Amid the conference realignment shift that has rocked college athletics in recent months, Missouri State has finally been mentioned as a school that could be interested in moving.
Matt Brown, the publisher of a college athletics newsletter called “Extra Points,” reported Monday evening that Missouri State could be in the mix to move to Conference USA.
Brown has been a reliable source in recent conference realignment news. He was the first to report that Belmont is on its way to the Missouri Valley Conference.
Missouri State has yet to say anything since the report. Bears’ Athletics Director Kyle Moats was already scheduled to meet with the media on Thursday evening as a part of the men’s and women’s basketball media day.
More: Q&A with Kyle Moats: Missouri State’s future in Valley, FCS and potential stadium upgrades
A move to Conference USA would mean a move from the FCS to the FBS and the potential for bringing more money into athletics and the university through the football program. With the Bears’ recent success on the gridiron, the idea with football in mind is not far-fetched.
During a one-on-one with the News-Leader in August about the Bears’ position in conference realignment, Moats said he wanted to keep the university’s athletics facilities in a position to where “if we ever got the offer, we’d be ready to go.”
“It hasn’t happened, but with the next shift, you never know what might happen,” Moats said. “We certainly don’t want anyone to get excited about the Power 5. That’s not going to happen. But there could be some teams that leave and then a domino effect happens then you’ve got Conference USA, the Sun Belt and then you have some movement there that might happen.
“We’re happy in the Valley, but I do think there is going to be more movement. I don’t think there is any question that there is going to be more movement.”
At the time, Moats said the university had not been approached by anybody and it had not sought a move.
Since then, the Missouri Valley Conference announced Belmont will join the league in 2022 as it moves over from the Ohio Valley Conference. Missouri State President Clif Smart served as the chair of the Valley’s expansion group. There has yet to be a move that has impacted the Missouri Valley Football Conference.
More: How close is Missouri State football to being one of the best FCS teams in the country?
Conference USA recently took a major hit within its conference with seven schools announcing their departure for others. Alabama-Birmingham, Florida Atlantic, Charlotte, North Texas, Rice, Texas-San Antonio and Southern Miss are all set to depart the league. Marshall and Old Dominion are also reportedly being considered in the Sun Belt and could also depart soon.
If all were to leave, that would leave C-USA with Florida International, Louisiana Tech, Middle Tennessee, Texas-El Paso and Western Kentucky.
The sudden departure of so many teams has some wondering whether the league will survive — which makes the league’s desperation to act quickly and explore other options make sense.
“We have a strong core of members to build around and are continuing to work to strengthen our league as we move forward,” Conference USA Commissioner Judy MacLeod said in a statement on Friday. “There are several institutions interested in joining Conference USA, both across FBS and FCS, some of whom we’ve already met with in-person…
“We continue to believe in the regional concept and will look to incorporate that into our structure and scheduling.”
In Brown’s recent Extra Points newsletter, he wrote that he knew C-USA was looking at McNeese State, Sam Houston State and Tarleton State — which fall into Texas and Louisiana where the conference already has programs — thus the “regional concept.”
But his report Monday evening said the conference “could expand beyond just Texas and Louisiana” while specifically saying “don’t be surprised if Missouri State, or even potentially other FCS programs, get into the mix soon as well.”
Nothing has indicated Missouri State is on its way out or has any interest in joining the conference. Discussions would need to be had, and the school would need to be reassured that the conference has a sense of direction after losing so many teams.
More: It’s not always pretty, but there’s no denying how much fun Missouri State football is becoming
How much money can there be with a move?
A move to Conference USA — or any other FBS program — would lead to a boost in expenses with travel and whatnot but would also lead to more revenue.
For instance, Missouri State received a $425,000 guaranteed payment to play at Oklahoma State to open the 2021 football season. When Louisiana State and Alabama have scheduled games against C-USA member Western Kentucky, they’ve paid WKU more than $1.8 million.
That doesn’t happen in every instance but that’s an example of something Missouri State could be looking at. With enough wins, it would also open the door for the Bears to participate in bowl games and earn money that way.
There’s also the possibility of earning coveted TV and streaming revenue that comes from playing in an FBS conference. Currently, Missouri State makes enough money from the Valley in this regard to help offset the cost to pay outside services to produce games for television and streaming.
According to a recent report by CBS Sports’ Dennis Dodd, the future of Conference USA after program departures could be decided by the interest from television networks. The conference’s television deal with CBS expires after the 2022-23 academic year while the conference also has separate deals with Stadium and ESPN (with most streaming on ESPN+).
A report by the Nashville Post says Conference USA schools are paid between $400,000 and $500,000 annually through their deal — the lowest media rights revenue in the FBS. That could go down if the conference was to survive, but could also see a boost with many different streaming services competing for content to put on their platforms.
Where does Missouri State rank in revenue, other numbers?
