MBB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[kiko]

If he is, then we should BOLO to see whether the Cardinals are hoarding significant guards.

[Mr. Ypsi]

If he is, then we should BOLO to see whether the Cardinals are hoarding significant guards.

Now, now.  This is D3, the last bastion of 'student-athletes' without smirking.  A 'significant' addition to the student body may or may not be a 'significant' addition to the basketball team!

(I'm not really as cynical as I sometimes sound.  I taught at both EMU (mainly) and UM, and taught some genuine 'student-athletes' - and (alas) a fair amount of athletes who would never have been students if not for their athletic talents.  I think D1 is ALMOST hopelessly corrupt, but there are MANY athletes who are honest-to-god students, and some of them flat-out scholars.)

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

I've been told that a lot of the Academic All-American process has to do with a school's sports information department and how hard it works at making it happen.

Eh... the department is responsible for nominating them and maybe doing a good job presenting that nomination(writing it up) may make a difference... but knowing a bit of the behind the scenes, that is about where the process for the individual schools end. I have never heard people winning because the department worked hard to nominate and have them win. All SIDs in CoSIDA are eligible to vote (the percentage that votes is low, sadly)... so not sure outside of nomination how any "hard work" by a department plays into this. Trust me, there are plenty of conversations in the SID world about the Academic All-America process, voting, and how certain people win or don't win the honor... but never is there discussion that someone wins because a department "worked hard."

[Gregory Sager]

Perhaps "how hard it works" was an example of excessive politesse on my part, D-Mac. I could've said something along the lines of, "I've been told that a lot of the Academic All-American process has to do with a school's sports information department and whether or not it cares enough about the award to produce and file a nomination in order to make it happen." But that seemed unduly harsh, as if it was implying that there are a lot of SIDs out there who are slackers. And if there's one thing that I've learned in my almost forty years of following D3 sports, it's that D3 SIDs as a breed are the polar opposite of slackers.

[augiefan]

A while back I speculated as to whether the DIII championship would be moved from Salem to a Midwest site in the foreseeable future. The foreseeable future is now. The next 4 years the championship will be played at War Memorial Coliseum in Ft. Wayne, IN. A lot shorter trip for CCIW fans, if we are fortunate enough to get a team to the FF in those years.

[augiefan]

Any reports on Augie's recruiting class for 2017? I know they are recruiting 6' 3" Marengo SG Michael Volkening really aggressively but have lots of competition. He would be a great addition to the Viking roster as he is an outstanding 3 point shooter, who would compliment Augie's interior strength with his perimeter presence.

[Mr. Ypsi]

A while back I speculated as to whether the DIII championship would be moved from Salem to a Midwest site in the foreseeable future. The foreseeable future is now. The next 4 years the championship will be played at War Memorial Coliseum in Ft. Wayne, IN. A lot shorter trip for CCIW fans, if we are fortunate enough to get a team to the FF in those years.

You're jumping the gun by a year - next year the FF is still in Salem.  I kinda like Fort Wayne, but as a 'holiday' destination in March I'd definitely take Salem!  (When Mrs. Y and I went in 2014, the temperature was 70+ and the bike-riding in the Blue Ridge was fantastic.)  But FW IS a helluva lot closer.

One of my worries (aside from rookie FW folks vs. Salem vets on hosting a great experience) is that the arena holds 13,000!  They plan to curtain off the top area (so only 5,500), but can the fan experience of perhaps 4,000? people really 'gel' in such a big arena?  (My older son, his buddy, and I were at an early era MLS game at Soldier Field;  having perhaps 9-10,000 fans in a stadium meant for 80,000? was NOT a riveting experience!)

[Greek Tragedy]

A while back I speculated as to whether the DIII championship would be moved from Salem to a Midwest site in the foreseeable future. The foreseeable future is now. The next 4 years the championship will be played at War Memorial Coliseum in Ft. Wayne, IN. A lot shorter trip for CCIW fans, if we are fortunate enough to get a team to the FF in those years.

You're jumping the gun by a year - next year the FF is still in Salem.  I kinda like Fort Wayne, but as a 'holiday' destination in March I'd definitely take Salem!  (When Mrs. Y and I went in 2014, the temperature was 70+ and the bike-riding in the Blue Ridge was fantastic.)  But FW IS a helluva lot closer.

