Iup basketball

[IUPbigINDIANS]

While certainly true, that's been largely a development in the 21st century. Shifting demographics and changing coaches seem to have resulted in a wholesale shift in recent years. I'm just saying it could get even worse. In the long run that's bad for the league as a whole, including top squads, because they get used to ho-humming their way past inferior competition in the area and then get hammered when they get out of the region and face opponents with fully their resources (or more). Certainly, the IUP dominance in basketball is a relatively recent thing. They had some nice years in the '90s and early 2000s, but had plenty of competition for league championships. They won one championship during the entire two-decade period of the '70s and '80s when schools such as Mansfield and Cheyney were viable and at times very good basketball schools. Of course that's all down the tubes now.

I don't know if NIL will help the top football teams in our region as the top teams in other regions will have just as many resources and probably less recruiting competition on average. And it might throw our region even more out of balance.

With the current financial state of many schools (and not just in the PSAC), I'd say the football limit of 36 scholarships is a bar too high for many (can you ever see most of the present PSAC getting anywhere near that?). It might be time for a fourth division, somewhere between the current D2 and D3 — perhaps a limit of 20 or something in that region. You might even get some of the better D3 schools to hop on that train. The schools that are doing fine in D2 could stay there.

The 70s and 80s are starting to go pretty far back but IUP's run started in the early 90s. Aside from Joe's first two teams, they've been a pretty consistent power within the PSAC since around 1993 or so. I do agree the league was much more balanced back then. I've said forever the 94-95 team would have beat any of Joe's teams, and also a couple of Gary Edwards' teams would have also beat some of Joe's better teams.

For purposes of this conversation, I don't want to confuse (or, rather, mix) scholarships and NIL. Obviously they are very different things.

If you can land one die-hard, business-owning booster ... you can change the landscape of how you recruit -- and the level of whom you recruit. And, it's not the under-the-table style deals from Blue Chips in the 90s. It's all perfectly legal.

So, if (as an example) I wanted to offer each of Joe's scholarship players $10,000 each for each season they play here through the NIL arrangement ... that's all perfectly legal and would be a tremendous tool for Joe to use on the recruiting trail.

To put it in perspective from a local example, Akron's starting group and rotation were said to all have made around $30,000 each in NIL last year for men's basketball. That's in the MAC. Imagine what Kentucky's rotation made last year.

Part of this is just something to talk about in late May ... but, it is coming to D2.


If you want to be sick, look up what the Bayou Barbie and the gymnast made down at LSU from NIL's last year -- upward of 7 figures each.

[Ship69]

Other side of the coin, though, is you could already make the case the PSAC is an extremely uneven playing field (and has been for a long, long time). And, que IUPNation, that's even after the 'IUP Rule' was implemented.

There's probably only a handful of programs with followings strong (crazy) enough to get in to the NIL world. In football, I'd say IUP, Shepherd and Slippery Rock would all be candidates.

In basketball, I could see IUP getting started with it very soon. Joe has a lot of powerful boosters. Gannon would be a candidate with Gary Miller.

No doubt when you start waiving money at these potential transfers on top of a full ride ... it would shake up the landscape even more.

But, as I said, it's already such an uneven playing field. In football, for instance, we have PASSHE schools (not even mentioning the privates) with 25-28 scholarships playing against fellow division teams with 4-6 scholarships. I mean, it doesn't get much more uneven. If IUP Football has a 7-4 regular season, the brass would want Tort fired. If Clarion goes 7-4, they'd toss a parade. It's just very different worlds within the same divisions.

NIL could be the path for our top football teams to finally make a little more headway once they get out of the region.

While certainly true, that's been largely a development in the 21st century. Shifting demographics and changing coaches seem to have resulted in a wholesale shift in recent years. I'm just saying it could get even worse. In the long run that's bad for the league as a whole, including top squads, because they get used to ho-humming their way past inferior competition in the area and then get hammered when they get out of the region and face opponents with fully their resources (or more). Certainly, the IUP dominance in basketball is a relatively recent thing. They had some nice years in the '90s and early 2000s, but had plenty of competition for league championships. They won one championship during the entire two-decade period of the '70s and '80s when schools such as Mansfield and Cheyney were viable and at times very good basketball schools. Of course that's all down the tubes now.

