Holy Hilltoppers MACMan

[Guest Guest_Z.I.P.]

I wasn't sure where to post this, but since most are gathered in the football lounge, why not here?

On the Kentucky bb there's a post that a radio station down there is reporting that within a few days Western Kentucky will be announced as the newest member of the Mid-American Conference, to begin in 2005-06. And another poster speculates that MTSU could be the next to join-up. There are facility issues that they must overcome. On the good side, we'd be gaining a national women's bb power. On the bad side, do we need to merge with the (former) OVC? Maybe we can name Joe Jakubick honorary basketball commissioner.

link: http://www.wildcatfaithful.com/vbulletin/s...&threadid=49417

[Captain Kangaroo]

I would think WKY and MTSU would be great replacements for UCF and Marshall. WKY is also VERY respectable in Men's hoops, and their 1-AA football program is "Top-5" level. MTSU is already at mid-MAC level in football, and has a solid hoops program. Their football stadium looks awesome too.

[zipsbandman]

I like the move. These two schools could help mantain a southern presence for the mac. We'll be getting a sneak peak of MTSU this season. Hopefully our bball squad can step up to the added competition.

[Guest roofan]

Found this on CFN Message Board...

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What schools have expressed an interest in joining the MAC. With UCF and Marshall leaving the MAC, the MAC-East Division has 5 remaining schools. The West still has 7.

Have any A10 schools expressed an interest in joining the MAC. Delaware, UMass, and Maine look like the best football programs and are state universities.

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Bowling Green will merely go back to the East Division like it used to be in. Even if they lose EMU, Buffalo, Ohio, Can't State, Akron, CMU, or whoever b/c of attendance problems, I think they'll only expand if they fall below the NCAA 1A requirement of 8, and I doubt that will happen.

Western Illinois, Southern Illinois, Indiana State, and Illinois State could probably all make the move if they had to, but I tend to think those schools won't jump.

If the A10 schools (Delaware, UMass, Maine, Northeastern, Dayton, Villanova, Rhode Island, etc) went 1A, I'd imagine that if enough of those schools came up, they'd join with Temple, Navy, and Army for a FB-only conference of some sort.

Those schools don't seem to fit the MAC profile, though, and the BigEast wouldn't want them, either.

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Assuming Temple does not join CUSA, I would look for them to start making a push to join the MAC.

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I could kind of see Temple in the MAC. They play Toledo and Bowling Green this year and were supposed to play Rutgers but got stuck with Florida A&M as part of the Oregon-Oklahoma deal negociated by ESPN. Maybe trying to schedule 3 MAC teams is a sign that they want to be in the MAC, but I'm not so sure. They'd stand a better chance of being a competitive program with a stadium and facilities that'd be the envy of the conference - esp with UCF gone - but I don't think Philly fans would be enthused to see MAC teams visiting the Linc 4 times a year. You should understand that Philadelphia is definitely a pro-sports city so it's not exactly that support of any of the schools universities - Temple, Saint Joe's, LaSalle, Villanova, Drexel, LaSalle - to begin with.

I think La Tech and North Texas stand a better chance of getting into CUSA on proximity alone.

It would not surprise me in the least to see Temple go 1AA to the A10.