FB: Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

[wally_wabash]

It is interesting how the top WI, TX, MN teams are now travelling cross country to play each other in non-con play. It makes wonder whether it's a function of regional competition simply not wanting to play them (just to get blown out) or whether they're looking for better competition as most conference games aren't competitive? There is definitely high interest in these games. The USJ/UWW game pulled in over 12,000 fans and the UWW/UMHB game over 14,000 according to the box scores.

It probably has a lot to do with the former, but will always be spun as the latter.  There's nothing to be gained at this point by complaining about the lack of more local competition opportunities so coaches will embrace the challenge and use it to their motivational advantage. 

[OzJohnnie]

It is interesting how the top WI, TX, MN teams are now travelling cross country to play each other in non-con play. It makes wonder whether it's a function of regional competition simply not wanting to play them (just to get blown out) or whether they're looking for better competition as most conference games aren't competitive? There is definitely high interest in these games. The USJ/UWW game pulled in over 12,000 fans and the UWW/UMHB game over 14,000 according to the box scores.

It probably has a lot to do with the former, but will always be spun as the latter.  There's nothing to be gained at this point by complaining about the lack of more local competition opportunities so coaches will embrace the challenge and use it to their motivational advantage. 

The tough competition is a bonus, but I would think the main motivator is that these are out-of-conference games that if you lose, you don't destroy your post-season opportunities.  SJU can beat on Crown 80-0 in a meaningless game for both teams (both developmentally and ranking-wise) or take on Trinity where a good loss is still better than a Crown blowout when it comes to both team development and post-season opportunity. Post-season selection criteria demand you play the best teams you can and hopefully, beat them.  For the top 10, that means playing the top 10.

[faunch]

Thoughts on this?
https://gojohnnies.com/news/2023/8/1/general-saint-johns-athletics-partners-with-nil-vendor-inflcr-launches-johnnie-exchange.aspx

[OzJohnnie]

It just occurred to me that Return of the Jedi came out in 1983.  It turned 40 years old on May 25th.  It's hard to believe I was 15 when that movie came out.  I can remember sitting in the theatre with my buddies Paul and Robb and reading the opening scroll like it was yesterday.  I can remember sitting in a Colorado theatre with my dad when I was 10 and watching the first Star Wars movie. We drove clear to Boulder to see it on the really big screen.

[OzJohnnie]

Thoughts on this?
https://gojohnnies.com/news/2023/8/1/general-saint-johns-athletics-partners-with-nil-vendor-inflcr-launches-johnnie-exchange.aspx

Well, players get to make money off their names and images now.  It was bound to happen and it's good the school is putting the tools in place so that we minimise the chance for violations and penalties.

I'm sure this will be a +$ novelty for a few players and sponsors, but I hope it doesn't cut into the program budgets.  Or start to cause a divide amongst the semi-pro and non-sponsored students.  Anyways, as our own Robert Zimmerman says, "The times, they are a changin'."

[emma17]

It is interesting how the top WI, TX, MN teams are now travelling cross country to play each other in non-con play. It makes wonder whether it's a function of regional competition simply not wanting to play them (just to get blown out) or whether they're looking for better competition as most conference games aren't competitive? There is definitely high interest in these games. The USJ/UWW game pulled in over 12,000 fans and the UWW/UMHB game over 14,000 according to the box scores.

It probably has a lot to do with the former, but will always be spun as the latter.  There's nothing to be gained at this point by complaining about the lack of more local competition opportunities so coaches will embrace the challenge and use it to their motivational advantage. 

The tough competition is a bonus, but I would think the main motivator is that these are out-of-conference games that if you lose, you don't destroy your post-season opportunities.  SJU can beat on Crown 80-0 in a meaningless game for both teams (both developmentally and ranking-wise) or take on Trinity where a good loss is still better than a Crown blowout when it comes to both team development and post-season opportunity. Post-season selection criteria demand you play the best teams you can and hopefully, beat them.  For the top 10, that means playing the top 10.

Out of curiosity, if the Johnnies had lost to UWW last year (or UWRF), along with their early loss to Bethel, would anything have changed? I assume as long as the Johnnies won the conference championship game, they were auto qualifiers. But, what about playoff pairings?

[OzJohnnie]

Out of curiosity, if the Johnnies had lost to UWW last year (or UWRF), along with their early loss to Bethel, would anything have changed? I assume as long as the Johnnies won the conference championship game, they were auto qualifiers. But, what about playoff pairings?

Surely the pairings would have been different, I think.  But now that you have me thinking about it, the loss-against-the-big-names scenario pairings likely aren't that much different than what they would be if SJU played two lower-tier programs and won going away.  The big names are playing each other early in the season and the winners earn hosting advantages in the post-season.  If you want to host, then you need to play a very tough non-conference schedule.