Here is where Missouri State ranks among other C-USA’s remaining schools — Florida International, Louisiana Tech, Middle Tennessee, Texas-El Paso and Western Kentucky — along with rumored programs McNeese State, Sam Houston State and Tarleton State
Total Revenue
- Florida International – $37,417,121
- Middle Tennessee – $34,840,886
- Texas-El Paso – $32,172,228
- Western Kentucky – $31,531,023
- Missouri State – $27,776,407
- Louisiana Tech – $23,317,307
- Sam Houston State – $20,812,345
- McNeese State – $12,178,057
- Tarleton State data unavailable
USA Today Revenue and Finances Database from fiscal year 2020
Total expenses
- Florida International – $35,508,185
- Middle Tennessee – $34,840,886
- Texas-El Paso – $32,059,940
- Western Kentucky – $31,531,023
- Missouri State – $27,776,407
- Louisiana Tech – $23,586,495
- Sam Houston State – $18,425,132
- McNeese State – $13,126,087
- Tarleton State data unavailable
USA Today Revenue and Finances Database from fiscal year 2020
Total allocated
- Florida International – $29,617,389
- Middle Tennessee – $24,412,143
- Western Kentucky – $22,830,285
- Texas-El Paso – $22,553,309
- Missouri State – $18,380,452
- Sam Houston State – $15,036,944
- Louisiana Tech – $11,255,398
- McNeese State – $6,404,533
- Tarleton State data unavailable
USA Today Revenue and Finances Database from fiscal year 2020
Ticket sales
- Western Kentucky – $2,418,206
- Texas-El Paso – $1,626,736
- Louisiana Tech – $1,410,198
- Middle Tennessee – $1,334,886
- McNeese State – $1,274,640
- Florida International – $1,091,680
- Missouri State – $994,882
- Sam Houston State – $469,809
- Tarleton State data unavailable
USA Today Revenue and Finances Database from fiscal year 2020
Contributions
- Louisiana Tech – $5,890,290
- Western Kentucky – $2,707,669
- Missouri State – $2,343,714
- Texas-El Paso – $1,996,440
- Middle Tennessee – $1,775,589
- McNeese State – $1,619,054
- Florida International – $1,141,238
- Sam Houston State – $485,744
- Tarleton State data unavailable
USA Today Revenue and Finances Database from fiscal year 2020
Total enrollment
- Florida International – 48,664 (fall 2020)
- Missouri State – 23,618 (fall 2021)
- Sam Houston State – 21,912 (fall 2020)
- Texas-El Paso – 21,119 (fall 2020)
- Middle Tennessee – 19,188 (fall 2020)
- Western Kentucky – 18,183 (fall 2019)
- Tarleton State – 11,893 (fall 2020)
- Louisiana Tech – 11,197 (fall 2020)
- McNeese State – 6,693 (fall 2019)
What about basketball? Wouldn’t Conference USA be a step back?
Missouri State has been a proud basketball school and hoops have usually been front-and-center in most decisions. A move to Conference USA would be football-driven and a different line of thinking than MSU’s used in the past.
Recent history indicates that the Missouri Valley Conference is a stronger league in both men’s and women’s basketball. With Belmont set to join next year, the league should be even stronger.
In men’s basketball, C-USA has not had multiple bids in an NCAA Tournament since 2012 when Memphis was a member of the league along with Southern Miss — which is set to depart.
Women’s basketball hasn’t been better. The league hasn’t sent multiple teams to the NCAA Tournament since 2011 when Houston and Central Florida were members of the league. Only once has a team made it further than the second round (Alabama-Birmingham in 2000 qualified for a regional semifinal).
The Valley sent multiple programs in both men’s and women’s basketball to the NCAA Tournament as recently as last year — although the women’s side was boosted when Missouri State decided to drop out of the MVC Tournament due to COVID-19 concerns, gifting Bradley with the league’s automatic bid. Still, the Valley also sent two women’s programs in the 2019 tournament.
Men’s basketball in the Valley appears to be in a good place this season with multiple teams expected to compete for at-large bids, which could include Missouri State. The women’s side is more questionable with the Lady Bears far and away the favorites to win the league after making the Sweet 16 in March and the core of the roster returning.
Entering this season, Missouri State men’s basketball would be the top-ranked team in Conference USA, according to Kenpom.com’s popular advanced analytics. In the Valley, the Bears would be second behind Loyola Chicago. It’s hard to imagine any of the C-USA programs would be at a level near the Lady Bears.
Both Conference USA basketball tournaments are held at the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas — the indoor practice facility used by the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys. CBS Sports Network airs its semifinals and finals while the Valley’s championship is aired on regular CBS.
This clearly appears to be a step back in competition for both basketball programs. But could it also turn into easier paths to NCAA Tournaments year after year? Maybe that’s more attractive.
Where do Missouri State’s facilities stack up?
Part of putting Missouri State in a position to make a jump to FBS has been investments in the facilities. On a Valley level, JQH Arena is widely considered among the best basketball arenas in the league — if not the best.
On the football side, Moats envisions renovations to the stadium that opened in 1941 and has been renovated over the years — including one as recent as 2014 — that puts it on par with some of the better ones in the Valley.
Moats said a feasibility study is planned for the university’s facilities. He said the university is looking at possibly building a football complex near the south end zone at Plaster Stadium that would include football offices, locker rooms and team meeting rooms.
