Maybe we did but turned it down or just sat on our hands for too long until Loyola said yes. I have a hard time imagining that they would offer an invite to Loyola but not offer one to us. But in the meantime we sit in a crumbling conference while other teams find safe harbor. Great job AD. Great job

[wh]

Does anyone know for certain that we didn't get an invite? Maybe we did but turned it down or just sat on our hands for too long until Loyola said yes. I have a hard time imagining that they would offer an invite to Loyola but not offer one to us. But in the meantime we sit in a crumbling conference while other teams find safe harbor. Great job AD. Great job

You might start by going to page 14, post #8 (the first post announcing that Loyola was going to join the MVC) and start reading from there.  Every thought people have about why we didn't get an invite, whether we did and turned it down, or whether we "sit in a crumbling conference" is there for your reading pleasure among the dozens (hundreds) of posts that follow.

Welcome to the board!

[classof2014]

Does anyone know for certain that we didn't get an invite? Maybe we did but turned it down or just sat on our hands for too long until Loyola said yes. I have a hard time imagining that they would offer an invite to Loyola but not offer one to us. But in the meantime we sit in a crumbling conference while other teams find safe harbor. Great job AD. Great job

I'm pretty certain we didn't get an invite... At least how Elgin is making it out to be. I could be wrong since nothing official has been stated by anybody but it's just about a done deal that Loyola will be going to the MVC this summer. I don't believe Valpo got an offer, if they did offer Valpo a spot they wouldn't have offered Loyola one as well unless they're going to 12 teams this summer. I don't see that happening... at least not this year. Perhaps in years to come.

I don't believe our conference is crumbling... at least not yet. We only lost Loyola. A team that has only had 4 winning seasons since 1985! So saying they're bad is a compliment. If the Horizon can make a move to replace Loyola, with possibly Oakland, it would've worked out better for us. Yes, if another team leaves this offseason, then I would consider the conference to be crumbling. Losing Butler last year hurts but they earned the ability to move on to bigger and better things. Loyola has been terrible and has done nothing for the Horizon, I'm actually happy to see them go. Hopefully this season we can get Oakland and perhaps leave next year. But to say the Horizon is crumbling at the moment is a vast overstatement.

[usc4valpo]

Does anyone know for certain that we didn't get an invite? Maybe we did but turned it down or just sat on our hands for too long until Loyola said yes. I have a hard time imagining that they would offer an invite to Loyola but not offer one to us. But in the meantime we sit in a crumbling conference while other teams find safe harbor. Great job AD. Great job

I'm pretty certain we didn't get an invite... At least how Elgin is making it out to be. I could be wrong since nothing official has been stated by anybody but it's just about a done deal that Loyola will be going to the MVC this summer. I don't believe Valpo got an offer, if they did offer Valpo a spot they wouldn't have offered Loyola one as well unless they're going to 12 teams this summer. I don't see that happening... at least not this year. Perhaps in years to come. I don't believe our conference is crumbling... at least not yet. We only lost Loyola. A team that has only had 4 winning seasons since 1985! So saying they're bad is a compliment. If the Horizon can make a move to replace Loyola, with possibly Oakland, it would've worked out better for us. Yes, if another team leaves this offseason, then I would consider the conference to be crumbling. Losing Butler last year hurts but they earned the ability to move on to bigger and better things. Loyola has been terrible and has done nothing for the Horizon, I'm actually happy to see them go. Hopefully this season we can get Oakland and perhaps leave next year. But to say the Horizon is crumbling at the moment is a vast overstatement.

Why is Oakland such as great pick?  C'mon I would think they can do better than that.  The way DePaul is playing, perhaps they would consider a step down in conference.  Also, maybe Evansville may be a nice fit - they were in the Midwestern conference before.

