HL Announcement: Belmont Joins Horizon League Soccer

[valpopal]

The Horizon League Board of Directors has approved Belmont University as an affiliate member in the sport of men's soccer. The first affiliate member in the Horizon League in over 30 years, the Bruins will be eligible to compete in 2014. Belmont has played men's soccer as an independent since the 2012 season and previously was in the Atlantic Sun Conference.

http://www.horizonleague.org/blog/belmont-university-to-join-horizon-league-as-affiliate-member

[valpopal]

The conference courtship continues:

"In addition to the affiliate membership in men's soccer, Belmont and the Horizon League have reached agreement on a non-conference scheduling partnership that will see the Bruins compete against league members in men's and women's basketball, baseball, softball and women's soccer. Over the next four years, Belmont will play six league members in men's basketball home-and-home games as part of the non-conference scheduling agreement."

[valpopal]

[tweet]458263282399207424[/tweet]

[a3uge]

I don't know if this hurts or helps the HL in a future BB affiliation.

[78crusader]

Belmont is a quality school and would be a terrific addition to the HL.

Paul

[LaPorteAveApostle]

I see what you mean, a3, but I think that it helps; take the ACC--they may never get ND to get in with both feet, but one foot is better than none.

[valpo64]

Belmont would be a great addition to the HL.

[a3uge]

Should clarify: I don't know if the hurts or helps the Horizon's chances to add Belmont in the future for basketball. They would be a good addition, obviously, but maybe they are content playing "affiliate" in the sports that the OVC is weak in.

[vusupporter]

Should clarify: I don't know if the hurts or helps the Horizon's chances to add Belmont in the future for basketball. They would be a good addition, obviously, but maybe they are content playing "affiliate" in the sports that the OVC is weak in.

The OVC doesn't sponsor men's soccer, hence Belmont's need to be an affiliate member in another league in the sport.

[valpotx]

Hopefully it leads to something more permanent in the next few years, getting another private school in the HL.  The OVC is not highly rated in men's basketball, with only 2 or 3 decent teams each season.  The rest of that conference is complete crap. 

http://www.realtimerpi.com/rpi_ovc_Men.html

[vu72]

I think the reality is that the Horizon will need to broaden its footprint to find suitable expansion candidates  Belmont would indeed be a great addition.

[wh]

Before the announcement that Milwaukee will be ineligible for postseason play next year, I never felt strongly one way or the other about the ratio of public to private schools in the Horizon League. I do now.  Not only is Milwaukee in trouble, but it appears that UIC will likely follow suit the following year.  There's nothing that can be done about it now, except hope that both institutions do what they need to do and work their way out of this embarrassing mess without any more failures. 

What the league can do is insure that it doesn't add anyone new with a similar lack of academic control.  The easiest way is simply add a private university with higher academic standards.  Hopefully, Belmont fits the bill.  Beyond that, if we were to expand to 12 members, I think our administration and Detroit's should insist that only private universities are added.  Even at that, the ratio will still favor the publics (7-5).  Who might the candidates be?  I have no idea.  It doesn't really matter.  If we can't find them, we don't expand - period.

[oklahomamick]

What the league can do is insure that it doesn't add anyone new with a similar lack of academic control. The easiest way is simply add a private university with higher academic standards. Hopefully, Belmont fits the bill. Beyond that, if we were to expand to 12 members, I think our administration and Detroit's should insist that only private universities are added. Even at that, the ratio will still favor the publics (7-5). Who might the candidates be? I have no idea. It doesn't really matter. If we can't find them, we don't expand - period.

Belmont - private in Nashville
Lipcomb - private and travel partner in Nashville with Belmont
Evansville - private and 2 hour drive from Nashville

Problem is its not realistic and it would give HL an odd 13 teams. 
Indianapolis University - private but diii and would not move up

[Big D]

Beyond that, if we were to expand to 12 members, I think our administration and Detroit's should insist that only private universities are added.  Even at that, the ratio will still favor the publics (7-5).  Who might the candidates be?  I have no idea.  It doesn't really matter.  If we can't find them, we don't expand - period.

The HL is going to look to add the 3 best programs we can and I would be willing to bet that only 2 of the 3 are going to be private.  You might not want another public school in the HL, but you cannot stop it even if you get Detroit to go along with your thinking.  A 7-2 vote is enough to add any team.  You don't have veto power over a school joining the conference unless your school is located within 25 miles of one of the schools that is being voted upon.

