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Messages - Gregory Sager

#1
Tyvin Garrison, a rising junior 6'7" G/F from Springfield, is transferring to North Park. He played for D2 Lincoln (MO) in 2022-23 and 2023-24, achieving modest stats in limited playing time (eight games as a frosh, 14 games as a sophomore), then transferred to a USCAA school in Florida last fall but decided not to play there, thus retaining two more seasons of eligibility.

Fun fact: Until he joined the Springfield HS team as a sophomore, he'd never played organized basketball before. He was a hockey player up until then. I doubt that you see a lot of downstate 6'5" fourteen-year-olds playing hockey instead of basketball.

Quote from: tomt4525 on Yesterday at 02:07:35 PMFormer Carthage Big Man, Julian Campbell, is transferring to North Park.

Campbell verbally committed to NPU last fall. Not sure why it took him this long to finally announce it on X, but the Vikings are glad to have him!
#2
General Division III issues / Re: Flo Sports
June 25, 2025, 02:49:21 PM
Quote from: Kuiper on June 25, 2025, 12:14:21 PMI assumed that students got FloSports for free, but apparently that isn't the case, or it isn't the case at all schools/conferences or in all deals. 

You should read this op-ed from a Pitzer student who just graduated and was the Editor-in-Chief of The Student Life, the student newspaper of the Claremont Colleges.  You should read the whole thing.  It's really well done.  (you should also click the link below to read it directly from the website so they get whatever money or benefits they get from clicks, but I cut and pasted a snippet to give you a preview.)

https://tsl.news/i-dream-of-free-streaming-how-flosports-is-buffering-my-5c-fandom/

QuoteDuring my sophomore spring, my high school best friend and I — both sports editors of our respective campus papers at the time — compared our processes for reporting on games. As a Division I journalist, he viewed the action from the private media section and had to filter his post-game questions through the team's PR manager. Meanwhile, as a Division III reporter, I would just plant myself in the stands right next to the players' parents, walk onto the field and grab a few players for an interview.

This is why I love sports at the 5Cs: They're the most accessible higher-level sports you may ever get. Every student can watch hundreds of live games among over a dozen sports from two of the top DIII programs in the country — for free. And when I learned that this extended to free streaming for all sports, I thought I was set for life.

But that was until this year.

Last summer, the SCIAC signed a five-year contract with FloSports to make the platform its sole streaming home, effective this season. FloSports is a streaming service with a dubious history of data collection and privacy violations that houses several DI, DII and DIII conferences in addition to a number of niche sports. However, this means that instead of watching every game for free, students are now being charged $9.99 a month, or $5.99 if they commit for the whole year. For parents, alumni and everyone else, it's even worse, coming in at a whopping $19.99, or $8.99 if you subscribe for the whole year.

Why make this move? Well, if you ask SCIAC Commissioner Jenn Dubow, it's all about a new "quality streaming experience."

"FloSports has demonstrated a significant and sincere commitment to providing funding and exposure for small-school college sports in a collaborative way that can help each of our institutions' unique approach and goals to streaming and athletics communications," Dubow said when announcing the partnership last June.

As my available time for attending games progressively diminished throughout college, my reliance on SCIAC streaming surged. Lacrosse during Wednesday night classes, baseball during beer league and football at house parties — I was locked in and I loved it.

This year though, I have not streamed a single game. That's because, as I've said before, paying to watch DIII sports directly opposes why they are so great. Yes, subscribing also comes with the entire FloSports package, including plenty of college and other obscure sports goodies — but I don't care about those. I care about the teams of people I go to school with: my friends and the parasocial relationships I've developed with athletes I've never met.

I loved this piece so much that I bookmarked it. Something tells me that I'm going to link to it in an online discussion somewhere down the road.
#3
General Division III issues / Re: Flo Sports
June 24, 2025, 07:44:53 PM
Quote from: Ron Boerger on June 24, 2025, 03:30:07 PM
Quote from: CNU85 on June 24, 2025, 01:20:53 PMThanks GS. The issue is that I will forget 20 minutes after "learning" it yet again!

I'm going to blame it on age.

's OK.  The only thing I remember from two years of high school Latin is that my SAT verbal scores shot way up.