Win the conference to make the post season.  Play easier teams in the non-conference match-ups if you may need an at-large selection.  Otherwise, take a chance against the top 10 teams and see if you can host a semi.

EDIT: Thinking further, the MIAC's playoff format sits so nicely with that logic that again I'm wonder if it was blind luck or genuine inspiration that led them to adopt it.  I'm thinking it was inspiration, and for cynical me, that's a pretty big admission.

[BDB]

Agreed...that's a gauntlet...
3-0 would be outstanding...
2-1 would be satisfactory...
1-2 would be disappointing...
0-3 would be disastrous...
Hoping for 3-0 or 2-1

As a veteran of the MIAC board with no dog in the conference fight, but yet have many Johnnie friends and even been called a "Johnnie Wannabe" back in the day, along with having a Gagliardi bobble head displayed in my office and a mid 90's poster of SJU v. Gustavus on the wall, allow me to translate for the MIACPP uninitiated what this list actually is amongst this regular poster group:

3-0 would be outstanding (but only by monkey stomps)
3-0 would be satisfactory  (by 10 or more)
2-1 would be disappointing
1-2 would be disastrous
0-3 would be *******!

I hope this clears things up for the casual board visitor.

[OzJohnnie]

Personally, I would need to start censoring words at 2-1.

[art76]

Been lurking lately, busy doing life. I agree, the Johnnies have one of the toughest starts this season. Bethel's is a notch or three lower, as they have Wartburg at home (pre-season #5), then Eau Claire on the road (unranked, and next to last in the WIAC last season), and then travel up to Collegeville to face the Johnnies (pre-season #6). If BU only beats the Blugolds, they're in for a long season. They have to win one of those two other games to have any shot at the play-offs at the end of the year - or even staying in the top 25 if they lose both of them.

[OzJohnnie]

No one can say that the Royals and Johnnies take the easy route in terms of national ambitions.  To be fair, the Tommies didn't either their last five or so years in the MIAC, but they suck so that kind of cancels all possible good will or positive credit.

[AO]

Been lurking lately, busy doing life. I agree, the Johnnies have one of the toughest starts this season. Bethel's is a notch or three lower, as they have Wartburg at home (pre-season #5), then Eau Claire on the road (unranked, and next to last in the WIAC last season), and then travel up to Collegeville to face the Johnnies (pre-season #6). If BU only beats the Blugolds, they're in for a long season. They have to win one of those two other games to have any shot at the play-offs at the end of the year - or even staying in the top 25 if they lose both of them.

If your only goal is to win the national title, then yeah, losing 2 of the first 3 doesn't make the goal look realistic this year, but if just getting to the playoffs is your goal, none of those games really matter since they're all out of your division. Beat Concordia and Augsburg and you'll get a home game to take the AQ.

[TheChucker]

Been lurking lately, busy doing life. I agree, the Johnnies have one of the toughest starts this season. Bethel's is a notch or three lower, as they have Wartburg at home (pre-season #5), then Eau Claire on the road (unranked, and next to last in the WIAC last season), and then travel up to Collegeville to face the Johnnies (pre-season #6). If BU only beats the Blugolds, they're in for a long season. They have to win one of those two other games to have any shot at the play-offs at the end of the year - or even staying in the top 25 if they lose both of them.

If your only goal is to win the national title, then yeah, losing 2 of the first 3 doesn't make the goal look realistic this year, but if just getting to the playoffs is your goal, none of those games really matter since they're all out of your division. Beat Concordia and Augsburg and you'll get a home game to take the AQ.

Augsburg is trending to overtake the Cobbers in the small group of realistic challengers to St. Johns and Bethel. It's hard to believe the Cobs haven't had a winning season since 2017.   

[hazzben]

Thoughts on this?
https://gojohnnies.com/news/2023/8/1/general-saint-johns-athletics-partners-with-nil-vendor-inflcr-launches-johnnie-exchange.aspx

Very Tommie-esq  ... D1 is calling   

[faunch]

Been lurking lately, busy doing life. I agree, the Johnnies have one of the toughest starts this season. Bethel's is a notch or three lower, as they have Wartburg at home (pre-season #5), then Eau Claire on the road (unranked, and next to last in the WIAC last season), and then travel up to Collegeville to face the Johnnies (pre-season #6). If BU only beats the Blugolds, they're in for a long season. They have to win one of those two other games to have any shot at the play-offs at the end of the year - or even staying in the top 25 if they lose both of them.

If your only goal is to win the national title, then yeah, losing 2 of the first 3 doesn't make the goal look realistic this year, but if just getting to the playoffs is your goal, none of those games really matter since they're all out of your division. Beat Concordia and Augsburg and you'll get a home game to take the AQ.

Augsburg is trending to overtake the Cobbers in the small group of realistic challengers to St. Johns and Bethel. It's hard to believe the Cobs haven't had a winning season since 2017.   

Cobbers outplayed johnnies in the second half of the game last year.