FB: Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

[MadRedFan]

This seems to indicate the waters may be a bit muddy for UST Football finding a home. From Tommie Media school/student site.
https://www.tommiemedia.com/news/conferences-dampen-speculation-about-tommie-footballs-future-home/

Wow.  I am quite surprised at the commissioner's statement.  She's never heard of St. Thomas before until now? I find it strange that a commissioner, especially of a football only conference, would not have some basic knowledge (at least names) about the schools in college football at all divisions. But, that is just me, a college football history nut.  Perhaps she is just too busy overseeing the Pioneer League. .  I was also not impressed with her other statements about the process in general.  Really? Anyone who has been following this saga is aware of the challenges involved; she just reiterated what most already know. Yet, perhaps she is just being cautious overall, taking the "politically correct" road trying to avoid any potential inflammatory comments as the process plays out.

Reminder again for context, I'm an Illinois State alum, booster and FB season ticket holder.

The commissioner is not held in high regard by many in the MVFC "family", so her lack of awareness, etc. isn't necessarily surprising.

[wm4]

Re: the Commissioner's comments, I think it's way more of an indictment of her than of UST. That's your industry, it's literally your job to have an idea of the schools and teams that surround you, regardless of division. Typically people with a two decade background in football have a strong knowledge of all the teams within the footprint they work in. I get the sense she almost meant it as a dig, but to me I was left questioning her own capabilities.

Very well stated.  You'd think if nothing else she'd be aware of UST via Esten having moved from a high ranking spot at Penn State to St Thomas.  That doesn't happen everyday in the industry.  She must not have read the December '18 edition of D1 Commissioner Journal. 

[Pat Coleman]

Re: the Commissioner's comments, I think it's way more of an indictment of her than of UST. That's your industry, it's literally your job to have an idea of the schools and teams that surround you, regardless of division. Typically people with a two decade background in football have a strong knowledge of all the teams within the footprint they work in. I get the sense she almost meant it as a dig, but to me I was left questioning her own capabilities.

D1 don't care about anything else.

[OzJohnnie]

My local super is advertising Princess Yum Yum pink raspberry beer from the Denver Beer Company.   Really!

I think there is a room somewhere with a couple people high-fiving each time they manage to sell something else that is completely stupid.

[jamtod]

Alright, 57J!  You've convinced me to pick one up after work to see what the fuss is.

You were right.  The "improved" version isn't nearly as good as the original. 

Why would they try to fix something that has worked for almost 100 years. You probably weren't around way back when they tried the 'new' Coke.
Don't get me started on pork and beans. 

I posted too soon. My local super is advertising Princess Yum Yum pink raspberry beer from the Denver Beer Company.   Really!

Sometimes when you've had success for a lot of years, things start to get stale and you lose to your biggest competitor 3 or 4 in a row and 7 out of 9 and you need to mix things up.

[USTBench]

This seems to indicate the waters may be a bit muddy for UST Football finding a home. From Tommie Media school/student site.
https://www.tommiemedia.com/news/conferences-dampen-speculation-about-tommie-footballs-future-home/

With all due respect, Commissioner Viverito might want to look around the college football landscape a bit and become more aware of what's going on.  You pretty much have to be living under a rock to have not heard of St Thomas and know what was going on with the potential move to D1.

Commissioners of D1 conferences are movers and shakers in the business.  They know what's going on at several levels and across several parts of the country.  They're incredibly informed and knowledgeable.

Or you could actually read the article, before blindly commenting, but I understand that's a stretch these days, especially for a UST guy.   

She said that she hadn't heard of them until the whole MIAC kerfuffle started, which I think is not at all unreasonable.  I would wager that plenty of folks involved in D1 outside of the immediate area had little knowledge of UST before the talks of Tom-toss began.  UST isn't (or at least as a D3 school, wasn't) as big of a deal as it likes to think of itself as being.

"I was not familiar at all, quite frankly, with St. Thomas, until the issue of their membership and their current Division III league was brought up in the national media."

I'm not surprised at all that she hadn't heard of UST before Tom-toss reared its ugly head. Having lived outside the bubble of the upper Midwest & Minnesota in particular, i realize that a great many people have never heard of UST, SJU or the MIAC. For a huge portion of the US population "Tommie-Johnnie"  is more of a redneck boy's name than a rivalry.