One of my worries (aside from rookie FW folks vs. Salem vets on hosting a great experience) is that the arena holds 13,000!  They plan to curtain off the top area (so only 5,500), but can the fan experience of perhaps 4,000? people really 'gel' in such a big arena? (My older son, his buddy, and I were at an early era MLS game at Soldier Field;  having perhaps 9-10,000 fans in a stadium meant for 80,000? was NOT a riveting experience!)

I mentioned a similar experience going to Ohio State's Horseshoe for a Columbus Crew game.

[badgerwarhawk]

I saw Ron Dayne trample the Buckeyes in the Horseshoe.  That was before they remodeled the one end and it was this huge wooden bleacher structure.  Our seats were so high up that our ears popped.  This time the stadium was packed and it was a hell of an experience.  Also those people know how to party afterward.  Absolute insanity.

[AndOne]

NCC RECRUIT

North Central received an eagerly awaited commitment tonight from Matt Smietanski, a Daily Herald All-Area 6'1" PG/SG from Lockport HS.
Matt averaged 11.4 PPG, 3.0 APG, and 4.8 RPG this past season.
He also is a very good student with a 3.5 GPA who, in addition to his studies and on court accomplishments, was involved in the Best Buddy Program, an after school program dedicated to working with students with development disabilities such as Autism, Down's Syndrome, and Cerebral Palsy.
Welcome aboard, Matt.

[WUPHF]

(My older son, his buddy, and I were at an early era MLS game at Soldier Field;  having perhaps 9-10,000 fans in a stadium meant for 80,000? was NOT a riveting experience!)

My first MLS game was at the Benedetti–Wehrli Stadium.  I am not sure if North Central had any interest in hosting the Fire beyond that season, but I loved watching soccer there.  Far, far better than Soldier Field.

Having said that, I have seen my share of high school games at the 13,000+ arena at the University of Missouri.  As long as the schools bring student-fans, I would not be too concerned.

[bbfan44]

A while back I speculated as to whether the DIII championship would be moved from Salem to a Midwest site in the foreseeable future. The foreseeable future is now. The next 4 years the championship will be played at War Memorial Coliseum in Ft. Wayne, IN. A lot shorter trip for CCIW fans, if we are fortunate enough to get a team to the FF in those years.

You're jumping the gun by a year - next year the FF is still in Salem.  I kinda like Fort Wayne, but as a 'holiday' destination in March I'd definitely take Salem!  (When Mrs. Y and I went in 2014, the temperature was 70+ and the bike-riding in the Blue Ridge was fantastic.)  But FW IS a helluva lot closer.

One of my worries (aside from rookie FW folks vs. Salem vets on hosting a great experience) is that the arena holds 13,000!  They plan to curtain off the top area (so only 5,500), but can the fan experience of perhaps 4,000? people really 'gel' in such a big arena?  (My older son, his buddy, and I were at an early era MLS game at Soldier Field;  having perhaps 9-10,000 fans in a stadium meant for 80,000? was NOT a riveting experience!)

What did they do in Atlanta a few years back?  How'd that work?.

[Pat Coleman]

It definitely worked, just not opening the upper bowl in Atlanta.

So the secret is holding it in conjunction with the D-I event and giving away tickets for free ... oh, wait.

[Greek Tragedy]

Specifically, the D1 Final Four was played at the Georgia Dome and the D3 Final was played at the Atlanta Hawks home, Philips Arena, according to the game report on this site. Their capacity is 21,000. On the Playoff History page, the attendance is listed at 3,541, but in the Championship game summary, it says 6,284.

I suppose as a player, it's pretty cool to play in a huge arena. But the atmosphere lacks. I always thought it was interesting that our high school football finals are played at the Wisconsin Badgers' 80,000 seat Camp Randall.

[Pat Coleman]

Specifically, the D1 Final Four was played at the Georgia Dome and the D3 Final was played at the Atlanta Hawks home, Philips Arena, according to the game report on this site. Their capacity is 21,000. On the Playoff History page, the attendance is listed at 3,541, but in the Championship game summary, it says 6,284.

I suppose as a player, it's pretty cool to play in a huge arena. But the atmosphere lacks. I always thought it was interesting that our high school football finals are played at the Wisconsin Badgers' 80,000 seat Camp Randall.

Yeah, I was surprised to see that 3,541 listed in the NCAA record book.