[classof2014]

Does anyone know for certain that we didn't get an invite? Maybe we did but turned it down or just sat on our hands for too long until Loyola said yes. I have a hard time imagining that they would offer an invite to Loyola but not offer one to us. But in the meantime we sit in a crumbling conference while other teams find safe harbor. Great job AD. Great job

I'm pretty certain we didn't get an invite... At least how Elgin is making it out to be. I could be wrong since nothing official has been stated by anybody but it's just about a done deal that Loyola will be going to the MVC this summer. I don't believe Valpo got an offer, if they did offer Valpo a spot they wouldn't have offered Loyola one as well unless they're going to 12 teams this summer. I don't see that happening... at least not this year. Perhaps in years to come. I don't believe our conference is crumbling... at least not yet. We only lost Loyola. A team that has only had 4 winning seasons since 1985! So saying they're bad is a compliment. If the Horizon can make a move to replace Loyola, with possibly Oakland, it would've worked out better for us. Yes, if another team leaves this offseason, then I would consider the conference to be crumbling. Losing Butler last year hurts but they earned the ability to move on to bigger and better things. Loyola has been terrible and has done nothing for the Horizon, I'm actually happy to see them go. Hopefully this season we can get Oakland and perhaps leave next year. But to say the Horizon is crumbling at the moment is a vast overstatement.

Why is Oakland such as great pick?  C'mon I would think they can do better than that.  The way DePaul is playing, perhaps they would consider a step down in conference.  Also, maybe Evansville may be a nice fit - they were in the Midwestern conference before.

I think Oakland would be a good fit in the Horizon. Similar school to many in the Horizon and right now they're the ones who've shown the most interest in the Horizon. I don't see Evansville leaving the MVC nor do I see DePaul stepping down to the Horizon. If they were to take a step down it'd be to the A-10 or even the MVC but not as far low as the Horizon. Oakland is a good fit based on the demographics of the Horizon League. I don't think the Horizon can afford to be so picky over who it wants in. The league has fallen to 8 teams and is in need of a new school this summer and if they can replace Loyola with Oakland it will be a small step up for the Horizon.

[valpotx]

Does anyone know for certain that we didn't get an invite? Maybe we did but turned it down or just sat on our hands for too long until Loyola said yes. I have a hard time imagining that they would offer an invite to Loyola but not offer one to us. But in the meantime we sit in a crumbling conference while other teams find safe harbor. Great job AD. Great job

I'm pretty certain we didn't get an invite... At least how Elgin is making it out to be. I could be wrong since nothing official has been stated by anybody but it's just about a done deal that Loyola will be going to the MVC this summer. I don't believe Valpo got an offer, if they did offer Valpo a spot they wouldn't have offered Loyola one as well unless they're going to 12 teams this summer. I don't see that happening... at least not this year. Perhaps in years to come. I don't believe our conference is crumbling... at least not yet. We only lost Loyola. A team that has only had 4 winning seasons since 1985! So saying they're bad is a compliment. If the Horizon can make a move to replace Loyola, with possibly Oakland, it would've worked out better for us. Yes, if another team leaves this offseason, then I would consider the conference to be crumbling. Losing Butler last year hurts but they earned the ability to move on to bigger and better things. Loyola has been terrible and has done nothing for the Horizon, I'm actually happy to see them go. Hopefully this season we can get Oakland and perhaps leave next year. But to say the Horizon is crumbling at the moment is a vast overstatement.

Why is Oakland such as great pick?  C'mon I would think they can do better than that.  The way DePaul is playing, perhaps they would consider a step down in conference.  Also, maybe Evansville may be a nice fit - they were in the Midwestern conference before.

Seriously?  You think that Depaul would take a step down from the new Big East and the money involved there??  Wow....

[wh]

Does anyone know for certain that we didn't get an invite? Maybe we did but turned it down or just sat on our hands for too long until Loyola said yes. I have a hard time imagining that they would offer an invite to Loyola but not offer one to us. But in the meantime we sit in a crumbling conference while other teams find safe harbor. Great job AD. Great job

I'm pretty certain we didn't get an invite... At least how Elgin is making it out to be. I could be wrong since nothing official has been stated by anybody but it's just about a done deal that Loyola will be going to the MVC this summer. I don't believe Valpo got an offer, if they did offer Valpo a spot they wouldn't have offered Loyola one as well unless they're going to 12 teams this summer. I don't see that happening... at least not this year. Perhaps in years to come. I don't believe our conference is crumbling... at least not yet. We only lost Loyola. A team that has only had 4 winning seasons since 1985! So saying they're bad is a compliment. If the Horizon can make a move to replace Loyola, with possibly Oakland, it would've worked out better for us. Yes, if another team leaves this offseason, then I would consider the conference to be crumbling. Losing Butler last year hurts but they earned the ability to move on to bigger and better things. Loyola has been terrible and has done nothing for the Horizon, I'm actually happy to see them go. Hopefully this season we can get Oakland and perhaps leave next year. But to say the Horizon is crumbling at the moment is a vast overstatement.

