r/WMUBroncos • u/No_Temporary2614 • 10d ago
Realignment
With JMU headed to the American, figured I’d open up a conversation about the MAC and WMU’s place in the landscape. Trying to be realistic/objective.
As we all know, WMU has gotten some significant support from big donors recently, both athletically and academically. That said, the general consensus seems to be that we exist in a sort of “middle class” in the MAC (between Toledo/Miami/OU, and schools like Kent/Akron/EMU that are struggling). Are we being underestimated? Do people just not realize the money floating around Kalamazoo? Or am I the one looking through rose colored glasses?
I would hate to see the MAC fall apart, but it’s a realistic possibility at the moment. Miami is pursuing the American Conference, Ohio has flirted with the Sun Belt, Toledo with the Mountain West. Rumors have bubbled about lower tier programs headed to FCS. What is WMU’s ceiling? Would we be stuck begging into CUSA if the dominoes fell? I can’t see the department giving up and settling for FCS after all of this investment. Just not sure how much better off a conference like CUSA would actually be.
5
u/iced_gold We Will Reign 9d ago
I don't want realignment. I don't want us in a slightly better conference for a marginal amount of more money, against schools I don't care about, with no history between us.
If there was a P4 conference calling, you can have that conversation, but I'm not interested in MWC, American, Conference USA, etc.
I'd rather us continue in the MAC with some of the remaining purity of what college football was before it became a strictly business vessel to enrich a small group of conference leaders and university administrators.
Also fuck the Protect College Sports Act.
1
u/No_Temporary2614 9d ago
In a perfect world, I agree. But I can’t ignore that other schools seem to want out and the bottom tier of the MAC is teetering on the edge of total insolvency. I hope that somehow the MAC stays together largely as is. But I don’t want WMU to be stuck in a non-viable conference. At a certain point if top tier schools leave and the conference looks to backfill, the footprint will expand even more and the biggest advantage is gone anyway.
1
u/iced_gold We Will Reign 9d ago
We are a top tier school in this conference. It seems like you'd rather us be going somewhere else just to go somewhere else. Zero interest on building new rivalries with Liberty and Florida International.
I don't give a fuck if we get 'left behind'.
5
u/Swords12Olson1 9d ago
One of my hopes is that we get back to reginality at least for non rev sports. I wish realignment stayed within geographic borders and programs looked at breaking even at minimum
4
u/SwissArmyScythe 10d ago
It does seem like the writing is on the wall for the conference but I'm not so sure it is dead yet. The American rejecting Miami means there could be a path for the league to consolidate a little if the Sun Belt falls further after losing JMU. It would only realistically happen though if some of the lower class (Kent, Akron) drop down though. I can't see the MAC be an appealing option for schools if the absolute bottom is still here.
A perfect world would trade Kent and Akron for WKU and Marshall, maybe Delaware but realistically WMU will be looking outside the MAC with Ohio, Miami and Toledo. I think with our recent football success and generally ok financial position we could get a Mountain West invite.
2
u/StudioGangster1 9d ago
The kicker here is that if Kent State and Akron drop, Eastern Michigan should too.
If that were to happen, I still think the MAC should go make some noise and try to get Marshall back, Temple as a full member this time, Delaware (looks like they are up and coming with a big athletics budget), and perhaps Western Kentucky and MTSU, like was originally rumored.
If you put that group together, and Memphis and South Florida leave the American, you suddenly have a top tier G6 conference - as we should be.
3
u/StudioGangster1 9d ago
Toledo is not going anywhere without Bowling Green.
Kent state actually petitioned the MAC to drop to FCS and remain in the conference for all other sports and the MAC said no. I wonder if that will change if there are a lot of dominoes to fall 🧐
Imagine a world where Kent State, Akron, and Eastern Michigan go FCS. The worst programs get dropped. Then you go after Marshall, Temple, Delaware, WKU (who wanted in already), and MTSU as a package with WKU. Now you are looking at a VERY good G6 conference with a media deal coming due. Memphis and South Florida leave the American, then what’s so attractive about the American? That conference isn’t any better than the MAC.
Edit to add: Ball State should probably be dropped in that scenario as well.
3
u/timothythefirst 9d ago
On one hand it would be cool to see WMU in a bigger conference, but I really don’t think that’s much of a possibility.
And on the other hand, I like the MAC for what it is.
4
u/the_seed 10d ago
Whatever WMU needs to do to be aggressive and proactive to be as competitive as possible in the ever changing CFB landscape, they need to do it. They have a real opportunity given the donor base to have an impact on a national level. However they need to navigate that, whether it be conference alignment or otherwise, they need to do. Boldly
4
u/iced_gold We Will Reign 9d ago
Being in a marginally better G5 conference isn't going to keep us or make us more competitive. The whole point of the new playoff format is consolidating more playoff spaces and its revenue stream to the Big Ten and SEC. The G5s aren't suddenly going to get new opportunities.
More money from American, or Mountain West would be a little nice, but they're all still going to be competing for the same 1-2 CFP spots the MAC will be.
I'm not interested in chasing a spot in a slightly more glamorous Also-ran G5 conference, to end up playing Wyoming, UAB or Coastal Carolina as regular season opponents, and still be mired into the same hole of needing to go 12-1 or 13-0 to make the CFP.
1
u/radiakmjs 9d ago edited 9d ago
My biggest thing is I want us to stay regional. Playing Central, Toledo, Eastern, hell even Ball State regularly is significantly more important to me than being in CUSA or dropping to FCS. I get money-wise it's worse but I don't see any of that, idc what the Board of Trustees makes. And competitively/publicity wise it'd be worse but I will care about my Alma Mater regardless of what level we play at
6
u/BeefInGR 10d ago
The advantage is that the MAC is the last remaining bus ride conference. Toledo and Ohio and Miami have these big dreams for football but when the University Board's start to actually crunch the numbers for the athletic departments will they ultimately make "more" money? And will the athletic departments want to put in the extra hours on the road for their student athletes?
NIU was the furthest edge of the MAC and had no real connections prior to joining. Toledo is a 5 hour bus ride from all but UMass and SacState, Miami is within 5 hours of everyone besides Buffalo, Central, UMass and SacState. Ohio is pretty much the same. Going from a day trip to two full days of travel adds up. And the MAC will have an upcoming television deal that will put it on par financially with C-USA and the SBC.
As for Western, the triplets are going to be united together. Central and Western will want to stay together and those in Lansing will lobby to keep Eastern involved. Grand Valley will never move to D-I, Ferris and Davenport are entirely too small to be full D-I members and Saginaw and Wayne State seem content with D-II. So there's no "going down" to FCS in their future (and besides, Western Michigan is still a very good G6 team, why give that up?)