The important thing is that UST's presentation of itself as a potential member to any conference, whether it's the Summit,  Commissioner Viverito's league(s), or any other league needs to tell them "who we are" and sell them that "adding us as a member is beneficial to your league and its members" and i'm convinced that Esten & Co will be able to do that successfully.

Poster formerly known as UST Benchwarmer: you may need another moniker change from SUMMITT? to NSIC? 

I have never changed my moniker.

[OzJohnnie]

Another good article by Frank at gojohnnies.com.  I'm liking his work.

https://gojohnnies.com/news/2019/10/17/football-touchdowns-in-tribute-sjus-alston-having-a-breakout-season-while-honoring-his-father.aspx

[sjusection105]

This seems to indicate the waters may be a bit muddy for UST Football finding a home. From Tommie Media school/student site.
https://www.tommiemedia.com/news/conferences-dampen-speculation-about-tommie-footballs-future-home/

With all due respect, Commissioner Viverito might want to look around the college football landscape a bit and become more aware of what's going on.  You pretty much have to be living under a rock to have not heard of St Thomas and know what was going on with the potential move to D1.

Commissioners of D1 conferences are movers and shakers in the business.  They know what's going on at several levels and across several parts of the country.  They're incredibly informed and knowledgeable.

Or you could actually read the article, before blindly commenting, but I understand that's a stretch these days, especially for a UST guy.   

She said that she hadn't heard of them until the whole MIAC kerfuffle started, which I think is not at all unreasonable.  I would wager that plenty of folks involved in D1 outside of the immediate area had little knowledge of UST before the talks of Tom-toss began.  UST isn't (or at least as a D3 school, wasn't) as big of a deal as it likes to think of itself as being.

"I was not familiar at all, quite frankly, with St. Thomas, until the issue of their membership and their current Division III league was brought up in the national media."

I'm not surprised at all that she hadn't heard of UST before Tom-toss reared its ugly head. Having lived outside the bubble of the upper Midwest & Minnesota in particular, i realize that a great many people have never heard of UST, SJU or the MIAC. For a huge portion of the US population "Tommie-Johnnie"  is more of a redneck boy's name than a rivalry.

The important thing is that UST's presentation of itself as a potential member to any conference, whether it's the Summit,  Commissioner Viverito's league(s), or any other league needs to tell them "who we are" and sell them that "adding us as a member is beneficial to your league and its members" and i'm convinced that Esten & Co will be able to do that successfully.

Poster formerly known as UST Benchwarmer: you may need another moniker change from SUMMITT? to NSIC? 

I have never changed my moniker.

My sleuthing sent me in the wrong direction, but I managed to get correct school,race,height,weight but the wrong decade. I've since been corrected via PM. You guys wearing purple all seem the same 

[DuffMan]

Would you say that SUMMIT? is a bit of a maniac?

[sjusection105]

Would you say that SUMMIT? is a bit of a maniac?

Duff, I will neither confirm or deny but as the old saying goes, "in the land of the blind, the one eyed man is king".

[D O.C.]

"Wesley of the Mid-West"
😄😁😄

[SUMMIT!!!!!]

One of the major reasons for the SJU/U$T rivalry has always been the similarity of the institutions.  Most players were recruited by and considered both schools, and many have friends/HS teammates/HS rivals on both sides of the field.  The institutions appear to be diverging, and with that, I think the rivalry will fade.

I think you summed up the essence of To-Jo perfectly, and also gave a clear explanation of why the rivalry won't be there if UST's move to D1 is approved.

Oh, and some would  probably say I am more than "a bit" of a maniac 

[OzJohnnie]

This seems to indicate the waters may be a bit muddy for UST Football finding a home. From Tommie Media school/student site.
https://www.tommiemedia.com/news/conferences-dampen-speculation-about-tommie-footballs-future-home/

I've read this article a couple times now.  More than once because it looks like a hatchet job from TommieMedia, although I know that most certainly wasn't the intent.

What's with making Esten look like a complete amateur, barking in the papers without talking to the Pioneer League itself?

