Conference Expansion?

[SW_Mustang]

From what I heard in the past that football would be fully founded if they moved, but that's not somebody from the administration. We all know how expensive founding a football team is at that level and if St Thomas can't afford going scholarship right away how is Augie going to afford it? Unless they find a huge booster to invest in the program. The OVC is not an option in my book. I'm a huge Augie fan and I would love them to be D1 but the only way they make that work is if the old NCC teams decided to be nice and say we are going to start our own Summit League football league and we want AU. But I don't see that happening!

I'd heard back then that might be kind of hard for them to do, but I'm sure it was just board chatter.

IMO, due to the situation, the PFL was the best fit for UST regardless of money. I could see them making the jump if they continue to maintain success in the PFL.

[zimmy21]

Worst thing the league ever did was allow membership without football. From this fans perspective it sure looks like they let SCSU control the situation and allowed them to drop football without any penalty. Should have been removed with UMC.

[tman28]

very good find. The loss of Presentation will cause dominos in many possible ways. Dickinson could go out to Montana and Idaho in that league, but that is not a good option for Mayville and Valley City.

Dakota State will probably now look to D2 as the GPAC won't want them as the GPAC is private schools.

Waldorf will end up in the Heart of America with the other Iowa NAIA schhols and Peru State and Missouri schools,

I suppose they could always merge with the Heat of America and keep the Dakota schools too and have a North and South. Peru State won't like that as they would ebd up in the north with more travel

Dakota State has some big plans so I suppose it might work to join the NSIC. Jamestown apparently has smoney and some big plans too, but their enrollement is small. Dakota State has a bigger enrollment.

Bellevue would actually be a good D2 fit except no football, but they have big enrollment and money

I agree on the Bellevue being a good fit at D2. Big $ support and enrollment. Great athletic footprint and location as well. But i may be a bit biased being a BellevueU grad lol

[AU guy]

I agree on the Bellevue being a good fit at D2. Big $ support and enrollment. Great athletic footprint and location as well. But i may be a bit biased being a BellevueU grad lol

I don’t see how Bellevue is an option if we need a football school. They don’t help us with that!

[laker]

I don’t see how Bellevue is an option if we need a football school. They don’t help us with that!

I agree. They need to start football- we already have two non-football schools, which is two too many.

[SW_Mustang]

It would be cool if we could convince Superior to restart football and move up, though not sure what they'd do with hockey. The mothership might not like that either.

Seems like we've gone round-n-round in multiple threads about possible replacements and we seem to keep coming back to Jamestown and DSU. Appears to me that there isn't exactly a great fit, unless we choose to rapidly expand out geographic footprint, which is quite large to begin with.

[laker]

It would be cool if we could convince Superior to restart football and move up, though not sure what they'd do with hockey. The mothership might not like that either.

Seems like we've gone round-n-round in multiple threads about possible replacements and we seem to keep coming back to Jamestown and DSU. Appears to me that there isn't exactly a great fit, unless we choose to rapidly expand out geographic footprint, which is quite large to begin with.

Sometimes the best move you can make is not to make a move. I wouldn't be in a hurry.

[SW_Mustang]

Sometimes the best move you can make is not to make a move. I wouldn't be in a hurry.

Agreed. It's not ideal, but picking the wrong fit too quickly could be much worse. Plus I like the idea of OOC games for a few years.

[Thunder]

Sometimes the best move you can make is not to make a move. I wouldn't be in a hurry.

There are going to be several NSIC football teams each year that only play 10 games. I think that ultimately hurts the conference long-term. Is it worse than adding a below average football school to the conference? I don't know. There are no real good options right now if your biggest concern is football and that includes standing pat with 13 teams.

[vikingfaithful]

Worst thing the league ever did was allow membership without football. From this fans perspective it sure looks like they let SCSU control the situation and allowed them to drop football without any penalty. Should have been removed with UMC.

It was BS that those 2 schools were allowed to stay without football. If they were told they couldn't stay in in conference without football I'm sure they would have found a way to keep FB, especially SCSU.

[SW_Mustang]

It was BS that those 2 schools were allowed to stay without football. If they were told they couldn't stay in in conference without football I'm sure they would have found a way to keep FB, especially SCSU.

I have a tough time believing the third largest school in the state had to get rid of FB to begin with. I know there was all kinds of Title IX stuff, budgets, etc - but I just can't wrap my head around it. It's gotta boil down to sheer incompetence.

They were required by Title IX to add a men's fall sport, so they chose men's soccer - which the travel cost alone is probably insane.

[tman28]

I don’t see how Bellevue is an option if we need a football school. They don’t help us with that!

And I always thought that was annoying! A UNL thing maybe? Becuase UNO was a strong NCC team that dropped football with the move to D1? Left Kearney and Chadron as the Nebraska D2s... no local Omaha football completion for recruits. I know they use the prefered walk on program as seemingly a recruiting tool for the local kids.

[NSU4LIFE]

I'd have to look, but I think I was responding to someone else making that claim and didn't make it myself - but you could be very right. FWIW, I do think NDSU would compete well in the Big 10 (for football). I was just analyzing the reality of the claim that they could join.

I live in Jacksville, so I totally get the oddness that can come with the *DSU school fanbases. Especially as someone who didn't attend.

It was me. That late afternoon Bison 1660 guy always talked about how if they move it has to be a big move. Mountain west won't cut it. We are too deep and have too much support, etc, etc.

It wasn't just him though. I work with about 30 bison fans, i deliver to them all week, 52 weeks a year. Almost every hard-core one believes the same thing. Certainly there are more level headed fans out there but from my experience, that's what it is.

[NSU4LIFE]

It appears the NSIC has visited Dakota State and Jamestown.

https://www.newsdakota.com/2023/01/2...erence-member/

For what it's worth this link was broken. You can search the story still but now says Jamestown and the NSIC have said they have had no discussions.

Maybe they did and it got leaked or maybe someone made it up. Who knows.

We can keep talking about additions of schools but I'm more sold on the idea that we will have a break up.

I've said before I think it will be based on a "haves and have-nots" type of deal. Certainly doesn't mean that will be the case but I think that seems much more likely. Two smaller conferences with either of them able to add some of the named potential schools we have had.

I dont really like it or want it but it seems more likely to me than all of this uncertainty and odd nunbers mess.

[Umdfan35]

It would be cool if we could convince Superior to restart football and move up, though not sure what they'd do with hockey. The mothership might not like that either.

Seems like we've gone round-n-round in multiple threads about possible replacements and we seem to keep coming back to Jamestown and DSU. Appears to me that there isn't exactly a great fit, unless we choose to rapidly expand out geographic footprint, which is quite large to begin with.

If none of the other WIAC teams are d2, starting a new program at UWSuperior in not going to D2, plus who are “we” that could convince them. I still think MTU and NMU would be good fits, but they want Michigan ties for recruiting. Unless, UMD, BSU, WSU, MSU, Moorhead, CSP, broke away and joined them, then the could schedule non conference games down state MI. SMSU could follow if they wanted.