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General Ohio University Discussion/Alumni Events Topic
Topic: Leave the MAC to join a stronger conference
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Pataskala
12/12/2021 12:15 PM
bobcatsquared wrote:expand_more
DeWine started off the pandemic making the right calls with advice from Dr. Acton. But his own republicans have put too much pressure on him and his re-election bid that he has backslided over the past 12 months.
Same thing happened after the Dayton shootings. He told the crowd there he would do "something" about gun control, then buckled to the gun lobbyists and the gun nuts in the legislature. The result was legislation that was worse than doing nothing. When it comes to bucking the idiots in his own party, DeWine has no cojones.
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TWT
12/12/2021 1:40 PM
OhioCatFan wrote:expand_more
What follows is a test of my memory - which can be suspect. As I am recalling, during the early years of Vern Alden's tenure, the Big 10 contacted Vern about Ohio possibly becoming a replacement for a then non-competitive Northwestern.

The idea didn't go very far. If it had Ohio, as to football, could have become the sacrificial lamb that now is the duo of Maryland and Rutgers. As to basketball, under Jim Snyder, Ohio might well have been reasonably competitive, given Ohio's success against Big 10 teams during the Snyder years.

Now, if anyone wants to blow up what I've just recounted, please feel perfectly free to do so.
Not sure about the B1G gambit, but I do know that Alden tried to put together an eastern conference with WVU, Ohio, Rutgers and some others. The conference that he envisioned was very much like the Big East (minus Ohio) that emerged later.
He could have thrown up a 35,000 seat stadium in Athens and gone independent. The 1960's would have been the time to try something like that. Aligning in a proto Big East was too ambitious. I bet the flood plain situation had an impact on finding a suitable place for a new stadium.
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bobcat 2000
12/13/2021 6:04 PM
the big 12 would be better than the SEC. IN THE SEC we,d routinely get slaughtered in football. maybe if frank solich hadnt retired that could change after a couple years of recruiting much stronger players. the only drawback to the BiG 12 would be having to play basketball against kansas. even so we,d eventually be less intimidated playing them. it would be nice to be able to have a chance to get in the big dance without needing to win the confernce tourney
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bobcatsquared
12/13/2021 6:12 PM
Yeah, I heard WVU was lobbying the Big 12 for Ohio as a replacement for Oklahoma and Texas.

Who knows, if successful we could start our own sports television network like the Longhorns.
Last Edited: 12/13/2021 6:13:17 PM by bobcatsquared
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greencat
12/15/2021 1:41 PM
bobcatsquared wrote:expand_more
Yeah, I heard WVU was lobbying the Big 12 for Ohio as a replacement for Oklahoma and Texas.

Who knows, if successful we could start our own sports television network like the Longhorns.
U of Memphis thinks they are next in line for that. (And are probably butt-hurt that Cincinnati was invited and not them)

Population of the Cincinnati metro area: 2,190,209

Population of the Memphis metro area: 1,324,108

And the Memphis football and basketball venues are not on campus.

Plus some comedy relief: MTSU thinks they will replace Memphis in the AAC someday
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giacomo
1/16/2022 8:03 PM
Lots of dreamers in this thread. We would first have to have the community of Athens County, including the students, actually give a s$&@ and attend the games. Athens is a one horse town and we can’t even come close to filling the Convo and Peden.
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SBH
1/20/2022 4:40 PM
I've seen both facilities full for athletic contests, so you're wrong.
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akroncat
1/20/2022 7:25 PM
I was at the Pittsburgh football game and at the Bowling Green basketball game. Believe me, they were both past capacity. I believe the rules were changed after the BG game for safety reasons. There were no aisleways, just people sitting on the steps. In the first year the Convo opened, there were numerous crowds at or near capacity. I am not sure how many football games were full but that Pittsburgh game was something.
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giacomo
1/22/2022 4:00 PM
I see the attendance numbers and they are not at capacity. Maybe you’re speaking of Covid capacity. I’ll see if I can find the average attendance numbers. Watch the mid week MACtion football games. Hundreds in the stands. The Pitt game is a one off. BG hoops had 13k? I doubt it.
Last Edited: 1/22/2022 4:01:34 PM by giacomo
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SBH
1/22/2022 5:12 PM
Your claim was that we can't come anywhere near to filling Peden and the Convo. Incorrect.
Last Edited: 1/22/2022 5:38:27 PM by SBH
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giacomo
1/22/2022 10:42 PM
Somebody find the numbers. I will try.
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gedunkman
1/23/2022 12:10 AM
giacomo wrote:expand_more
Somebody find the numbers. I will try.
I've been at games in both the Convo and Peden that were at or exceeded capacity. Those were years ago for the most part, but with the right opponent and a good team we can get more fans in the stands than any other MAC team. Why are you cutting us down constantly?
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giacomo
1/23/2022 8:09 AM
You’re right. We pack ‘‘em in like sardines every game. Time to join the SEC.