"St. Thomas has not asked me about membership in the Missouri Valley Football Conference," Commissioner Patty Viverito said. "(The Pioneer League is) not on the table. It's not been put on the table. And actually any speculation in the media about that doesn't help (St. Thomas)."

This, of course, if followed by speculation by Esten in the media exactly on that.

"As we've looked at all of the options, and the Summit League obviously not having football, we've got to find an affiliate membership with one of the football leagues if the NCAA does ultimately approve the waiver. And right now we are, we would pursue membership in the Pioneer Football League," Esten said.

And then what's this little "UST will never get the waiver" jibe at the end?

"I think for anybody outside of this they want to see, want us to make sure we are working through the right process," Esten said.

Viverito emphasized that an NCAA waiver is "complicated, and it's unique," noting that no institution has ever lost membership in a Division III conference for the reasons that have been circulated publicly for St. Thomas.

"I do know that the path to Division I is intentionally challenging to ensure that institutions that make that jump to Division I are fully prepared to manage that in a way that is responsible, both fiscally and with rules compliance," Viverito said.

And then that bolded sentence...  Is she saying no institution has lost membership before this for the reasons circulated publicly or that no institution has ever lost membership for those reasons including St Thomas?  Almost certainly it implies that the public reason are not the true reasons.


I have to say I remain baffled by this article.  In this week of all weeks.  I would almost think that the author is a Johnnie plant.  I could not write a more innuendo loaded article myself, not to mention audaciously interview a key stakeholder in the Tommie move and publish an indifferent at best, negative at worst, outlook on UST's prospects.  This is a strange article.

[jamtod]

This seems to indicate the waters may be a bit muddy for UST Football finding a home. From Tommie Media school/student site.
https://www.tommiemedia.com/news/conferences-dampen-speculation-about-tommie-footballs-future-home/

I've read this article a couple times now.  More than once because it looks like a hatchet job from TommieMedia, although I know that most certainly wasn't the intent.

What's with making Esten look like a complete amateur, barking in the papers without talking to the Pioneer League itself?

"St. Thomas has not asked me about membership in the Missouri Valley Football Conference," Commissioner Patty Viverito said. "(The Pioneer League is) not on the table. It's not been put on the table. And actually any speculation in the media about that doesn't help (St. Thomas)."

This, of course, if followed by speculation by Esten in the media exactly on that.

"As we've looked at all of the options, and the Summit League obviously not having football, we've got to find an affiliate membership with one of the football leagues if the NCAA does ultimately approve the waiver. And right now we are, we would pursue membership in the Pioneer Football League," Esten said.

And then what's this little "UST will never get the waiver" jibe at the end?

"I think for anybody outside of this they want to see, want us to make sure we are working through the right process," Esten said.

Viverito emphasized that an NCAA waiver is "complicated, and it's unique," noting that no institution has ever lost membership in a Division III conference for the reasons that have been circulated publicly for St. Thomas.

"I do know that the path to Division I is intentionally challenging to ensure that institutions that make that jump to Division I are fully prepared to manage that in a way that is responsible, both fiscally and with rules compliance," Viverito said.

And then that bolded sentence...  Is she saying no institution has lost membership before this for the reasons circulated publicly or that no institution has ever lost membership for those reasons including St Thomas?  Almost certainly it implies that the public reason are not the true reasons.


I have to say I remain baffled by this article.  In this week of all weeks.  I would almost think that the author is a Johnnie plant.  I could not write a more innuendo loaded article myself, not to mention audaciously interview a key stakeholder in the Tommie move and publish an indifferent at best, negative at worst, outlook on UST's prospects.  This is a strange article.

It's very strange but I am mostly chalking it up to student journalism. I've seen enough TommieMedia stuff to not get too excited with something of this quality. Editors need to be doing a bit more and a clarification should probably be published

[AO]

And then that bolded sentence...  Is she saying no institution has lost membership before this for the reasons circulated publicly or that no institution has ever lost membership for those reasons including St Thomas?  Almost certainly it implies that the public reason are not the true reasons.

I think she is implying that the publicly given reason is important to the waiver process.  If they were having trouble with NCAA compliance at the D3 level, then obviously that might hurt their chances.