Quote from: Ron Boerger on April 17, 2026, 04:57:39 PMQuote from: Ralph Turner on April 17, 2026, 04:06:16 PMWill the travel budget for Southwestern be the deterrent to continuing in the SAA?
This is just me spitballing, but if they do leave it would be the combination of travel cost and time, along with the fact that it's now virtually impossible for students, staff, and local fans to support their teams at championships with the great majority being east of the Mississippi. I know that there are some huge SAA supporters at Trinity in both administration and athletics; not sure that's the case at Southwestern.
And, quite frankly, the SCAC front office IMO seems to do a better job organizing and supporting their sports and teams.
Austin/Southwestern/Hendrix definitely seem to often be in this dilemma: join like-minded, academically prestigious schools in the SAA or stay closer to home and have a better administrative/fan experience in the SCAC. Southwestern returning to the conference would provide more long-term stability as a solid "South Central" league with a better academic standing as opposed to the hard work of joining one more "Southeastern."