I don't know if NIL will help the top football teams in our region as the top teams in other regions will have just as many resources and probably less recruiting competition on average. And it might throw our region even more out of balance.

With the current financial state of many schools (and not just in the PSAC), I'd say the football limit of 36 scholarships is a bar too high for many (can you ever see most of the present PSAC getting anywhere near that?). It might be time for a fourth division, somewhere between the current D2 and D3 — perhaps a limit of 20 or something in that region. You might even get some of the better D3 schools to hop on that train. The schools that are doing fine in D2 could stay there.

[Fightingscot82]

Other side of the coin, though, is you could already make the case the PSAC is an extremely uneven playing field (and has been for a long, long time). And, que IUPNation, that's even after the 'IUP Rule' was implemented.

There's probably only a handful of programs with followings strong (crazy) enough to get in to the NIL world. In football, I'd say IUP, Shepherd and Slippery Rock would all be candidates.

In basketball, I could see IUP getting started with it very soon. Joe has a lot of powerful boosters. Gannon would be a candidate with Gary Miller.

No doubt when you start waiving money at these potential transfers on top of a full ride ... it would shake up the landscape even more.

But, as I said, it's already such an uneven playing field. In football, for instance, we have PASSHE schools (not even mentioning the privates) with 25-28 scholarships playing against fellow division teams with 4-6 scholarships. I mean, it doesn't get much more uneven. If IUP Football has a 7-4 regular season, the brass would want Tort fired. If Clarion goes 7-4, they'd toss a parade. It's just very different worlds within the same divisions.

NIL could be the path for our top football teams to finally make a little more headway once they get out of the region.

Can you imagine the shady sh*t Armenti would have been arranging if there was NIL 15 years ago?

[IUPbigINDIANS]

I don't doubt what you say, but I think it will be the death knell for competitive athletics at a lot of the struggling schools in Pa. and elsewhere. I attended grad school at Northwestern and it's always been a struggle for them to keep up with the Big 10 arms race, although they've done well in women's sports this year. When you see Ohio State, Michigan, and Penn State basically ginning up a statewide fanbase for NIL, I just don't see some of the schools competing. The only reason NU is at all competitive is attributable for a few sugar daddies such as Pat Ryan, whose recent donation of $480 million means he has contributed over $700 million to the school. He's basically funded about half the cost of the planned new $800 million football stadium. I have mixed feelings about that. Think of the scholarship funds we could set up at any of our schools with even a fraction of that type of money.

Other side of the coin, though, is you could already make the case the PSAC is an extremely uneven playing field (and has been for a long, long time). And, que IUPNation, that's even after the 'IUP Rule' was implemented.

There's probably only a handful of programs with followings strong (crazy) enough to get in to the NIL world. In football, I'd say IUP, Shepherd and Slippery Rock would all be candidates.

In basketball, I could see IUP getting started with it very soon. Joe has a lot of powerful boosters. Gannon would be a candidate with Gary Miller.

No doubt when you start waiving money at these potential transfers on top of a full ride ... it would shake up the landscape even more.

But, as I said, it's already such an uneven playing field. In football, for instance, we have PASSHE schools (not even mentioning the privates) with 25-28 scholarships playing against fellow division teams with 4-6 scholarships. I mean, it doesn't get much more uneven. If IUP Football has a 7-4 regular season, the brass would want Tort fired. If Clarion goes 7-4, they'd toss a parade. It's just very different worlds within the same divisions.

NIL could be the path for our top football teams to finally make a little more headway once they get out of the region.

[Ship69]

I don't disagree with you. I'm just saying it's already here.

If it would have took $20k in NIL for Tomiwa to stay at IUP ... I think it could have been arranged.

D2 NIL is obviously going to be very small potatoes compared to D1. But, it's already started.

I don't doubt what you say, but I think it will be the death knell for competitive athletics at a lot of the struggling schools in Pa. and elsewhere. I attended grad school at Northwestern and it's always been a struggle for them to keep up with the Big 10 arms race, although they've done well in women's sports this year. When you see Ohio State, Michigan, and Penn State basically ginning up a statewide fanbase for NIL, I just don't see some of the schools competing. The only reason NU is at all competitive is attributable for a few sugar daddies such as Pat Ryan, whose recent donation of $480 million means he has contributed over $700 million to the school. He's basically funded about half the cost of the planned new $800 million football stadium. I have mixed feelings about that. Think of the scholarship funds we could set up at any of our schools with even a fraction of that type of money.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Well, because it basically means those located in more populous areas or those who currently at the top of the heap will get more money. In other words, the rich will get richer as is happening at the D1 level already. Can you imagine anyone getting much NIL money in places such as Clarion, Mansfield, and Lock Haven, which are already having trouble retaining players and competing in most sports? Given the current track of college sports, I can foresee more Cheyneys in our future.