“The second piece of it would be, I am a proponent of doing something with our (west-side seating section) in terms of seating or be more club seating and having some suites,” Moats said. “But that kind of redoing the side, we might knock out some seats.
“I’m not sure we need more seats. We just need better seats. And I think we’d get people to buy them. So those are the two things that I’m pushing and that’s probably going to cost anywhere from $30-40 million. We don’t know that yet, but we’re at least exploring it.”
The possibility of an indoor practice facility would also be looked at during the feasibility study.
Here’s a look at the other football and basketball facilities in Conference USA and where Missouri State stacks up:
Missouri State
Plaster Stadium: Opened in 1941. Renovations made in 2014. Seats 17,337.
JQH Arena: Opened in 2008. Seats 11,000.
Western Kentucky
Houchens Industries L.T. Smith Stadium: Opened in 1968. Renovations made in 2008. Seats 22,000.
E.A. Diddle Arena: Opened in 1963. Renovated in 2002. Seats 7,326.
Texas-El Paso
Sun Bowl: Opened in 1961. Renovated in 2018. Seats 51,500.
Don Haskins Center: Opened in 1977. Upgrades throughout the years. Seats 11,892.
Louisiana Tech
Joe Aillet Stadium: Opened in 1968. Renovated in 2017. Seats 28,562.
Thomas Assembly Center: Opened in 1982. Upgrades throughout the years. Seats 8,000.
Middle Tennessee
Johny “Red” Floyd Stadium: Opened in 1933. Renovated in 1998. Seats 30,788.
Murphy Center: Opened in 1972. Renovated in 2014. Seats 11,520.
Florida International
Riccardo Silva Stadium: Opened in 1995. Renovated in 2012. Seats 20,000.
Ocean Bank Convocation Center: Opened in 1986. Renovated in 2011. Seats 5,000
McNeese State
Cowboy Stadium: Opened in 1965. Upgrades throughout the years. Seats 17,610.
H&HP Complex: Opened in 2018. Seats 4,242.
Sam Houston State
Elliott T. Bowers Stadium: Opened in 1986. Upgrades throughout the years. Seats 14,000.
Bernard Johnson Coliseum: Opened in 1976. Renovated in 2016. Seats 6,100.
Tarleton State
Memorial Stadium: Opened in 1977. Announced Friday renovation to stadium to increase capacity to 20,000.
Wisdom Gym: Opened in 1970. Renovated in 2010. Seats 2,400.
Could Conference USA be a step up before bigger and better?
Conference USA has had a reputation for years as being a conference that is used before being the step-up to a different conference.
As recent weeks indicate, that could be a move to the American Athletic Conference or it can be a move over to the Sun Belt.
Before this most recent wave, the league has lost seven schools since 2013 — including Central Florida, Houston, Memphis, Southern Methodist, East Carolina, Tulane and Tulsa. All of those schools left for The American with two, Central Florida and Houston, set to join the Big 12 in 2023.
It’s difficult to project something like this when it’s not a guarantee Missouri State receives an invitation to Conference USA or is even interested.
But it does show that the league has adapted and survived before and can maybe serve as an inspiration to Missouri State that it can do it again. Although, it can easily be argued that the league took a step back after those schools left and that another one could be on its way.
This could be years and years down the road, but the blueprint has been there for many schools across the country.
The bottom line
It is not surprising that Missouri State’s name is finally out there as a school that can make a jump to the FBS.
Moats hasn’t been shy about speaking of the possibility. He could have easily said “we’re happy where we are” without going into detail as he has in the past.
There is a fear that you can be left behind if you don’t act now. FCS is already seen by some as the third-tier of college football with the Power 5 conferences and group of five being the first and second.
With other conferences, such as the SEC, getting stronger, along with the uncertainty over playoff expansion and more possible super conferences, there’s a chance the FCS can be seen lower than it already is.
Smart, Missouri State’s president, and Moats have both spoken to the importance of “the profile of the university,” and a bump in football to FBS can definitely raise that profile.
But is Conference USA the right opportunity to jump at?
There’s no guarantee a college athletics conference realignment shift like this will happen any time soon and, as mentioned, Missouri State doesn’t want to be left behind.
But the downward spiral C-USA has taken in recent years and weeks could leave some uneasiness. Missouri State doesn’t want to jump from a stable basketball and top-level FCS football ship to an FBS football league that might have a leak that can’t be fixed.
If indeed interested, Missouri State would do its homework and needs some assurances when it comes to who else could be joining the league. It’s hard to imagine the administration and board of governors would sign off without knowing the league’s sense of direction.
At the end of the day, Missouri State should be exploring these opportunities to at least assess where it’s at and where it needs to get in the near future.
This story might not be going anywhere any time soon.
Wyatt D. Wheeler is a reporter and columnist with the Springfield News-Leader. You can contact him at 417-371-6987, by email at wwheeler@news-leader.com or Twitter at @WyattWheeler_NL. He’s also the co-host of Sports Talk on Jock Radio weekdays from 4-6 p.m.
from WordPress https://ift.tt/3vMPUqG
via IFTTT
No comments:
Post a Comment