I now have a mental image of you finishing the SAT and jumping out of your chair while yelling, "Veni, vidi, vici!"
#4
Quote from: blue_jays on June 24, 2025, 02:33:46 PM
Quote from: Gregory Sager on June 24, 2025, 01:44:45 PM
Quote from: HansenRatings on June 09, 2025, 11:22:21 AMAnother thing from the President's interview, which I've been wondering about, is that the MWC doesn't sponsor wrestling. Seemed like they're going to try for an affiliate membership in the ARC. I think the CCIW would probably be the next best option.
Dubuque and Transylvania were CCIW men's lacrosse associates in the not-too-distant past, and Chicago was the dominant program in CCIW women's lacrosse as an associate before leaving to become an independent last year.

UChicago WLAX wanted to stay, CCIW office or the member schools gave them the boot.

It would've been the member schools, because the CCIW office doesn't make those calls.
#5
Quote from: HansenRatings on June 09, 2025, 11:22:21 AMAnother thing from the President's interview, which I've been wondering about, is that the MWC doesn't sponsor wrestling. Seemed like they're going to try for an affiliate membership in the ARC. I think the CCIW would probably be the next best option.

I suppose that that could happen. The CCIW's very associate-friendly ("associate" being the preferred language of the league rather than "affiliate"), and wrestling's a good example. There are ten schools participating in CCIW men's wrestling, and three of the ten are associates. And of the five schools participating in CCIW women's wrestling, two are associates.

The associates in various CCIW sports are mostly NACC schools, but Loras is an associate CCIW member in men's volleyball, and for one more year Wash U will be an associate in football. Rose-Hulman was an associate CCIW member in men's and women's swimming & diving before the HCAC began sponsoring those sports eight years ago. Dubuque and Transylvania were CCIW men's lacrosse associates in the not-too-distant past, and Chicago was the dominant program in CCIW women's lacrosse as an associate before leaving to become an independent last year.

If hazzbeen's right and the ARC gives a cold shoulder to Norse wrestling in the wake of Luther's overall departure from the league, I think that the chances are good that Luther ends up getting invited into the CCIW as a men's and women's wrestling associate member.
#6
General Division III issues / Re: Flo Sports
June 24, 2025, 12:17:23 PM
Quote from: WUPHF on June 24, 2025, 11:56:18 AMalumnx or alumnux = all graduates and or former students (gender neutral) of a UAA institution.

#7
General Division III issues / Re: Flo Sports
June 24, 2025, 11:24:29 AM
Quote from: CNU85 on June 24, 2025, 10:15:08 AMJust hire an Advancement professional (or 2). They will more than cover their costs and bring in more than the $30k from Flo and also develop long term relationships within the community and alum (ni, nae, nus - I always get those confused)

alumnus = male graduate or former student (singular)
alumna = female graduate or former student (singular)
alumni = male graduates or former students, or all graduates or former students in general (plural)
alumnae = female graduates or former students (plural)

In an era in which the number of people with even a cursory knowledge of Latin is tiny, it's to be expected that most people don't know the differences between these four nouns. So I always explain it thus:

* Everything you did in college was backwards. Therefore, the 'i' in "alumni" stands for all of us, while the 'us' in "alumnus" only stands for me, myself, and 'i'.

* A woman who went to college is an "alumna", because she likely said "naah" if I ever asked her out on a date.

* They are collectively called "alumnae", because they all voted 'nay' to date me.
#8
General Division III issues / Re: Flo Sports
June 20, 2025, 12:34:11 PM
Quote from: Kuiper on June 20, 2025, 12:18:00 PM
Quote from: jknezek on June 20, 2025, 11:52:47 AMSadly the pebbles are starting to push bigger rocks down the hill. I suspect all of D3 will go this route over the next couple years unless FLO goes belly up.

To state it more optimistically, the value proposition for a FloSports subscription is growing (more games you might want to watch on the network and fewer games available for free outside the network) and the importance of D3 to Flo Sports is increasing, which means that Flo has more incentive to take care of the schools/conferences/subscribers that use it.  This is especially true with some of the original 5 year-deals coming due in the next few years and the possibility of fragmentation destroying Flo's business model if a competitor picks off a few unsatisfied conferences.

I wouldn't characterize Flo Sports being subjected to a potentially competitive market for D3 sports streaming as an optimistic outcome. Pay per view is pay per view, no matter which vendor you're paying to watch a game.