I don't disagree with you. I'm just saying it's already here.

If it would have took $20k in NIL for Tomiwa to stay at IUP ... I think it could have been arranged.

D2 NIL is obviously going to be very small potatoes compared to D1. But, it's already started.

[Ship69]

Well, NIL is here (and legal) whether we like it or not.

Granted, most D2 fanbases don't even know what NIL is. But, the schools with the big followings will slowly get on board.

The heavy rumor is IUP's fancy new transfer QB got money. Shepherd had 2-3 football players with NIL deals last year.

If you have prominent business owners who want to play the game, why not.

Well, because it basically means those located in more populous areas or those who currently at the top of the heap will get more money. In other words, the rich will get richer as is happening at the D1 level already. Can you imagine anyone getting much NIL money in places such as Clarion, Mansfield, and Lock Haven, which are already having trouble retaining players and competing in most sports? Given the current track of college sports, I can foresee more Cheyneys in our future.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

More on today's signing:

Josh Petteno / 6'4", 210 lbs / SG

Appears he will be a one-year guy at IUP (but not 100% sure). Played on a 19-10 team at Young Harris.

Started 25 of 27 games for Young Harris last year
- shot 45 of 118 from deep (.381)
- shot 75 of 90 from the FT line (.833)
- 99 rebounds
- 27 steals (team high)
- 42 assists
- Pretty consistent season performance. Had 26 against Chowan.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Looks like Joe’s flock is growing. Another transfer guard announced. Is he done or does he have more bills in his wallet?

Guards

Dallis Dillard
Jaylen Stewart
Garvin Clarke *
Denzel Kabasele *
Anthony Watson *
Josh Petteno *



Forwards

Ethan Porterfield
Gabriel Romero-Sanz *
Damir Brooks
Dolan Waldo



Unknown

KJ Rhodes (just graduated ... may not be staying)


If they have somebody on academic money (which is the rumor that 'at least' one is on academic money) then he could probably still add one more player (not counting the upcoming couple walk-ons).

I was really expecting this next announcement to have been a post player. It still may be coming. We thought they'd sign 6 players. Five are on the books.

[IUP24]

Looks like Joe’s flock is growing. Another transfer guard announced. Is he done or does he have more bills in his wallet?

[IUPbigINDIANS]

I am also against NIL in D2. I want to watch teams that are actually students, not hired guns. If it happens, I will bail on d2, and probably start looking at good d3 teams that play unselfish team ball. Yeshiva univ. Comes to mind.

Well, NIL is here (and legal) whether we like it or not.

Granted, most D2 fanbases don't even know what NIL is. But, the schools with the big followings will slowly get on board.

The heavy rumor is IUP's fancy new transfer QB got money. Shepherd had 2-3 football players with NIL deals last year.

If you have prominent business owners who want to play the game, why not.

[IUPalum]

I am also against NIL in D2. I want to watch teams that are actually students, not hired guns. If it happens, I will bail on d2, and probably start looking at good d3 teams that play unselfish team ball. Yeshiva univ. Comes to mind.

They won't pay you as much, Ben.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

It appears former WL player Luke Dyer has joined Ron Fudala's staff.

[Fightingscot82]

I am also against NIL in D2. I want to watch teams that are actually students, not hired guns. If it happens, I will bail on d2, and probably start looking at good d3 teams that play unselfish team ball. Yeshiva univ. Comes to mind.

NIL arms race? Yeah I'm out. A local bar offering to pay a player to do some sort of pseudo celebrity appearance? Why not. These kids don't have time to work anyway.

[Columbuseer]

Many of us on these boards likely contribute to our teams, but given the current condition of the PASSHE system I'd hate to see us get into some sort of D2 NIL race.

I am also against NIL in D2. I want to watch teams that are actually students, not hired guns. If it happens, I will bail on d2, and probably start looking at good d3 teams that play unselfish team ball. Yeshiva univ. Comes to mind.