I agree. I've never really seen the value for mid-majors. I would rather see a rotation of mid-major conferences do something similar to the ACC-Big 10 Challenge at the beginning of the year. It makes for some interesting matchups.

I disagree...

1) The Bracketbusters are a great way to assure yourself of being matched up with a similar RPI team provided that you've had a good season.  Takes away the disappointment of a team like Northern Iowa who looks good only to tank later in the season.

2) It's something different in the middle of conference play that gets the fans excited.  I doubt we would've had the same response for our Bracketbuster game this year if it was against a MAC West team instead.

I agree. It's time to get out. I've suggested a MAC-Horizon challenge before, but a lot of those teams already play on a semi-regular basis. I'd love to see something set up with the CAA or the MVC

ESPN stiff-arming the CAA significantly reduces the pool of quality teams. And at a minimum, we won't have another good home game out of it until 2014, six years since Mason came to town (which won't happen again for aforementioned reasons).

http://espnbracketbusters.com/site/teams

I don't want to have to fly to St. Mary's. If Butler is back, great. Otherwise, we're hoping for a MVC team in all likelihood.

Heh. Got a chuckle out that. I meant the team, not me. When Kent made the trip, a lot of people said have to fly out, back, then get to BG in a short window really took a toll on them. I remember they lost at Anderson and looked pretty ragged in doing so.

Of course, I'll make a trip whenever it's feasible for me to do so. But that's less and less the case these days.

Don't know if it is much of a benefit but it would seem that playing a team on short notice is good prep for the coaching staff once tourney time comes.  It puts a premium on a staff's ability to be able to game plan when you don't have all season to scout an opponent.  

As for laying an egg at Anderson.  Who needed a west coast trip to do similar in January?

I disagree completely. I don't care how much people think we benefit from it. I love the event and look forward to it every year. I like the speculation of who we will play. It creates interest. I even love the non-MAC matchups it brings. The whole weekend is a big winner for me.

We could always have more threads about how we should move to another conference.

Did it HURT anybody's chances?  or their seeding?  CSU tanked all through Feb, and their 1st round loss to Detroit in their conf tourney kept them out more than anything.  Long Beach St had a close loss at Creighton but won their tourney to get in.  And how about momentum?  Two years ago, the Cats used the bracketbuster as a springboard to the MAC tourney championship.  This year, Akron's loss to ORU started them on a spiral where they lost 3 of the last 5 regular season games and went 1-1 in the tourney.

The bracket buster always seemed really silly to me, in the sense that mid-majors playing mid-majors isn't really "busting brackets". Each year, mid-major conferences get what? Maybe 2-3 at large bids? These "bracket buster" games have next to no barring on any brackets. 

It would make a lot more sense if this ESPN event pitted mid-majors against majors that were on the bubble. That would fall in line with "busting brackets". The problem? Major schools would NEVER agree to that.

Can you imagine someone like West Virginia saying:

Coach: "Ok, who did we draw in the bracket buster?"
AD: "You drew Ohio coach". 
Coach: "Ohio, as in the Ohio that went to the sweet 16 and returns their whole team?"
AD: "Yes, that Ohio."
Coach: "#%$*#."
AD: "Umm......And it is @ Ohio this year."
Coach: Silence.......

With the CAA bailing, I'm not sure how this makes sense for everyone else? Removing Drexel, VCU and George Mason from an already "meh" field would be the breaking point for me as an AD. The MAC would be better off trying to organize a conference challenge, as others have mentioned.

If the CAA or MVC were at all remotely interested, I'd bail out of the "bracket buster" in about .1 seconds. 

Just saw the reason for the CAA getting booted from the bracket buster series was they struck an agreement with the new NBC sports network. Interesting. 

Colonial Athletic Association signs broadcast deal with NBC Sports Group