In this case, "more optimistic" means drinking expired milk gone bad, as opposed to drinking expired milk gone bad to wash down a sandwich made with moldy bread.
#9
General Division III issues / Re: Flo Sports
June 20, 2025, 12:25:09 PM
Quote from: ADL70 on June 20, 2025, 11:19:35 AMUggh  UAA signs with Flo

https://athletics.case.edu/documents/2025/6/20/UAA_FAQ.pdf

As if we needed any more proof that even the schools for smart kids are capable of doing really dumb things.
#10
General Division III issues / Re: Flo Sports
June 17, 2025, 01:31:30 PM
Quote from: Ron Boerger on June 16, 2025, 09:22:47 PMSee ya, TLU events.

"See ya" = won't see ya  ;)
#11
Quote from: markerickson on June 03, 2025, 10:52:06 PMMcCarrell won 295 and 284 games at North Park and Mankato State (D2-MN), respectively.  I wonder how many games he won in the bldg now known on campus as Hamming Hall, and maybe? into the years of Bosko's college playing days.

None. The crackerbox was already built and in use when North Park began playing other four-year colleges as a newly-minted varsity program the year before McCarrell matriculated at NPC. It's thus the only home court the varsity Vikings have ever had.

Quote from: markerickson on June 03, 2025, 10:52:06 PMI do not believe NPC competed off-campus for home games on a regulation-sized court.

Actually, they did. For at least the latter part of the school's junior college period the Vikings played their home games at nearby Roosevelt High School.
#12
Two more NPU commits:

Noah Aguado, 6'6" F, Yorkville Christian
Timothy Key, 6'4" G/F, Eustis (FL) HS
#13
Quote from: GusD on June 02, 2025, 10:51:34 PM
Quote from: markerickson on June 02, 2025, 09:57:43 PMhttps://www.d3hoops.com/notables/2025/06/scb-hof-announcement  Viking HC Dan McCarrell will be inducted into the HOF in October in Florida.  Very surprised he has not already entered!

Bo Ryan too.  What takes this committee so long?

"What takes this committee so long" seems like a very valid question. However, rather than McCarrell, who achieved greatness in 1978-1980, and Ryan, the question seems even more applicable to someone like North Central's Bill Warden, who graduated from NCC way back in 1955. Without the benefit of ever making a three point shot, Warden (NAIA at the time) scored 2,249 points! This is almost 500 more points than NCC's second all-time scorer, a 1st team All-American no less.

::)

Quote from: Pat Coleman on June 03, 2025, 03:43:33 PMI think it's also inaccurate! Bo Ryan was inducted ages ago -- if you look at the page you linked, you see the 2019 feature we did on Bo Ryan when he was elected:

https://www.d3hoops.com/notables/2019/10/bo-ryan-master-teacher

And in addition, Bill Warden is actually in this induction class. Again, I invite you to more fully read the page you linked to.

https://www.d3hoops.com/notables/2025/06/scb-hof-announcement

;D

NPU press release on Dan McCarrell's upcoming induction into the SCB Hall of Fame.

Only two men have coached an NCAA men's basketball program to three consecutive national titles. One was John Wooden. The other is Dan McCarrell.
#15
Quote from: Ejay on May 27, 2025, 05:39:45 PMWill North Park be able to field a team  ;D

Trust me, that's been on my mind nonstop since the Rubio announcement was made. And I don't find it funny at all.

Student visa difficulties would affect a lot more than just the MSOC team at NPU. The Vikings WSOC, WTEN, and MGOLF teams, and the track & field teams for both men and women, will be severely affected as well if the Scandinavian pipeline is cut. Above and beyond that, it will be a wrenching blow to the school, not just because there's a fairly large concentration of Norwegians and Swedes on campus (not all of whom are student-athletes) who would no longer be paying much-needed tuition dollars to North Park, but because they are an important and valued segment of the undergraduate student body, not least because they are a living reminder of the school's origins in the late nineteenth century as an institution of learning for and by Swedish immigrants.

Quote from: Gray Fox on May 27, 2025, 05:50:34 PM
Quote from: Ejay on May 27, 2025, 05:39:45 PMWill North Park be able to field a team  ;D
I looked up their roster.  Move the games to Sweden.  ;D :'(

That would result in a rather long commute for yours truly to broadcast NPU's home games.