Ohio NAIA schools going NCAA DII

[cowboy]

Mar 24, 2009 10:59:25 GMT -5 WesleyTheWildcat said:

That would make very good sense for Northwestern Ohio to join the WHAC other than the conference name excluding them. Maybe Indiana Tech could join the MCC and then they could change the WHAC to the WBAC (Wolverine-Buckeye Athletic Conference) although that might cause some serious problems all together. hahaha.

Tech has tried to join the conference before and would not be voted in anytime soon

[knaveljm]

For those interested, DIIFootball.com has the following thread about a number of Ohio NAIA schools moving to Division II. www.d2messageboard.com/showthread.php?t=19629

This may not seem like a huge deal, but how many of the teams in the MCC (and not just in basketball, but in every sport) play these teams in non-conference games on a yearly basis? Instead of traveling to play Malone, teams may have to travel an extra 50 or 75 or 100 miles to fill that game on the schedule now. If that happens often enough, the increased travel costs are going to become harder to swallow.

[Kyle Feller]

That's a great point knavel.

It's been a few years (I think) since Bethel has made the Ohio trip to play any of those schools, but for Huntington and others it could be a big deal, as I think they play them regularly.

[oldtimer]

I think Cedarville's announcement is huge and will eventually have a big impact on the MCC. Huntington, IWU, and Taylor all play Cedarville on a regular basis. Mount Vernon Nazarene is also going to the NCAA Division II according to the posting on their basketball vacancy. There is just so much more prestige associated with the NCAA instead of the NAIA especially since they went to the two tournament approach. With the NCAA headquarters in Indianapolis it has been increasing hard for NAIA schools to even get mentioned in the state's largest paper, the Indianapolis Star unless the school was playing Marian.

My prediction is that within five years all the MCC schools will be either talking or will have switched to the NCAA and within ten years there will be less than fifty NAIA schools in the country (currently 291).

Thanks for the post Jason! My next question is which MCC schools do you think will add football? My guess is that IWU will in the near future!

[knaveljm]

Football at the Division II level is big. With St. Francis, Taylor and Marian already having football, if the MCC ever decides to go NCAA Division II, there will be a number of schools that at least consider it, in my opinion. It's hard to know exactly how football fits into a number of the conference schools philosophically (because there is no doubt that a football program changes a lot of the campus atmosphere at small schools), but I think the larger the school, the more likely they are able to absorb the initial start-up of a football program. That would definitely put IWU high on the list of those that might add the sport but I honestly wouldn't have a clue if it would be an option for most of the schools in the conference.

[rubalamp]

Huntington has looked at it several times, and I just don't see it happening. it would boost enrollment, but then make a considerable amount of the student population Football players, and that level of athletical culture would certainly change the dynamic of the campus environment.

[Kyle Feller]

Mar 26, 2009 10:27:54 GMT -5 rubalamp said:

Huntington has looked at it several times, and I just don't see it happening. it would boost enrollment, but then make a considerable amount of the student population Football players, and that level of athletical culture would certainly change the dynamic of the campus environment.

Agreed.

I played with a few guys that went to Taylor and let's just say that I'm shocked they were 1) Enrolled 2) Not Expelled and 3) Graduated.

[foresterpride]

Oldtimer, I think you are right.

If all these school end up going NCAA, it will be the death of the NAIA. They already lost PA and to lose OH would be a death blow.

But you can't say you didn't see it coming, that league has a commissioner from Findlay, the vastness of the league has played a large role in losing PA. The NAIA never should have let this league drive away as many members as it has over the years.

Saddens me very much, I think the NAIA is a much better association to promote Christian ideals and sportsmanship.

I see the MCC spliting apart when the time comes to choose between DIII and DII. I think Marian, Goshen, Huntington, Grace, and Spring Arbor go DIII, while IWU, Taylor, Bethel and USF go DII.

Definitely a sad day for the NAIA.

[FormerMCCer]

Mar 26, 2009 11:36:52 GMT -5 foresterpride said:

I see the MCC spliting apart when the time comes to choose between DIII and DII. I think Marian, Goshen, Huntington, Grace, and Spring Arbor go DIII, while IWU, Taylor, Bethel and USF go DII.

Definitely a sad day for the NAIA.

I would switch Taylor and Marian in the above list.

I believe Taylor has already talked about going NCAA III. Their current administration sees it as a better fit academically than NCAA II. Taylor would be welcomed very quickly to the Heartland Conference (Anderson, Manchester, Franklin, Rose Hulman, etc.). I have no idea where their decision making process stands at this time, but I believe they will eventually head in that direction.

[guybardo]

I disagree is you formermccer. If the Taylor athletic department, coaches, AD, etc. have a say they will go DII. Taylor does not have the endowment to be competitive at the DIII level for any exteneded period. You add in their cost and academic requirements and I think they would not be successful without giving athletic scholarships.

[maxpower]

I believe Taylor has been kicked out of that conference before...they may not welcome them back. Plus, Division II doesn't have two divisions, which would immediately eliminate all of the sports in the MCC from competing for a national championship.

[FormerMCCer]

Mar 26, 2009 13:25:02 GMT -5 guybardo said:

I disagree is you formermccer. If the Taylor athletic department, coaches, AD, etc. have a say they will go DII. Taylor does not have the endowment to be competitive at the DIII level for any exteneded period. You add in their cost and academic requirements and I think they would not be successful without giving athletic scholarships.

I hope you are correct and I have no doubt the coaches feel that way. However, I heard directly from a high-ranking administrator at Taylor that DIII was being seriously considered. I'm very confident Taylor has a larger endowment than Anderson or Manchester.

The only way a DII move makes sense for Taylor is if a whole group makes the move. There is no current DII conference that would be a fit, as the two major DII conferences in the midwest both compete on Sundays in some sports. (Partnering with the Ohio schools like Cedarville and Malone currently making the move might make sense, but the travel would be rough.)

Also, Taylor did not get "Kicked out" of the former conference. It was a unique conference split between DIII and NAIA schools. All the other NAIA schools decided to make the move to DIII (Anderson, Manchester, Franklin, Hanover) and Taylor stayed with the NAIA.

[maxpower]

We must have heard things differently.....kind of odd that they were the only one not to go.

[Loucks]

Per Wikipedia...

Rose Hulman's Endowment: $202.9 million
Hanover's Endowment: $150.8 million
Franklin's Endowment: $77.9 million
IWU's Endowment: $60 million
Taylor's Endowment: $48.5 million
Manchester's Endowment: $34 million
Anderson's Endowment: $20.8 million

[tubballfan]

could Taylor's endowment be better because they aren't in the NCAA DIII? I have a question for someone with more knowhow... how do schools in the DIII recruit? Do their coaches just give out "academic scholarships" or do they just not bring in and sign as much talent?