I’ve seen the attendance numbers and although I can’t get to many games, I’ve been to several pre Covid. Football draws better on a nice weather Saturday afternoon, but certainly not on those weeknight end of season games. The last hoop game I attended was the 50th anniversary of the Convo’s first game. Maybe half full. My point is that in a town like Athens where there is not a plethora of entertainment options as in a bigger metro area, we should draw better, when you include the student population.

https://www.cleveland.com/sports/2019/01/mac-basketball-a...

https://www.theringer.com/2019/11/19/20972679/mac-midweek...

https://collegefootballnews.com/2019/07/college-football-...
Last Edited: 1/23/2022 8:32:13 AM by giacomo
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TWT
1/30/2022 2:51 PM
We had 24,000 for Syracuse and 8,200 for Toledo on a Friday night in basketball in rocky period for the university and college athletics.

Where college athletics will be in 10 years is tough to predict. Conference affiliation would be the last thing I care about. What I would care about is getting that basketball practice facility built because at the very least it will help Ohio win games. Peden still only has 21,600 actual seats not counting the standing room areas. Standing room is 27,000. Nobody has gained admittance to a P5 conference with less than 40,000 seats but the AAC added Charlotte with 15,000.

Continued grown in the Central Ohio region could be a factor for Ohio like it was for North Texas in Dallas. Alumni base is still growing for another 20 years even with the smaller enrollments at present. Its hard to say how Ohio would be viewed in a future situation and when that situation arises. Continue to grow the facilities and worse case Ohio could dominate in a lower division.
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greencat
1/31/2022 6:00 PM
Club Hyatt wrote:expand_more
We had 24,000 for Syracuse and 8,200 for Toledo on a Friday night in basketball in rocky period for the university and college athletics.

Where college athletics will be in 10 years is tough to predict. Conference affiliation would be the last thing I care about. What I would care about is getting that basketball practice facility built because at the very least it will help Ohio win games. Peden still only has 21,600 actual seats not counting the standing room areas. Standing room is 27,000. Nobody has gained admittance to a P5 conference with less than 40,000 seats but the AAC added Charlotte with 15,000.

Continued grown in the Central Ohio region could be a factor for Ohio like it was for North Texas in Dallas. Alumni base is still growing for another 20 years even with the smaller enrollments at present. Its hard to say how Ohio would be viewed in a future situation and when that situation arises. Continue to grow the facilities and worse case Ohio could dominate in a lower division.
Charlotte could play in the local NFL stadium as needed for bigger games.

My gripe with Charlotte is they collapsed the last half of the season, giving up astronomical amounts of scoring to run-of-the-mill opponents. That makes me less sold on Will Healy. He had that one good season at FCS Austin Peay and then the team went straight back into the toilet. He needs to do more coaching and less cheerleading on the sideline.
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Jeff Johnson
2/2/2022 2:57 PM
OhioCatFan wrote:expand_more
What follows is a test of my memory - which can be suspect. As I am recalling, during the early years of Vern Alden's tenure, the Big 10 contacted Vern about Ohio possibly becoming a replacement for a then non-competitive Northwestern.

The idea didn't go very far. If it had Ohio, as to football, could have become the sacrificial lamb that now is the duo of Maryland and Rutgers. As to basketball, under Jim Snyder, Ohio might well have been reasonably competitive, given Ohio's success against Big 10 teams during the Snyder years.

Now, if anyone wants to blow up what I've just recounted, please feel perfectly free to do so.
Not sure about the B1G gambit, but I do know that Alden tried to put together an eastern conference with WVU, Ohio, Rutgers and some others. The conference that he envisioned was very much like the Big East (minus Ohio) that emerged later.
I do remember hearing a rumor that Ohio might be in line for an invitation to the Big10 as a replacement for Northwestern as Mike wrote above. However, the rumor came to me from a member of the 110, and I had no clue as to where he heard it.
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BillyTheCat
2/3/2022 9:24 AM
Jeff Johnson wrote:expand_more
What follows is a test of my memory - which can be suspect. As I am recalling, during the early years of Vern Alden's tenure, the Big 10 contacted Vern about Ohio possibly becoming a replacement for a then non-competitive Northwestern.

The idea didn't go very far. If it had Ohio, as to football, could have become the sacrificial lamb that now is the duo of Maryland and Rutgers. As to basketball, under Jim Snyder, Ohio might well have been reasonably competitive, given Ohio's success against Big 10 teams during the Snyder years.

Now, if anyone wants to blow up what I've just recounted, please feel perfectly free to do so.
Not sure about the B1G gambit, but I do know that Alden tried to put together an eastern conference with WVU, Ohio, Rutgers and some others. The conference that he envisioned was very much like the Big East (minus Ohio) that emerged later.
I do remember hearing a rumor that Ohio might be in line for an invitation to the Big10 as a replacement for Northwestern as Mike wrote above. However, the rumor came to me from a member of the 110, and I had no clue as to where he heard it.
We’d be attractive to the Big10 for many reasons.
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Bobcat Love's Sense of Shame
2/3/2022 12:22 PM
BillyTheCat wrote:expand_more
What follows is a test of my memory - which can be suspect. As I am recalling, during the early years of Vern Alden's tenure, the Big 10 contacted Vern about Ohio possibly becoming a replacement for a then non-competitive Northwestern.

