MBB: St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

[insiders_information]

Hopefan I was wrong to call you out and talk down on you.  My apologiies, you are a one of a kind I suppose, not many that actually travel to different schools and watch basketball game.  I applaud you on your "Love of the Game."  But the SLIAC is POOPOO, I also applaud your loyalty to the conference. But anyways of course I am speaking the truth duh......My name says it all, I recieved from an inside source, I am like Woody PAige for those of you that watch me on  Around the HOrn on ESPN everyday.  If anyone wants to debate I am up for it, I have mass amounts of knowledge and ideas.  The idea of MAC closing the door on sports is a great idea until they can handle athletic events, athletic teams, and have great facilities.  Yes they have new weight room, training room, and cardio room.  The weight room is a damp cold mess, there is no trainer, so why not shut it down and start fromm scratch.  The basketball teams went from charters on the road in conference to 15 passenger vans all year.  What is that??  Treat these student athlete with some respect and give them the best you can give them, it is insane the amounts they pay to attend this school and they have the worst facilities.  My advice is for the same money or probably less take your money down the street to the cozy spatious college.  They are hurting too, dont get me wrong, but at least they have state of the art facilities.  Thats all for now to my great audience I will have some bombshells coming in the next few weeks.  Something is in the works. I cannot reveal the info just yet.  I hear Billy Donovan is thinking about a move to MAC he feels the 28 million MAC has to offer is tempting, he is flying into Springfield sometime next week and will be wined and dined by MAC upper echelon.  I feel he is a great coach and will improve MACS chances in upcoming seasons...........NOT!!!!!!!!
Im out like the Cardinals will be in JUly.

[hopefan]

Insider :  My feeling is that no matter what the level of play, be it high level CCIW Division3, or the lower end of the spectrum, if the teams are competitive, and playing hard, then it's entertaining to watch. That's why the SLIAC was so special last year -  5 or 6 teams, evenly matched, playing for a spot in the 4 team conference tournament  -  that's why on a Friday night I travelled to Eureka to watch Webster, then on down to Mac to watch them play Fontbonne on Saturday.  Two great games in a weekend that were extremely meaningful to the players and the handful of fans that support them.  I've got no kids playing, not an alum - I go to the games to see the effort put forth out on the floor.

Far better than going to a SLU game watching boring basketball with scores in the  50s or 60s, sitting far from the court in an overpriced seat and suffering thru countless TV timeouts.  Heck, I've talked to virtually every SLIAC hoops coach the last season and some players too, and they seemed to appreciate my support as much as I appreciate their efforts out on the court.

I'll never switch - whether Majerus works miracles at SLU or not....

[Ralph Turner]

I agree with hopefan on 2 points!

The conference system in D3 is great for the competition among peers.

If we are talking great athletes, then we are talking "semi-pro D1".  However, we like D3 because the "athletics" is average players getting more out of their abilities than the great majority of D1's ever will.  Winning the SLIAC is laudable in and of itself.

Secondly, the private schools in the SLIAC and many other D3 schools are tuition driven to greater degrees than most, and the small predominantly female student bodies need the extra 60-100 males who are on campus because of football.

There are 2 primary reasons that so many schools in D3 are adding football...
1)  extra male students paying tuition.
2)  male students that balance the gender ratios.

Look at those that have added football in the last decade:

Texas Lutheran, UMHB, Louisiana College, East Texas Baptist, Huntingdon, LaGrange, Husson, Becker, the schools in the USAC, etc.

Birmingham-Southern needed to re-allocate their scholarship monies from D1 athletics to a more affordable D3 model.  Almost everyone else is adding for the former reasons.

[sully309]

It's been a while since I've posted, but I've enjoyed reading most of what has been written in the interim. I would welcome insider_info to the board, but seeing as how he holds this conference in such high regard, I doubt he has a place in his heart for someone who works at one of the conference institutions  . He seems to have a plenty high enough opinion of himself anyway, so there's no need to worry about him being too shy to post again.

I don't have much to add on the Mac situation that hasn't already been said. It could be a case of the more things change, the more they stay the same. Then again, maybe Mac Attack will be proven correct down the line. Certainly, others aren't immune to a high turnover rate when it comes to athletics. I believe when it's all said and done, we'll have 5 new coaches at Eureka next year (though the AD and president will be the same).