Why is Oakland such as great pick?  C'mon I would think they can do better than that.  The way DePaul is playing, perhaps they would consider a step down in conference.  Also, maybe Evansville may be a nice fit - they were in the Midwestern conference before.

Seriously?  You think that Depaul would take a step down from the new Big East and the money involved there??  Wow....

The new Big East is already a huge step down from the old Big East.  Maybe they can actually become competitive now and pull their own weight instead of living off their annual handout.   

[a3uge]

Updated: See post below


For reference, I have created a map of schools on Valpo's radar.

Black and Gold is Horizon.

The green refers to all schools in the MVC. If you don't know which school is which, look it up.

Orange is OVC. Only included Murray St and Belmont for now because the rest of the conference is either bad or too far south. I can include others if anyone thinks they'd be a good addition.

The Red is all Summit League teams. Only labeled teams that are relatively decent in RPI.

The light blue is Northern Kentucky from the A-Sun because someone mentioned them.

I'm not including DePaul because that's just plain stupid.

[StlVUFan]

Black and Gold is Horizon.

Looks yellow to me.

[historyman]

Also Murray State is within a few miles of the Tennessee line.

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=Murray,+KY&hl=en&ll=36.611118,-88.313599&spn=1.289711,1.766052&sll=41.475425,-87.053415&sspn=0.07524,0.110378&oq=Murray&t=m&hnear=Murray,+Calloway,+Kentucky&z=9

[classof2014]

Coming from a geography major, that map is somewhat accurate. I've seen munch worse.

Anyways, this map does demonstrate the number of teams that are within close proximity of the horizon and the number of quality teams as well. Surely, one will jump aboard perhaps even two.

[LaPorteAveApostle]

I'd say what I thought about the map, but then people would think we're the same person with how often I've been complimenting you lately.  Thanks for that.  Did you save it so we can add things if they occur to us?

I've seen munch worse.

[usc4valpo]

Does anyone know for certain that we didn't get an invite? Maybe we did but turned it down or just sat on our hands for too long until Loyola said yes. I have a hard time imagining that they would offer an invite to Loyola but not offer one to us. But in the meantime we sit in a crumbling conference while other teams find safe harbor. Great job AD. Great job

I'm pretty certain we didn't get an invite... At least how Elgin is making it out to be. I could be wrong since nothing official has been stated by anybody but it's just about a done deal that Loyola will be going to the MVC this summer. I don't believe Valpo got an offer, if they did offer Valpo a spot they wouldn't have offered Loyola one as well unless they're going to 12 teams this summer. I don't see that happening... at least not this year. Perhaps in years to come. I don't believe our conference is crumbling... at least not yet. We only lost Loyola. A team that has only had 4 winning seasons since 1985! So saying they're bad is a compliment. If the Horizon can make a move to replace Loyola, with possibly Oakland, it would've worked out better for us. Yes, if another team leaves this offseason, then I would consider the conference to be crumbling. Losing Butler last year hurts but they earned the ability to move on to bigger and better things. Loyola has been terrible and has done nothing for the Horizon, I'm actually happy to see them go. Hopefully this season we can get Oakland and perhaps leave next year. But to say the Horizon is crumbling at the moment is a vast overstatement.

Why is Oakland such as great pick? C'mon I would think they can do better than that. The way DePaul is playing, perhaps they would consider a step down in conference. Also, maybe Evansville may be a nice fit - they were in the Midwestern conference before.

Seriously? You think that Depaul would take a step down from the new Big East and the money involved there?? Wow....

I may be off a few conference levels but Depaul really sucks and their program needs an emena in the worst way.  The Allstate Arena is a dump, and fan apathy and pathetic.  Maybe going back to the basics would help them.