The idea didn't go very far. If it had Ohio, as to football, could have become the sacrificial lamb that now is the duo of Maryland and Rutgers. As to basketball, under Jim Snyder, Ohio might well have been reasonably competitive, given Ohio's success against Big 10 teams during the Snyder years.

Now, if anyone wants to blow up what I've just recounted, please feel perfectly free to do so.
Not sure about the B1G gambit, but I do know that Alden tried to put together an eastern conference with WVU, Ohio, Rutgers and some others. The conference that he envisioned was very much like the Big East (minus Ohio) that emerged later.
I do remember hearing a rumor that Ohio might be in line for an invitation to the Big10 as a replacement for Northwestern as Mike wrote above. However, the rumor came to me from a member of the 110, and I had no clue as to where he heard it.
We’d be attractive to the Big10 for many reasons.
The question I have is do we even want to be in the Big10? Should we hold out for the SEC or maybe even the AFC North?
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Mike Johnson
2/3/2022 1:14 PM
BillyTheCat wrote:expand_more
What follows is a test of my memory - which can be suspect. As I am recalling, during the early years of Vern Alden's tenure, the Big 10 contacted Vern about Ohio possibly becoming a replacement for a then non-competitive Northwestern.

The idea didn't go very far. If it had Ohio, as to football, could have become the sacrificial lamb that now is the duo of Maryland and Rutgers. As to basketball, under Jim Snyder, Ohio might well have been reasonably competitive, given Ohio's success against Big 10 teams during the Snyder years.

Now, if anyone wants to blow up what I've just recounted, please feel perfectly free to do so.
Not sure about the B1G gambit, but I do know that Alden tried to put together an eastern conference with WVU, Ohio, Rutgers and some others. The conference that he envisioned was very much like the Big East (minus Ohio) that emerged later.
I do remember hearing a rumor that Ohio might be in line for an invitation to the Big10 as a replacement for Northwestern as Mike wrote above. However, the rumor came to me from a member of the 110, and I had no clue as to where he heard it.
We’d be attractive to the Big10 for many reasons.
What do you see as some of those reasons?
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SBH
2/3/2022 4:36 PM
I believe he was joking.

On the Big 10 rumor, however, I vividly recall the "Welcome to Ohio" speech delivered by Dean of Students Carol Harter in Morton Hall during pre-college in 1979. She described the explosive growth of the school in the 1960s -- including the Big 10's interest -- as well as the downfall that followed the campus unrest of 1970-71. It was kind of a downer of a speech for a group of new Bobcats and their parents.
Last Edited: 2/4/2022 10:13:29 AM by SBH
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BillyTheCat
2/3/2022 10:26 PM
Mike Johnson wrote:expand_more
What follows is a test of my memory - which can be suspect. As I am recalling, during the early years of Vern Alden's tenure, the Big 10 contacted Vern about Ohio possibly becoming a replacement for a then non-competitive Northwestern.

The idea didn't go very far. If it had Ohio, as to football, could have become the sacrificial lamb that now is the duo of Maryland and Rutgers. As to basketball, under Jim Snyder, Ohio might well have been reasonably competitive, given Ohio's success against Big 10 teams during the Snyder years.

Now, if anyone wants to blow up what I've just recounted, please feel perfectly free to do so.
Not sure about the B1G gambit, but I do know that Alden tried to put together an eastern conference with WVU, Ohio, Rutgers and some others. The conference that he envisioned was very much like the Big East (minus Ohio) that emerged later.
I do remember hearing a rumor that Ohio might be in line for an invitation to the Big10 as a replacement for Northwestern as Mike wrote above. However, the rumor came to me from a member of the 110, and I had no clue as to where he heard it.
We’d be attractive to the Big10 for many reasons.
What do you see as some of those reasons?
Being a Research Level I institution is a requirement to be in the Big10 and we’d get to share in the research end of the conference. Would be huge for the University as a whole. We would help increase that conferences profile.
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bobcatsquared
2/3/2022 11:35 PM
But what about Peden only holding 24,000, BTC? Any thoughts on expansion?
Last Edited: 2/3/2022 11:36:32 PM by bobcatsquared
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OUPride
2/4/2022 9:28 AM
It's AAU membership that's a requirement for the Big Ten, and that's a whole other ballgame than the Tier 1 that we just received. Don't get me wrong, it's a solid mark of progress for the university, but it's not the big leagues.

In the other thread, I posted a composite metric of how universities stand on things important to the AAU.
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BillyTheCat
2/5/2022 10:36 PM
bobcatsquared wrote:expand_more
But what about Peden only holding 24,000, BTC? Any thoughts on expansion?
Duh, they are working with Intel right now for naming rights and a complete build out of Peden. It will be in an announcement soon!
Last Edited: 2/8/2022 10:31:17 AM by BillyTheCat
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TWT
2/8/2022 7:33 AM
D1 security for Ohio has been tied to The Convo since it was built. Its the universities best chance of staying at the top level in athletics. Going in on a big contract for Jeff Boals adds to that attractiveness.
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