[wh]

Beyond that, if we were to expand to 12 members, I think our administration and Detroit's should insist that only private universities are added.  Even at that, the ratio will still favor the publics (7-5).  Who might the candidates be?  I have no idea.  It doesn't really matter.  If we can't find them, we don't expand - period.

The HL is going to look to add the 3 best programs we can and I would be willing to bet that only 2 of the 3 are going to be private.  You might not want another public school in the HL, but you cannot stop it even if you get Detroit to go along with your thinking.  A 7-2 vote is enough to add any team.  You don't have veto power over a school joining the conference unless your school is located within 25 miles of one of the schools that is being voted upon.

For sake of argument let's say the next school added is a private. Then, aren't 3 "no" votes enough to keep the league from adding any more public schools?

[wh]

You might not want another public school in the HL, but you cannot stop it even if you get Detroit to go along with your thinking.  A 7-2 vote is enough to add any team.  You don't have veto power over a school joining the conference unless your school is located within 25 miles of one of the schools that is being voted upon.

According to HL rules it takes a 2/3 vote in favor to add a school:

2.1.2    New members shall be admitted subject to the approval of two-thirds(2/3) of the Voting Directors of theBoard;
provided, however, a   Voting Director may veto a   membership invitation to an institution located geographically within   
twenty-five (25)   miles   of the member institution which the vetoing   director represents. This veto, however, may be   .
overridden   by an   unanimous   vote of the   Voting Directors   whose institutions they represent are located beyond twenty-five   
(25) miles   from   the prospective institution.

So, you are correct - unless the 10th and 11th schools added are private.  At that point, the 4 private schools would represent a 36% share and thus would hold combined veto power over adding a public school as the 12th member.

[oklahomamick]

question is, why hasn't LeCrone been proactive and aggressive in seeking new schools?  The worse case is they say no.  Or maybe he has and we just don't know about it. 

[LaPorteAveApostle]

I would think that just because we don't necessarily hear something doesn't mean it isn't happening. (recent case in point, Bryce Drew and any other job.)

Put it this way--if you want to ask a girl out, and she says yes, then you want the world to know; if she says no, wouldn't you not want that publicized?

I mean, not that I know how the latter feels or anything.

[a3uge]

The HL can't be picky about public vs private. There's not enough private D1 schools in the Midwest to be picky. Belmont and Robert Morris is the closest you're going to get to Midwestern private schools that are in lower conferences - ones in Nashville and the other Pittsburgh.

I'll take Murray State over a school with depressing athletics like Lipscomb. At the end of the day, as long as the school meets APR, I don't care if they're private, public, for profit, big, small, or whatever. LeCrone should judge athletic conferences based on athletics first (again, granted they make APR).

[wh]

The conference courtship continues:

"In addition to the affiliate membership in men's soccer, Belmont and the Horizon League have reached agreement on a non-conference scheduling partnership that will see the Bruins compete against league members in men's and women's basketball, baseball, softball and women's soccer. Over the next four years, Belmont will play six league members in men's basketball home-and-home games as part of the non-conference scheduling agreement."

Belmont just published it's '14-15 men's basketball schedule.  They are playing 2 games against Wright State, but no other HL teams.  When the announcement was made in April that Belmont would be playing home-and-home games against 6 HL teams over the next 4 years, it never entered my mind that they would be playing 2 games against the same opponent in the same season.

http://static.psbin.com/r/9/jwlwmflu3791qo/bel.mbb.1415schedule.pdf

[valpotx]

Yeah, that doesn't make much sense.  Hopefully it is just a one-time thing, but if it will be 5 more HL teams in the 3 following seasons, they would probably have to do it again, unless they want an all-HL OOC schedule one season.

[oklahomamick]

I ran into a Belmont soccer coach at a youth Regional Championships.  I had lunch with him in the coaches hospitality room and asked about their experience in the HL.  He replied that there is not much talk about joining the HL.  He continued that the athletic department does not see the HL as an option.

He also joked that when they were in the A-sun Lipscomb was their travel partner.  Then once Belmont left, Lipscomb's travel partner was NKU for one year.  Then NKU left and NJIT has now become Lipscomb travel partner. 

[valpotx]

Atlantic Sun, not A-10.  They can dream, though

[oklahomamick]

Atlantic Sun, not A-10.  They can dream, though

oops, I fixed it.