[usc4valpo]

For reference, I have created a map of schools on Valpo's radar. Black and Gold is Horizon. The green refers to all schools in the MVC. If you don't know which school is which, look it up. Orange is OVC. Only included Murray St and Belmont for now because the rest of the conference is either bad or too far south. I can include others if anyone thinks they'd be a good addition. The Red is all Summit League teams. Only labeled teams that are relatively decent in RPI. The light blue is Northern Kentucky from the A-Sun because someone mentioned them. I'm not including DePaul because that's just plain stupid.

You sure DePaul would be wanted by the MVC or A10?  THey barely beat Chicago St. this year.

[valpotx]

Yes, Depaul sucks, but as long as they are pulling in the $ they are in the better conferences, they will never leave.  Northern Kentucky doesn't look that bad as an option with Oakland to get to 10.  They have solid facilities and are committed

[classof2014]

Yes, Depaul sucks, but as long as they are pulling in the $ they are in the better conferences, they will never leave.  Northern Kentucky doesn't look that bad as an option with Oakland to get to 10.  They have solid facilities and are committed

Agreed. Both Oakland and Northern Kentucky would be making big jumps in the strength of their conference and both are within our demographics. Northern Kentucky being from the Kentucky side of Cincinnati so they aren't too far from Dayton and Oakland are the northern neighbors of Detroit. Think it would be a good fit. Only time will tell though.

[a3uge]

Not too sure about adding Northern Kentucky this year... http://m.usatoday.com/article/news/2058557

With one scandal already looming in the Horizon, not too sure we want to take on a program with another.

I will update dat map later. Going to look at some eastern teams and indicate the rest of the OVC. Thanks for the suggestions.

[oklahomamick]

Coming from a geography major, that map is somewhat accurate. I've seen munch worse.

Anyways, this map does demonstrate the number of teams that are within close proximity of the horizon and the number of quality teams as well. Surely, one will jump aboard perhaps even two.

Tulsa is placed where OKC should be.  not accurate...

[a3uge]

Tulsa is placed where OKC should be.  not accurate...

Oh come on, it's like 3 and a half pixels off.

Also, googling Murray State University in Google Maps gave me 3000 Irvin Cobb Dr, Paducah, KY, so it's really accurate if you're going by that random address.

----------

Anyways, here's the new map. Used Yellow circles instead of gold. Added Robert Morris. Made Summit/OVC schools that aren't too important, but put them next to smaller dots and labeled them in smaller text. Labeled all the MVC schools. If anyone wants the SVG, just PM me your email address. I'm using Inkscape.

[LaPorteAveApostle]

Oh come on, it's like 3 and a half pixels off.

not too sure we want to take on a program with another

come on, now, if Detroit can pull that [stuff]...is the HL in any place to stow thrones?

[VULB#62]

Not too sure about adding Northern Kentucky this year... http://m.usatoday.com/article/news/2058557

Yes, Depaul sucks, but as long as they are pulling in the $ they are in the better conferences, they will never leave.  Northern Kentucky doesn't look that bad as an option with Oakland to get to 10.  They have solid facilities and are committed

Agreed. Both Oakland and Northern Kentucky would be making big jumps in the strength of their conference and both are within our demographics. Northern Kentucky being from the Kentucky side of Cincinnati so they aren't too far from Dayton and Oakland are the northern neighbors of Detroit. Think it would be a good fit. Only time will tell though.

FWIW -- NKU Facilities:  Beautiful 9,400 permanent chairback seat arena (Bank of KY Center), separate BB practice facility and VB venue (1800 seats - kind of a mini-ARC), a gorgeous $6 million 1,000 seat concrete soccer stadium with 1000 sq.ft. luxury lounge and artificial turf playing surface,  great BB and SB fields with 500 seat capacities.  Most of these are either new or newly refurbished since 2008.  BTW they have T&F but no on-campus track.

http://nkunorse.com/sports/2012/10/5/GEN_1005125048.aspx?tab=facilities

[historyman]

Not too sure about adding Northern Kentucky this year... http://m.usatoday.com/article/news/2058557 With one scandal already looming in the Horizon, not too sure we want to take on a program with another. I will update dat map later. Going to look at some eastern teams and indicate the rest of the OVC. Thanks for the suggestions.

It really sounds like AD didn't stand for athletic director at Northern Kentucky.   

[IndyValpo]

Love the map...I would add Niagara and Canisius from the Buffalo NY area.