Oh yeah, this is a basketball board isn't it? The Eureka guys are playing in a summer league in Peoria. I haven't seen them play yet and will probably miss them again this week, but I'll try to go and give a report ASAP. I've heard some good things about some incoming recruits, but I'm holding off warming up the EC hype machine until I see them (as if I'm like an expert basketball talent evaluator or something  ))

The fitness center addition to the front of Reagan Center is taking form. The lobby will be redesigned later this month. It's getting a new floor, the display cases with trophys and memorabilia will be rotated, and the Hall of Fame is going digital...and I'm supposed to be heavily involved. There is a lesson to be learned here of course.  Before you sign a contract READ THE FINE PRINT. 

[fcnews]

Priceless, Hmm!!!

Good to hear from you ECSID.

I don't want to disagree with anyone, BUT I will.
FU is in the process of setting up a proposal for football startin in 2010. 25-40 incoming athletes will not pay for the coaching staff, equiptment, travel and insurance. FU is about 20% male.

Hopefan here is something to stir your coaching thoughts: I you had FU's second five to build around (Parker, Levette, Fournie, Dill and Dressler) could you finish in the top six of the conference?

[Pat Coleman]

fcnews, for what it's worth, schools that are serious about their new football program have been pulling in more like 100 new students in the first season.

[hopefan]

FC  -  Parker, 2nd five??  Are you already giving up on him?

Seriously, I'd have him at point, McCoy at 2, and not mess with White.  Branch off the bench, unless it messes with his mind   - 

Interesting the other night, Parker brought the ball up virtually every time against Merrimac, McCoy played no 2.   Probably meaningless, but it seemed natural to them at the time.

I do not think the group you mentioned could have been a top 6 team last year - I'm surely not sold yet on Dill or Dressler, and I don't think Levette could give you significant consistent minutes  -  he impresses me more doing what he did last year - 5 minute spurts of energy two or three times a game. The SLIAC top 6 were so solid last year (relative to other years), with Maryville and Blackburn also being competitive....

[y_jack_lok]

It never occurred to me that adding (or having) football at a D3 institution would pay for itself by attracting a larger population of male students paying tuition, room, board, and fees. Very interesting. Is that really the case in the majority of of D3 schools? And if so is there a point at which, in smaller institutions, it doesn't work?

[Pat Coleman]

I think it varies too much to really have a hard and fast rule. What's the average student truly paying at each school? The range is too wide.

But remember this, too -- even after a kid stops playing football, and most incoming classes seem to lose about 75% of their kids by senior year -- they are often still paying students.

[hopefan]

The guy in the office next to me who often ridicules me for being a D3 fan while he has season tickets to the St Louis Billikins was crying in his coffee this morning.   With a new facility and big name new coach, ticket prices, or should I say cost per game has increased dramaticly - the season ticket renewal packages were just distributed

Prior cost  :  $220 for the season, 15 game, approx $15/game  (center court, up extremely high)

New cost just billed :  $450 for the season
                                    $150 additional for the "premium seating"
                                    $125 mandatory membership to the Billikin Club

            Total $725 or 325% increase

We may have a new D3 fan in the near future

[Pat Coleman]

Whatever it takes.

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

My gosh.  I wasn't aware that anyone other than Alums showed up to watch the Billikens!!  This is amazing.

[hopefan]

   Hoops   -   oh, he is an alum, and overly proud of it.....

[y_jack_lok]

hopefan, ask your colleague at work if he is a donor to SLU. I'd be curious to know if his loyalty and pride extend beyond the basketball court.

[Wydown Blvd.]

Sue Hansen at MacMurray becomes one of about 175 female athletics directors at the NCAA's 1,200 member colleges and universities. I just thought that was an interesting figure.

If anyone is interested, more info about these percentages etc:
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/2007-05-30-ncaa-news-notes_N.htm


(Clarification - I added the second "a" to MacMurray, the Methodist-affiliated college in Jacksonville, IL not the Methodist-affiliated college in Abilene, TX.  Thanks --Ralph Turner, McMurry (TX) alum 1974)